Reinventing Free Labor: Padrones and Immigrant Workers in the North American West, 1880-1930

One of the most infamous villains in North America during the Progressive Era was the padrone, a mafia-like immigrant boss who allegedly enslaved his compatriots and kept them uncivilized, unmanly, and unfree. In this first-ever history of the padrone, Gunther Peck argues that they were not primitive men but rather thoroughly modern entrepreneurs who used corporations, the labor contract, and the right to quit to create far-flung coercive networks. Drawing on Greek, Spanish, and Italian language sources, Peck analyzes how immigrant workers emancipated themselves using the tools of padrone power to their own advantage.

Author: Gunther Peck
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 05/22/2000
Pages: 332
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.10lbs
Size: 9.20h x 6.20w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9780521778190

Review Citation(s):
Choice 01/01/2001 pg. 968

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