Which Side Are You On?
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/4/9/13491848/4714614.jpg?141)
By: George Ella Lyon
Art Work by: Christopher Cardinale
Publisher: Worzalla Copyright Date: 2011
ISBN: 978-1-933693-96-5
Genre: Historical Fiction Format: Picture Book
Major Awards Received:
Notable Books For A Global Society Selection, Choices, 2012
Summary: Sam Reece supported his 7 children by working for J.H. Blair in the coal mines. He was paid in scrip that was good only in the company store where they could charge whatever they wanted for their products. When the minors went on strike, J.H. Blair decided to take matters into their own hands trying to pressure the workers not to strike.
Personal response: This book tells a story of a sad, greedy company that did not care about their employees. The fact that companies put their employees families in the middle in order to scare them into coming back to work as a SCAB shows that they are capable of anything. All of this just because they wanted to avoid giving the employees their fair share is despicable.
Classroom connections: I feel that I could incorporate this story into a bullying lesson and a social studies topic. I would have the students watch the videos below so they can get a sense from the pictures how life was for the workers. I believe by tying both of these subject together they can see that bullying is not only verbal or happen in school but businesses have a lot to do with how our economy works. Union labor has a lot to do with our economy also and this book shares one side of how the union did not appreciate its workers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nzudto-FA5Y&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=fvwp&v=TfWzLa1faLA
Art Work by: Christopher Cardinale
Publisher: Worzalla Copyright Date: 2011
ISBN: 978-1-933693-96-5
Genre: Historical Fiction Format: Picture Book
Major Awards Received:
Notable Books For A Global Society Selection, Choices, 2012
Summary: Sam Reece supported his 7 children by working for J.H. Blair in the coal mines. He was paid in scrip that was good only in the company store where they could charge whatever they wanted for their products. When the minors went on strike, J.H. Blair decided to take matters into their own hands trying to pressure the workers not to strike.
Personal response: This book tells a story of a sad, greedy company that did not care about their employees. The fact that companies put their employees families in the middle in order to scare them into coming back to work as a SCAB shows that they are capable of anything. All of this just because they wanted to avoid giving the employees their fair share is despicable.
Classroom connections: I feel that I could incorporate this story into a bullying lesson and a social studies topic. I would have the students watch the videos below so they can get a sense from the pictures how life was for the workers. I believe by tying both of these subject together they can see that bullying is not only verbal or happen in school but businesses have a lot to do with how our economy works. Union labor has a lot to do with our economy also and this book shares one side of how the union did not appreciate its workers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nzudto-FA5Y&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=fvwp&v=TfWzLa1faLA