This edition includes a look at the tense relationship between Belgian socialist leader Emile Vandervelde and Italian fascist leader Benito Mussolini, and a deep dive into Studio Stone – a unique photo collection by two pioneers of modern photography from the interwar period, much of which is preserved at Amsab-ISG.

Lucie Kamuswekera. Embroidered past, imagined future in Congo

Lucie Kamuswekera (born 1944) is a Congolese artist who uses embroidery to depict Congo's collective memory. She learned to embroider during the colonial period and uses this technique to document both the colonial past and the recent history of the Congo Wars, events that have deeply influenced her personal life. In 2021, she declared: "The moment I saw people die is the moment I started embroidering the history of Congo."

This trilingual brochure (NL, FR, EN) is the catalog for the exhibition that ran from November 18, 2022, to March 31, 2023, at Amsab-ISG and was created in collaboration with researchers from Conflict and Development Studies at Ghent University and Ohio State University. The exhibition will rerun from July 19 to August 29, 2025, at St. Nicholas' Church in Ghent, in collaboration with Amnesty International Flanders and Conflict Research Group (Ghent University).

Maarten Hendriks, Sam KNiknie, Gillian Mathys, Sarah Van Beurden. Lucie Kamuswekera. Embroidered Past, Imagined Future in Congo.
Ghent: Amsab-ISG, 2022, 52 pp., ill., ISBN 9789464330236.
Price: €5

In this edition: the union world of government personnel, the logbook of the Borze der Compagnons Boek-drukkers der stad Gent, farewell to photographer Lieve Colruyt, the archive of the non-profit organization Burgerdienst voor de Jeugd, Akte van de Hoop (Deed of Hope), and our Studio Stone exhibition. 

On the sensuality of cruising

Van Oostveldt, senior lecturer at Ghent University's Department of Art, Music, and Theatre Studies, takes you into the world of gay cruising and sex in public spaces. What exactly is cruising? Where and how does it happen? What risks and pleasures does it entail? How does the location influence the practice? And what do history and literature tell us about the lives of gay and bisexual people, past and present?

His essay speaks of theatricality, parks, and false nature. Of Bruges, the Lake of Love, and the countryside. Of Paris, Marcel Proust, André Gide, and Julien Green. Of Georges Hérelle. Of Michel Foucault and the medicalization of sex. Of urinals and vespasiennes. Of being caught, punishment, and police checks. Of AIDS and gay bashing. Of sadness and shame. But just as much of sensuality and pleasure. It is both a historical and literary exploration and a personal reflection.

Bram VAN OOSTVELDT.
On the sensuality of cruising. Ghent: Amsab-ISG, 2025, 65 pp., ill., ISBN 978946330427.
Price: €10

Catalog Studio Stone

* Nominated for the Best Historical Publication Award at  Les Rencontres de la Photographie 2025 in Arles *

Studio Stone highlights the work of Cami and Sasha Stone , a photographic duo who made a splash in the 1920s and 1930s with their modern approach to advertising, architecture, and portrait photography. Their images graced leading magazines and were featured in exhibitions from Berlin to Brussels. During this period, they were compared to icons like Kertész, Krull, Moholy-Nagy, and Man Ray. Yet, they largely disappeared from view after World War II.

Amsab-ISG and the Musée de la Photographie in Charleroi joined forces to bring their groundbreaking work back into the spotlight. The catalog offers a rich overview of their multifaceted oeuvre , with photographs of architecture and industry, artistic nudes, portraits of artists and politicians, and scenes from theatrical and musical life. These images are contextualized by publications from the interwar period and essays by specialists in photography, history, and politics.

The publication features 170 original prints from the Amsab-ISG collection, supplemented with documents, posters, magazines, and archival material from Belgian and German institutions. The result is a profound and visually powerful portrait of two forgotten pioneers of European photography.

The catalog accompanies the Studio Stone , which was previously on display at the Musée de la Photographie in Charleroi (February 1 – May 18, 2025) and runs from June 23 to November 21, 2025, in the public space of Amsab-ISG in Ghent.

Studio Stone has been nominated for the prestigious prize for best historical publication at Les Rencontres de la Photographie 2025 in Arles. This shortlist recognizes photobooks that stand out through their content, vision, and design, and is considered one of the most important awards in the international photography world.

Studio Stone
Musée de la Photographie en Amsab-ISG, 2025, 335 pages, ISBN: 978-2-87183-087-0
Price: 51 euros (incl. shipping)

The exhibition and accompanying catalogue received the support of the Flemish and French Communities of Belgium as part of the Cultural Cooperation between the Flemish and French Communities.

Young and queer since the sixties

The exhibition "Young and Queer Since the Sixties " (November 18, 2024 – March 28, 2025) at Amsab-ISG highlights the history and activism of LGBTQ+ youth in Belgium. The exhibition is a collaboration between Amsab-ISG and the Suzan Daniel Fund , as part of Ghent, European Youth Capital 2024.

This brochure contains the complete exhibition texts, illustrations, testimonials, and information about the various youth projects in the exhibition, such as Queering the Home and the Kwier Kaart . It is a valuable reference for anyone who wants to relive the exhibition or explore it further.

Bart Hellinck.
Young and Queer Since the Sixties Amsab-ISG, 112 pages, ISBN: 978946330410
Price: €15 (including shipping)

Poster issued in 1935 by the Belgian Workers' Party (BWP) and the Belgian Trade Union Commission (SKB) for the parliamentary elections

Imprimerie Coopérative Ouvrière (printer); National Action Bureau for the Brussels Labor Plan, BWP, Trade Union Commission of Belgium 

Size: 77.5 x 48 cm, 150g

60 years of migration, 30 years of connection

What motivated the first founders of ethnic-cultural associations, and what drives the younger generations today? To commemorate sixty years of migration, this book aims to offer insights into the community life of people with migration roots, through interviews with board members from the Bindus vzw network.

Anyone who thought that migrants, even during their early years in our country, did nothing more than work is mistaken. In the words of the Swiss writer Max Frisch:

“We asked for workers. We got people.”

