The Daily Worker Newspaper, May 6, 1933, Page 1

WORKERS! surtoed (HE HEROIC STRUGGLE OF THE IOWA TARMERS! DEMAND THE RELEASE OF THE ARRESTED MEN, WITHDRAWAL OF THE MILITIA if 7 EDITORIAL Words and Deeds President Roosevelt's talk about wage increases to meet the rising cost of living was fully understood and approved by the attendants at last night’s annual banquet of the United States chamber of commerce. They knew that such talk was necessary to try to deceive the toiling masses whose standards of life are being driven down to ever lower levels by the hunger government. They knew that Hoover made the same speech months ago. They knew that the words of Roosevelt were not intended for them, but for the workers and farmers on the outside who are being aroused to action against mass unemployment, direct wage cuts and the latest general wage slash through inflation. Roosevelt's words were calculated to cover up his deeds. And it is deeds only that concern the gentlemen of the Chamber of Commerce who, as Roosevelt said, represent “in all probability, the majority of employers of the nation.” cuts now sweeping the country when he presented his “economy” pro- | gram on April 12, Before he put forth his program in words he had di- rectly reduced salaries of federal employees more than $100,000,000, in order to help pay interest of $725,000,000 on the public debt. He slashed $400,000,000 from the war veterans’ pensions and benefits. He cut down | the wages of workers in the navy yards and in army posts and on top of that slashed the pay of enlisted men. Then he proceeded to herd 250,000 unemployed single men into timber camps, in prison garb, under military discipline, at a wage of less than one dollar a day. All this to maintain “unimpaired the credit of the United States.” message of March 10 Roosevelt explained why these cuts were put into effect: “Upon the unimpaired credit of the United States government rests the safety of deposits, the security of insurance policies, the activity of industrial enterorises.” He means that finance capital must first of all be able to realize in- terest and dividends off its investments. On Thursday night he told his hearers at the Chamber of Commerce banquet that it is an undeniable fact that the average of the wage scale of the nation had gone down during the last four years more rapidly than the cost of Mving. Those who heard him knew that they could thank Roosevelt as the foremost of all wage-cutters. They fully understood him when he asked them to increase wage scales “in so far as it lies within your power.” The only way wages will be increased to meet the increased cost of living is by determined struggle of the working class. Only the mass strugzle of the unemployed for immediate relief and unemployment in- surance at the expense of the government and the employers will defeat the hunger drive of the bosses. Continue the Fight for the ~ May First Slogans ‘Throughout the United States, record May Day demonstrations took place this year. In the large cities as well as in the steel and mining towns, workers took the streets in May Day parades and demonstrations. In many communities, workers and farmers marched side by side. Every one of these demonstrations and meetings raised as the cen- trel demands the following: 1. Against the Roosevelt Hunger Program. For Federal Unemploy- ment Insurance. 2. Against capitalist terror. For the release of Tom Mooney, the Scottsboro boys, the Centralia boys, and all class war prisoners. 3. Against fascist reaction, for a united struggle of all toilers against tascism. 4. Against the imperialist war preparations. For the Defense of the Soviet Union. The united front character of May Day was most significant. Every- where, there was shown a tremendous desire for a united struggle of all toilers. In Portland and Rockland, Maine, in Camden, N. J., in numerous othe? cities, the Communist Party and Socialist Party heid joint demon- strations. In Nokomis, Ill, and in a number of other towns in the South- ern Illinois coal fields, the Communist Party, Socialist Party, Progressive Miners of America, together with other working-class organizations, unit- ed in a single May Day demonstration. In New York workers remained in Union Square after the Socialist meeting was over to join in the united front demonstration. This took place over the opposition of the leadership who attempted with the aid of the police to disperse the meeting. Similar actions took