Today in Labor History June 27, 1905: The Industrial Workers of the World (AKA IWW or the Wobblies) was founded at Brand's Hall, in Chicago, Illinois. The IWW was a radical syndicalist labor union, that advocated industrial unionism, with all workers in a particular industry organized in the same union, as opposed by the trade unions typical today. Founding members included Big Bill Haywood, James Connolly, Eugene V. Debs, Lucy Parsons, and Mother Jones. The IWW was and is a revolutionary union that sought not only better working conditions in the here and now, but the complete abolition of capitalism. The preamble to their constitution states: The working class and the employing class have nothing in common. It also states: Instead of the conservative motto, "A fair day's wage for a fair day's work," we must inscribe on our banner the revolutionary watchword, "Abolition of the wage system."
They advocate the General Strike and sabotage as two of many means to these ends. However, sabotage to the Wobblies does not necessarily mean bombs and destruction. According to Big Bill Haywood, sabotage is any action that gums up the works, slowing down profits for the bosses. Thus, working to rule and sit-down strikes are forms of sabotage. The IWW is the first union known to have utilized the sit-down strike. They were one of the first and only unions of the early 20th century to organize all workers, regardless of ethnicity, gender, nationality, language or type of work (e.g., they organized both skilled and unskilled workers). They also were subjected to extreme persecution by the state and by vigilantes working for the corporations. Hundreds were imprisoned or deported. Dozens were assassinated or executed, including Joe Hill, Frank Little, Wessley Everest and Carlo Tresca. And scores were slaughtered in massacres, like in McKees Rock railway strike, PA (1909); Lawrence Textile Strike, MA (1912); San Diego Free Speech Fight, CA (1912); Grabow, LA Lumber Strike (1912); New Orleans, LA banana strike (1913); Patterson, NJ textile strike (1913); Mesabi Range Strike, MN (1916); Everett, WA massacre (1916); Centralia, WA Armistice Day riot (1919) and the Columbine, CO massacre (1921). There was also the Hopland, CA riot (1913), in which the police killed each other, accidentally, and framed Wobblies for it.
There are lots of great books about the IWW artwork and music. The Little Red Songbook. The IWW, Its First 50 Years, by Fred Thompson. Rebel Voices: An IWW Anthology, by Joyce Kornbluth. But there are also tons of fictional accounts of the Wobblies, too. Lots of references in Dos Passos’, USA Trilogy. Red Harvest, by Dashiell Hammett, was influenced by his experience working as a Pinkerton infiltrator of the Wobblies. The recent novel, The Cold Millions, by Jess Walter, has a wonderful portrayal of Elizabeth Gurly Flynn, during the Spokane free speech fight. And tons of classic folk and protest music composed by Wobbly Bards, like Joe Hill, Ralph Chaplin, Haywire Mac and T-Bone Slim.
Today in Labor History June 26, 1894: The American Railway Union (ARU), led by Eugene Debs, called a nationwide boycott in solidarity with their striking members at Pullman, Illinois. The Pullman Railroad Strike began as a wildcat strike in Chicago, when 4,000 railway workers walked off the job. It quickly escalated into the largest industrial strike the U.S. had ever seen, with 260,000 workers participating. Most of the workers lived in the company town of Pullman, just south of Chicago. When George Pullman slashed wages and jobs, he didn’t lower rents. Consequently, the workers called a strike. In addition to fighting for increased wages and union representation, they also wanted democracy in the autocratic company town. When the strike started, the Pullman workers were not yet organized in a union. However, Eugene Debs, who created the ARU in 1893, came in to organize the men and they quickly signed up. He called a boycott which halted much of the rail transport west of the Mississippi. Worker sabotage caused $80 million in damages. The government sent in federal troops to suppress the strike, killing at least 30 strikers. They also arrested Debs for conspiracy to block U.S. mail. Clarence Darrow defended him. However, he still got six months in prison. Debs would go on to cofound the IWW, in 1905, along with Lucy Parsons, Mother Jones, Big Bill Haywood, James Connolly, and others.
Today in Labor History May 23, 1903: Thousands of children went on strike in the textile mills of Philadelphia. On July 7, Mother Jones began the March of the Mill Children from Philadelphia to President Theodore Roosevelt’s Long Island summer home in Oyster Bay, New York, to publicize the deplorable conditions for child laborers. He refused to see them.
During this march, she delivered the “The Wail of the Children” speech in which she said: “In Georgia where children work day and night in the cotton mills, they have just passed a bill to protect song birds. What about the little children from whom all song is gone?” It was also during that speech when she said, “I asked a man in prison once how he happened to get there. He had stolen a pair of shoes. I told him that if he had stolen a railroad he could be a United States Senator. One hour of justice is worth an age of praying.”
