John L. Lewis

Lewis, John L. (1880–1969), U.S. labor leader, president of the United Mine Workers of America, 1920–60. He was one of the founders of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in 1935, advocating the organization of workers on an industrial, rather than a craft, basis. Initially a supporter of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lewis turned against Roosevelt and resigned as president of the CIO in 1940, when the CIO backed Roosevelt's bid for reelection. Lewis was a militant advocate of workers' rights, organizing several strikes of coal miners during World War II and refusing to obey a court order to end a long strike in 1948.