Books are Good for You!

This is a picture of my all-time favorite bookstore, taken by me this past December, when I spent four, yes four, whole hours, browsing through the aisles.

I felt rushed.

Apparently everyone is raving about this place, but it's been my favorite spot to spend a Portland afternoon since I was in grade school. And I'm not that old, but we're talking at least a couple of decades. I first started picking musty tomes of classic literature off the shelves long before puberty, before I knew how to drive, before I had money to buy my own books.

And this was way before internet sales launched Powells.com into worldwide acclaim.

My dad used to take my brother and me there, and give strict instructions that I was not to leave the "room" I'd chosen, because, unlike corporate warehouse booksellers, Powell's has actual rooms for you to visit. It's very much like having one large bookstore divided into several smaller ones.

At the bookstore, you can thumb through new and used books sitting side by side on the shelves. On my last trip, I picked up a previously loved copy of John Dicker's The United States of Wal*Mart for $4.98.

I didn't think that anything could have made me love this independent bookstore anymore.

And then its workers started to organize a union. That was in 1998.

Things got messy during the campaign, and the workers fought for months to be recognized as a collective bargaining unit. They fought for even longer to negotiate a contract.

During those months, I boycotted my beloved bookstore and encouraged everyone I knew to do the same. I wrote letters, signed petitions, and made fliers. I even led picketing workers in solidarity chants, encouraging them not to give up.

The campaign slogan became:

"No decision about us without us," Which I consider a rallying cry applicable to lots of other situations, including the crisis in our country.

The Powell's workers won their contract and are now represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, Local 5.

Now, this is the best part:

If you buy through this link, 10% of your purchase goes right to the workers .

Independent bookstore? Union shop? Kickback to the workers?

Sounds like the perfect opportunity to update your "favorites" link list.