“Now Main Street’s whitewashed windows and vacant stores
Seems like there ain’t nobody wants to come around here no more
They’re closing down the textile mill across the tracks
Foreman says these jobs are going and they ain’t never coming back”
~Bruce Springsteen, lyrics taken from ‘My Hometown’
Well folks it is a shame to have to send this e-mail…
Four score and a bit ago a man in DeWitt, NE created one of the world’s finest tools - the vise grip. The product’s success flourished, and millions of these things were manufactured and assembled in the little town of DeWitt, NE. I moved to an acreage South of DeWitt about 6 years ago. The factory employed nearly 700 people at that time. Pretty impressive accomplishment in a town with only 700 people in it. It is the kind of place where hard work is not only expected, but absolutely necessary. And over the years thousands of people have worked there and worn out their knees, and their backs in order to provide for their families. I can only imagine what it is like to work around a 2000 degree oven for 30 years. It is honest work. It is hard work.
On Friday night, Halloween, the factory will close its doors. The remaining employees will walk out the doors for the last time. For many of them, they will enter an uncertain future. Sure, there are programs to be retrained for high-dollar tech jobs. But the reality is that nobody is going to hire a 55 year-old woman with bad knees and a tired back. Well, nobody except WalMart. But how many part-time greeters do they need?
This is bound to be an emotional day in my town of DeWitt, NE. I’ll be playing some music that night at the Red Zone bar - probably starting at 7 or 8:00 P.M. There will be a costume contest. And, please don’t be offended if some unemployed people decide to dress as Chinese workers (it’ll be tough to dress as an eight year-old). They aren’t mad at the people who get their jobs. They are pissed at the people who sent their jobs away.
And if you’re not pissed off, you’re not paying attention.
~Shawn Cole, Nebraska folk singer
Shawn Cole is a remarkably talented musician who makes his home in small town Nebraska. Each week, he travels the highways and byways to play at bars, roadhouses, and juke joints all over the Great Plains. When I first saw him play more than a year ago, I thought he had amassed a loyal following because of his raw and gritty acoustical sets. After reading his recent email, I now know it’s because he’s a voice for the common man.
Shawn Cole’s set list lies on a barroom floor, Seward, NE
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