I am not a member of the I. W. W.
or an industrial workers of the world sympathizer
but a woman who believes in
the constitutional rights of every man and woman.
-Rosa McKay
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Hellraisers Journal, Thursday August 23, 1917
From the Appeal to Reason: Two Brave Women Speak for Labor
The Appeal to Reason of August 18th featured the opinions of two women elected to represent the people: the first, Miss Jeannette Rankin of the United States House of Representatives, and the second, Mrs. Rosa McKay of the Arizona House of Representatives. Yesterday we featured the speech by Miss Rankin who outlined conditions at Butte. We conclude today with an article by Mrs. McKay who describes recent events in Bisbee.
Butte and Bisbee Outrages Scored
by Brave Woman Representatives…In an article to the Appeal, Mrs. Rosa McKay, member of the Arizona House of Representatives from Bisbee, Cochise county, Arizona, tells of the Bisbee deportation….
By Mrs. Rosa McKay
Member Arizona House of Representatives
For fourteen years I have claimed Bisbee as my home. But after Thursday, the twelfth day of July. I hang my head in shame and sorrow for the sights I have witnessed here. When the full truth about Bisbee reaches the outside world, it will be looked upon with deserved aversion.
In this article I shall give an honest and unbiased statement, from a fair and impartial standpoint, of the labor situation in Bisbee today. I belong to no labor organization or mining corporation. I am merely an onlooker and spectator, and a firm believer in the constitutional rights of all American citizens, whether by birth or naturalization, the rights that our forefathers fought, bled and died for.