British Columbia was the site of some of the most significant events in the history of the labour movement and had some of the best-organized and most politically conscious communist workers. In this illuminating volume, Jon Bartlett follows the activities of BC Communists from the onset of the Great Depression to the coming of the Popular Front and investigates the collisions between these Communists and the organs of the federal, provincial, and municipal governments. Reflecting on the vectors of cultural resistance, from the creation of vernacular newspapers to the circulation of popular song and verse, Bartlett charts workers’ efforts to resist wage cutbacks in mines, mills, and the logging and fishing industries and describes the organization of opposition to the relief camps and its outcomes.

Jon Bartlett and his partner Rika Ruebsaat, both ex-teachers, have written two books of local history, about Princeton, their home town. They have both been Secretary of the local museum and active in their local arts council. They have recorded seven CDs of traditional Canadian song, and founded and ran the Princeton Traditional Music Festival for a dozen years. Jon’s legal and historical training allowed him to provide research for both the federal government and a lower mainland First Nation. His latest book, Triumph and Solidarity, investigates the actions of Vancouver Communists in the early years of the Great Depression.

Jon Bartlett's profile page