Taking the High Road: Communities Organize for Economic Change

This book presents a vision for farreaching economic change in America connected to practical grassroots steps. It points to an economic system in which corporate success merges with the long-term welfare of the workers and the general population. The author examines the continued reality of social democracy in Europe and what lessons can be learned for the U.S. He demonstrates how progressive economic change is already being fought for by labor and community groups throughout America in such efforts as the Living Wage Movement and the emerging battle against sprawl. And he provides a wealth of concrete examples, tools, and ideas that everyone can use to organize for economic and social justice in their own communities.

David B. Reynolds is an activist, educator, and researcher in the Labor Studies Center at Wayne State University. He is a leader in the living wage movement--both nationally and in Michigan. Working in partnership with the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), he authored Living Wage Campaigns: An Activist’s Guide to Building the Movement for Economic Justice (2001). He headed two teams that researched the impact of Detroit’s living wage law. Mr. Reynolds sits on the steering committee of several local living wage campaigns and has consulted and been interviewed nationally about living wage activism. In addition to his expertise in labor-community coalitions, Mr. Reynolds has helped unions develop worker-to-worker political mobilization programs. His Democracy Unbound: Progressive Challenges to the Two Party System (1997) explores grassroots progressive political organizing.