When Ben Johnson met the union strategy of “Change through Conflict” it was love at first fight. Ben eloped with the union and became Treasurer and then President of AFT Vermont from 2007 - 2016. In an act of flagrant bigamy, he was also the youngest person ever elected to be President of a State Chapter of the AFL-CIO.
After the romance faded Ben left the union in 2017 and worked as a Persuader until 2023.
After 15 years in and around organized labor Ben spends his energy writing and pursuing his creative passions. Pindar advises “Learn and Become What You Are,” and that’s what Ben is up to these days. He lives in Vermont and hangs out at http://hoanthropos.com.
He’s been published in such varied outlets as the political Vermont Digger, the outdoor magazine Fur-Fish-Game, and The Journal of Library Administration and Management. His books include the memoir Fury and Grace, and Finding the Pearl in the Storm, a guidebook to understanding the dynamics of union organizing campaigns. He wrote and produced My Testimony, a one-man show based on his memoir.
