The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has a mixed reputation in the realm of organized labor. The group is rarely named as a source of social vision and progressive advocacy. Known too as a union of truck drivers, the Teamsters are infrequently recognized for their organization of women workers.

This case study of Teamsters Local 688, a historically prominent St. Louis, Missouri, union, challenges such assumptions. This article delves into this history by focusing on the St. Louis Teamsters’ foray into feminist issues during the early 1970s, when Local 688 sat at a height of influence as a progressive community development organization. In a time of new possibilities for organized labor and renewed energy behind feminist activism, looking back at the feminist awakening of the Teamsters Union shows us both the possibilities and the impediments facing collective efforts for social change.

Amanda L. Izzo is an Associate Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies at Saint Louis University. She is the author of Liberal Christianity and Women’s Global Activism and co-editor of Left in the Midwest; her work focuses on progressive social movements in U.S. women’s history.