place in a lJarge number of cities. The leaders of the Socialist Party raised every barrier to hinder a united front of the working class for May Day. The leaders of the Amer- iean Federation of Labor have barred the door for unity of the workers. But in every demonstration, workers have broken down these bar- riers and joined together in a struggle against the capitalist attacks. . May Day, 1933, united tens of thousands of toilers all over the coun- try in the struggle against the capitalist offensive. It has shown the bourgeoisie that these tens of thousands strengthened by many millions are determined to defeat the hunger program. ‘The demand for federal unemployment insurance was a central slogan on May Day. The struggle for this demand must be carried into every trade union local, unemployed organization, fraternal organization, into all workers organizations. Popularize the Workers’ Unemployment In- stirance Bill! By a mass mobilization and a determined struggle the American workingclass will force the federal government to adopt unemployment insurance. May First is over. Our forces gathered on this day must be further cemented. The united front of the toilers in every city and town must be broadened to include new sections of workers not yet drawn into the struggle. Forward with the revolutionary enthusiasm of May Day, with greater vigor to win the demands raised in the May Day demonstrations. | War Threats The Roosevelt economic “peace” negotiations in Washington with leaders of other big powers, announced with so much hullabaloo have led to open trade warfare. Even before MacDonald sets foot in England, Neville Chamberlain, _ British Chancellor of the Exchequer, announces the doubling of Britain's fighting “exchange equalization fund” to cover $1,500,000,000 to nullify Americas foreign trade advantage due to the depreciated dollar. France has just imposed a 15 per cent surtax on all American im- ports, thus making illusory the expectation of increased American sales to France. And now Hjalmar Schacht, President of the German Reichs- bank, arrives in Washington, telling American capital that Germany's private debts abroad, chiefly owed American investors, must be scaled down. « The heralded tariff truce has turned out to be tariff warfare. Mac- Donald, the angel of peace, announced in the British Parliament that America cannot expect Great Britain to maintain a tariff truce arrange- ment, without safeguards for British foreign trade. When MacDonald representing British imperialism speaks of safeguards, it is a challenge to American imperialism on the world market. ‘The French Senate already has served notice that it will not pay its debt to the United States. The ink of the official statements issued during the Washington ne- gotiations is hardly dry and the battle between the rival imperialist powers for domination of the world’s market begins anew with greater intensity than ever. The press speaks of “the battle between the dollar and the pound.” The United States jockeys for trade advantages in South America and the Far East, while Great Britain hastens to accumulate trade advantages in the form of preferential agreements with half a dozen foreign countries which are essentially pistols aimed at American capital and can be used in the horse trading at the coming World Economic Con- ference in London. The peace talks in Washington have brought the world closer to war. The World Economic Conference in London will bring out, into the open even more the war moves of the imperialist powers. ‘The war clouds are gathering. The workers must be on guard; Central Daily Org orker unist Party U.S.A. (Section of the Communist International) Vol. X, No. 109 p= Entered as seco! New York, N. the Aet of Mareh matter at the Post Office at 3, 1879. NEW YORK, SATURDAY, MAY <. 1933 Turn to Page 3 for Features on Scottsboro, Herndon, and Struggle for Negro Rights CITY EDITION ‘Price 3 Cents Thousands of Vets | It was Roosevelt who initiated the whole series of wage | In his budget | Now Marching to | National Capitol National Liaison Committee Called Twice to! White House; Urged to Stop March; Refuse | Veterans Assemble May 12; Hold Conference | May 18; Parade and Present Demands, May 15 BULLETIN, WASHINGTON, May 5.—Latest information from Washington brings the news that the government has acceded to the request of the Na- tional Liaison Committee to house the Veterans’ March, called by the National Liaison Committee, due to reach Washington May 12. ° . . WASHINGTON, May 6.