Christian Smalls

This thirty-four-year-old labor organizer's star rose in 2022 after taking on one of the most powerful corporations in the world: Amazon. And while he may not have been a household name before, his victory against the corporate giant makes him a clear choice for The Root 100. Christian Smalls won an unprecedented battle in New York and was able to unionize Amazon workers in Staten Island. During the beginning of the pandemic, Smalls had led a walkout of Amazon employees who were fed up with the working conditions at the company's infamous warehouses. Amazon fired Smalls for leading the uprising, but that never stopped him from fighting for workers’ rights at the company. Smalls then led a unionization effort in 2021, despite the fact that Jeff Bezos, who owns Amazon, spent millions of dollars to crush their efforts. Ultimately Amazon could not stop Smalls and his supporters from crossing the finish line. In a narrow victory, Staten Island Amazon workers voted to approve the union. Although he is not employed by Amazon, Smalls currently serves as the president and founder of the Amazon Labor Union. Smalls has told news outlets that he will continue his fight for workers' rights. It’s this commitment in the face of what felt like impossible odds, that makes Smalls a no-brainer for The Root 100 list.