This book, however, tells not only the story of this past, but also of the present and the future. While the first generation focused on preservation, we see the second and third generations broadening their horizons. Today, young organizations excel in education, culture, sports, art, activism… you name it.

This book celebrates that journey. It offers insights into the stories of our member associations, their founders, and staff. It shows how migration and diversity can enrich society as a whole with new perspectives and opportunities.

Hümeyra CETINEL.
60 Years of Migration, 30 Years of Connection. Bindus vzw in collaboration with Amsab-ISG, Red Star Line Museum, and Ecru, 123 pages, ISBN: 9789090394510.
Price: €21 (including shipping).

Small Resistance - Bicycles in the Amsab-ISG collection
 

From June 14 to September 27, 2024, Amsab-ISG presented the exhibition "Klein Verzet" (Small Resistance). Using pieces from its own collection, this exhibition highlighted cycling heritage in all its facets – from a toy of the elite, to a means of emancipation, to the struggle with and for the bicycle. The history of the bicycle in Flanders was presented, from the first cycling race in Ghent on April 11, 1869, to the current ubiquity and variety of two-wheeled vehicles.

This publication collects the images from the exhibition, enriched with interesting contributions on the history and impact of cycling in Flanders, including from Bieke Purnelle of RoSa vzw and Wies Callens of the Cyclists' Union.

Small Resistance - Cycling in the Amsab-ISG collection
. Amsab-ISG, 55 pages.
Price: €10 (including shipping)

In the years immediately following World War I, May 1st became a celebration of liberation. Voting rights, trade union rights, the eight-hour day… "Spring has conquered the long, languid winter .

May Day! Poster by Constant Dratz, published by the Belgian Workers' Party, May 1, 1923.

Size: 45cm x 70cm, 150g

About the night shelter , the Ghent Work of the Night Shelter, disease-specific patient associations , the archive of the Ghent Cyclists' Union , documents from the United States Escape Program from our collection and the exhibition Young and Queer since the Sixties .

About the reproductive role of Moroccan women from Mechelen , advertising campaigns on the Flemish coast , a manual from 1911 in connection with the Ghent municipal elections from our collection, the Platform Hulpverlening Ledeberg and a testimony from a delegate at the VRT.

Nobel Prize winners William Butler Yeats and George Bernard Shaw wrote a poem and a play, respectively, for the flamboyant British feminist Helen "Lalla" Speyer (1870-1965). She posed for one of Roger Fry's finest portraits, a member of the Bloomsbury Group, which also included Virginia Woolf. From 1901 to 1922, she was the wife of Emile Vandervelde, the undisputed patron of the Belgian Workers' Party. Lalla introduced Emile to feminist ideas, while he introduced her to the socialist struggle. They found common ground, particularly in the fields of art, popular education, the campaign against Leopold II's atrocities, and aid to occupied Belgium. Emile "forgot" his first wife in his memoirs. Studies of him have too often neglected Lalla's impact on his political and personal development. But Lalla is more than just "Emilie's wife." Her own story only began to unfold after the First World War, when she began to work and live increasingly independently of her husband.

Madame Lalla Vandervelde
A very exceptional woman

Martine Vermandere
Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2023, 116 p., ill., soft cover

ISBN: 9789464330199

€15

You can also order the French version of the book here

To victory! Poster designed by Rik and published by the Belgian Workers' Party for the 1936 parliamentary elections.

Size: 50 by 84 cm, 150g

About vegetarianism in Belgium , oral testimonies from the metal industry , the search for the meaning of a winged flagpole from our collection, an exhibition about our cycling heritage and the archives of the non-profit organisation Aktiegroep Leefmilieu Kempen (VALK).

William Butler Yeats and George Bernard Shaw, the winners of the Nobel Prize, their writings, their poems, and the scenes, their theater pieces, for the flamboyant feminist Britannique Helen “Lalla” Speyer (1870-1965). Elle a pose pour l'un plus beaux portraits de Roger Fry, membre du groupe Bloomsbury, don't hesitate to share Virginia Woolf. Et elle fut l'épouse d'Émile Vandervelde, le patron incontesté du Parti ouvrier belge, de 1901 à 1922. Tandis qu'Émile initiait Lalla à la lutte socialiste, elle lui faisait connaître la pensée féministe. This is because of the domains of the arts, the popular education, the campaigns of Léopold II and the aid of the Belgian occupation of their son. Émile a « oublié » sa première femme dans ses mémoires. The studies are carried out on the basis of the negative impact of Lalla on the evolution of politics and personnel. Mais lalla est plus que la « femme d'Émile ». After the history of the premiere of the world, the start of the journey and the life of the plus and independent of the son.

Madame Lalla Vandervelde
A very exceptional woman

Martine Vermandere
Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2023, 116 p., ill., soft cover

ISBN: 9789464330205
Price: € 15
Number of pages: 114

You can also order the Dutch version here

This poster captures the essence of May 1st in one word: solidarity. 

Poster published by the Schweizerischer Gewerkschaftsbund, May 1, 1985. Copyright Simone Torelli, Zurich.

Size: 50 x 70cm, 150g

About integration in Flanders , the identity evolution in historiography , Amnesty International in Flanders, the universality of human rights and the processing of the archives of the non-profit organisation JONG.

The story of Sanatorium De Mick

Somewhere deep in the Kempen forests, in an oasis of peace and greenery, lies the De Mick estate. It was chosen by the Antwerp socialists in 1922 as the site for their sanatorium, a hospital for tuberculosis patients. Around 1900, tuberculosis was a fatal disease that afflicted up to a fifth of the population. Dockworkers at the port of Antwerp were still poor at the time, and consumption wreaked havoc in the small houses where they huddled with their families. In 1922, the Antwerp socialist movement founded the non-profit organization Heropbeuring (Heropbeuring) and raised funds. The monumental De Mick building—or Sana De Mick, as many Antwerp residents remember it—still stands, now expanded with several modern facilities for seniors and people with acquired brain disorders. Follow the remarkable story of a sanatorium, clinic, and care center—a story that is moving, sometimes chilling, but always heartwarming.

