The Daily Worker Newspaper, February 15, 1932, Page 1

WORKERS OF THE WORLD, UNITE! | (Section of the Communist International) SL7E1l recerved towards the $7:900 te keep the Daily Worker alive. This wit not save the Daily Worker. Distriets call emergency conferences. Rush funds by, wire immediately. Workers collect money everywhere to save your paper, Rush all money already collected. Vol. IX, No. 39 S at New York, N. ms matter at the Post ¥., ander the act of Marck 8, 1879 EW YORK, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1932 Price 3 Cents SIMMS’ CASKET HEADS MINERS MASS MARCH: RALLY IN PROTEST WED. AT BRONX COLISEUM Sin Nation- -Wide Drive to Collect Signatures tor Unemployment ‘Insurance Bill READERS! Only by the most desperate measures were we able to get out any Daily Worker today— two pages today — but what will happen to- Who Fights for and Who Against the Kentucky- Tennessee Miners? - 5 ie basic tact to be remembered in connection with the organized and murderous capitalist terror in Kentucky and Tennessee is that it is directed against a section of the American working class—and its leader- ship—which has chosen the way of strike struggle for better conditions with all the hardship, and danger to life and liberty, that this entails, rather than the slow starvation and denial of even the most elementary Mherties which is the price asked by the Rockefeller-Morgan-Insull-U. S. | Steel capitalists for their peace of death. i ‘The National Miners Union organized the miners for this struggle, The murders—open and secret—the mass jailings, beatings, kid- nappings and forcible deportations, the suppression of all political rights for miners and “outsiders” alike, the singling out of the Communist Party for special attacks, furnish the best proof in America today of the truth of Lenin’s statement “that the protection of minorities is extended by ‘the ruling party in bourgeois democracy only to the other BOURGEOIS parties, while on all serious, fundamental issues, the working class gets, instead of the ‘protection of minorities,’ martial law and pogroms.” Only the Cerne Party brings this truth home to the working tlass. The biggest and richest capitalists in America who own decisive mines in Kentucky and Tennessee, aped by the smaller local bosses, have driven the wages of the miners below the level required to maintain a liv- ing standard—low as that standard is in thse mine areas. Hunger, sick- ness, starvation and death—affecting more than 75,000 men, women and children—exist in wholesale form in these districts. Rockefeller, Insull, the Steel Trust, the local coal capitalists, backed by city, county, state and national government, supported by preachers, newspapers, and the hundred and one “social and educational” organiza- tions of capitalism, are defending by armed force and murder their right to starve men, women and children of the working class as an al- ternative to paying ‘ving wages and supporting the unemployed through taxes on their vast wealth derived from the low-paid labor of the work- ‘ing class. This is the issue in Kentucky and Tennessee. “Federal investigation” will not alter this condition. It will be used, if at all, only to create illusions of “impartiality” of capitalist government. The local henchmen of the coal operators who are raising the issues of religion, patriotism, “foreign agitators”, “American institutions”, etc. —especially the business men of the chambers of commerce, the preachers of the various denominations, the strike-breaking American Legion, the Kiwanis and Rotary clubs—the whole kit and boodle of agents, thugs and hangers-on of the big capitalists, are fighting the battles of the billion- aire robbers against the hungry and heroic miners and their families. ‘The Communist Party and its working class supporters fight for the miners and theif families. This it is necessary to make still clearer to the miners of Kentucky and Tennessee, to the workers of the entire south and the whole American working class. The biggest capitalists in America have mobilized all forces to main- tain their power to rob and rule the miners of Kentucky and Tennessee as they see fit, They are mobilizing for similar attacks against the rest of the working class. ‘There was terror in the previous strike when the miners were be- trayed by the officials of the United Mine Workers. But this terror was directed only against the miners and not against the leading officials of the UMWA. There was no terror against the democrat or republican or socialist party—to one or the other of which they belong or support. The miners fought without support from outside the strike area—the UMWA officials saw to that. No class issues were raised in the previous strike. It was crushed. It was fought on a purely local basis. Morgan, Rockefeller, Insull, et al, were not disturbed. Their responsibility, and that of their government, was not exposed. The miners are fighting with a heroism never excelled in a class battle in the United States. Their struggle is that of every worker in America. It is a fight against the capitalists and their government respon- sible for the mass unemployment, mass hunger and misery into which they have plunged the entire working class of the United States, To defeat the class enemies of the Kentucky-Tennessee miners, who are the enemies of the entire