Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor

by Kim Kelly

A 2022 New Yorker Best Book of the Year
A 2022 Esquire Best Nonfiction Book of the Year
A 2022 BuzzFeed Book You’ll Love
A 2022 LitHub Favorite Book of the Year

“Kelly unearths the stories of the people-farm laborers, domestic workers, factory employees—behind some of the labor movement’s biggest successes.” — The New York Times

A revelatory, inclusive history of the American labor movement, from independent journalist and Teen Vogue labor columnist Kim Kelly.

Freed Black women organizing for protection in the Reconstruction-era South. Jewish immigrant garment workers braving deadly conditions for a sliver of independence. Asian American fieldworkers rejecting government-sanctioned indentured servitude across the Pacific. Incarcerated workers advocating for basic human rights and fair wages. The queer Black labor leader who helped orchestrate America’s civil rights movement. These are only some of the working-class heroes who propelled American labor’s relentless push for fairness and equal protection under the law.

The names and faces of countless silenced, misrepresented, or forgotten leaders have been erased by time as a privileged few decide which stories get cut from the final copy: those of women, people of color, LGBTQIA people, disabled people, sex workers, prisoners, and the poor. In this assiduously researched work of journalism, Teen Vogue columnist and independent labor reporter Kim Kelly excavates that history and shows how the rights the American worker has today—the forty-hour workweek, workplace-safety standards, restrictions on child labor, protection from harassment and discrimination on the job—were earned with literal blood, sweat, and tears.

Fight Like Hell comes at a time of economic reckoning in America. From Amazon’s warehouses to Starbucks cafes, Appalachian coal mines to the sex workers of Portland’s Stripper Strike, interest in organized labor is at a fever pitch not seen since the early 1960s.

Inspirational, intersectional, and full of crucial lessons from the past, Fight Like Hell shows what is possible when the working class demands the dignity it has always deserved.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Labor, Politics, Social Justice, Audiobook, American History

448 pages, Hardcover

First published April 26, 2022

Reviews

[Book Clubbed · Rating 3 out of 5]

My dad was a labor organizer, so I need no persuasion to agree with the power of organized labor and the necessity of worker rights. My review, then, is rather about the stories Kelly chooses to tell, the structure of those stories, and the tone she has settled on.

Kelly covers a lot of ground, escorting us through American labor and its many obstacles, neatly grouped into themes. We get a good sense of labor's leading figures, although these glowing profiles too often lost definition under the rainbow gloss of adjectives and superlatives. The people profiled in this book are undoubtedly American heroes, often quite literarily risking their lives to fight for the basic rights of working-class men and women. Personally, I would have rather seen that come through in their own actions and words, and not in the effusive, rally-the-troops style of the prose. In fact, I gravitate more towards legends who have noticeable flaws and warts, their humanity casting their accomplishments all that more extraordinary.

[Theo Logos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excluding the “Other” has been a great Achilles heel in the history of the American labor movement. Whether it was skilled workers excluding unskilled, whites excluding blacks, men excluding women, natives excluding immigrants, or hetero excluding queer, it detracts from their potential strength. Beyond that, it allows Capital to use a divide and conquer strategy to defeat Labor goals.

Kim Kelly’s book, Fight Like Hell, focuses on the stories of those who have often been excluded from the mainstream of the Labor Movement. It is full of short histories and anecdotes of women, Blacks, Latinos, immigrants, and LGBTQ union activists and groups, all the way back to the early 19th century. The stories are sometimes of victories against the odds, sometimes about valiant fights waged and lost, but all show the potential power of all these othered groups, and demonstrate their place in Labor history. She also focuses on organizing in difficult and non traditional industries, such as farming, domestic work, sex work, and even prison labor.

The book is organized thematically rather than chronologically. I found this a bit jarring, as stories would be jumping multiple decades in time backwards and forwards again, sometimes feeling unconnected despite the loose themes. Also, the tone of the book was much like the rah rah atmosphere of a union meeting firing up the members for a rally rather than a straight historical rendering.

These quibbles aside, this is an important book. By emphasizing the stories of those often excluded both by society at large and by organized labor, Kelly puts them back into Labor’s story. She explodes the stereotype image of labor as just some old white guy in a hard hat. This is absolutely necessary for the Labor Movement to succeed going forward. Everyone is needed in the fight. Divisive infighting and exclusion based on fear and prejudice cannot be tolerated. We all get there together, or none of us get there.

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

What would a book about the labor movement sound like if it had, not only absolutely no Marxist analysis, but also no theory of political power at all? Pretty incoherent! Some of the short biographies shared here are new and interesting but they float disconnected from any overarching idea of what worker power is even for. The chapter on sex work is especially awful but the disability rights section is also pretty bad.
I called this books’ tone “Teen Vogue Babytalk” before I knew the author had worked for Teen Vogue. So a lesson is to never buy a book by a Teen Vogue staffer.

