Wisconsin lost one of its progressive heroes today. Ed Garvey was a labor attorney, politician, and activist. Although he is well known in Wisconsin, he gained national prominence in the early 1980’s as the executive director of the NFL Player’s Association. He was a strong proponent of worker’s rights, and he fought against the principle that men could own other men. He also fought against racial barriers commonly shared by many of the owners such as the belief that “black players are good on the field, while white players are good off the field”. He led the NFL through two strikes.
He was a huge proponent of labor laws and he fought hard for workers rights. He unsuccessfully ran for state office, including a run at the Governor, losing to Tommy Thompson. He organized “Fighting Bob Fest" which is held annually and has been headlined by Progressives such as Bernie Sanders, who counted Ed as one of his good friends and heroes. The annual event was named in honor of his hero, Fighting Bob La Follette, Sr, another of Wisconsin’s Progressive stalwarts. Ed Garvey was 76.
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