John F. English

John Francis English (April 14, 1889 – February 3, 1969) was an American labor union official. A member of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), he was appointed as its Secretary-Treasurer by union president Daniel J. Tobin in 1946, and was re-elected to this post at every subsequent Teamsters convention until his death in February 1969 at the age of 80.[1][2][3][4] The organisation itself described English as the "greatest Secretary-Treasurer" it had encountered.[5]

In 1957, English was elected as a vice-president of the AFL-CIO. However, he lost the seat shortly after, when the Teamsters were expelled from the federation.[6]

English was noted for being a Teamsters official who maintained a reputation for integrity, and who had openly opposed union president Dave Beck[7] but he also vocally defended Beck's successor, Jimmy Hoffa, and other Teamsters officials who faced accusations of corruption.[1][8][9] Robert F. Kennedy, in his 1960 book about union corruption, The Enemy Within, noted that "no question has ever been raised about John English's integrity" but also described his disappointment after English praised Hoffa at the 1957 Teamsters convention.[10]

References
  1. Associated Press (February 5, 1969). "J.F. English, high Teamster official, dies". Chicago Tribune. p. 3A10. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  2. Associated Press (February 4, 1969). "John English, Teamsters Union Officer, Dies". The Daily News. Bowling Green, Ky. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  3. "Beck Faces Eviction". The Deseret News. June 14, 1957. pp. 10–.
  4. Commercial Car Journal. Chilton Company. March 1969. pp. 88–. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  5. The International Teamster. International Brotherhood of Teamsters. 1954. pp. 43–.
  6. Fink, Gary (1984). Biographical Dictionary of American Labor. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313228655.
  7. Associated Press (April 5, 1957). "Beck Made Big Mistake Ignoring John English". The Milwaukee Journal. p. 12. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  8. Russell, Thaddeus (2003). Out of the Jungle: Jimmy Hoffa and the Remaking of the American Working Class. Temple University Press. pp. 95–96. ISBN 978-1592130276. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  9. Harper, Stephen J. (2007). Crossing Hoffa: A Teamster's Story. Minnesota Historical Society. pp. 75–76. ISBN 978-0873515801. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  10. Kennedy, Robert F. (2009). The Enemy Within: The McClellan Committee's Crusade Against Jimmy Hoffa And Corrupt Labor Unions. Da Capo Press. pp. 5, 119. ISBN 978-0786751587. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
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