Blackwell Reference Online

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Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1910, Joseph “Jock” Yablonski grew up the son of a mine worker who was killed in an explosion while working. At the age of 24, he was elected as an official of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA). His career steadily climbed over the years. In 1940, he was elected as a representative to the UMWA's international executive board, and in 1958 was appointed president of UMWA District 5. In 1965, he was removed from this position by UMWA president W. A. “Tony” Boyle, a longtime union official under former president John L. Lewis , with whom Yablonski often clashed over issues of representation of the rank and file. Yablonski, a longtime Lewis loyalist, saw his political perspective shift leftward in the 1960s. This in part can be attributed to the intellectual influence of left-leaning physicians he befriended who worked for the union, as well as his wife and daughter's orientation toward social responsibility. His open opposition to the Vietnam War in 1969 clashed with the UMWA's support for the administration. Still, during this decade, even though Yablonski sometimes clashed with Boyle over particular issues, he often looked aside at the union president's use of strong arm tactics, which included the beating of dissident union members; he is quoted praising Boyle, once saying: “I have never seen anyone as devoted and concerned with the well-being ... log in or subscribe to read full text