[Heather Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is this the first time I've read a book because a cat recommended it to me? Maybe. But Jorts the Cat suggested that this book was well worth reading, and the cat was totally right. At first, I was not so sure I was going to get into this history of labor unions, specifically, the history of the involvement of people who sometimes get edited out of history, like people of color, women, people with disabilities, and people from sexual minorities. But the further I read, the more I wanted to read, and I closed the book feeling more informed and more engaged, and more connected with labor history, which was so rarely and poorly taught in the schools I attended.

Definitely read this, if you want to know more about how you got an eight-hour work day, or what you can do in your own workplace to fight oppression.

Thanks, Jorts.

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 5 out of 5]

If there is ONE nonfiction book you read this year, have it be this one.

Trust me.

Anyone saying that worker's rights came about peacefully and due to owners wanting better working conditions is selling you something and that something they are selling is worker exploitation for a better owner profit. Don't buy into it.

Anywho, long story short: the millionaire mindset is OUT and the union mindset is IN.

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Kim Kelly, but this was a tough one for me to finish. The decision to cover breadth rather than depth made these important stories feel rushed. Grouping in subject matter rather than chronology also made it difficult to follow a through-narrative of contribution and shaping of the overall movement, which I think is crucial to recounting the stories of people of color and women left out of mainstream labor histories. Some stories (or important clarifications or legacy asterisks) were literally told in a side-note style sentence. I unfortunately feel like I will forget many of these stories because they lack the stickiness that comes with the connective tissue of narrative or detail. However, I also feel like the second half of the book was much stronger on these fronts and I found myself more engaged in later chapters.

Since some of this may just be personal preference, I still would recommend. Others may prefer the more encyclopedic-style of bite-sized history chewed one at a time. I definitely marked many stories that I want to return to and learn about more thoroughly, so I am grateful for that!

[pugs · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you're completely new to learning about organized labor, this is an easy 5 star, kelly hits on the importance of coal mining, domestic/house work, haymarket, teamsters, afl and cio histories, undocumented labor, airlines, and sex work; and revolves around the role of women in all-men's unions, women developing unions themselves, Black, indigenous, east, south east asian, and latina purposefully focused, along with labor's ties to queer liberation. it just as easily could have been called "a people's history of american labor"--very readable like zinn, with a lot of introductory information. 'fight like hell' isn't necessarily targeted towards those who are familiar with related theory, almost guaranteeing if you're actively in socialist or anarchist circles, there's nothing all that new here, but kelly deserves credit in her summations of labor events if you need a recap or refresher (in that case, it's a 3, but for its wide span and hopefully a gateway for more people yearning for a united, international working class, you better believe i'm still giving it a 5 overall).

[Jarrett Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

An informative, though far-ranging book on the history of labor movements and protests in America. Kim Kelly covers lots of ground here, way too much of it if you ask me, and that's the main problem with the book. She zigzags back and forth in time so much, from one protest to the next, one group of laborers to the next, that it's difficult to fully invest in the book. The later sections of the book, which focus on the efforts of the disabled, sex workers, and the incarcerated to unionize, is the best part, but Fight Like Hell is a mile wide and an inch deep. Kelly either needs to write a much, much, much bigger book or start taking Ritalin.

[Kat V · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books I have EVER read. It covers queer issues, race, prison, and disability- topics often looked over by general labor and union books and sometimes movements. Ugh I want a general strike in America so bad. A must-read for the working class. We are taught that the people who came before us demanding rights were right but that we do not need any more than the ones we have now. If you like this I also recommend Work Won’t Love You Back by Sarah Jaffe. 4.9 stars

[Kalina Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

NOTE: I received an advanced copy on this book through my work in the American labor movement.

That being said, Kelly's debut novel is a must-read for anyone who's into history, progressive causes, labor unions, or just looking for a fast-paced, expertly reported essay collection featuring worker stories I *promise* you've never read before. I can't recommend this book enough!

[Maggie Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy cow! I was kinda out of the loop when it comes to Unions. I didn't grow up with the need to know what they were nor who they protected and now I feel like I'm 34 years behind in fighting for my friends, community, country and world. These pages were filled not only with history but of current events, including forced labor preparing PPE during the Covid-19 pandemic and essential workers. So many of my other reads tied in as well with chapters on sideshow/curiosity circuits and their rights, wildfire inmate firefighters in California and even into the menstruation movement and being able to purchase and afford period products as inmates. I'm definitely going to pay more attention when I hear about or drive by picket lines from here on out. This book was definitely an education to me

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this as an eGalley ARC from NetGalley.

