The Letters of Joe Hill

by Joe Hill, Philip S. Foner (Editor), Tom Morello (Introduction)

"Joe Hill's influence is everywhere. Without Joe Hill, there's no Woody Guthrie, no Dylan, no Springsteen, no Clash, no Public Enemy, no Minor Threat, no System of a Down, no Rage Against the Machine."—Tom Morello, from the foreword

Radical songwriter and organizer Joe Hill was murdered by the capitalist state in 1915, but his songs continue to inspire working-class activists and musicians. In this collection of letters, assembled by radical historian Philip Foner with  new material by Alexis Buss, readers are provided a window into the political reflections and personal struggles behind Hill's legend.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Music, Labor, Biography

136 pages, Paperback

First published November 3, 2015

Reviews

[Dina Maio · Rating 5 out of 5]

An inspiring book about a man who, condemned to death for a crime he didn't commit, bore no ill will toward anyone and kept focus on the goals of workers' rights. A beautiful soul, and it is no surprise his funeral was attended by 30,000 people.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn’t a biography and I didn’t know a lot going in, so there were gaps in my understanding, some were filled with notes. I was able to grasp the general understanding of events of Joe Hill’s life and his character through these surviving letters, articles, and songs. He was a complex man, seems he was a man of his times with prejudice, which is disappointing. He certainly was admirable in his work to better the situations of the average person; and also admirable in his attitude toward what is almost assuredly the injustice of his conviction and execution. This is not an unbiased source, I do not know if there are pertinent things left out; I certainly admire him though and I would like to learn more. I will look for more biographies and histories having to do with Joe Hill, the labor movement, labor ideas he was associated with (OBU!) and the times that he lived in.

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Joe Hill would be respected by any modern American, even if they disagreed with him. From libertarians to socialists, Democrats to Republicans, to independents and the apolitical. I don't agree with all of Mr. Hill's views, but I feel like if we met, we could sit down and have a meaningful discourse.

My state recently changed its laws regarding unions, so I thought it would behoove me to learn more. I am still in the data gathering part of forming my opinion (I will say, I found John Stossel's reporting on teachers' unions eye opening).
So I fell down an internet-fueled historical rabbit hole. I was surprised to find out that 1. rebel art and music seems to be a constant factor no matter where or when you're researching any human history, and 2. such an important chapter in the US's history took place in my home state. (At least, that's where it ended.)

The song 'Rebel Girl' is a genuinely good song. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Joe Hill was a supporter of freedom for all. He found societal conventions ridiculous. A woman wants to work? Pay her just as well as anyone, the end.

I think I'll read a biography of Joe Hill soon, as I found his letters fascinating.

[Randall Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prison writings are a whole subgenre – amazing radicals who are not silenced by prison but instead are transformed or empowered – Antonio Gramsci, Eugene Debs, Eldridge Cleaver, Assata Shakur, Malcolm X, Leonard Peltier, Mumia Abu-Jamal, and now just released here are the letters of Joe Hill. To Joe, entertainment was the key vehicle for getting points across, “The idea is to establish a kind of social feeling of good fellowship between the male and female workers, that would give them a foretaste of our future society and make them more interested in the class struggle and the overthrow of the old system of corruption.” “A pamphlet, no matter how good, is never read more than once, but a song is learned by heart and repeated over and over”. “The White Slave” and “The Preacher and the Slave” are still extremely powerful lyrics today. And Tom Morello is astute in stating that without Joe Hill you wouldn’t have Woody Guthrie, Dylan, Springsteen, Clash or Rage Against the Machine. It’s also really fun to enjoy Joe’s cartoons; rare is the amateur who draws that well today. Poor Joe Hill ended up being executed because he was shot by someone else in an argument on the same night of a nearby double murder by a career criminal and Joe couldn’t “prove” he wasn’t shot at the double murder. Even after reading this book, I still don’t understand why Joe Hill didn’t ever say where he was shot and by who? Anyway, a great man and a great book…

[Mason Wyss]

The history of Joe Hill’s life and the setup that culminated in his execution are interesting, but his songs are what inspire me to organize and strike. I hope that others read this book and the songs it contains and are also inspired as I am. I’ve created a Spotify playlist with the same name as the book of some of the best covers of songs in the third section. I hope people give it, and the albums and artists within, a listen.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1fk...

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Freedom

[Colin Feely]

Heartbreaking. Truly. Hill was a humble and honest working man and organizer. In his final correspondence he pleads the IWW to forget him and allocate the funds for his defense to more worthy causes. A truly selfless man who died an unwilling martyr for the cause of labor. I will admit I shed a tear reading his final will. This is a powerful read for anyone who supports the cause of the exploited and enslaved. RIP to Joe Hill, the man who will never die.

[Bradley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Could have just read a Wikipedia page. . .