Today in Labor History May 18, 1920: The Battle of Matewan occurred in the town of Matewan, Mingo County, West Virginia. It started when the mine bosses fired miners for joining the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) and evicted them from their company housing. Sheriff Sid Hatfield supported the miners’ right to organize and tried to arrest the detectives. The detectives, in turn, tried to arrest Hatfield. Unbeknownst to the detectives, armed miners had surrounded them. No one knows who shot first, but when the smoke had cleared, there were 7 dead detectives, including Albert and Lee Felts, and 4 dead townspeople, including the mayor. The episode became known as the Matewan Massacre, and is depicted in John Sayles’ film Matewan. West Virginia bluegrass singer and labor activist Hazel Dickens sings the film's title track, "Fire in the Hole."
Mining was, and still is, one of the most dangerous and corrupt industries around. Owners typically forced the miners to live in company towns and purchase living necessities from their company stores at inflated prices. They paid the men in scrip, which was useless outside of the company towns. In the time leading up to the Battle of Matewan, miners in other parts of the country had won a 27% wage increase. The time was ripe for organizing southern Appalachia. The UMWA sent in their best organizers, including Mother Jones. 3,000 men signed union cards in the early spring of 1920. Yet, at the same time, vigilantes, detectives and goons were murdering miners in the region. And the company was evicting anyone who signed up. So, hundreds of miners and their families were living in the Stony Mountain Camp Tent Colony.
On August 1, 1921, surviving members of the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency assassinated Sheriff Sid Hatfield, in broad daylight, on the steps of Welch County courthouse, as his wife watched in horror. As news of his death spread, miners began arming themselves, leading to the Battle of Blair Mountain. the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War, and the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. 10,000-15,000 coal miners battled 3,000 cops, private cops and vigilantes, who were backed by the coal bosses. Up to 100 miners died in the fighting, along with 10-30 Baldwin-Felts detectives and three national guards. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested. One million rounds were fired. And the government bombed striking coal miners by air, using homemade bombs and poison gas left over from World War I. You can read my complete article on the Battle of Blair Mountain here: https://michaeldunnauthor.com/2024/04/14/the-battle-of-blair-mountain/
Today in Labor History May 11, 1894: The Pullman Railroad Strike began in Chicago, Illinois, when 4,000 workers walked off the job. It began as a wildcat strike and quickly escalated into the largest industrial strike to date in the U.S. Nearly 260,000 railroad workers participated. The strike and boycott halted nearly all rail traffic west of Detroit. The strike began during a severe depression. George Pullman lowered wages and began laying off workers, without reducing rent in his company town of Pullman, Illinois, where most of the workers lived. Eugene Debs rose to prominence as a labor leader during this strike. The American Federation of Labor refused solidarity because they thought Debs was stealing their members, as the American Railway Union was not an AFofL member. The government sent in federal troops to suppress the strike. 30 workers were killed in Chicago, alone. Over 40 more were killed in other parts of the country. Property damage exceeded $80 million. Debs would go on to run for president four times, as a socialist, running some of his campaigns from prison. He was also a founding member of the radical IWW, along with Lucy Parsons, Mother Jones, Big Bill Haywood, and Easter Rising martyr, James Connolly.
Today In Labor History May 1, 1830: Mary Harris "Mother" Jones was born. Mother Jones was renowned for her militancy and fiery oration, as well as her many juicy quotes. She once said, “I’m no lady. I’m a hell-raiser.” She also was an internationalist, saying “My address is wherever there is a fight against oppression.” Despite the difficulties of constant travel, poor living and jail, she lived to be 100. She was also a cofounder of the anarchosyndicalist IWW.
Today In Labor History May 1, 1886: The first nationwide General Strike for the 8-hour day occurred in Milwaukee and other U.S. cities. In Chicago, police killed four demonstrators and wounded over 200. This led to the mass meeting a Haymarket Square, where an unknown assailant threw a bomb, killing several cops. The authorities responded by rounding up all the city’s leading anarchists, and a kangaroo court which wrongfully convicted 8 of them, including Albert Parsons, husband of Lucy Parsons, who would go on to cofound the IWW, along with Mother Jones, Big Bill Haywood, Eugene Debs, and others. Worldwide protests against the convictions and executions followed. To honor the wrongfully executed anarchists, and their struggle for the 8-hour day, May first has ever since been celebrated as International Workers Day in nearly every country in the world, except the U.S.
Today in Labor History April 18, 1912: The governor of West Virginia called out the National Guard against striking coal miners. As a result, fifty people were killed. His action marked the beginning of the West Virginia Mine Wars, initiating one of the most violent strikes in the nation's history. Because of their isolation and geography, the West Virginia mine owners were able to dominate the miners more than almost any other employer in the nation. They hired gun thugs from the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency, who routinely murdered miners and evicted their families from the company towns. On April 18, thousands of miners went on strike in Paint Creek, Cabin Creek and in surrounding counties. Many were armed with hunting rifles to defend themselves against the company thugs. Mother Jones and Socialist Party members came to support the miners.
