Shawn Fain’s Old-Time Religion
The president of the United Auto Workers is part of a tradition that was once far more visible in American public life: the Christian left.
There’s something sermonic about the speeches of Shawn Fain, the president of the currently striking United Auto Workers. Since autoworkers began targeted work stoppages following the expiration of their contract on September 15, Fain has regularly addressed the public—and his message has a uniquely moral cast.
“I’ve been without,” he told me last month. “I’ve been on unemployment and been on government aid to get formula and diapers for my firstborn child. I mean, that’s when, to me, I leaned on my faith and leaned on God and turned to scripture for answers.”
In a speech delivered in , Fain, who has been the president of UAW
