Joe Hill would have been proud. Four times over. Labor cartoonists Gary Huck and Mike Konopacki, the 2021 Joe Hill Award winners, were joined at this year’s Great Labor Arts Exchange by musicians Steve Jones and Ysaye Barnwell, who collected their 2020 Joe Hill Award, postponed due to the pandemic. Hosted by the Labor Heritage Foundation, the 42nd annual Great Labor Arts Exchange was held online June 17-20 as participants celebrated the culture and history of the labor movement. The theme of this year's conference was "Singing through the Hard Times" and the event was dedicated to the life and work of labor singer Anne Feeney (1951-2021). “Cartoons express the truth better than words because a cartoon has more to say about how people feel than how they think,” said Huck & Konopacki. “It is a form of graphic humor that helps to vent anger and frustration. And it does this through ridicule and laughter.” After receiving her award, Dr. Barnwell sang her signature song “More Than a Paycheck,” and Steve Jones played music from his first labor jazz opera, “Forgotten.” The Joe Hill award is named for the radical songwriter, labor activist and member of the Industrial Workers of the World. The Labor Heritage Foundation is a non-profit cultural and arts organization working to preserve the cultural heritage of America's workers. - Saul Schniderman Comments are closed.
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