Banned OSHA Films
-A hat tip to The Big Picture Blog for this story: 
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In 1980, the last year of Jimmy Carter’s administration, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) commissioned a series of three 30-minute films about worker safety. These were real pro productions, with Studs Terkel as narrator on two of the productions. In 1981, Reagan appointed 36-year old Florida construction executive Thorne G. Auchter, who proceeded to systematically dismantle the agency. Evidently, the 3 films disturbed Thorne greatly, because OSHA issued a recall, threatening to withold OSHA funds from any organization that did not return their copies of the films, which were promptly destroyed.
But a few union officials defied the ban and “stole” copies so they weren’t able to be returned. Over the years, they would occasionally show them to their troops, using the fact they banned as a way to get them to watch the films, which have important messages about worker rights and workplace safety. But, aside from these bootleg showings, the video disappeared.
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- Well, after all these years, these suppressed films have been posted on the Internet for everyone to see.
- In my opinion, the purpose of governement is to serve the people and create an environment that benefits their health, happiness and welfare. These films are from a time when this POV was actually taken seriously at the highest levels in our government. But, these ideas died with the advent of Reaganism and haven’t returned since. Sad.
- Follow this link to go to the Internet Archive where you can see these three films:
