Sandra Perrin - Sandra Perrin interview

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Collection Name
1978 Metro Wildcat Strike
Title
Sandra Perrin interview
Handle
http://hdl.handle.net/1961/dcplislandora:322379
Language
eng
Date Created
2021-11-19
Creator/Contributor
Perrin, Sandra, interviewee
Haack, Michael, interviewer
Eikenberry, Eric, interviewer
Extent
1:24:57
Note
Please note this interview was recorded over Zoom. Sandra Perrin reflects on her experiences organizing and doing political work as part of the union that represented Metro workers. Her story begins with her childhood in Washington, D.C. Born to two working class parents, she developed a love of reading fueled by the bookmobile that would regularly visit her neighborhood. When her father died in a car accident, her mother became the wage earner. She speaks about her time at Howard University, where she joined in the civil rights movement, particularly the Black Panthers school breakfast program. After a few false starts she found her home at Metro, where she joined the union as a shop steward. The union recognized her leadership potential and sent her to Florida to a training school for women in the labor movement, an experience Sandra described as 'life changing'. When the wildcat strike broke out in 1978 Sandra was one of the only clerical workers to join the bus operators for the strike's duration. Sandra reflects on the union's continued work following the strike. She is particularly excited about her work lobbying with the union. She goes into detail about the careful balance the union had to tread in the 1980s when Metro cracked down on drug use among the drivers.
Sandra Perrin was born and raised in southeast Washington, D.C. Her father was a taxi driver that died in a car accident when she was 6 years old, leaving her to be raised by her mother. She received an associate's degree from Howard University. During her early 20s, Sandra was the first Black person to work in the accounting department of Metro's clerical office. It is there she found her niche when she joined the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) as a shop steward. Working with the union she participated in the major 1978 Metro strike, and the unions advocacy efforts. She also joined labor struggles around Washington, D.C. She continues to live in the D.C. area.
Neighborhood
Downtown, Washington, D.C.
Carver Langston, Washington, D.C.
Shaw, Washington, D.C.
Pleasant Plains, Washington, D.C.
City
Washington, D.C.
Subject
Wildcat strikes
Strikes and lockouts
Labor movement
Employee rights
Segregation
Local transit
Labor unions
Solidarity
Working class
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
Howard University
Amalgamated Transit Union
Source
HumanitiesDC, DC Oral History Collaborative
Local identifier
dcpl_dcohc032_06.mp3
Rights Information
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-NC/1.0/
In Copyright - Non-Commercial Use Permitted
DC Public Library