Tag: American Federation of Labor

Hellraisers Journal: Mass Meeting Held at Seattle’s Dreamland Park; Remarkable Solidarity Between Rival Unionists

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Hold the fort for we are coming.
Union men, be strong!
Side by side we battle onward;
Victory will come.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday November 22, 1916
Seattle, Washington – Solidarity! A. F. of L. Stands by I. W. W.

This past Sunday there was a demonstration of remarkable solidarity when the Central Labor Council of Seattle (A. F. of L.) joined together with the Industrial Workers of the World to demand justice for those killed in the murderous assault upon the Verona as it attempted to land in Everett on November 5th. The ship, on that day, was carrying members of the I. W. W. whose only crime was that they were about to attend a Free Speech Meeting planned for that afternoon. The Wobblies soon learned that the sentence for practicing Free Speech in the city of Everett, Washington, is Death.

The Seattle Star of November 20th reported that this was “the largest mass meeting ever held in Dreamland pavilion:”

Everett Massacre Dreamland Mtg 11/19, Stt Str, Nov 20, 1916, p1a
Everett Massacre Dreamland Mtg 11/19, Stt Str, Nov 20, 1916, p1b

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Mass Meeting Held at Seattle’s Dreamland Park; Remarkable Solidarity Between Rival Unionists” →

Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for October 1916: Aids New York Street Car Strike & Campaigns for Democrats in Illinois and Kentucky

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You, the wives of the strikers,
ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday November 9, 1916
Mother Jones News Round-Up for month of October, 1916

UMWJ, Feb 10, 1916, Cover, Mother Jones, TVP, Pres White

During the month of October, Mother was first found in New York City advising the wives of the street car strikers to put on their fighting clothes and go out and raise hell. Her words greatly shocked the kept press, the same press which is never much shocked whenever workers are killed on the job, or beaten, shot, and otherwise brutalized on the picket line by the powers-that-be.

Mother was next found in Illinois and Kentucky campaigning for the re-election of President Wilson and Senator Kern. She was sent into the region by the United Mine Workers of America to speak to the miners and other working men.

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for October 1916: Aids New York Street Car Strike & Campaigns for Democrats in Illinois and Kentucky” →

Hellraisers Journal: Appeal to Reason Reports on Turmoil at Second Convention of Industrial Workers of the World

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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There is power, there is power
In a band of workingmen.
When they stand hand in hand,
That’s a power, that’s a power
That must rule in every land-
One Industrial Union Grand.
-Joe Hill

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday October 10, 1906
Chicago, Illinois – Will I. W. W. Survive 2nd Convention?

This week’s Appeal to Reason offered a first hand account of the turmoil which prevailed at the Second Convention of the Industrial Workers of the World held in Chicago from September 17th to October 3rd:

DE LEON DOMINATES
—–

S. L. P. Leader Captures I. W. W. Convention
at Chicago and Rules With An Iron Hand
—–

BY F. M. EASTWOOD.
Staff Correspondent Appeal to Reason.
—–

Daniel De Leon (1852-1914), in 1902

CHICAGO, ILL., Sept. 24-The convention is dragging along into the eighth day with its organization not perfected and the really important work delayed by the bickerings of DeLeon and the time-consuming tactics of his untrained and untamed following. DeLeon is making strenuous efforts to promote himself as the apostle of the only revolutionary element in existence by showing all opponents of himself to be “reactionary”.

DeLeon is decidedly in control of the convention; and unless some means of reducing his personal influence on the floor to the measure of the membership which he represents is adopted, the entire convention will become a farce that will wholly dishearten the delegates who are working in good faith for the welfare of the working class and the up-building of the organization.