This book is also available digitally. Download the PDF (4 MB):

images/pdf/mick/2022-09-01-webshop-mick.pdf

Donald Weber, From Sanatorium to Care Center: History of De Mick, 1922-2022. Amsab-ISG/Heropbeuring, 2022, 68 p.

The earliest workers' associations presented themselves as mutual societies to circumvent the Le Chapelier Act, which prohibited any organization of workers. Especially before any social legislation was enacted, mutual societies played a crucial role for workers. Along with the growth of the entire socialist movement, the centralization of smaller mutual funds led to an ever-increasing range of services. The opening of the Volkskliniek (People's Clinic) in Ghent in 1928 was a prime example of this.

Volkskliniek Bond Moyson. Poster designed by Haeck and published by Bond Moyson, 1928.

size: 80 x 54 cm, 150gr

In 1958, the BSP, with Prime Minister Achiel Van Acker as its figurehead, ran for office in the elections. This poster was part of the campaign. The figures in the background, with their Eastern European or Chinese-looking outfits, could be seen as hidden seducers behind the back of the Great Seducer… Elvis.

Socialist March . Poster issued by the Belgian Socialist Party, May 1, 1958.

Size: 50cm x 70cm, 150gr

About the difficult relationship between the socialist Camille Huysmans and the banker Paul Timbal during WWII, the coup in Chile in 1973 , the first passenger train in Belgium and the migration collection in Amsab-ISG.

More than just the life story of Juan Fernandez (1931-2019) – a Spanish child refugee in 1937 who stepped down in 1992 as president of the General Federation, the largest trade union federation of the ABVV – this essay sketches the life of a union leader. It explores the complexities of the union as an essential pillar of social democracy.

Juan Fernandez. The figure of a union leader

Herman Balthazar (ed.)
AMSAB/General Central – ABVV/The Trade Union House Ghent vzw, Ghent, 2021, 78 p., ill., soft cover

€ 10

This price includes shipping. The book can also be picked up at the Amsab-ISG reception desk for €5. 

About the role of the women's movement in the struggle for independence in Aden (present-day Yemen), the project Past Week by history students about the Ghent  commons , the phenomenon of the beach donkeys and the co-creative process behind the exhibition 'We have never been the Turks' .

Working-class women . Poster designed by Rik and published by the Belgian Workers' Party for the 1932 municipal elections.

Size: 84 x 55 cm, 150g

About the Belgian People's Houses , the experiences of former miner Constant Malva , a publication about Lalla Vandervelde , the theme of migration in Amsab-ISG and the appreciation of hashtags .

The book, a whopper of 200 pages in a large format, explores the history of the  Vooruit newspaper and covers nearly 100 years of political, social, and cultural news. It is richly illustrated with newspaper pages, photos, and documents, and interspersed with anecdotes.

Besides the newspaper itself, much attention is also paid to the turbulent history of the socialist movement in Ghent. And not to forget the role of famous former employees such as the writer Louis Paul Boon , the poet Richard Minne , and painter-drawer Frits Van den Berghe .

The publication was compiled on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name at Amsab-ISG (22 August - 22 October 2021).

Some initial reactions: "A beautiful historical document," "What a colossal work," "A gem, congratulations!"

Daily newspaper Vooruit 1884-1978
Bob Van de Voorde, Jan Van Doorslaer, Herman Balthazar

Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2021, 200 p.

25 €

About the Belgian backroom politics prior to the NATO Double Decision , the political speeches of August Vermeylen and the 100-year history of the De Mick sanatorium .

The Rose on the Lapel

The publication is now over 30 years old – it was issued in 1990 to commemorate the centennial of May 1st. But the content is undated: an easily readable history of Labor Day, in all its aspects.

Geert Van Goethem
AMSAB, Ghent, 1990, 109 p.

On the changing role of the pharmacist in the 1960s, a symposium on the very diverse aspects of the abortion issue, and the participatory project Schafttijd (Breakfast Time) of Amsab-ISG.

Literary criticism by Richard Minne in 'Het Geestesleven' (Vooruit, 1945-1965)

For many years, poet and journalist Richard Minne (1891-1965) wrote for the cultural section "Het Geestesleven" (The Spiritual Life) of the Ghent socialist newspaper Vooruit. His writings offer an idiosyncratic and often ironic perspective on writers and literary works. In this text edition, Dr. Els van Damme presents for the first time all the contributions published between 1945 and 1965 in the sections "Panorama of Letters," "With the Pencil Stub," and "Pros and Cons."

Els van Damme (ed.)
Amsab-ISG/UGent, Ghent, 2016, 782 p.

About the short-lived socialist republic of Georgia (1918-1921) , the failed attempt of the socialists to avert First World War bathing cabin on the Belgian coast .

The joyful arrival of the automobile in Belgium, 1895-1940, recounts how the automobile emerged at the end of the nineteenth century and slowly but surely conquered a place in public spaces and the lives of Belgians. At the end of 1895, several Belgian cyclists founded the Automobile Club de Belgique. This marked the beginning of the automotive era in our country. Between 1900 and 1914, the number of motor vehicles rose from 1,000 to over 13,000, and confrontations on public roads became increasingly violent. Drivers indulged their obsession with speed on unsuitable roads, among even less adapted, traditional road users. This caused accidents and a general atmosphere of fear, indignation, and violence. After the First World War, the automobile broke through, and motor vehicles became the dominant mode of transport on the road. The Belgian government considered motorization good for the economy and general prosperity and therefore felt it deserved support. But the challenges quickly changed: traffic accidents increased and became a widespread social problem. From the late 1920s onward, roads were adapted to motorized traffic standards and equipped with new traffic devices and signs. Safety, however, was hardly a concern; efficiency was considered the benchmark for successful traffic policy. The joyful arrival of the automobile in Belgium, 1895-1940, tells a broad and often anecdotal story about West Flemish steam cars at the Chinese court, the death culture of motorists, and one-way pedestrian traffic in Brussels. This work is based on original research and describes for the first time the earliest history of the automobilization of Belgian society. The objections and often heated debates of contemporaries about car-free roads, built-in or not-built-in speed bumps, public underground parking garages, and so on often sound surprisingly current.

