You ought to be out raising hell. This is the fighting age. Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Thursday December 31, 1914
New York, New York - A. C. W. of A. Takes a Stand for Democratic Industrial Unionism
Strike of garment workers in men's clothing, Chicago, 1910
Some of these same strikers attended the New York Convention.
Today we continue our coverage of the founding convention of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America which took place at Webster Hall in New York City on Saturday and Monday, the 26th and 28th of this month. We left off yesterday with the first part of the General Officers' Report which laid out the reason for the split within the United Garment Workers of America. We now continue with the Report of the General Officers. The Report is a long one and we, therefore, offer a few excerpts which we hope will best explain the exact nature of the split, and how the new union intends to differ from the old by embracing the sound principles of Democratic Industrial Unionism.
We will conclude our coverage of the founding convention of the A. C. W. of A. tomorrow.
DAY ONE, DECEMBER 26, 1914
GENERAL OFFICERS REPORT EMBRACES DEMOCRATIC INDUSTRIAL UNIONISM
Events at the November Convention of the American Federation of Labor led to the call for a special convention in New York City by the Hillman faction of the United Garment Workers:
A. F. OF L. CONVENTION
As stated above, the spirit displayed by our members, their enthusiasm for our present organization, in spite of the terrible industrial conditions, is most gratifying and encouraging.
But diametrically opposed to the spirit and enthusiasm of our great membership has been the attitude of the officialdom of the labor movement.
Obeying the mandate of our constitution, the five delegates elected at the Nashville convention presented their credentials to the A. F. of L. convention, last November, at Philadelphia, Pa.
The Credential Committee recommended the seating of the Rickert delegation and the rejection of ours, on the ground that Rickert and Larger have been known to the office of the A. F. of L. as the officers of the United Garment Workers of America and we were unknown there. If the labor movement should follow this rule in all cases, it would make it impossible for any union ever to change its officers, for the old officers are always the ones that are "known" and the new are always "unknown." Yet, this strange rule, laid down by the Credential Committee, was accepted by the A. F. of L. Convention as sufficient ground for the seating as tailor delegates of persons not representing the tailors.
The delegates of our sister organization, the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union, moved to grant us a hearing. Vice-President O'Connell bitterly opposed that motion, declaring that, whether right or wrong, we should not be given an opportunity to state our case. Accordingly, the motion was voted down.
A few days later the above named delegation presented a resolution, providing for the appointment by the president of a committee to make an investigation into the Garment Workers' dispute and find a solution. That, too, was voted down.
On November 16, 1914, while the convention was still in session, President Gompers and Secretary Morrison sent out the following circular letter to our locals.
Washington, D. C, Nov. 16, 1914.
Dear Sir and Brother:—
It having been called to our attention that some misrepresentation has been made in regard to the personnel of the officers of the United Garment Workers of America, you are hereby respectfully informed that the United Garment Workers of America is affiliated to the American Federation of Labor, that the president and secretary thereof are Mr. Thomas A. Rickert and Mr. B. A. Larger, and that all communications and remittances for the United Garment Workers of America should be forwarded to Mr. B. A. Larger,
Secretary, Rooms 116-122 Bible House, New York, N. Y.
BY ORDER OF EXECUTIVE COUNCIL,
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR.
Sam Gompers, President,
American Federation of Labor.
Attest:
Frank Morrison, Secretary,
American Federation of Labor.
The attitude of our locals to this action of the A. F. of L. Convention will be best illustrated by the following reply sent by locals 2 and 3 of New York to Gompers and Morrison.
New York, November, 1914.
Messrs. Samuel Gompers, Pres., and Frank Morrison, Sec'y.
American Federation of Labor,
801 G St., N. W.,
Washington, D. C.
Dear Sirs and Brothers:—
We received yours of the 16th inst., telling us "that some misrepresentation has been made in regard to the personnel of the officers of The United Garment Workers of America" and directing us "that all communications and remittances for The United Garment Workers should be forwarded to Mr. B. A. Larger."
In reply we beg to state that we fail to understand how you took it upon yourself to direct us to make remittances to Mr. B. A. Larger, when you refused to give our delegates a hearing at the Convention at Philadelphia, and denied them an opportunity to explain our case to the delegates. The convention also rejected a proposition to appoint a
committee to make an investigation.
