About Us

The mission of the Southern Labor Studies Association is to promote the study, teaching, and preservation of the history of southern labor by activities that:

• Encourage dialogue and discussion about key issues and events relevant to the past and present of labor in the U.S. South;
• Enhance connections between academics and labor activists in the U.S. South;
• Organize the Southern Labor Studies Conference as well as sessions on southern labor and working-class history at other venues;
• Connect graduate students working on southern labor and working-class studies with one another and advanced scholars within and across academic disciplines;
• Promote the preservation of materials related to southern labor and working class history;
• Promote working-class history in public school curricula and provide resources for public school teachers.