Sticking to the Union

Sandy Polishuk teaches women's studies at Portland State University.

"what a life!" - Publishers Weekly"Sandy Polishuk's Sticking to the Union is the best kind of oral history, bringing to life a person and an era quickly passing out of reach.." - Elinor Langer, author of A Hundred Little Hitlers"Sticking to the Union is a fabulous oral history, Julia Ruuttila a compelling subject, and Sandy Polishuk, a thoughtful scholar who allows Ruuttila's voice to drive the narrative, but who also probes the intersections of ego and memory to present the many truths of Ruuttila's life story." - Mary Murphy, Montana State University"This is a gem. Julia Ruuttila gives an imaginative, vivid account of her hard times and struggles as a labor radical, feminist, anti-racist, and internationalist peace advocate in the Pacific Northwest." - Michael Honey, Harry Bridges Chair of Labor Studies, University of Washington"Sandy Polishuk deftly explores the challenges of history and memory in this fascinating oral history biography of Julia Ruuttila: consummate union, civil rights, and peace activist of the Pacific Northwest . . . The story of this extraordinary woman should inspire a new generation of activists." - Laurie Mercier, author of Anaconda: Labor, Community, and Culture in Montana's Smelter City and Associate Professor of History, Washington State University Vancouver."As one of the first volumes in Palgrave's Studies in Oral History series, Sticking to the Union sets high standards for subsequent series contributors to match." - Journal of American History

• Acknowledgments* Foreword * Introduction * "That's where I heard about sabotage" * "The valiant never taste of death but once" * "I shed my youth" * "A baking powder in the masses" * "I had a typewriter" * "Free Ray Becker" * "You can't tell about people" * "They were paranoid days" * "My bad reputation caught up with me" * "White trade only" * "It's work that interests me" * "You find friends in improbable places" * "I mean to be your friend" * "The lives of working people are filled with desperation" * "You sure met some wonderful people" * "I shall not come this way again" * "I look around" * Vietnam * "Too old to get beat up" * The Trials of Parenthood * "Do not look back when you latch the gate" * Afterword * Bibliography