—Thousands of veterans are on their way here for the veteran march on May 12. More than 1,800 West Virginian vets are coming over the hills and several thousand veterans are already in the city. are enlisting the secret service and department of justice in a “red” scare cry. The members of the Veterans’ Na- tional Liaison Committee have been called to the White House twice this week by Louis Howe, Roosevelt's sec- retary, in an effort to get them to call off the march which is set for the 12th of this month, with a demon- stration in front of the capitol planned for the 15th. No report of the conferences has been issued by the committee of the white house but the commitize has stated that they are continn‘sg to mobilize vet- lerans for the mar¢h. Start Campaign Against March. Major Brown, sent telegrams to chiefs of police, throughout the coun~ try and they have reported their in- ability to stop the thousands of vet- erans who are already on the way to Washington. Brown is trying to raise the “red” scare but has been forced to admit that the veterans are gen- uine war vets. The Liaison Committee, which cal- led the march, is composed of the fol- lowing men representing different Veteran organizations; Edward J. W. Williams, Khaki Shirts of America, Albert G, Sellers and Harold Hicker- son of the B. E. F_ Rank and File; George Brady of the B. E. F. and Emanuel Levin, Workers Ex-Service- men’s League, The march is called to demand im- mediate payment of the bonus, re- storation of the disability allowances and relief for the unemployed and poor farmers. . ashe Appeals to Legion Posts. WASHINGTON, May 6.—The gov- , Heats Lea a In an effort to frighten the veterans enroute from other parts of the country, the feder. al government and its Ag eens Gases aes AURELIO GIVES — ‘WORKER 2 YEARS, ON “DISORDERLY (Statement of N. Y. se Healer sa 2 8) ask NEW YURK, ak ek Gonshak, militant young leader of the Down- town Unemployed Council, was given the vicious sentence of an indetermi- nate term up to two years in the workhouse yesterday. The sentence was handed down by Judge Aurelio in Magistrate's Court in spite of the fact that the International Labor De- fense pointed out that Aurelio’s open- ly expressed hatred of the Unem- ployed Council made an entire mock- ery of “justice.” The cases of five other workers, ar- rested with Gonshak, last week when police brutally attacked a demonstra~ tion of unemployed at Spring and Elizabeth Relief Bureau, were taken up first. Gonshak was purposely left for last, so that the judge could en- act a carefully prepared drama by which he pretended to be “lenient” with the others to conceal the planned frame-up of Gonshak. The five workers, Metto Manga, Peter Barreccea, Mary Smith, Joseph Porper and Joseph Riley, received sentences of 10 to 20 days in the workhouse, but execution of the sen- tences was suspended, so that the judge could let full force of the ries aeaall CONDUCT” CHARGE x DELEGATES FROM TRADE UNION UNITY LEAGUE INTERVIEW PERKINS TODAY Will Present Workers’ Demands; Were Barred retary of Labor today, unions and workers’ organizations which were excluded from a fas wit conference arranged by Perkins with | American Federation of Labor offi- cials to discuss a “labor program.” It was at this conference that a secret agreement was arrived at with the officialdom of the A. F. of L. to sup- port the forced labor camps and other anti-labor measures advocated by the Roosevelt administration. At the conference today the Roose- velt “new deal” will be fully exposed by the real representatives of the workers, Sentenced to Month in Jail for Striking Against Forced Labor CLEVELAND, O.—Frank Dimato, active member of the Unemployed Council, was picked out for a frame- up in the trial of the eight jobless workers arrested at Wayfarer's Lodge, after they had refused to do forced! labor. The: judge instructed the jury, to bring in a verdict of not guilty against the other seven. Dimato was sentenced to one month in Warrens- ville workhouse, News Flash ROME, Italy, May 5.—News leaked out today that thousands of anti- FaScist pamphlets were seized here by the blackshirt police on May Day, and that thousands more were dis- tributed. Twenty-four arrests % from Labor Secretary’s Parley With A.F.L. NEW YORK.