I really liked how this book was written/organized- instead of telling a strictly chronological history of the American Labor movement Kelly wrote chapters on different segments of American society and their own history of organizing- as well as pointing out the ways that the different groups interacted and intersected.

I especially liked the chapters of the unionization of Sex Workers, Prisoners, and domestic workers all segments of labor history I knew little about before reading this book. Highly recommended!

[bree wilhite · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kim does an incredible job taking an immense amount of history and presenting it in an easy to digest format, organized and clear, with hints of their voice and passion scattered throughout. This is a history so few of us learned in school growing up, but should now be the priority of every adult to learn. Thank you, Kim, for this book and for igniting the fire in so many of us to keeping fighting like hell. I stand in solidarity with you.

[Niklas Braun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone knows about unions, but this reeeally tells a full story about their importance in history, how the most vulnerable people are the biggest force, and the huge breadth of industries they've helped rip from the grasp of brutal capitalists. Recommend this book to everyone! remember you are waaaaay closer to $0 than $elon money.

[Kurt Neumaier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sick.

[Mitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a history of US labor re/written for a new generation. Specifically, it's geared towards people who think in terms of identity politics (I don't mean that disparagingly, but can't think of a better umbrella term). The message is that pretty much all groups of oppressed people in the US have a rich history of labor organizing. Kelly invites them to own that by, well, fighting like hell.

Roughly 2/3rd of the book was the greatest hits of US labor, retold. Even still I learned things about familiar subjects. Probably what I learned the most from was the chapters on sex-worker organizing (the concept isn't new to me, but the actual history of it is) and prison labor organizing (I'd no idea it had such a track record).

My favorite thing about the book is that it is written for the public, not for labor historians 🙂

[Kitty Stryker · Rating 5 out of 5]

an excellent beginning primer on union struggles

I had done a little bit of reading on unions and their history, but this was a very accessible read, with a lot of human interest stories that put a face to the struggle. I think this would be a really easy recommendation to give to anyone curious about why unions are important!

[Juan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kim Kelly's book, The Untold History of American Labor: Fight Like Hell, provides an in-depth look at labor history. The author illustrates the historical prejudice against women, people of color, and the queer community in the labor struggle. One thing I appreciate about the author is how she brought attention to the struggles of sex workers, prison workers, and undocumented workers. The author acknowledged that in order to achieve worker unity, we must recognize all workers, including sex workers, prisoners, and undocumented workers. If the latter isn't possible, we won't be able to attain class consciousness or unity. She challenges us to join the labor movement and to Fight Like Hell. 

[Sandra The Old Woman in a Van · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listening to the first 1/3-1/2, I thought, "This is NOT the untold story, but a retelling." But after the halfway mark the book became particularly interesting. This is an excellent book for getting up to speed on labor-related issues past and present, which is particularly important with Project 2025 looming.

[Seth Tillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kim Kelly came out to speak at a union event I attended. I went out and got this book afterwards and I’m glad I did.
This is a great introduction to labor history. The sections on disabled workers, LGBTQ folks, and incarcerated workers were particularly fascinating, as I don’t think you’ll read much about them from other sources.

[Joseph Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard Kim Kelly, speak at the RWDSU National Convention, in Atlanta, Georgia. Where she did talk about this book. I knew then I would read it and so glad I did.

This book is about the untold history of American Labor. It covers, strikes, organizing, transgender, sex workers, Mexican workers, labor activists, black workers, incarcerated workers, flight attendants, people with disabilities (and much, much more) and how they had to fight for their rights at their work place.

Don’t miss this awesome read. Don’t ever quit, ORGANIZE!!!

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Learned so much about labor history from this book, particularly sex worker and prisoner organizing. A great primer

[Bruin Mccon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for anyone who works. In the wake of striketober, Kim Kelly’s Fight Like Hell covers the history of union activists you probably haven’t heard: women, people of color, immigrants, LGBTQ+ and incarcerated. This is important history that needs to be told.

As someone who works in the labor movement and experienced striketober preparing for a strike, I will be taking the history I learned in this book to inform my work.

[Annie]

Good as a reference, would not recommend as sit down reading. This book takes on a lot, and while it certainly addresses a wide scope, it reads much more like a textbook. I expected this to be more narrative given how many nuggets of interesting stories are in it. Unfortunately, I think the structure of the book is a bit too loose. Topical makes for easy reference but tedious reading. I would have loved chronological to get a view of how politics and social mores of various time influence what workers were fighting for and why.

