James Riddle Hoffa greatly changed the way America looked at unions and their members. Hoffa rose from the single parent teachings of his mom to an independent man who would fight for his people. Gaining experience from age seven in defending himself, and gaining leadership experience by leading a warehouse strike at age seventeen, Hoffa was destined to be a fighter. Losing was not in his genes and some may believe losing was not in his vocabulary. Hoffa would let nothing stand in his way from achieving a goal he had set for himself. This determination and perseverance allowed Hoffa to gain the respect and admiration of not only his members, but also the general public. Throughout his tenure within the Teamsters organization, Hoffa used his actions as the backbone for support from his followers and the general public.Jimmy Hoffa grew up living life as a poor resident of Brazil, Indiana. Along with his brother, Hoffa learned the lesson of family support at the young age of seven. Helping his mother by distributing the clean laundry around town, Hoffa experienced the hardships his mother endured. Later, Hoffa dropped out of high school and helped help support his mother by working at Kroger’s Warehouse. Hoffa’s harsh childhood molded Hoffa into a man who wanted to accomplish his objectives. “I have no desire to forget where I came from. I am not ashamed of my background. I am proud of it.” (Walter, 1972, 68)Hoffa earned everything he received in life and his work for the Teamsters dignified the ethic he expected the union to receive from its leaders. Rising to president of Local 299 at the young age of twenty-four, his continued display of dedication for the union gained him president, Detroit Joint Council of Teamsters. Soon after he would become chairman, Central States Conference of Teamsters. The Conference linked Teamsters in twenty-three states to form a more cohesive union. Finally in 1952 H...
