The union of socialist geographers

Abstract

Active between 1974 and 1982, the Union of Socialist Geographers (USG) was a Canadian-US centred academic/activist collaborative venture in socialist geography, operating independently from the mainstream professional associations (the Canadian Association of Geographers, and the then-named Association of American Geographers). Its origins were in the Geographical Expeditions organised in the late 1960s and early 1970s by the first generation of self-styled radical geographers in Detroit, Toronto, Vancouver, and Sydney (Australia). Between that meeting and its dissolution in 1982, the USG primarily engaged in two kinds of activities: publication and distribution of the USG Newsletter, and the organisation of its own academic meetings. The USG, paralleling the structure of labour unions, had both a national organisation and local affiliates (the latter having far more autonomy than in a typical labour union). The national organisation collected dues, oversaw production of the Newsletter, and held annual meetings.