Massachusetts History Workshop.

The MHW was founded in 1978 by James Green, Susan Reverby, and Martin Blatt, three Boston-area labor historians, to bring together "worker-historians and university-based historians...to explore common historical and political concerns, and to work toward democratizing people's history." After sponsoring history workshops with shoe workers in Lynn (1976), and with textile workers in Lawrence (1981), the MHW turned its attention to clerical workers, and on April 24, 1982, presented a one-day conference on the past and future of clerical work. Held at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, the conference attracted more than 150 people, including a number of retired office workers. The MHW intended to use this workshop and the preparation for it as a means of involving clerical workers in writing their own history; interviews with more than fifty workers were conducted and in 1985 the MHW published a booklet entitled "They Can't Run the Office Without Us: Women Look at 60 Years of Clerical Work" (Cambridge, Mass.: Red Sun Press). This booklet is available in the book division of the Schlesinger Library.

From the guide to the Records, 1980-1984, (Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute)

The Massachusetts History Workshop was formed in 1978 by a small group of labor historians in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Workshop sought to bring together workers, community residents, and university-based historians in order to pursue a democratic approach to history through collaborative projects and community participation. As self-titled activist historians, the members focused their efforts on stories of child labor, union politics, women's movements and other social history and activism issues. The Workshop sponsored many projects, including commemorative gatherings, cultural events, and long-term projects with groups interested in documenting their history. The Workshop also produced a variety of presentations in a variety of media, including pamphlets, oral history interviews, theater productions and video recordings

From the description of Records, 1983-1995. (University of Massachusetts at Boston). WorldCat record id: 496275460

The Massachusetts History Workshop was founded in 1978 by James Green, Susan Reverby, and Martin Blatt, three Boston-area labor historians, to bring together "worker-historians and university-based historians...to explore common historical and political concerns, and to work toward democratizing people's history." After sponsoring history workshops with shoeworkers in Lynn (1976) and with textile workers in Lawrence (1981), the MHW turned its attention to clerical workers, and in April 1982 sponsored a conference on the past and future of clerical work. The MHW intended to use this conference and the preparation for it as a means of involving clerical workers in writing their own history; interviews with more than fifty workers were conducted and in 1985 the MHW published a booklet entitled "They Can't Run the Office Without Us: Women Look at 60 Years of Clerical Work."

From the description of Records, 1980-1984, n.d. (Harvard University). WorldCat record id: 232008112