Florence Reece
National Women's History Month Honoree
(1900-1986) ~ Labor Song Writer
In 1931, bloody violence erupted in Harlan County, Kentucky, after coal miners went on strike for decent wages. Reece, wife of one of the coal miners, experienced the violence and was inspired to write the song, 'Which Side Are You On?' Her lyrics expose strike violence as a class struggle. The song has become one of the most famous of the American labor movement.