Labor & Community Organizing: Reflections For Today's Challenges

John Meyerson’s life has been shaped by a deep, lifelong commitment to social justice. His activism began as a teenager, organizing against the Vietnam War and leading a student sit-in for free expression while still in high school. That early commitment to peace and human rights carried him directly into the labor movement, where he would spend decades organizing workers, building coalitions, and fighting for dignity on the job.Meyerson’s journey—from industrial worker to union organizer to political and legislative leader—offers a rare, ground-level view of how movements are built and sustained. As an organizer and later Director of Legislation and Political Action for UFCW Local 1776, he played leadership roles in campaigns that raised Pennsylvania’s minimum wage, defended public-sector jobs, advanced living-wage standards, and helped secure national health care reform. He has also served in numerous leadership roles across the AFL-CIO, representing more than 100,000 workers across southeastern Pennsylvania.In this episode, Meyerson reflects on community and labor organizing, the challenge of balancing family life with movement work, and the realities—and possibilities—of organizing in the United States in 2026. Drawing on decades of experience, he offers perspective, candor, and lessons for a new generation committed to change.Listen and discover why John Meyerson’s story is a neglected one worth hearing.