Today in History: James Hoffa vanishes
Hoffa became president of the Teamsters in 1957, when its former leader was imprisoned for bribery.
James Riddle Hoffa, one of the most influential American labour leaders of the 20th century, disappeared in Detroit on 31 July 1975, never to be heard from again.
Though he is popularly believed to have been the victim of a Mafia hit, conclusive evidence was never found, and his death remains a mystery to this day.
Born in 1913 to a poor coal miner in Brazil, Indiana, Jimmy Hoffa proved a natural leader in his youth.
At the age of 20, he helped organize a labour strike in Detroit, and remained an advocate for workers for the rest of his life.
Hoffa became president of the Teamsters in 1957, when its former leader was imprisoned for bribery.
Hoffa’s dedication to the worker and his electrifying public speeches made him wildly popular, both among his fellow workers and the politicians and businessmen with whom he negotiated.
Hoffa had relationships with high-ranking mobsters, and was the target of several government investigations throughout the 1960s. In 1967, he was convicted of bribery and sentenced to 13 years in prison.
Hoffa was later released on condition of not participating in union activities for 10 years. He was planning to fight the restriction in court when he disappeared from the parking lot of a restaurant in Detroit.
Several conspiracy theories have been doing the rounds about Hoffa’s disappearance and the location of his remains, but the truth remains unknown.
Information sourced from: History.com
