Sunshine Was Never Enough

"John Laslett's Sunshine Was Never Enough is an extraordinary work of historical synthesis and interpretation, which brings to more than a century of labor history in Los Angeles the insights of a new generation of social, labor, and political historians. Laslett is highly sensitive to questions of race, gender, immigration, conservative politics, left-wing movements, and political economy, all essential in any contemporary effort to chart the history of the working class, past or present."

--Nelson Lichtenstein, MacArthur Foundation Chair in History, University of California, Santa Barbara



"John Laslett's comprehensive overview of the labor history of Los Angeles is a long-awaited contribution. The narrative of Sunshine Was Never Enough begins in the late nineteenth century, when the city was in its infancy, and tracks developments over an arc ending in the early twenty-first century, by which time Los Angeles had become the nation's second largest metropolis and a rare beacon of hope for the U.S. labor movement. For too long, southern California was seen as a remote backwater. With this engaging volume, L.A. labor and the scholarship on it that has burgeoned in recent years finally has the careful treatment it deserves." --Ruth Milkman, author of L.A. Story: Immigrant Workers and the Future of the U.S. Labor Movement



"John Laslett's latest book represents a significant contribution to the field of labor studies and labor history. The Los Angeles labor movement has emerged as a dynamic focal point of the new American labor movement, and Laslett's comprehensive and thoughtful analysis provides a much needed historic foundation. This is an invaluable resource for labor scholars and labor leaders alike."

--Kent Wong, Director, UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education

John Laslett is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is the author or co-author of many books including Labor and the Left, Failure of a Dream?, Colliers Across the Sea, and History of the ILGWU in Los Angeles.