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Hellraisers Journal: 400,000 New York City Trade Unionists Threaten Sympathetic Strike on Behalf Street Carmen

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Monday October 9, 1916
New York, New York – The Review Reports on Street Carmen’s Strike

From this month’s edition of the International Socialist Review comes a report on the strike now being conducted by the Amalgamated Association of Street and Electric Railway Employes of America (A. F. of L.) against the Interborough Rapid Transit Company:

New York Street Car Strike, Telephone Girls Ride Home, ISR Oct 1916

THE NEW YORK STREET CAR STRIKE

NEW YORK, the tremendous city of five million inhabitants, has become the Prize Ring in which is being fought one of the most colossal battles ever waged in this country between Capital and Labor. A general strike on the subway, “L” roads and street car lines of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company was declared on September 7th, in spite of the truce signed by the company and the men on August 7th. It developed that the company merely signed to gain time to organize to break the new union which has sprung up so amazingly within the past few weeks.

When it felt that it was in a position to defeat the carmen, the Interborough began to circulate the “master and servant” [individual or yellow dog] contracts the purpose of which was to destroy any benefit that might accrue thru belonging to the union. Union men on the Interborough who refused to sign were immediately discharged and at a rousing mass meeting held by the union men on the evening of the seventh, the crowd declared enthusiastically for a general strike to enforce the right of the street car men to organize into a union.

Almost from the beginning of the strike, the struggle began to take on a political, or class character. The Central Federated Union, combining all the powerful labor unions of the city voted to stand by the strikers to the last man and the last dollar. Longshoremen, firemen, engineers and boat men were among the first to rally to aid the men battling on the street car lines.
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: 400,000 New York City Trade Unionists Threaten Sympathetic Strike on Behalf Street Carmen” →

Hellraisers Journal: Mother Jones Arrives in New York City to Assist Street Car Strikers

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Friday October 6, 1916
New York, New York – Mother Jones on Scene of Turbulent Strike

Mother Mary Harris Jones, Decatur Herald IL, May 14, 1916

Mother Jones arrived in New York City on Tuesday evening to assist the striking street carmen who are now threatened with the importation of scabs. At noon on Wednesday, she spoke to the strikers at Lyceum hall. According to The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, she said, in part:

Boys, I have come to New York to help you win your fight for better homes, to win more time in them and more comfort in them. You’ve been working here for 25 cents an hour for a lot of high class burglars who reward you if you are good boys by giving you another cent and hour. A lot of good a cent will do you.

O, boys, boys, there are so many of you and so few of the high class burglars. Get together and you can lick —- out of them. You can do it without the women but to make sure, have the women with you.

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Hellraisers Journal: Mary Heaton Vorse on the Mesabi Iron Miners’ Strike in Minnesota, Part II

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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There are no limits to which
powers of privilege will not go
to keep the workers in slavery.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday August 31, 1916
Mesabi Range, Minnesota – “Injustices, Large and Small”

From The Outlook of August 30, 1916:

THE MINING STRIKE IN MINNESOTA
-FROM THE MINERS’ POINT OF VIEW

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENCE OF THE OUTLOOK
[Report of Mary Heaton Vorse, Part II]

Mary Heaton Vorse, 1874-1966, Spartacus Ed

Under the contract system, the miner contracts to mine ore for a certain price a car load. The price of this car-load may be, and is, varied at any time according to the conditions encountered. It is the mine captain who fixes the price. According to the miners, it has been the custom to sell the best places for prices varying from the virtue of the miners’ wives and daughters to presents of drinks and cigars. So universal is this custom that any reference to the graft of the captain is received in any meeting of miners by laughter and applause.

There are at present in the hands of the Federal investigators affidavits sworn to before a notary public concerning all these forms of grafts, from insulting propositions made to the women of miners’ families to affidavits that drinks or money were paid for the job.
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Mary Heaton Vorse on the Mesabi Iron Miners’ Strike in Minnesota, Part II” →

Hellraisers Journal: On the Mesabi, “When Strike-Breakers Strike” by Marion B Cothren, Part I

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Sunday August 27, 1916
Mesabi Range, Minnesota-“To Hell With Such Wages!”