The struggle that began today in 1912 continued for decades and included the Battle of Matewan and the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War, and the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. 10,000-15,000 coal miners battled 3,000 cops, private cops and vigilantes, who were backed by the coal bosses. Up to 100 miners died in the fighting, along with 10-30 Baldwin-Felts detectives and three national guards. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested. One million rounds were fired. And the government bombed striking coal miners by air, using homemade bombs and poison gas left over from World War I. This was the second time the government had used planes to bomb its own citizens within the U.S. (the first was against African American during the Tulsa pogrom, earlier that same year). You can read my longer article on the West Virginia Mine Wars and the Battle of Blair Mountain here: https://michaeldunnauthor.com/2024/04/14/the-battle-of-blair-mountain/
The Battle of Blair Mountain (Aug 25-Sep 2, 1921) in Logan County, West Virginia, was the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War, and the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. 10,000-15,000 coal miners battled 3,000 cops, private cops and vigilantes, who were backed by the coal bosses. Up to 100 miners died in the fighting, along with 10-30 Baldwin-Felts detectives and three national guards. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested. One million rounds were fired. And the government bombed striking coal miners by air, using homemade bombs and poison gas left over from World War I. This was the second time the government had used planes to bomb its own citizens within the U.S. (the first was against African American during the Tulsa pogrom, earlier that same year).
From the late 1800s, mine owners forced workers to live in company towns. They deducted miners’ rent from their wages and paid them in scrip, which was worthless everywhere accept at the overpriced company stores. The work was extremely dangerous and safety equipment and precautions were minimal. And the mine owners routinely used private detectives and goons to spy on workers, infiltrate their meetings, beat them up, murder them, and block any attempts to unionize.
During the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Strike (April 1912 through July 1913), the sheriff and his deputies attacked the miners’ tent colony at Holly Grove, in West Virginia with the “Bull Moose Special” (an armored train fitted with machine guns). Mother Jones was one of the main organizers of this strike. Over 50 people died during the violent confrontations with scabs, goons and private detectives. Countless more died from starvation and malnutrition. In terms of casualties, it was one of the deadliest strikes in U.S. history.
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Today in Labor History March 7, 1942: IWW cofounder and anarchist labor organizer Lucy Parsons died on this date in Chicago, Illinois. Lucy Parsons was part African American and part Native American. Her mother had been a slave. In 1871, she married Albert Parsons, a Confederate soldier, in Waco, Texas. Soon after, they were forced to flee due to racism, moving to Chicago. There they participated in the Great Upheaval of worker rebellions that swept across the U.S. in 1877. They were also active in the movement for the 8-hour day and other worker movements. In 1887, the authorities executed Albert, along with several other anarchists, for the Haymarket bombing, even most hadn’t been present at the bombing. In 1905, Lucy Parsons cofounded the IWW, along with Eugene Debs, Mother Jones, Big Bill Haywood and others. In 1915, she organized the Chicago Hunger Demonstrations. They were so effective that they pushed the AFL, the Socialist Labor Party and the Hull House to participate. In 1925, she participated in the International Labor Defense, which defended workers, communists, the Scottsboro Nine and others.
Today in Labor History February 7, 1913: A county sheriff and his deputies on the “Bull Moose Special” (an armored train fitted with machine guns), attacked a miners’ tent colony at Holly Grove, in West Virginia. This was during the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Strike (4/18/1912 through July 1913). Mother Jones was one of the main organizers. Over 50 people died during the violent confrontations with scabs, goons and private detectives. Countless more died from starvation and malnutrition. In terms of casualties, it was one of the worst strikes in U.S. history. It was a prelude to the bigger and even more violent Battle of Matewan, and the Battle of Blair Mountain (Aug-Sep, 1921). The latter was the largest labor uprising in U.S. history, and the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War. 10,000 minors battled 3,000 lawmen and scabs, and only ended with the U.S. army intervened. Up to 100 people died. And during the battle, bombs were dropped on the striking miners by airplane, the 2nd time in U.S. history that had been done. (The first was just months earlier, during the Tulsa Race Massacre).
Today in Labor History February 3, 1910: Mary Harris "Mother" Jones addressed Milwaukee brewery workers during a two-month stint working alongside women bottle-washers while on leave from the United Mine Workers:
"Condemned to slave daily in the wash-room in wet shoes and wet clothes, surrounded with foul-mouthed, brutal foremen . . . the poor girls work in the vile smell of sour beer, lifting cases of empty and full bottles weighing from 100 to 150 pounds, in their wet shoes and rags, for they cannot buy clothes on the pittance doled out to them. . . . Rheumatism is one of the chronic ailments and is closely followed by consumption . . . An illustration of what these girls must submit to, one about to become a mother told me with tears in her eyes that every other day a depraved specimen of mankind took delight in measuring her girth & passing comments."