In both the film Salt of the Earth (Herbert Biberman, 1954) and the book Ain't No Makin' It by Jay MacLeod, class conflict produces an untenable situation for the lower class in the equation and contributes to conflicts which lead to violence and direct confrontation. Conflict theory explains the nature of these confrontations and of the social problems that emerge. In the case of the strike depicted in Salt of the Earth, the strikers are able to organize and win the strike by getting the company to negotiate. In the book, groups such as the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers who seem unable to "make it" are no better or worse off than the workers except that the workers gain some semblance of control through their actions, while the members of the gangs seek control outside of society in an underground life that only acknowledges that they have already lost.
The film tells the story of a real miners' strike by Mexican American mineworkers in the American Southwest, and the film has a semi-documentary style reflecting the fact that the story is based on real events and makes use of non-actors who were actual participants in the strike. The film was challenged when it was released by critics claiming it was only a piece of Communist propaganda, and both the labor message and the strong feminism apparent in the way the women worked alongside the man and took control of their own lives were ignored by these critics. The film has since acquired a much higher status both as a work of art and as a strong and meaningful political statement from an earlier era, though a statement that still speaks to us today. The film was made in conjunction with the International Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers, giving the workers an opportunity to make their statement and to present their side of the issues involved.
The workers in the film show how change can be accomplished through solidarity, through the formation of a union of workers dedic...