Donald Weber
The Joyous Entry of the Automobile in Belgium, 1895-1940
Ghent: Academia Press/Amsab-ISG, 2010, 294 p., ill., soft cover

125 years of socialist party

A new perspective on the history of the socialist party. And a critical analysis of the party's recent past. These are the ingredients of this book. Smoothly written and richly illustrated, it's a captivating journey through 125 years of social and political history.

Geert Van Goethem & Walter Pauli
Amsab-ISG/Tijdsbeeld & PièceMontee, 2010, 160 p., ill., softcover

About Brussels resident Joseph Milot , socialist activist at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, the Dutch historian Barbara Henkes , Lode Verbraecken , a Belgian brigadier in the Spanish trenches, the digitalization of construction drawings and the archive of the De Wielewaal Ghent department.
 

Prospects for the trade union in motion

A book published to commemorate the centenary of the Algemene Centrale (General Federation). The various contributions encourage reflection on the future of the trade union movement. They offer perspectives and sometimes suggest concrete paths forward. The authors come from both academia and the trade union movement.

Carl Devos, Kurt Vandaele, Jean Faniet, Corinne Gobin (ed.)
Algemeen Centrale/ASP Publishers/Amsab-ISG, Brussels/Ghent, 2009, 318 p., softcover

About the Belgian solidarity movement with the Iranian Revolution in the late 1970s, the fascinating life story of the 'dark red' Ghent resident Ferdinand Minnaert and the rich Camille Huysmans collection in Amsab-ISG .

The Belgian health insurance funds during the Second World War

The German invasion on May 10, 1940, severely disrupted the operation of Belgian health insurance funds. Most, however, managed to continue providing services during the war, albeit with some difficulty. However, much more was at stake: the military administration wanted health insurance to be aligned with the German model and could count on the cooperation of several Belgian officials. Others, however, resisted. This book chronicles the struggle for Belgian health insurance waged by the various parties involved and describes how this led to new impetus and a new direction in December 1944.

Karel Van Acker
Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2010, 176 p., ill., softcover

About how Belgian refugees ended up in a concentration camp in Spain during WWII, first-generation Turkish women speaking, the wealth of information in the Belgian picture postcard , and an emotional discovery in the Amsab-ISG image collection.

Doctors and mutual health insurance companies during the interbellum: the Antwerp example

To understand our current health insurance system and its problems, it's important to know what preceded it. A crucial period for the two key players in this story, namely doctors and mutual health insurance funds, was the interwar period. The organizational evolution of both groups and the conflicts between them during that period were strongly influenced by the often turbulent political context in which the first legislation on health insurance was established. This book also addresses the previously undocumented attempts by activists to establish their own health insurance system in Flanders during the First World War.

Karel Van Ackter in collaboration with Jo Deferme and Luc Vandeweyer
Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2005, 224 p., ill., soft cover

About Jules Ruhl , the 'apostle of the Belgian animal protection movement', the experiences of two master students with an oral history project on male and transgender sex work in Antwerp, the class conflicts on the steamships from Antwerp to America in the late 19th century, and some important acquisitions of the Suzan Daniel Fund .

100 years of the Federation of Socialist Mutualities of Brabant

At the end of the nineteenth century, the socialist labor movement established several organizations to establish and expand its influence among the working class: the sick-society, the cooperative, the trade union, and, in 1885, the Belgian Workers' Party (BWP). The socialists' relentless struggle resulted in a whole series of initiatives aimed at improving and protecting the living conditions of the working class. This led to the first laws on health insurance funds, which in 1909 led to the establishment of what would become the Federation of Socialist Mutualities of Brabant (FSMB). This initially modest initiative was intended to offer material assistance to sick members based on the fundamental principle of mutual health insurance: solidarity. This book describes how, a hundred years after the founding of the FSMB, this essential principle of solidarity remains the foundation for the development and maintenance of a sound healthcare system.

Hendrik Ollivoer & Luc Peiren
Amsab-ISG/Tijdsbeeld & PièceMontee/FSMB, Ghent/Brussels, 2009, 112 p., ill., softcover

On the role of the International of War Opponents in the Flemish peace movement, the development of Flemish protest against genetically modified organisms, a fiery essay by Gramsci, the archives of the Ecuadorian Esmeraldas Center, gouaches promoting edifying youth literature…

Jeune étudiant à l'Universitié libre de Bruxelles Jo Boute adhéra au communism. Engagement politique qui ne devint jamais excessiveif. Sa pensée scientifique de l'esprit du libre examen l'en ont empêché. The atmosphere in which the environment is shaped and the characteristics of the body are shaped by the nature of the Union Society, which is also the basis for examining the new ideas of innovation in the practice of gynécology. With the help of Willy Peers, the prime minister in Belgium, we introduced the practice of accommodating people. Son engages socially with tradition and continues to investigate new techniques. A continuation of care for the health of the child and the continued care of the son is a permanent source of action therapy. It is important to consider the partisan orientation of the liberalization of contraception and the independence of the law. Deux espaces où il a joué a role de pionnier, souvent dan les coulisses, parfois dans l'ombre de Peers.

Rik Hemmerijckx
Amsab-IHS, Gand, 2004, 92 p., ill, soft cover

Dutch version: Jo Boute. A life in the service of women

On Union Minière's political intervention in Congolese independence, the sexual revolution as a flexible historical concept, 'good' and 'bad' historians of Belgian Congo, the Wilchar collection at Amsab-ISG, and on books. 

About the 1920 Antwerp Olympics, the genesis of the United Nations in 1945, the whistleblowers who exposed the harsh reality of Belgian colonial policy, the iconoclasm against Belgian colonial heritage, Leopold II and the coast, how to make old digital media readable again, and archives as societal memory.