working class, to free the strikers and or- ganizers now in jail and threatened with lynching openly by county offi- cials of the coal operators, it is necessary to organize nation-wide mass. protest—and action. Relief and defense—the strengthening of the strike front in Ken- tucky and Tennessee, these are the immediate tasks. Hand in hand with ‘.em must go the organization of a mighty cam- paign against the growing legalized suppression of and fascist terror against workers and their leaders, Negro and white, fighting for the right to live, for life and liberty. This is the issue in the struggle in Ken- tucky and Tennessee. ‘AIM TO GET | iConnected With All |Hit LaFollette Sham MILLIONS OF SIGNATURES Struggles for Job- less Insurance Launching! a nation- wide campaign to ob- tain millions of signa- tures for the Workers’ Unemployment Insur - ance Bill, the National Com- mittee of ,the Unemployed Councils has"issued the follow- ing call: “The Unemployed Councils of the U. S. launched a campaign to secure millions of individual signa- tures and thousands of collective en- dorsements for the Workers Unem- ployment Insurance Bill, which pro- vides for unemployment and social insurance equal to full wages, at the expense of the government and em- ployers, for all workers, regardless of race, natiohality, age or sex who are unemployed through no fault of their own. This bill was adopted by the Na- tional Hunger March composed of 1,670 delegates representing scores of thousands of workers in all parts of the United States. It has since been further endorsed by hundreds of thousands of workers at mass meet- ings and demonstrations. A mass delegation, representing every sec- tion of the working class, every im- portant industry, all possible states and organizations, will again carry this demand to Washington and pre- sent it to Congress on May 9th. “Only the Workers Unemployment Insurance Bill provides for the pre- servation of the living standards of the working class. Only this bill pro- vides a system of insurance that is consistent with the needs and rights of the great masses of toilers who have produced the immense wealth of this country. Only this Bill is a workers’ bill. All other so-called un- employment insurance proposals are based on the theory and practice of the ruling class, which attmpets to make the workers carry the burden of the capitalist crisis and conse- quent mass unemployment. “Developments since the National Hunger March provide additional proof of the imperative need for a system of Unemployment Insurance such as is proposed in the Workers’ Bill. The army of unemployed con- tinues to grow. Even the agents of the bankers and mantfacturing cor- porations and of the government morrow? Workers, you alone ean answer this ques- tion! a total of $1731. We m ct have the needed $7,500 to keep the Daily Worker alive. Only $598.41 came in Saturday making Whole sections of the workingclass in struggle against hunger— terror and war depend upen the Daily Work- er for leadership and guidance. Suspension is unthinkable. Every struggle of the workingelass calis you to action to save the Daily Worker. Rush funds in person or wire them to the Daily Worker—~S0o East 13th St., New York City. DAILY WORKER MGT. COMMITTEE. Japan Plans New Blood Bath In Shanghai to Suppress Mass Movement Imperialists Fear Shanghai Masses Turning Red; Expect Hankow to Fall to Red Army In Shanghai, the United States, British and French imperialists have been erecting barbed wire barricades and machine gun nests during the past week in fear of a threatened armed uprising of the workers of that city, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. ‘ The Japanese naval and military commanders at Shanghai are alarmed over the situation, At the same time they are attempting to exploit it to force concessions from the other imperialist powers by putting Japan forward as the “barrier” against the rising revolutionary movement. The Jap-¢- anese Admiral Nomura speaking of the million or more destitute refugees in Shanghai declared on Saturday: “These restless hordes are nat- urally subject to the propaganda efforts of Communist organizers, and aside from a natural desire to complete the phase of military op- erations with victory, we hope to accomplish this before unemploy- Bronx Rent Strike Wins An Overwhelming Victory NEW YORK.—After three turbulent weeks, the rent strike of the tenants of 665 Allerton Ave. Bronx, has end- ed with an overwhelming vie- tory for the workers. The strike was marked by terrific clashes between the workers and swarms of police who came to the assistance of Osinoff ‘the socialist landlord. Thousands of workers participated in the battles. But the organized militancy of the workers, led by the Mid-Bronx Unem- ployed Council, won against the brutal forces of the landlord and the state machine. A list of the demands won by the workers tell better than anything how completely crushed is the landlord 1, One dollar rent reduction for each room; %. Cancelling of all back rent; 3. Reinstatement of all 15 families evicted and payment to them of all moving charges and for damages done through the eviction; 4. Rent to start from March Ist; 5, Renovation of all rooms stipulated by Tenants Com- mittee; 6. $125 to he paid to Ten- ants Committee for its expenditures during the strike; 7. Squashing of all cases mow pending against the tenants; 8. Installation of new stoves in tho apartments; 9. In- stallation of telephones in the halls; 10, Settlement of all mat- ters concerning the tenants and the landlord with their elected Tenants Committee, The etiy officials and the Real Es- tate Board fearing the spreading of rent strikes throughout the city fol- lowing a victory, offered Osinoff all their power to crush the strike. (CONTINUED ON PAGE TWOD Ign ane Cate Sree ee Masses Force lowa Mayor to Sign Jobless Insurance Bill KANBAS CITY, Mo., Feb, 14.