[Kirby Rock · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is very informative and inspiring, and the amount of research was pretty amazing. I was most affected by the chapters on domestic workers and Black unionizing efforts, and there are also some interesting chapters near the end on the history of unionization among disabled workers, sex workers, and incarcerated workers. I did not like how she grouped the chapters by industry (as opposed to chronologically or some other arrangement) because I prefer something with more of a narrative, and this just felt like a lot of information thrown at me. She also kind of wrote like she was giving a speech, which was inspirational but a bit too effusive at times. But I enjoyed it and am glad I read it. The author really pushes back against the stereotype of union members being a bunch of cis white men in hard hats or whatnot. There’s a deep and fascinating multicultural history to the labor movement, and she did a good job of showing that.

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. But also kind of boring. An absolute slog. Really just too many individual stories and not enough through story. This should be a pretty good reference book for a different book on American Labor. I liked pieces of this. I liked the organizational structure of labor in different industries and other grouping. But mostly I was just glad for it to be over. 2.5 of 5.

[zaynab · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

Kelly does a good job of bringing together narratives from different aspects of labor history that do not fit the white/male/bread & butter narrative of labor.

I will say, I tend to think of this book as more of a unified history rather than an untold history. I'm not a labor history buff, but I'd like to believe that in 2022 we are past the point of framing everything that isn't white & male as "untold". Especially since the question is always "untold to who?" Also, we don't necessarily unsilence the past by framing non-white/cisgender/heterosexual/etc narratives as "untold", if anything the frame sometimes does a disservice to the histories themselves. I also think the narrative of all of these stories being "untold" ultimately became the Achilles heel of the book itself. By cramming a bunch of stories into each chapter, we are overwhelmed with many snippets as opposed to focused case studies from historical archives that paint a fuller picture of the people and movements.

I also was not a fan of the journalistic writing style. As another reviewer noted, at times the need for sensational narrative overwhelmed the potential for clear writing that balances an economy of words with the need for lengthy description. As a genre, history has its own styles of writing that would have been beneficial here.

But overall, I did find it interesting. I might recommend this book as an intro to labor histories, one that might lay the groundwork for reading folks like Robin D.G Kelly and the labor historians that are referenced throughout the book.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hell yes to books about labor movements and about unions! This book is a must read for anyone looking to learn about the history of labor in the United States and about the power of organizing for change. As someone who started by organizing in farmworker communities and then later became a union member of a government agency, I was deeply invested in the way Kelly tells the story of organizing within communities that have been historically marginalized and kept from our structure of power, rather than leading with the work within existing institutions. The narrative very clearly identified the strength of organizing that aims not only to address class issues and the needs of the working class -- but to directly address white supremacy culture as well. I do wish the book had been told chronologically instead of categorically, but also found that this was less of an issue when listening to the audiobook, where it feels more like a set of individual stories. Looking forward to seeing more stories about the power and progress of organizing in the years to come. Thanks to NetGalley for an early review copy, all opinions are my own.

[Alexander Wilson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had to put it down. I suppose that I have to applaud the Millennial generation for being consistent. Truth is no longer the true North they follow, but rather they attempt to shoehorn their ideas of diversity, equity and inclusion into historical events where they do not exist. This book starts by making the case that there was a nescient union movement among black enslaved people before they were freed in 1866 (technically 1870). It tap dances the first 30 pages from 1866 to the present time to emphasize the role of black women and completely omits white men from the story. I don't have to read further. If it was entitled the "Untold History of Black Women in American Labor" maybe I would have read it, maybe not. However, being woke is a recent phenomenon and hardly a prism through which to interpret events to tell useful history in my opinion. The fact is, I am not a newly minted undergraduate, nor do I believe that people are equal, because people are not the same, equity is a limited resource and remedy of Government, and diversity, when it thwarts the will of people to associate, and so long as no laws are violated, is the right of individuals, not Government, Neo-Marxist or otherwise.

[Dubs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is basically Intro to (Untold) US Labor Movements and covers a lot of ground. Like another reviewer said, the book is organized by theme which makes it a little difficult to place when things are happening. I did a lot of flipping back and forth. It is very surface level but rounds out labor history including women, POC, disabled folks, sex workers, prisoners, queer folks, etc. I wish the author could have gone into more detail: I think the scope of the book was larger than I would have liked and sacrificed depth because of it. There was an unfortunate bit of misinformation in the chapter on disability: Kelly refers to the Buck v Bell trial and Carrie "Bell's" forced sterilization, when I think she meant Carrie Buck. That did lower my confidence in her reporting just a little, but shit happens.

Regardless, I'd recommend it as a pretty solid introductory book, if potentially overwhelming to those new to the subject.