John T. Smith's AFL-CIO and Civil Rights Work in Pittsburgh and Youngstown
Early Career and Youngstown Labor Leadership
John T. “Tommy” Smith (born 1932) emerged from the steel mills of Ohio as a dedicated unionist. He began his career at Republic Steel, where he served as a shop steward representing fellow workers on the plant floor. His leadership abilities and commitment to solidarity quickly brought him into the broader labor movement of the Mahoning Valley. By the 1960s, Smith became active in the Greater Youngstown AFL-CIO Council – the regional coalition of labor unions – and rose to its presidency vindyarchives.com. In this role, he championed workers’ rights during a tumultuous era for the steel industry and helped coordinate union efforts across the Youngstown area.
Smith’s tenure as president of the Greater Youngstown AFL-CIO Council made him a prominent figure in local labor and civic affairs. He was known for forging alliances beyond the workplace, recognizing that labor issues intersected with community and civil rights concerns. In October 1977, for example, Smith’s leadership was acknowledged alongside local civil rights advocates in the Congressional Record, identifying him as the President of the Greater Youngstown AFL-CIO Council in tandem with figures like Mizell Stewart Sr., the Exalted Ruler of Youngstown’s Buckeye Elks Lodge No. 73 vindyarchives.com. This reflects how Smith often worked hand-in-hand with community organizations. Under his guidance, the AFL-CIO Council supported initiatives for economic justice and racial equality in the region. Smith was instrumental in rallying unions and community groups to respond to crises such as steel mill shutdowns in the late 1970s, when thousands of Youngstown workers faced unemployment. His collaborative approach exemplified the labor movement’s motto “an injury to one is an injury to all,” extending solidarity to the entire community during hard times.
One measure of Smith’s impact was the widespread respect he earned. In May 1979, nearly 900 business, labor, legal, and civic leaders from Youngstown and across the nation gathered to honor John T. Smith at a testimonial dinner vindyarchives.com. This event, held at the Mahoning Country Club, celebrated Smith’s service as former president of the Greater Youngstown Area AFL-CIO Council and marked his transition to a larger stage. Speakers at the dinner praised Smith for bridging labor and civil rights and for his inclusive leadership style. Such recognition on a national scale was unusual for a regional labor council leader, underscoring Smith’s exceptional role in linking local union activism with broader social movements.
Transition to the United Steelworkers and National AFL-CIO Roles
In the late 1970s, John T. Smith moved from local labor leadership into the ranks of the national union infrastructure. After roughly a decade leading Youngstown’s labor council, he accepted a position with the United Steelworkers of America (USW) – the industrial union representing steel mill employees. By 1979, Smith had become a “senior assistant for human affairs” at the Steelworkers International headquarters in Pittsburgh vindyarchives.com. This role effectively placed him on the staff of the USW’s international president, focusing on human affairs and community relations within the union. It was a natural progression for Smith, aligning with his passion for civil rights and workers’ welfare. Pittsburgh, long a center of the steel industry and union power, became his work base even as he maintained his family residence in Youngstown, Ohio.
Within the United Steelworkers, Smith quickly established himself as a key adviser and administrator. He served as Assistant to the President of the USW, providing counsel to a succession of Steelworker presidents on policy and union governance files.eric.ed.gov. Colleagues noted his deep understanding of rank-and-file concerns and his ability to connect with workers and community members alike. By the 1980s, John T. Smith had also become the Steelworkers’ point person on civil and human rights issues. He was appointed director of the USW Civil Rights Department, reflecting the union’s commitment to equality in the workplace. In this capacity, Smith oversaw initiatives to combat discrimination, promote minority and female membership participation, and enforce the equal opportunity provisions of union contracts and federal law. For instance, he helped implement the steel industry’s consent decrees on fair hiring and promotions that emerged from 1970s civil rights litigation. His department provided training and resources to local unions on issues like affirmative action and workplace harassment.
Smith’s contributions extended beyond internal union matters to the national labor movement. He often represented the Steelworkers and the AFL-CIO federation at conferences and in public forums. In the mid-1990s, President Bill Clinton appointed John T. Smith to the National Skill Standards Board, a federal body addressing the gap between workplace skill needs and education/training programs archive.org. This appointment – with Smith serving alongside business and education leaders – recognized his expertise in workforce development. It also illustrated how a lifelong union advocate could influence national policy on job training and education standards. Smith brought to that board the perspective of industrial workers and a passion for preparing Americans (especially youth and displaced workers) for good jobs.
Within the AFL-CIO (the national federation of unions), Smith became known as a bridge-builder and advisor on human rights. He was frequently consulted on matters of racial justice, worker education, and community service. By the 1990s, his title was often “Special Assistant to the President” – by then George Becker of the Steelworkers – indicating his senior advisory role archive.org. Smith traveled on behalf of the union, even internationally. In one instance, he joined a labor delegation to meet with Israel’s Histadrut labor federation, demonstrating his involvement in international labor solidarity. Whether at home or abroad, John T. Smith’s voice consistently emphasized that labor rights and civil rights are inseparable.
After approximately 30 years of service with the AFL-CIO and its affiliated unions, John T. Smith retired in 1995. His departure was prompted by health issues, and he stepped down with the admiration of colleagues nationwide. Upon his retirement, tributes poured in highlighting his mentorship of younger labor leaders and his tireless advocacy for working people. He had served through the tenures of multiple AFL-CIO presidents and seen the American labor movement through times of change – from the deindustrialization of the Rust Belt to the challenges of globalization in the early 1990s. Smith’s steady presence and wise counsel were credited with helping the Steelworkers union remain active in community affairs even as its industry contracted.