-Due to the mass pressure exerted by the unemployed workers of Sioux City, Iowa, Mayor Hayes, the arch demagogue, who. has been feeding the unemployed on soft promises and stagger system city ‘Jobs”, was forced to sign the Workers’ Unemploy- ment Insurance Bill Petition, Mayor Hayes, in signing the bill says that “he was against the dole”, but that he was “sorry” for the poor un-~ employed workers. The bill was not only signed, but the endorsement was telegraphed to President Hoover. The Sioux City workers are organizing more and more in their struggle for Unemployment Insurance and against the fakery of such demagogues as Hayes and the rest of the political plunderers of Sioux ois . . . . February 4th Demonstration ; Forces $500,000 Relief MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. <The mass campaign organized by the Un- employed Councils for relief, which was speeded up by the February 4 demonstration, forced the city administration to vote a $500,000 appro- priation for unemployment. rélief. Although this is a victory for the workers, {t is far from enough TURN IN TAG DAY FUNDS. Please rush all funds collected in Tag Days to W. I. R. headquar- ters, District Office, 16 West 21st Street, District Office, W. I, R. to care for the 70,000 unemployed; the demand of the Unemployed Council was for an emergency appropriation of five million dollar& to sover minimum needs. The actual appropriation is only one-tenth of that, and the workers will have to continue the struggle to get adequate relief. munist riotings or attempts at up- rising.” The Japanese General Uyeda who {CONTINUED ON PAGE TWO) MASS LAY-OFF IN STEEL IN- DUSTRY FARRELL, Pa.—Thirty-five hun- dred workers were laid off in the American Tin Plate here today. The mills, acording to rumors, are closing "|down entirely, And the bosses are talking that in case the mills do open those workers over 45 years of age will not be re-hired. This mass lay-off comes after months of work under the stagger system, FRAME 2 METAL WORKERS IN THE DURABLE STRIKE NEW YORK, N. ¥.—Feb. 14—Jack Scaglione and Carl Como, two young strikers of the Durable Tool and Die Co., were railroaded for fifteen days to the workhouse after a farcial trial on Saturday, They were arrested Friday evening while walking along Third avenue. A group of scabs who had attacked them earlier in the day on the picket line with wrenches and havy tools pointed them out to the cops and had them framed up on the charge of simple assault. ‘The bosses, hand in hand with the ‘Tammany police, are using these tac. ties in an effort to terrorize the 90 metal workers who are in the third week of their militant strike against a lockout. Efforts have been made by the boss to frame other strikers. On Wednesday there will be hear- ing on an injunction the boss is trying to secure in order to break the strike, Prior to this he had obtained @ court order prohibiting pickting. In spite of this and the terrorism pick- eting is carried on daily. Any work- ing-class organization that can assist in opening a relief kitchen for the strikers is asked to get in touch with the Relief Committee at 380 Grand Street. Workers are asked to back the strike by being on the picketline in. front of the shop 254 Central St. Red Builders, help get subscriptions. Plan Big Push in Scottsboro Campaign Week ot Feb. 17-24 NEW YORK.-—-Calling on the working class to flood the Alabama Supreme Court with protests against the lynch verdicts against the inno- cént Scottsboro Negro boys, the In- ternational Labor Defense has set aside the week of February 17 to 24 for the intensification of its work among the Negro masses. In directives Just sent to the LL-D. districts, the national office points out that the week of February 17 to 25 must be a new high point in the fight to smash the lynching frame- up against the Scottsboro boys, “Preparations for this week must begin at once,” the directives state. “During the week, there maust begin a wide house-to-house canvassing, with distribution of literature, circulation of the Spe- clal Negro (February) issue of the Labor Defender, recruiting of new members, especially Negroes, build ot the United Front Scottsboro Committees, preparation for con- ferences with a wide campaign for new affiliations by the raising of the Scottsboro issue in all possible organizations, The week must bc marked with a sharpening of the struggle against all manifestations of white chauvinism.” Nation-wide demonstrations are t be held on February 23 and 24. The demonstrations must raise the de- mand for the release of Tom Moo- ney and the Scottsboro boys. VIRTUAL MARTIAL LAW PREVAILS THRU WHOLE _ STRIKEAREA; RAID HOMES |, Criminal Syndicalist Wasrants Out for Entire Strike Leadership | Workers! Support the Heroic Ky. Strikers! | Send Relief! Protest Against the Rocke- | feller-Insull Terror! | NEW YORK.