Organized labor is pouring an unprecedented amount of money into efforts to re-election President Clinton this November. The AFL-CIO has been criticized by some for giving so early an endorsement to a politician who pushed through NAFTA, a treaty which many believe will hurt American workers for years to come. John Sweeney, the President of the AFL-CIO, addressed delegates at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this past week.

Music has always been an important part of the labor movement. Songs have not only called on workers to fight oppressive working conditions, but have documented work people’s struggles for justice. One of the most powerful voices of labor’s music heritage is Hazel Dickens who grew up in and around the nation’s coal mines.