Local No. 2 is one of the largest and best organized locals in the United Garment Workers of America, paying its per capita regularly all the time, yet its delegates were physically driven out from the U. G. W. of A. convention at the Capitol, Nashville. Tenn.. under the direction of Rickert and Larger. The same treatment was accorded to delegates from many other tailor and cutter locals, representing an overwhelming majority of the membership, and all those delegates were forced to continue the Convention at an-
other place.
This and a good many other matters we desired to put before the A. F. of L. convention, but you refused to hear our representatives. You chose to ignore the membership and stand by those who wrongfully claim to be our officers. We, however, stand by the membership and repudiate Rickert and Larger as usurpers.
We recognize Sidney Hillman as General President and Joseph Schlossberg as General Secretary of The United Garment Workers of America, and will forward our communications and remittances to them.
Following the footsteps of the A. F. of L. Convention, the Baltimore Federation of Labor and the Central Body at Rochester unseated the delegates from our locals.
But our locals were not dismayed by these acts. Being fully conscious of the righteousness of their cause, they realized that a crying injustice had been done to them, a most disgraceful attack made on true working class solidarity, and became more determined than ever not to permit again to be fettered in the chains that they had just succeeded in freeing themselves from. RECOGNITION OF THE UNION BY ITS OWN MEMBERSHIP IS THE ALL-IMPORTANT THING. The rest will follow in due time.
[photographs added
The Report of the General Officers embraces industrial unionism and union democracy:
INDUSTRIAL UNIONISM
The subject upon which our Membership will have to be informed and enlightened most thoroughly is that of INDUSTRIAL UNIONISM.
If the Labor Movement is to succeed at all it can only do so by its keeping abreast with times both in form and spirit.
Modern capitalist production dictates to the working class Industrial Unionism, and the administration of a labor union that does not carry it out is either hopelessly ignorant of its true mission or unfaithful to the interests of its constituents.
An intelligent understanding of the Labor Movement precludes the fear of the use of seemingly unpopular terms, or such as are tabooed by the officialdom of Organized Labor.
We have no apologies to offer for refusing to exclude from our official vocabulary the term of "INDUSTRIAL UNIONISM." A workingman may agree with its teachings or not, an understanding of it will surely benefit him.
The fact that the term "Industrial Unionism" has been subjected to shameful abuse by irresponsible individuals and dragged in the mire by them, does not detract from the greatness of its principles. Unionism, Democracy and all other popular movements and teachings passed through similar experiences. Yet, their true principles live and stand vindicated before all the world.
Our organization, in order to succeed, must be organized in the form and spirit of Industrial Unionism.
The time-worn notion of so-called autonomy for each local union even though there may be a dozen small and powerless locals where there ought to be but one powerful union, is suicidal for the organization of tailors. It is a stumbling block that must be removed.
And if experiences of the past are to count for anything in our future work, let us remember that the methods or organizing local unions along the lines of crafts, parts of crafts, or any lines at all, made it possible for dishonest and scheming general officers to make locals "to order", or split up existing local unions in order to pack a convention and override the will of the membership
If in any given locality the workingmen engaged in any one of the tailoring trades will be organized in one big local union instead of in many small ones, as they are now, but subdivided into branches as the convenience of the members may require, and these big trade locals will, in turn, unite in a very close alliance, there will be a solidified and powerful organization of the entire industry.
Along with the industrial form of organization we must also develop the industrial spirit, which means the general enlightenment of the workingmen, and particularly the teachings of universal working class solidarity and abolition of the wage system. When that will be accomplished, our organization will become a mighty, militant and invincible power.
DEMOCRACY
An essential feature in the spirit of Industrial Unionism is DEMOCRACY. But our present constitution and Democracy exclude one another.
We can say without fear of contradiction that if the officers of this organization were to be elected by a referendum vote of the membership instead of by an absolutely irresponsible convention, which may easily be packed and twisted into any shape to suit the interests of the powers that be, the disgraceful regime with which this organization had been afflicted for so many years would have been impossible. As the constitution now stands the General President may hold the organization by the throat, and until now the convention was nothing but a huge joke upon the membership, as it was only a means for "legalizing" the perpetuation of impostors.