From The Survey of August 26, 1916:

When Strike-Breakers Strike
The Demands of the Miners on the Mesaba Range
By Marion B. Cothren
[Part I]

MN Iron Miners Strike, Location, Cothren, Survey Aug 26, 1916

THE strike-breakers of 1907 have become the strikers of 1916 in the iron mines of Minnesota. Coming over in boatloads from south eastern Europe nine years ago and hired by the United States Steel Corporation to break the iron strike called at that time by the Western Federation of Miners, these polyglot nationalities speaking thirty-six different tongues have become Americanized in the melting pot of the Mesaba mines. Today Finns, Slavs, Croats, Bulgars, Italians, Rumanians, have laid down picks and shovels and are demanding an 8-hour day, a minimum wage of $3 for dry work and $3.50 for wet work in underground mines and $2.73 in open pit mines, abolition of the contract labor system, pay-day twice a month.

The last of May, so the story goes, Joe Greeni, an Italian employed underground in the Alpena mine at Virginia, Minn., opened his pay envelope to find a sum much less than he had under stood his contract called for. “To hell with such wages”, cried he, throwing his pick in the corner, whereupon he vowed never to mine another foot of ore. Second thought, however, convinced Greeni, that action was deadlier than inaction. For three days he stayed at his post, going from stope to stope, saying, “We’ve been robbed long enough, it’s time to strike!” Then he left for Aurora to begin agitation at the extreme eastern end of the range in the little St. James’ mine with its force of 40 miners.
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: On the Mesabi, “When Strike-Breakers Strike” by Marion B Cothren, Part I” →

Hellraisers Journal: Striking Shingleweavers of Everett, Washington, Beaten on Picket Line

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Friday August 25, 1916
Everett, Washington – County Officials Defend Gunthugs

From The Northwest Worker of August 24, 1916:

The NorthWest Worker, Everett WA, Aug 24, 1916

KELLY AND MCRAE DEFEND STRIKE-
BREAKERS AND GUNMEN IN EVERETT
—–
City and County Police Force Used to Help Beat
Up Striking Shingleweavers and Give
Gunmen Plenty of Freedom
—–

Once again King Kelly [County Commissioner] has demonstrated the fact to the citizens of Everett that he is the High Mogul in this neck of the woods. The “King” is spending more than a thousand dollars a month of Everett taxpayers’ money in order to keep “specials” to protect the interests of the mill owners. This fact was demonstrated when some 75 strike breakers attacked the picket line of 19 union shingle weavers at the Cargo mill last Saturday morning [August 19th] and the police stood by and laughed and seemed tickled to death to see the pickets get a licking.
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Striking Shingleweavers of Everett, Washington, Beaten on Picket Line” →

Hellraisers Journal: George P West Reports on Meeting Between American and Mexican Labor Leaders, Part I

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Since we arrived here we have learned
that the American people do not want war,
and especially the working people.
-Carlos Lovera

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday August 15, 1916
From The Masses: Robert Minor on Class War in Pittsburgh

Masses, Pittsburgh, Robert Minor, Aug 1916
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: George P West Reports on Meeting Between American and Mexican Labor Leaders, Part I” →

Hellraisers Journal: Eugene V. Debs on “The Socialist Party and the Trade Unions,” Part IV

Janet RayeEugene Victor Debs
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The working class and the employing class have nothing in common.
There can be no peace so long as hunger and want are found
among millions of working people and the few, who
make up the employing class, have
all the good things of life
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monday August 6, 1906
From The Worker: Debs on Leaving the A. F. of L.

Eugene Debs, Wilshire's Magazine, Nov 1905

Over the past few days we have been offering the response made by Eugene V. Debs to questions posed by the New York Worker regarding the debate on the relation of the Socialist Party of America to the trades unions. Today’s installment concludes the series.

The Worker introduces what it calls a symposium:

The question of the relation of the Socialist Party to the trade unions having again attracted attention within our ranks, The Worker has inaugurated a symposium to which representative comrades are being invited to contribute, setting forth various points view.

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Eugene V. Debs on “The Socialist Party and the Trade Unions,” Part IV” →