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The Chicago Public Library will present an exhibit titled "Local Legends: African American Steelworkers of the Calumet Region" at its Douglass, Lincoln Park, and Pullman branches from September 2 to November 30, 2025. The exhibit is organized in recognition of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History’s (ASALH) 2025 theme, "African Americans and Labor," and centers on the experiences of African Americans who worked in Chicago’s steel industry on the Southeast Side.
The neighborhoods of South Chicago, South Deering, East Side, and Hegewisch were central to steel production in Chicago. Wisconsin Steel started operations there in 1875, beginning more than a century of industrial activity in these communities.
During the Great Migration, many African Americans relocated to Chicago seeking employment opportunities and relief from racial discrimination prevalent in the Southern United States. Upon arrival, they often received some of the most hazardous positions within steel mills and encountered prejudice from employers as well as coworkers. Early labor strikes did not address their concerns.
A significant change occurred during World War II with Executive Order 8802, which prohibited discrimination within defense industries and established the Fair Employment Practice Committee. This development contributed to future civil rights advancements.
By the 1950s, increased activism among African American steelworkers led to greater acknowledgment within unions through strikes and organizing efforts. While some workers joined forces with the Communist Party during this period, many distanced themselves amid anti-communist sentiment that resulted in union purges during the Red Scare era. In subsequent decades—particularly during the 1960s—African Americans began attaining leadership roles in unions after years of marginalization.
African American workers joined European and Mexican immigrants to demand improved safety standards and equitable treatment; however, progress remained gradual. The abrupt closure of Wisconsin Steel in 1980 caused significant economic disruption across Southeast Side neighborhoods—a situation that prompted a prolonged legal battle lasting seventeen years as former employees sought compensation for unpaid wages against a backdrop of wider industry decline.
Currently, residents continue working towards community improvement by addressing environmental hazards left by former mills while pursuing initiatives for environmental justice and economic renewal.