—A delegation of representatives from the Marine, Mine, Metal and Steel, Textile, Needle, Food and other militant unions and from the Trade Union Unity League left for Washington last night to present the Program and demands of the workers before Frances Perkins, U. 8. Sec- Today's conference was arranged as the result of s protest made by SCOTTSBORO eet MARCHERS TO LEAVE EASTERN CITIES TODAY FOR WASHINGTON ew York Continzent Leaves Uh Union Square at 10 a. m. for Capital Demonstration |To Press for Action on Civil Rights Bill; Demand Freedom of Scottsboro Boys NEW YORK.—Between 10 and 11 a. m. this morning the New York column of the “Free the Scottsboro Boys” march will leave from Union Square on its way to Washington. « Buses, trucks and private cars, bearing slogans, demanding the-free- dom of the Scottsboro Boys and enforcement of the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the constitution, will convey the.dek egates of Negro and white or-¢- ganizations. At Trenton, N. |DePriest Discovers J., a contingent of marchers| | Scottsboro; Moves. to organized after a mass meeting in the | Elk’s Temple, will join the New York column. From all over the East coast Towa farmers, searched and threatened on their own land by militia | and as fer south as El Paso, Texas, sent to smash their struggle against chee oak Farm Delegates Force Vote for May 13 Strike Milo Reno’s Overruled by Rank and File DES MOINES, Iowa, May 5.—Delegates to the conference called by the | National Farm Holiday Association here voted yesterday before adjourn- ment to call a nation-wide farm strike beginning May 15. The strike is to | Jast until prices for farm products cover the cost of chai plus a ape so the farmers can buy the things they need in order to exist. Stormy Meeting Overrules “Reno. The vote fot the strike followed | @ stormy session at which Milo Reno, president of the association, tried t6| check the action by urging postpone- | ment of the final vote until word| came from Washington regarding the! fate of the amendment to the farm| bill stipulating that the farmers) would get cost plus for their pro- ducts. The rank and file delegates) scored the Fcorevelt administration, | stating that the icdere! government | was just as responsible for martial| law in Le Mars, Iowa, as was the gov- ernor of the state. Farmers Score Governor Herring. | In the heated debates from the| floor Governor Herring of Iowa, who ordered the troops to carry out fore-| closure sales and evictions, came in for denunciation from practically every speaker. A call from the floor to adopt a motion to raise a defense fund for the 105 prisoners held by the militia met with a roar of ap- val. One of the delegates said that it is necessary to take action to rescue the imprisoned farmers from the drum-head military courts martial. “We either want in jail or we want them out. I don’t feel right when them fellows are in!” Revolution? “Let Her Come!” ‘When A. C. Townley, once a lead- ing organizer for the Farmers’ Non- Partisan League, warned the farmers) that they were “being forced into bloody revolution”, he was met with the cry from one of the delegates: “Let her come”. That sentiment was greeted with stormy cheers. ‘When Milo Reno, desperately striv- ing to head off the vote for a na- tional farm strike, pleaded for cau- tion and began delivering a talk to the effect that he would rather “get Three Negro Farmers Murdered When They Protest Foreclosure LAKE CHARLES, ite May 5.— Three Negro farme ‘Ss were mur- dered yesterday by Sheriff Connor and Deputy Sheriff Cole when they protested against being driv- en off their land. The two thugs had gone to the farm with a court order demanding that they leave. The foreclosure order demanded that all their property remain and that the farmers be driven off the land without anything except what they had on their backs. When the Negro farmers pro- tested against this the sheriff and his deputy drew revolvers and killed all three of the men. three feet and hold it or five feet and lose it”, the delegates were plainly impatient and showed their resent- ment at such talk. Sentiment for Strike General. One after another of the delegates | talked for immediate action and said it was only delaying action and help- ing the enemy prepare to delay action any longer. Delegates from Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebras- ka, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico; New York, Montana, Colorado, Kan- sas, Wyoming, Missouri, Utah, Idaho, Mississippi and Alabama demanded strike action. Then, Reno, seeing that his pro-| posals were being openly repudiated