Auto workers at Chrysler’s Dodge manufacturing plant in Hamtramck, Michigan, walked off the job on May 2, 1968, after the company imposed “speed-up” conditions that required a nearly 40% increase in output. Although white workers were visible on the picket line, it was primarily Black men who faced termination for their participation, including General Gordon Baker.
Before 1960, the auto industry in the city was dominated by white men. However, rising demand led Chrysler to employ many Black workers for hazardous assembly line positions. By 1968, Black workers made up 70% of the workforce at the Hamtramck plant. Despite this majority, management and union representation remained predominantly white.
Frustrated with discriminatory practices such as segregated lunchrooms and a lack of support from unions for fired Black workers, Baker founded the Dodge Revolutionary Union Movement (DRUM) with former classmates Luke Tripp and John Watson from Wayne State University. They aimed to improve conditions for Black workers both in workplaces and within unions.
Baker and his co-founders were experienced activists familiar with militant organizing strategies from their upbringing in the Deep South. In college, they had formed a civil rights group to protest police violence.
Following Baker’s dismissal, he penned a letter to Chrysler declaring conflict. DRUM organized rallies focusing on racial justice and advocated for wildcat strikes as a means to address grievances faced by Black workers. Just one year after Detroit’s 1967 riots, these workers felt constrained by limited economic opportunities and restricted influence within their unions.
On July 8, DRUM led about 4,000 Black workers in a two-day strike at the Hamtramck plant, halting production of 3,000 cars without any resulting terminations. This action brought significant attention to DRUM’s cause. They also contested union elections with an opposition slate.
By 1969, wildcat strikes under the “Revolutionary Union Movement” banner spread to other auto plants across Greater Detroit. This included formations like the Ford Revolutionary Union Movement and Eldon Avenue Revolutionary Union Movement at Chrysler’s Eldon Avenue plant as well as among UPS and healthcare workers.
The wildcat strikes between 1968-1969 significantly impacted Detroit’s industries and unions. The actions compelled improvements in working conditions related to racial justice while enhancing seniority procedures and grievance mechanisms. Additionally, they increased representation of Black workers in local union roles.