This convention will fail in its mission if it fails to provide for a democratic rule of the Membership. Whatever part we may assign to the convention in the process of the election of officers, the election must be ratified by the Membership through a general vote.
This will make it impossible for reckless persons to rule over the tailors for many years though repudiated and denounced by them.
[photograph added]
The Hillman faction settles with the Rickard faction:
EXCHANGE OF RELEASES
Sidney Hillman
The General Executive Board at its meeting on December 21st considered a proposition for the exchange of releases in actions begun by Sidney Hillman and Thomas A. Rickert, each against the other. The proposition was unanimously accepted.
It amounts to this:
We waive all claims against the name of United Garment Workers of America and all property now in possession of Rickert and his organization.
Rickert and his organization waive all claims against us and our locals. This insures to all our local unions full protection from legal molestation, and leaves us free to give our full and undivided attention to the legitimate work of the organization. The arrangements were effected through the negotiations of the attorneys for both parties.
It was agreed that this special convention shall open as the convention of the United Garment Workers of America. As soon as the convention will change the name of the organization, the various local unions affiliated with us will be notified accordingly and directed to assume the new name, locals will be permitted to use their present names until the receipt of such notice and a few days thereafter for the purpose of effecting such change.
This clears our path for organization work. Our locals are protected from legal molestation by those who formerly claimed jurisdiction over them, and we can now undertake and successfully carry out our constructive work|
We feel sure that this convention will strengthen even more the confidence and raise the spirit of our members.
We also feel sure that a labor organization, which after many years of lying in the dust under the despotic rule of its officers, has mustered sufficient strength and courage to rise in its might and overthrow its oppressors, will be wise enough to remember the message sent by the revolutionary fathers of this country to their own generation and to the generations that were to follow them: ETERNAL VIGILANCE IS THE PRICE OF FREEDOM, will use its renewed strength and courage to protect itself from being misled
back to the slavery of old.
We feel sure that the Dark Age of our organization is now completely a thing of the past, dead and buried.
Our face is now turned to the rising sun of free and enlightened Unionism.
Let us carry our message of true working class solidarity wherever our brothers and sisters are to be found. Let us bring to them light, hope and strength.
The General Executive Board submits this report to you, and also a draft for a constitution which goes to the Committee on Law, with the happy consciousness that it has done for this organization all that could possibly be done.
The eyes of a hundred thousand workingmen are now on this convention. Energetic and courageous action is required of us. We made the beginning for a true Clothing Workers' organization in Nashville, let us continue it here.
The time has come for the organization of a Union of Clothing Workers that will become an integral part of the Revolutionary Army that will emancipate the working class.
This mission is ours.
Fraternally yours,
The General Executive Board:
SIDNEY HILLMAN, General President;
JOSEPH SCHLOSSBERG, General Secretary;
TOBIAS LAPAN, General Treasurer;
ISIDOR KANTROWITZ, General Auditor;
MORRIS J. ELSTIEN,
FRANK ROSENBLUM,
GEORGE SUDER,
A. D. MARIMPIETRI,
SAMUEL ZORN,
E. RABKIN.
[photograph added]
---------------
SOURCE
Documentary History of the
Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, 1914-1916
"The New York Convention", pages 43-108
http://babel.hathitrust.org/...
See also:
"Union That Grew in the Triangle Fire’s Ashes Is
Now Nearly Gone A Century Later"
-By Josh Nathan-Kazis
From The Jewish Daily Forward
Published March 09, 2011, issue of March 18, 2011
http://forward.com/...
IMAGES
Strike of garment workers, men's clothing, Chicago, 1910
http://darrow.law.umn.edu/...
American Federation of Labor Button
http://www.laborsolidarity.info/...
President Rickert and Sec Larger of United Garment Workers
http://www.newspapers.com/...
Garment Workers, Webster Hall, New York City, ca 1914,
(Quite possibly the founding convention of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America)
http://keithyorkcity.wordpress.com/...
Sidney Hillman
http://darrow.law.umn.edu/...
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
'Is This All There Is' - Los Lobos
Fifteen years on a sewing machine
Where twisted hands don't mean a thing
Wondering to herself
Is this all there is?
-David Hidalgo/Louie Perez
For this song, BIG H/T to NCTim
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````