by speaker after speaker, made a quick change and when the vote came he cast his ballot with the majority. thousands of marchers are en route to converge in Washington on Mon- day, May 8. Press Demands Monday | In Washingtcn, Monday morning, a | National will be held where the National Scottsboro Action Commit- tee, will present the draft of the Civil | Rights Bill to the marchers for rati- | fication. From the conference the | marchers will go to the capitol to de- Attempt to to Prevent Action Is|mand that Congress and Roosevelt | pass this bill putting teeth for en- forcement of the 13th, 14th and 15th | amendments to the Constitution. They will at the same time raise the de- mand for the freedom of the Scotts- boro Boys, Angelo Herndon and Tom | Mooney. See Wee: Trial of Arrested Workers NEW YORK.—Nine Negro and white workers, arrested for holding a Scottsboro open air protest meeting, were tried by Judge Brodsky yester- | day in Harlem. The judge angrily or- dered Charles Alexander, Negro Com- munist, to “stop propagating all your political views in this courtroom.” | The courtroom was packed and the | defendants ‘exposed the role of the Tammany city administration in try- ing to stifle the protest against Jim- crowism and oppression of the Negro | people. The judge freed eight of the | workers and found Alexander guilty, | giving him a suspended sentence. The value of the promises of Mayor Alter 14th Amendment WASHINGTON, May 5,—Oscar De Priest, Negro republican congressman | from Illinois, broke his silence on the Scottsboro case yesterday in congress by introducing a resolution to amend the 14th amendment to the constitu tion. DePriest’s resolution calls for the empowering of federal courts to transfer cases from one state to an- other if it determined the defendant would not get a fair trial in the state where charged because of race preju- dice. This is the first time he has said anything about the Scottsboro Boys, In congress he stated, “My bill is in- tended to prevent another Scottsboro case from ever occurring again!” This action of DePriest is forced by the mass protest in the Scottsboro case whcih exposed the whole system of oppression of Negro people in this country and has led to the march which will converge in Washington on Monday to demand full enforce- ment for civil rights of Negroes. O'Brien, “guaranteeing that no street meetings will be disturbed” was seen bere late Thursday evening.-A :police detachment cut off the loud speaker being used at a protest meeting on Seventh Ave., near 134th St, Told by the chairman that Mayor O’Brien had promised them they would not be molested, the sergeant said: “I know all about that. I got my orders.” Negroes Defy Jim Crow Rule in Labor Camp | Troops Used Against st Them When They Go to Town With Sticks to Defend Themselves NEW YORK—Revolting against vicious Jim-Crow and terror -Tules, | 212 Negro youths at the Camp Dix, New Jersey, Roosevelt forced labar camp, | defied the presence of regular troops with guns and demanded the. better- ment of their conditions last week. These Negro youths, members of Com- pany 240, had been ousted from their original quarters which they had dered into dirty barracks. companies of 212 men each. The} white workers, who are kept in slight- ly better quarters a mile away, form four companies. Military police were instructed to beat up Negroes com- Starving Child Laborers Revolt in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Richest Industrial State in U.S. By HELEN KAY “Til paste you against the wall La @ picture you blasted little son of a b———.’ And that’s what he tole me when I wasn’t working fast enough,” said a litle blonde girl of 16, who looked no more than 12. “There are six children in my fam- ily, and counting my father and mother it makes eight in the whole family, My brother, he’s nineteen, and I’m sixteen, and we're the only ones in the family what's working. “Of course, we ain't working now. We're striking, but when we are working we're the main support.” Mary is the girl’s name. Her hair falls shoulder length in blonde ring- lets, and her peaked little face looks yellow, too, Her next words explain: Baba eh eat adeA teotae theres a have to work in the morn- “Lots of times I have to wait around for the shirts and they don’t let us go home, but we have to wait, and then when the shirts pile up, we have to come in extra early, for no extra ARTICLE I.