In 1904, a wiry, sandy-haired 18-year-old came up out of a coal mine in western Pennsylvania and swung on the company weighman for cheating. Next morning young Philip Murray was fired for "engaging in a brawl on company property." To his surprise, the 600 miners in town walked out on strike in his defense, then elected him president of their United Mine Workers local. The strike was broken, and a sheriff's squad put Phil Murray on a train for Pittsburgh and told him not to come back. "I've never had a doubt in my mind since...
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