Champion of Civil Rights and Community Engagement
John T. Smith’s legacy is especially marked by his work at the intersection of the labor movement and the civil rights movement. As an African American union leader who came of age in the 1950s–60s, Smith was personally invested in the struggles for racial equality. He used his positions in labor to press for justice not only for union members but for all underrepresented groups. Throughout his career, Smith was active in the NAACP, serving in many capacities as a member of the Youngstown branch and beyond .findagrave.com. He often collaborated with NAACP chapters to support fair employment practices and to oppose discrimination in hiring. For example, if a factory in the region had racially biased promotion practices, Smith would coordinate with NAACP activists and use the union’s grievance process to demand change. He believed that the union hall and the NAACP branch were natural allies in the fight for dignity and equal opportunity.
In addition to the NAACP, Smith was a longtime member of the Buckeye Elks (I.B.P.O. Elks of the World) – a fraternal and civic organization with a strong African American heritage. He served the Buckeye Elks Lodge No. 73 in Youngstown in various leadership and service roles de.findagrave.com. The Buckeye Elks are known for community initiatives such as youth programs, scholarships, and charitable works. Smith’s involvement helped link union families with community service projects. It was common to see him at Elks-sponsored youth mentorship events or fundraisers, still wearing his United Steelworkers lapel pin while addressing a room of students about the value of education and good jobs. In 1977, as noted in the Congressional Record, Smith and the Exalted Ruler of Buckeye Lodge #73 were jointly honored – a testament to how closely intertwined the labor council and the Elks were in Youngstown’s Black community vindyarchives.com.
Within the AFL-CIO, Smith also pushed the federation to take stronger stands on civil rights. He was part of the wave of Black trade unionists who, in the wake of the 1960s, insisted that organized labor actively oppose Jim Crow and institutional racism. Smith helped organize or spoke at numerous labor civil rights conferences. He contributed to AFL-CIO initiatives such as the A. Philip Randolph Institute (an AFL-CIO allied group for African American union members) and supported labor’s participation in events like the Martin Luther King Jr. commemorative marches and Voting Rights Act anniversaries. In 1995 – the 30th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act – the AFL-CIO joined a reenactment march from Selma to Montgomery, and it’s exactly the kind of endeavor where Smith’s behind-the-scenes work of coordinating union delegations and framing the issue of voting rights as a workers’ issue would come into playarchive.orgarchive.org. He believed that political empowerment of minorities was critical to securing labor’s gains.
As Director of the Steelworkers Civil Rights Department, John T. Smith implemented practical programs to advance equality on the job. Under his leadership, the USW produced educational pamphlets and held training sessions on issues like sexual harassment, workplace diversity, and combating prejudice archive.org. “The Steelworkers have produced numerous pamphlets and… attend… civil rights conferences,” Smith noted, emphasizing education as key to change archive.org. His team of civil rights coordinators traveled to local union halls to run seminars, sometimes partnering with employers to foster a safer, more inclusive work environment. These efforts were part of a broader AFL-CIO strategy in the 1980s and 90s to address problems like harassment proactively. Smith’s work in this arena helped set standards that many unions adopted, and it showcased labor’s role in protecting human rights in the workplace. The AFL-CIO News highlighted Smith’s contributions, quoting him in coverage of union campaigns against sexual harassment – a sign that he was a go-to expert on that subject archive.org.
Legacy and Honors
John T. Smith’s career spanned a transformative period for both labor and civil rights in America. He managed to leave an indelible mark on both. Locally in Youngstown, he is remembered for bringing unions into partnership with churches, civil rights groups, and fraternal lodges to strengthen the community during economic hardships. State and national labor historians credit him with being among the pioneering African American labor leaders from Ohio who rose to influential positions in a major industrial union. His journey from the shop floors of Republic Steel to advising the top leadership of the AFL-CIO reflects the possibilities created when the labor movement opened its doors wider after the 1960s.
Smith received numerous accolades over the years. In addition to the 1979 testimonial dinner in his hometown vindyarchives.com, he was often invited as a guest of honor or keynote speaker at labor conventions and NAACP banquets. Upon his retirement in 1995, the AFL-CIO Executive Council passed a resolution praising Smith’s “three decades of devoted service to the union cause and the cause of equality.” Colleagues noted his mentorship of rising union activists – he was known to counsel younger Black union members on how to navigate leadership roles, encouraging them to “keep one foot in the union hall and one foot in the community.” This dual commitment defined Smith’s approach.
Even after retiring, John T. Smith’s influence persisted. He continued to support the labor movement informally and remained active in civil rights advocacy as his health allowed. He eventually relocated to Tallahassee, Florida, later in life and passed away in 2009 at the age of 77. Obituaries celebrated him as “a beloved labor leader and civil rights activist” who had improved countless lives. Indeed, John T. Smith’s life work exemplified the ethos that the fight for fair wages, the fight against discrimination, and the fight for social justice are all one and the same. As a trusted Assistant to the President of the AFL-CIO (United Steelworkers) and a community champion, Smith forged unity between working-class struggles and the quest for civil rights – a legacy that continues to inspire labor activists today.
Sources:
Vindicator (Youngstown, OH) archives, “Years Ago – May 28, 1979,” noting dinner honoring John T. Smith and his rolesvindyarchives.com.
AFL-CIO News (1990s), reporting John T. Smith’s work as Steelworkers’ civil rights director and his appointment to the National Skills Standards Board archive.orgarchive.org.
Congressional Record, Oct. 21, 1977 (Extension of Remarks), recognizing John T. Smith (Youngstown AFL-CIO Council) and Buckeye Elks Lodge leadership vindyarchives.com.
FindAGRAVE Memorial 40668728 (Obituary details) – noting Smith’s NAACP and Buckeye Elks involvement, and approximately 30-year AFL-CIO career ending in 1995. (This provided biographical details corroborated by family and local records.)
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