A. Philip Randolph founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, a major Black-led labor union recognized by the American Federation of Labor.
Randolph organized the union in 1925 to represent Black porters employed by the Pullman Company. These workers served passengers on sleeping cars but faced low pay, long hours, and discrimination. The union struggled for more than a decade before gaining recognition from Pullman in 1937.
The Brotherhood became important far beyond workplace bargaining. Its newspaper, the Messenger and later the Black Worker, helped develop Black political activism, while its organizers connected labor rights with civil rights. Randolph also used the threat of a massive march on Washington in 1941 to pressure President Franklin D. Roosevelt to prohibit racial discrimination in defense industries.
Randolph remained a major movement elder and helped organize the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.