As a young medical student at the Université libre de Bruxelles, Jo Boute became fascinated by communism, but he never became a hardline communist. He was too much of a scientist for that, imbued with the spirit of free inquiry. The Cold War atmosphere, which condemned everything emanating from the Soviet Union, did not, however, prevent him from finding the impetus for a number of innovations in gynecology in the Soviet Union. Along with Dr. Willy Peers, he was one of the first in Belgium to introduce the practice of painless childbirth. His social commitment and his constant search for innovations, his constant concern for the well-being of mother and child, would remain central throughout Jo Boute's medical career. It was in this spirit that he also became an advocate for the liberalization of abortion. Two issues in which he often played a pioneering role, often behind the scenes, and sometimes in the shadow of Peers.

Rik Hemmerijckx
Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2004, 92 p., ill, soft cover

Also available in French: Jo Boute. A Life at the Service of Women

The Syndicat des Employés, Techniciens et Cadres (SETCa) after 125 years of history, which describes the basis for the foundation of the premier syndicate of socialist employees in 1891 in Brussels for the development of a syndicalism employed socialist modern, during the first period of the premiere Guerre global – pendant that the authorities are responsible for the employees who are not required to ensure social protection. With the croissance and the féminisation of the services sector, the SETCa evolves and an intersectoral syndicate present in the private sectors. The first step is to test the basic agreement of the Centrale Générale portant sur le principle d'une centrale secteur et ce, pour 47 commissions paritaires. It is very easy to collaborate with other syndicates, so you can follow the FGTB. Anyway, the particularities of SETC are the basis of a major female syndicate.
Pour reconstruction of the evolution of the passion of SETC, the authors are the authors of the archives of the past and recent years, the composition of the faits, the chiffres and the records. The warehouses, the warehouses and the employees who employ the various profiles of the small and large enterprises and institutions, are the basis of the history of the company and their favorability, which is the basis of the place and the social environment.
The live of your life is your own.

Dutch version: 125 years of BBTK

Camille Baillargeon & Luc Peiren
Amsab-IHS/SETCa/IHOES/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Gand/Bruxelles/Seraing, 319 p., ill., softcover

About the citizen movement for the "Restoration of Historical Memory" in Spain, the secret contacts between Belgian socialists and State Security in London, a new Social Pact, cholera and corona, the significance of August Vermeylen today, the archives of the Merelbeke Medical Center and Arthur De Decker, Walter De Mulder's photographs, websites as a new source for the history of tomorrow...

About Frans Masereel as the inspiration for the first graphic novelists, the March Feier  at the Friedhof der Märzgefallenen in Berlin as a popular protest in a context of war and revolution, the photo collection of Variétés in Amsab-ISG, the strike of the employees of the Antwerp Grand Bazaar in 1936…

The Union of Employees, Technicians and Managers (BBTK) has a history spanning over 125 years. This history is described in this book, from the founding of the first socialist white-collar union in 1891 in Brussels, through the period after the First World War—when the government believed white-collar workers did not require social protection—to the development of modern socialist white-collar unionism. With the growth and feminization of the service sector, the BBTK developed into an intersectoral union present in all private sectors. It is innovative, as evidenced by the important agreement with the General Federation on the principle of one federation per sector, covering 47 joint committees. It is also open to collaboration with other unions, both within and outside the ABVV (General Federation of Workers' Associations). Finally, one of the BBTK's unique features is that it is a union with a predominantly female membership.
To reconstruct the fascinating evolution of the BBTK, the authors delved into old and recent archives, collecting facts, figures, and reports. From the packers, shop assistants, and clerks of yesteryear to employees with diverse backgrounds in small and large businesses and institutions, it is the history of a single struggle for the benefit of everyone, regardless of their position on the social ladder.
This book is dedicated to them.

There is also a French version: 125 ans SETCA

Camille Baillargeon & Luc Peiren
Amsab-ISG/BBTK/IHOES/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Ghent/Brussels/Seraing, 319 p., ill., softcover

The textile industry was and remains a vital industrial sector for Belgium, not least because of the many thousands of people who earned and continue to earn their daily bread there. This work examines these employers and employees and their respective organizations. Who were these textile employers? When and why did they organize? How did the work of the textile worker evolve? Why did various textile workers' organizations emerge?
Considerable attention is also paid to the relationship between workers and employers. This relationship changed profoundly over the course of Belgium's industrial development. Over the long period from 1800 to 1975, the book examines how these relationships evolved at the business, sectoral, and interprofessional levels.
Using testimonies, literary, union, and employer sources, it paints a picture of the mechanisms that led to social achievements such as reduced working hours, paid leave, paid holidays, and the abolition of child labor. In addition to the traditional elements – strikes, collective bargaining agreements, joint committees, or works councils – labor honors, company celebrations, buildings and infrastructure, work pressure, hygiene measures, etc., are also considered, thus creating a new, broad perspective on the social and labor history of Belgium.

Bart De Wilde
Ludion/AMSAB/Profortex, Ghent/Brussels, 1997, 403 p., ill., hardcover

100 years of the General Central ABVV. 200 years of trade union history

In 1909, several socialist unions representing construction workers united in the Centrale Vereeniging van Bouwwerkers (Central Union of Construction Workers), the very first socialist trade union federation in our country. Over the years, workers' unions from numerous other sectors joined the coalition we know today as the Algemene Centrale (General Central). But the seeds of its existence date back to the French Revolution, when the first workers united, despite prevailing laws, to break free from the yoke of capital and the disastrous consequences of the Industrial Revolution. It was the hairdressers and cigar makers, the marble workers, stone cutters, brick makers, and cobblestone layers, the workers in the petrochemical and petroleum industries, the woodworkers, glassblowers, and miners, the cleaning staff, the graphic workers and painters, the leather and hide workers, and—more recently—the temporary workers, those working for service vouchers, or in sheltered workshops who, together, made the Algemene Centrale great.
This book is about them, about their struggles and their victories, about their actions and achievements, their decisiveness and solidarity.

