![]() A week or so later, he was standing in a field outside the Local 2397 union hall, sound checking his famous “Arm the Homeless” guitar with help from a bearded retired coal miner who proudly bears the nickname Union Santa. ![]() As Morello told me in an interview for Rolling Stone, though, catching his attention was easy-a UMWA staffer tweeted at him about it, and once Morello spotted the message, the gears started turning. But unless you know somebody involved or are already paying attention, chances are you’ve missed the story entirely. During his most recent appearance on The Tonight Show, he shouted out striking workers from a number of unions, including the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), and created a new labor anthem with his song “ Hold the Line.” Despite some dedicated efforts, the strike hasn’t gotten much media attention tucked away in the backwoods of Tuscaloosa County, a good 40-minute drive from Birmingham, a historic, protracted battle for dignity, safety, and fairness has been taking place between a Wall Street-owned coal company and 1,000 blue- collar workers with families and dreams. To back up a little, though, you may be wondering: How exactly did he end up there? Morello has been a loud and proud supporter of unions and workers’ rights for decades, and has popped up on many a picket line. (They also kept him busy taking selfies and signing autographs all evening.) Tom Morello-rock star, union man, and great-grandson of a coal miner-had come to Brookwood, Alabama, to show his support for the 1,000 union members who have been on strike at Warrior Met Coal for the past year and a half, and they were more than happy to welcome him to the struggle. Some of the older folks, and most of the youngest folks, were confused about who he was, but those who fell in the generational sweet spot were pumped, and they greeted his arrival with an appreciative roar. Morello has been a loud and proud supporter of unions and workers’ rights for decades, and has popped up on many a picket line. All of that is to say: The guy’s a bona fide rock star who’s used to playing massive stages for adoring crowds-so it was more than a little surreal to see him and his guitar standing on a rickety wooden stage in rural Alabama, peering out at a scattershot crowd of retirees, little kids, and striking coal miners, preparing to (acoustically) rock their socks off. He’s been a prolific solo artist, releasing acoustic protest songs under the moniker the Nightwatchman, and has collaborated with a laundry list of icons, from Run-DMC and Bruce Springsteen to Boots Riley and Anti-Flag, all the while finding time to squeeze in work as a writer, producer, actor, podcaster, and activist (more on that in a moment). As the guitarist for Rage Against the Machine, he’s toured stadiums around the world and sold millions of records he held the same role in Audioslave, and made a big splash on mainstream radio while he was at it. If you grew up listening to heavy music in the 1990s or 2000s, you know who Tom Morello is, and have probably thrashed yourself silly to at least one of his anti-authoritarian battle cries. ![]()
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