'This article examines Community Labor United (CLU), a nonprofit in Boston, Massachusetts that builds a bridge between labor unions and community organizations. Using interviews with key participants, CLU's formation, structure and strategies are revealed. In 2004 the Greater Boston Labor Council, with the help of the national AFL-CIO, launched CLU. The essay demonstrates how the new non-profit organization provides an anchor for ongoing work to build the kinds of alliances between labor and community groups that establish real power for working people in the greater Boston region. To build this power CLU engages in strategic research, leadership development and community organizing. This paper examines how labor and community leaders in Boston have set out on the road for building regional power."

Support: Paper