Luc Peiren
Amsab-ISG/Algemene Centrale/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Ghent/Brussels, 2008, 191 p., ill., softcover

From the front row
From multiculturalism to super-diversity: thirty years of coexistence through the eyes of VOEM

The Association for Development and Emancipation of Muslims (VOEM) is celebrating its 30th anniversary (1989-2019). For this occasion, VOEM commissioned historian Tina De Gendt to write a book in collaboration with Amsab-ISG. The book will chronicle the experiences of the pioneers and volunteers amidst the significant events and trends that have shaped and changed the world in recent decades. Thus, VOEM is the first self-organized organization in Flanders to write its own history.
From its founding in 1989 to the present day, there has been a constant flux around the themes of migration, integration, and Islam. This story offers readers a unique glimpse into the incredibly diverse world of Muslims and their commitment to a harmonious, pluralistic, and inclusive Flanders.

Tina De Gendt in collaboration with Piet Creve
Amsab-ISG/VOEM., Ghent, 2019, 170 p., ill., soft cover

The covers of the couverts of the tatouages, the solid dockers, the armoires with a glossy finish: the cliché of the voudrait of the industry of transport, so the affair of the costs is dissatisfied. You can enjoy the rest of your life with a suite of moments fort, the moments of harassment, many dangers and the rarest of payees. In addition, during the journey of the first year, the choice was made to change rapidly and also quickly during the transportation world: the bateaux, the ports, the routes, the vehicles, etc. The transporters were subject to the contraints of the adapter. Les photos les plus anciennes sont particulièrement marquantes: de pauvres hères tyrant un bateau depuis le chemin de halage, une femme de batelier au gouvernail avec son enfant à ses côtés au bout d'une corde, des dockers employed sous des sacs de céréales de septante kilos ou davantage. The contrast between the clichés of the house is enormous.
This is the relationship between the face of the eyes of the people, the ages, the eyes and the eyes of the world during which the transport was radically transformed between 1913 and 2013.

Dutch version: Living and working in the Belgian transport industry, 1913-2013

Donald Weber
UBOT/Amsab-IHS/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Anvers/Gand, 2013, 239 p., ill., softcover

Histoire du syndicat socialiste

Avec un taux de 68%, la Belgique se situe parmi les pays les plus syndicales. The FGTB assembles more than a million people and even more. During the economic years, it is very important to be part of an incontournable part of the socio-economic concertation. Son histoire tout comme son rôle social restent toutefois peu connus. The presentation looks at the combination of the lacuna and the different facets of the socialist syndicalism in Belgium.
A premiere part of the chronological retracement of the history of the movement, the constitution of the Commission Syndicale in 1898 and the evolution of the day. A second part about the angle of the role of the FGTB in the society, notation and social concertation. Premiere synthesis of the history of the FGTB, illustrating the nombreux documents in the design of the syndicate of the amateurs of the social history

There is also a Dutch version: A century of solidarity

Luc Peiren & Jean-Jacques Missiaen
FGTB/Ludion/AMSAB/IEV, Bruxelles/Gand, 1997, 212 p., ill., softcover

Secret press during World War II

Unlike the history of collaboration, historical research into the resistance in Flanders remains largely unexplored territory. The secret press is now a particularly important source for studying the resistance during World War II. The book contains general contributions on the how and why of the clandestine press, the circumstances in which it was created, and its creators; a second part highlights the specific situation in Antwerp.

With contributions by Bert Boeckx, Bruno De Wever, Gert De Prins, Jan Laplasse, Fabrice Maerten, Ann Renard, Lieven Saerens, Karolien Steen, Roel Vande Winkel and Martine Vermandere

Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2004, 173 p., ill., softcover 

Romain 100 (1915-1994)

Romain Deconinck (1915-1994) was for a long time the icon of Ghent's folk theatre. Based on oral testimonies, Björn Rzoska paints a captivating portrait of this actor, theatre maker, and author, who inspired many people for decades.
Jaak Van Schoor explores Deconinck's place in the Flemish theatre landscape and provides a comprehensive overview of his entire theatrical oeuvre.
Roel Vande Winkel examines Romain Deconinck's role in the film and television world, where, compared to his theatrical work, he initially seemed to "wander around," but through which he achieved great fame in Belgium and the Netherlands.
In his contribution, Johan Taeldeman focuses on Romain Deconinck's importance in preserving the Ghent dialect and his impact on its evolution.
After Romain Deconinck's death, a younger generation has taken over the reins over the past 20 years. Karel Van Keymeulen, journalist and expert on Ghent's cultural life, describes, through a series of interviews, how this worked and how the rich, yet challenging, heritage of the Roman repertoire was dealt with.

Björn Rzoska, Jaak Van Schoor, Roel Vande Winkel, Johan Taeldeman, Karel Van Keymeulen
Publisher Snoeck/Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2005, 167 pp., ill., soft cover

The fortunes of an intellectual in the labor movement

A nuanced biography of a historical figure who was long considered an icon in the socialist movement and still exudes a certain charisma today.
Written by what Professor Herman Balthazar calls "the master hand" of the author in his foreword.

Guy Vanschoenbeek
AMSAB, Ghent, 1988, 86 p., ill., softcover

Rough sea dogs, tough dockworkers, hardened truckers: the cliché goes that working in the transport industry is reserved for "heavyweights." Their lives are fodder for tall tales, always dangerous and rarely well-paid. Yet, in the past 100 years, nothing has changed as quickly and visibly as transport: the ships, the ports, the roads, the cars. And the working man, he adapted. Early photographs defy the imagination: a poor family pulling a boat from a towpath along the canals, a bargeman's wife holding her child on board by a leash, in the harbor, men dragging grain sacks weighing 70 kilos or more. The contrast with today's photos is immense. This book tells the life stories of the workers, their wives, children, and friends in a remarkably vivid way, in the spectacularly rapidly changing world of transport, from 1913 to 2013.

