Tom Rankin

Photographer O. N. Pruitt (1891–1967) was for some forty years the de facto documentarian of Lowndes County, Mississippi, and its county seat, Columbus--known to locals as "Possum Town." His body of work recalls many FSA photographers, but Pruitt was not an outsider with an agenda; he was a community member with intimate knowledge of the town and its residents. He photographed his fellow White citizens and Black ones as well, in circumstances ranging from the mundane to the horrific: family picnics, parades, river baptisms, carnivals, fires, funerals, two of Mississippi's last public and legal executions by hanging, and most grimly, a lynching. From formal portraits to candid images of events in the moment, Pruitt's documentary of a specific yet representative southern town offers viewers today an invitation to meditate on the vexing interrelations of photography, community, race, and historical memory. Columbus native Berkley Hudson was photographed by Pruitt, and for more than three decades he has considered and curated Pruitt's expansive archive, both as a scholar of media and visual journalism and as a community member. This stunning book presents Pruitt's photography as never before, combining more than 150 images with a biographical introduction and Hudson's short essays and reflective captions on subjects such as religion and racial violence, small-town work-life and entertainment, and the idea of visual legacy as linked to historical memory.

Traditionally, there has been a disconnect between theoretical linguistics and pedagogical teacher training. This book seeks to bridge that gap. Using engaging examples from a wide variety of languages, it provides an innovative overview of linguistic theory and language acquisition research for readers with a background in education and teacher training, and without specialist knowledge of the field. The authors draw on a range of research to ground ideas about grammar pedagogy, presenting the notion of Virtual Grammar as an accessible label for unifying the complexity of linguistics. Organised thematically, the book includes helpful 'Case in point' examples throughout the text, to illustrate specific grammar points, and step-by-step training in linguistic methods, such as how to analyse examples, which educators can apply to their own teaching contexts. Through enriching language teachers' understanding of linguistic features, the book fosters a different perspective on grammar for educators.

Traditionally, there has been a disconnect between theoretical linguistics and pedagogical teacher training. This book seeks to bridge that gap. Using engaging examples from a wide variety of languages, it provides an innovative overview of linguistic theory and language acquisition research for readers with a background in education and teacher training, and without specialist knowledge of the field. The authors draw on a range of research to ground ideas about grammar pedagogy, presenting the notion of Virtual Grammar as an accessible label for unifying the complexity of linguistics. Organised thematically, the book includes helpful 'Case in point' examples throughout the text, to illustrate specific grammar points, and step-by-step training in linguistic methods, such as how to analyse examples, which educators can apply to their own teaching contexts. Through enriching language teachers' understanding of linguistic features, the book fosters a different perspective on grammar for educators.

Capturing the rich contrasts of the land and the intimate history of generations in the Mississippi Delta, Into the Flatland, by Kathleen Robbins, is a series of photographs documenting the terrain, people, and culture of her ancestry. The photographer returned to her childhood farm in Bell Chase as an adult in 2001 after completing graduate studies in New Mexico. She and her brother then lived on their family farm for nearly two years, breathing life back into family properties that had been long dormant. In this series, which won the Photo-NOLA prize in 2011, Robbins highlights the diversity of the landscape of the Delta, from expansive, dusty cotton fields to green, vibrant swamps. Her photographs capture the people and the architecture that are present on the land and also reminiscent of a time long past, before the mechanization of farming and the exodus of her people from their native soil. The presence of Robbins’s family in some of her photographs brings an intimacy to her portrait of the Delta and shows the tension between past and present. Including a short story by a National Endowment for the Arts recipient, Cynthia Shearer, Into the Flatland transports the reader into the rich history of Mississippi. At turns both colorful and gray, the photographs capture not only the Delta landscape, but also the stark and rugged images of people and buildings that sink as deeply into the land as the roots of the trees in the woods and swamps. As large masses of birds flock to the vast blue sky, Robbins remains fixed on the ground, her lens trained on the home and the landscape of her past.

Bruce West's color photographs document the spiritual and creative work of a self-proclaimed preacher, artist, architect, the Reverend H. D. Dennis, and his wife, Margaret, in Vicksburg, Mississippi. This book explores the fantastic world of the elderly couple who devoted more than twenty years of their lives to converting Margaret's Grocery store into a one-of-a-kind nondenominational church. Guided by visions from God, their elaborate transformation of Margaret's Grocery involved the construction of several towers, the creation of the Ark of the Covenant containing tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments, and new religious iconography. A sign at the entrance announced: ""Welcome Jews and Gentile This Church Open 24 Hours a Day."" Another sign promised: ""The True Gospel Preached Here."" Bands of high-gloss red, white, blue, green, yellow, and pink paint covered the towers and exterior. Religious artifacts, Mardi Gras beads, plastic flowers, hubcaps, and flashing Christmas lights encrusted the interior walls and ceilings and an old school bus. The Reverend used his church as a roadside attraction to lure seekers so that he could deliver fiery sermons and orations about the need to ""practice living perfectly"" and the ceaseless pursuit of spiritual wisdom. The product of twenty years of labor and multiple site visits, West's photographs are both intimate and transparent, tenderly revealing the Reverend and Margaret's love of God and for one another, their commitment to their work, and their shared transformation while aging together. The images offer unique insights into the role of spirituality in southern folk art and creativity and the joys and demands of an ascetic and inspired life.

This stunning and inspiring book of photography and first-person narratives celebrates the remarkable people who, against staggering odds, are overcoming social, economic, and personal differences to improve their local communities and better people's lives. From volunteer crime patrols in Delray Beach, Florida, to marine conservation along the North Pacific Coast of Alaska, from migrant farm workers building homes in the Rio Grande Valley to youth empowerment on Chicago's Southwest Side, these encounters with real life and real people show us that we all have a role to play in our own communities. Each community represents examples of change, inviting reflection on our own values, beliefs, and commitment to the place we call home. Bill Burke, Lynn Davis, Lauren Greenfield, Reagan Louie, Danny Lyon, Sylvia Plachy, and Eli Reed are among the world-renowned photographers who have contributed to the book. The accompanying CD is narrated by the individuals featured in the book. Local Heroes Changing Lives is the centerpiece of the Indivisible Project (www.indivisible.org) funded by the Pew Charitable Trust. Photography exhibition will tour to: Chicago, Akron, San Antonio, Tuscon, Raleigh, San Diego, Sarasota, Philadelphia, and Anchorage.

Taylorism has been the dominant mode of organizing paid work since early in the twentieth century. Tom Rankin argues that industrial unionism is inextricably linked to Taylorism, and Taylorism is breaking down. In its place is developing a new paradigm of organization. If unions are to survive and prosper they will have to develop a form of unionism better suited to the new paradigm. Rankin uses a socio-technical systems framework to analyse the transition, arguing that it encompasses similar views put forward by other disciplines such as production management. Focusing on one case study as an example, he explores the possibilities for unions to sustain themselves while adapting to a new work pattern. Ranking concludes that adaptation requires a fundamental change in traditional union policies and practices, but that it is achievable. The result is a new, post-industrial form of unionism in which a strong and independent union and a new pattern of work organization can be mutually reinforcing.