author
Walker C. Smith
A lively voice from the Industrial Workers of the World, he wrote sharp, spirited books and pamphlets that captured the fights and ideals of early 20th-century labor activism. His work blends history, argument, and wit, making it a vivid window into the radical labor movement of his time.
1 Audiobook
The Everett Massacre: A history of the class struggle in the lumber industry
by Walker C. Smith
About the author
Born in Washington, D.C., in 1885, Walker C. Smith became a prominent writer, speaker, and organizer for the Industrial Workers of the World, also known as the Wobblies. He worked as an editor and pamphleteer, using clear, forceful language to explain labor struggles and advocate for working-class solidarity.
Smith wrote across several forms, including socialist newspapers, political tracts, satire, plays, and verse. He is especially known for works such as Sabotage: Its History, Philosophy & Function and The Everett Massacre, which helped document and interpret major conflicts in labor history from an openly partisan point of view.
His life as an activist-writer was closely tied to the controversies of his era, and he was reportedly arrested more than once because of his union work and public speaking. He died in 1927, but his writing still stands as a vivid record of the language, energy, and urgency of the radical labor movement in the United States.