Donald Weber
BTB/Amsab-ISG/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Antwerp/Ghent:, 2013, 239 p., ill., soft cover

There is also a French version: Vivre et travailler dans l'industrie du transport en Belgique, 1913-2013

Ten refugee children from the Spanish Civil War tell

"I didn't know that woman who came to visit me from Spain after the Civil War. My mother. I wanted to go to my mama, as I always called my foster mother," says Carlos Pascual Madorran. He was four when he came to Belgium and stayed.
During the Spanish Civil War, 32,000 children were evacuated abroad. Of those, five thousand ended up in Belgium. Preschoolers and primary schoolchildren. They lived with foster families in Ghent, Mechelen, Brussels, and Liège. How did they fare later? What impact did the war have? The war children, or ninões de la guerra (children of the war), tell their stories.

Hilde Pauwels
Publisher EPO vzw, 2007, 73 p., ill, softcover

The history of the Flemish metal industry

This book has two storylines. First, it focuses on the evolution of the Flemish metal industry over the past 250 years or so. Then, it examines how the (socialist) metalworkers organized themselves throughout this time to defend their interests. This was no easy task. The Flemish metal industry and the socialist metalworkers' union in Flanders were long dominated by the Walloon steel industry and the somewhat less fervent unionism of the steelworkers below the steel border. This created the monolithic image of a Belgian metal industry dominated by the steel industry and machine production, and a Belgian metalworkers' union tinged with Walloon voluntarism.

However, the study of the Flemish metal industry and the socialist metalworkers' union above the language border reveals a very different picture. Although the Flemish metal industry also had its roots primarily in Ghent's mechanical engineering (textile industry), the sector quickly grew into a diverse and highly industrialized sector, with significant electrical engineering (Bell, ATEA, Philips, Barco, etc.), non-ferrous metals (Nyrstar, etc.), automotive construction (General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Renault, Volvo, but also Peugeot, Mercedes, Triumph, Saab, Bogward, etc.), and ultimately its own steel industry (Sidmar, Aperam, etc.). This diversity means that the socialist metalworkers' union ABVV-Metaal still represents the interests of a broad group of metalworkers in Flanders today. And although the Flemish metalworkers' union has also been pushed onto the defensive since the 1974 economic crisis, it is not a passive union movement. On the contrary, IJzersterk demonstrates that Flemish metalworkers experienced revolutionary upheavals just as much as their counterparts in the south of the country. Although consultation was always preferred. The conflicts between Flemish and Walloon unions were perhaps most pronounced in the former federal Metalworkers' Federation of Belgium. It is therefore not surprising that the Flemish and Walloon/Brussels metalworkers gradually sought their own path. Since 2006, ABVV-Metaal has been an autonomous Flemish metalworkers' union within the ABVV.

Luc Peiren
ABVV-Metaal/Amsab-ISG, Brussels/Ghent, 2018, 353 pp., ill., hardcover

Jewish Revolutionaries in Belgium 1925-1940.

After the First World War, thousands of Jews fled antisemitism and misery in Eastern and Central Europe to Belgium. Among them were both nationalists—who advocated for a Jewish state in Palestine—and revolutionaries, impressed by the October Revolution of 1917. The author follows the Jewish communist migrants from the 1920s onward. He spoke with leaders and activists, thus creating a kind of history of mentality. This reveals that the old world of "Ashkenazi" Judaism—based on religion, family, and tradition—was never far away, despite the revolutionary ideas. Indeed, a conservative reflex led them to seek connection with the utopian world of authoritarian communism. For them, this ideology served as a conservative barrier against the social and cultural disintegration caused by capitalist industrial progress.

Rudi Van Doorslaer
Hadewijch/AMSAB, Antwerp/Ghent, 1996, 253 p., ill., softcover

Half a Century of Migration and Integration.

There are approximately 15 million Greeks. Nearly half live outside Greece's borders. The Greek community in Belgium numbers 25,000. Fleeing extreme poverty and political instability, they arrived here in the 1950s and 1960s as "guest workers." They worked in the Limburg coal mines, among other places. Today, they are well-integrated, with children and grandchildren. Three generations, each with their own story about the tension between Greek roots and being Belgian.
Maria Dermitzaki has a unique way of telling these stories. She uses two tools: her eye and her pen. With photos and text, she blends intangible heritage and oral tradition into a poetic blend.

Maria Dermitzaki,
Publisher EPO vzw, Antwerp, 2010, 271 pp., ill., softcover

Rebel Between Dream and Action (1923-1995)

The Belgian economist Ernest Mandel (1923-1995) was an undogmatic Marxist thinker and a radical politician. He exerted a major international influence on the generation of '68. His writings have appeared in more than forty languages. In addition to his political-theoretical work, he wrote, among other works, "Uitgelezen moorden" (Selected Murders), a study of the crime novel. He enjoyed international recognition as an author and scholar and was feared by governments and their secret services in both East and West.
Jan Willem Stutje was the first to gain access to Mandel's archive. He has unearthed a wealth of information and spoken with many key figures. He discovered extraordinary, sometimes disturbing facts. This biography thus offers an exciting glimpse into Mandel's studio, closely following his encounters with philosophers such as Sartre, Ernst Bloch, and Lucien Goldmann, and with scholars such as Roman Rosdolsky and Perry Anderson. We also see Mandel on the barricades. In this often gripping account, fellow fighters like Rudi Dutschke, Tariq Ali, and Alain Krivine come to life. The attention to the tragedy of Mandel's life is surprising. The author has succeeded in penetrating the more intimate realms of his life.
In its exploration of the connection between public and private life, the book paints a complete and in-depth picture of Ernest Mandel.