—A mass memorial demonstration will take place at Bronx Coliseum on Wednesday, February 17, at 7 p.m. sharp, urdor the auspices of the Communist Party and Young Communist League, in | honor of Harry Simms, organizer of the National Miners Union and member of of the National Executive Committee of the Young Commu- nist League, who was murdered by thugs in the employ of Kentucky coal operators. The body of Simms will arrive in New York on Wednesday and will lie in state at the Workers Center, 35 E. 12th St,, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. All revolutionary workers should mect the body at the Pennsylvania station, 31st St. and Seventh Ave., Wednesday morning at 6:55 a.m. The Young Communist League will be in charge. Workers! Turn out in mass to this mass memorial meeting. Working class organizations should denounce in unmistakable terms the murder- ous terror of the Rockefeller-Morgan-Insull thugs together with the State and county authorities of Kentucky against the miners of Kentucky. Fill Bronx Coliseum! Bring your shopmates and fellow-workers! Telegrams from the Strike Area KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Feb. 14.—Murderous terror in Bell County con- tinues and now exceeds the worst that bloody John Henry Blair could manufacture in Harlan with his 450 breast plated army of professional murderers, Late Saturday night Jeff Franz, a member of strike executive, narrowly escaped death when Bell County gun thugs show- ered a rain of machine gun bullets on his car near Mathell. Bullets tore through his car and shattered his windshield but he was untouched Sheriff Broughton has issued criminal syndicalism warrants for every leading striker as well as for the entire strike executive. The most capable strike leaders have had criminal syndicalism warrants issued against them by several counties. One local strike leader has four warrants against him, another six. Virtual martial law prevails in the entire strike area with carloads of gun thugs patrolling all roads looking for strike leaders, Miners’ homes are being raided and their wives terrorized. KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Feb. 14.—Not content with murdering young strike organizer, operators and their agents made plans to steal the body of Simms and desecrate it to prevent miners from holding mass memorial demonstration, Strikers learned of the plot in time, how- ever, and warned Barbourville police they were prepared to guard the body of their fallen comrade at any cost. Barbourville police then placed guard of fascist American Legionnaires over body but vesterday large delegation of miners went to undertakers’ establishment and told Legionnaires they had come to take their rightful posts as guard of honor over body of their dead strike leader, Legionnaires realizing that masses of miners backed up demand of delegation, turned over the body. The danger is great that operators will attempt to crush memorial demonstration with a huge force of gun thugs. The Barbourville potice chief has already announced that he would permit no demonstrations to be held and county prosecutor “advised” Tom Johnson, NMU na tional organizer, in a telephone conversation not to “allow” miners to attend memorial. After the memorial meeting the entire demonstration will march to the railroad terminal with the body and place it on a train for New York where the funeral will he held Wednesday. A guard of honor including Joe Weber, strike leader, who was kidnapped and flogged by gun thugs, will accompan? Simms’ body to New York. . * KNOXVILLE ,Tenn., Feb. 14.—The murder of Harry Simms, youth organizer of the Na- tional Miners Union, whose broken and bleed- ing body the operators have flung’ into the faces of the Kentucky and Tennessee miners as an answer to their heroic strike for a living wage, will be commemorated Monday by thousands of working as well as striking miners at a mass memorial meeting that will be held in Barbourville, Ky., near where the young strike leader was fatally wounded last Wednesday ‘The miners have themselves de-* cided that the memorial meeting will not be an occasion for weepink but instead will be a ringing answer to he murderous operators and their | Starvation rule which in the course |of the last few months has resulted in the killing, kidnapping, flogging and jailing of strikers and their lead- jers, and the dynamiting of Workers |Tnternational Relief soup kitchens jand the destruction and robbery of food and clothing which had be sent to the strikers from workers al! iver the country, Hundreds of working miners in the 60-mile strike a have informed |suvikers they will stop work to at- tend the memorial ineeting of Simms who was known and loved through- out the entire strike zone. The miners who work in Bryson “Mine, 35 miles from Barbourville, have signed a round-robin letter to the Strike Executive in which they say the entire mine will stop work tomorrow and march to the funeral. Scores of miners in Brush Creek mines who dropped their tools last Wednesday for the entire day when they learned Simms had been shot, say they will bring hundreds of other miners with them to the memorial meeting in honor of Simms, ADDITIONAL NEWS ON PAGE 2 A dollar NOW will help to sav-e the Daily Worker. Delay may be fatal. Rush funds at | once.