Jan Willem Stutje
Houtekiet/Amsab-ISG, Antwerp/Ghent, 2007, 475 p., ill., hardcover

100 years of ABVV Horval

In 1908, the National Federation of Food Workers was founded by the Federation of Chocolate Workers and Confectioners on the one hand, and the National Federation of Bakers' Guests on the other. In 1930, the hospitality industry joined these two unions. In the three engaging chapters of this book, the chocolate workers and confectioners, then the bakers, and finally the hospitality industry staff play the leading roles. The author examines their lives and workplace situations to explore why they formed unions, and then examines their respective unions. However, none of these people would have had a job if there had been no demand for the products they made or the services they provided. Chocolate and bread, cafés, restaurants, and hotels, therefore, play a significant role in the story of these workers, as they each shaped the history and establishment of the Food Federation and—in doing so—the development of the Belgian labor movement.

Annelies Tollet
Amsab-ISG/Horval/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Brussels/Ghent, 2008, 208 p., ill., softcover

There is also a French version: Ensemble à table

Les 100 ans de la FGTB Horval

In 1908, the Fédération nationale des Boulangers et la Fédératrion des Confiseurs-Chocolatiers décident de créer conjointement la Fédération nationale des Ouvriers de l'Industrie alimentaire. In 1930, the catering staff rejoined the professional federations.
Three chapitres palpitants de cet ouvrage donnent le premier roles aux chocolatiers et aux sucriers, aux boulangers and finally au personnel catering. The author's study of the course of action and the course of his work for the study of the trade unions, in advance of analyzing his history and the structure of professional organizations. It is important to know that they are ready to be used and that they are available for the demand for the products that are manufactured or the services that are available. The chocolate and the pain, the cafés, the restaurants and the hotels are part of the central role of the history of the trades that make up the ensemble, contributing to the central role of the food supply and the evolution of the trade union in Belgium.

Version néerlandaise: Together at the table.

Annelies Tollet
Amsab-IHS/Horval/Tijdsbeeld & Pièce Montée, Gand/Bruxelles, 2008, 48 p., ill., soft cover

History of the graphic trade union movement in Belgium before 1975

The book covers the history of the graphic trade union movement over the past two centuries. The author dispels the many prejudices the graphic trade union movement faced in the past and presents an honest picture of the graphic artists, their unions, and their contribution to the emergence and development of the Belgian trade union movement. This publication is a revised version of his doctoral dissertation.

Luc Peiren
VUBPRESS/Amsab-ISG, Brussels/Ghent, 2006, 431 p., softcover

A romantic revolutionary.

Few politicians in the Netherlands and Belgium have captured the imagination as much as Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis. Workers saw him as a savior, a hero who renounced the high society to which he belonged. Wherever he spoke, the halls were packed. He founded the magazine Recht voor Allen (Justice for All), and under his leadership, the Social Democratic League grew into a national party. His books and brochures were translated into many languages. The elite did not spare him. Domela was imprisoned for lèse-majesté, and Belgium and Germany banned him from entering the country. International intelligence agencies hunted him down.
Jan Willem Stutje dwells extensively on Domela's charisma. He presents him as an international luminary without whom socialism and anarchism would have had a less utopian image. Domela believed in the emancipatory power of knowledge and education. But he was also a romantic revolutionary driven by the need to restore unity and community. Fellow fighters and rivals like Multatuli, Pieter Jelles Toelstra, Wilhelm Liebknecht, Cesar De Paepe, and Edward Anseele come to life in this book. The tragedy of Domela's private life is also not left untouched: the man lost three wives and five children.
 

Jan Willem Stutje
Houtekiet/Amsab-ISG/Atlas Contact, Antwerp/Ghent/Amsterdam, 2012, 551 p., ill., hardcover

History of the Socialist Trade Union Movement

Belgium is one of the countries with the highest unionization rate in the world. Six out of every ten employees are members of a union (including job seekers and retirees). With its one and a half million members, the General Belgian Trade Union Confederation has an exceptionally large impact on the social and socio-economic situation in our country. This book delves deeper into the history and current social role of the union.
The first, chronologically conceived part covers the creation of a unified socialist trade union in 1897 and outlines its evolution to the present day. The second, thematic part reconstructs the significance of the ABVV (General Belgian Trade Union Federation) in contemporary society from a historical perspective, with particular emphasis on the role of the socialist trade union in social dialogue, including its influence on social security. This work is the first comprehensive study of the history of the socialist trade union. It was published to mark the centenary of the ABVV.

There is also a French version: Un siècle de solidarité

Luc Peiren & Jean-Jacques Missiaen
ABVV/Ludion/AMSAB/IEV, Brussels/Ghent, 1997, 212 p., ill., softcover

Industrial relations in the port of Antwerp 1880-1972

A flexible labor organization is one of the key priorities that port companies and port authorities prioritize to demonstrate their performance. High labor productivity, continuous service, and skilled personnel are essential for convincing major shipping companies to call at their main port. A high-performance labor organization is therefore an essential and vital component of a port's competitiveness. In Antwerp, joint consultation between employers and unions has been the cornerstone of this labor organization since 1919. It must also guarantee a constructive atmosphere and mutual respect.
In this book, Stephan Vanfraechem reconstructs a century of social dialogue in the port of Antwerp. The green felt of the negotiating table serves as the backdrop, highlighting the ruptures, the motives of the various players, and the successive phases of social peace and unrest. Starting with the first unions in 1880 and ending with the implementation of the Major Act in 1972, the book spans nearly 100 years of social history in the port of Antwerp.

Stephan Vanfraechem
Academia Press/Amsab-ISG, Ghent, 2005, 553 p., softcover

100 years of the General Diamond Workers' Union of Belgium

The book covers the history of the General Diamond Workers' Union and how it succeeded in uniting the widest range of diamond workers. The Belgian diamond industry had a very unique structure and was not easily divided into workers and employers. There were merchant-manufacturers, workshop owners, entrepreneurs who employed workers but were often also diamond workers themselves, independent craftsmen, counter workers, workers with widely varying training and status, and apprentices. Many variations existed in between.
We follow the evolution of the ADB until 1995 and how the diamond industry drastically changed over the course of the 1970s and 1980s, from a rather anachronistic proto-industry to a hypermodern sector.

Martine Vermandere
AMSAB/ABVV-Textiles, Clothing and Diamonds, Ghent/Antwerp, 1995, 142 p., ill., hardcover