---Child Slavery, Hunger, Enforced Bath Railroad and president of the| Prostitution Under the Lash of Allentown Shirt Shop Bosses “EDITORIAL NOTE: The Daily Worker prints herewith the first of a series of articles prepared by its special reporter, now in Allentown, on the strike of hundreds of child laborers who are toiling in the sweatshops of the Lehigh Valley. The capitalist press today suppressed the testimony presented by the children before the Goy- ernor’s special investigating Committee which is now in session on the ground that the reports have not been made public. The Daily Worker carries a full report exposing the conditions of child exploit- ation in the state of Mellon, Schwab and other powerful rulers of America The mill spoken of is the D and D, shirt factory, which is only one of| Ped or more sweatshops centering in Allentown, Northampton, Emaus, Catasqua and Bangor, employing some 3,200 boys and girls, of about which one-quarter are under sixteen years of age. The words spoken by Mary are only the words of one child, and there are hundreds who have the same story to tell. Recently due to the immense amount of publicity on account of the “Baby Strike” in this humanitarian, who helped to crush the Pittsburgh Coal Sirike of 1931, appointed a committee to investigate the conditions in the needle trades in these counties, This committee, composed of Char- lotte E. Carr, of the State Federa~ tion of Labor; the Rev. Willis D. are| Mathias, of the Emanual Reformed Church; Clarence J. Moser, business representative of the Central and Labor Council for Allentown and vicinity; Dr. Harry L. Baker, Dr. Charles Haff, of the Haff Hospital| & were|pay, and that's why he calls us|Northampton and © Lehigh County|in Northampton, and A. F, Tidabock, made for distributing such literature. names, when we're not fast enough.” | ares, Governor Pinchot, the. | Rotary Club, met, cd listened to the reports of som¢ hundred children | representatives of the various mills | throughout this area. | The meeting took place in the | dimly lighted quarters of the City |Council. On the upper platform at | large mahogany desks, sat the neatly | attired, health-flushed members of} | the Governor's investigating commit- tee. On the lower level, on the straight benches, sat the child strikers, re- porting on the conditions of their mills. Conditions which made even| these hardened exploiters gape and gasp. Compensation? What's That. A dark-haired child of 15 reported: “When the inspectors come, our boss knows, cause he keeps cops on the watch, and I saw him give these cops money; then they send us out the back door, so that we won't be seen. “Lots of times we work right straight through, we don’t even bother to have a lunch hour, but if the in- spectors comes he makes us lie. and tell them that we have everything good. Becnune) De: mere: it we. aoe The Negro workers, form three| | fixed up on their own time and or-@—--——---—-_——_ ing into the town of Wrightsville, |The army officers and non-commis- sioned officers regularly cursed. them jand called them “niggers.” Three hundred Negro’ © youths, armed with sticks, went to town and were not attacked. Since then indi- vidual Negroes have not been mo- lested on coming into town, When the youths of Company 240 protested, they were told “stay and like it or hit the roaa:.” Fifteen of them refused to take this order and | were kept for 24 hours, with only ® | blanket for a bed and given left-over food. They were sent back ‘to-New | York. This policy of Jim-Crowism and mistreatment is part of the national | camp system of the Roosevelt “new | deal” administration. The Daily | Worker has printed letters. from all parts of the country, repeating similar | stories. Camp Custer, Michigan, has forbidden the fraternization of Negro and white youths and a struggle against this vicious segregation took | place recently. The Negro and white youths in the camps will have to fight this sepa- ration policy if they expect to better their miserable conditions in these camps. Next week, the government | will re-open its recruiting mero for more recruits to go to these. holes of slave labor. The New York relief administration has refused to pay any more rent for workers getting Telief and this will have to be paid by the parents of the boys from their dollar a day wages. The Scottsboro marchers in Wash- ington this Monday will present.» bill for the enforcement of the civil rights of Negro workers. The attitude of the Roosevelt adminstration t© sup- port the vicius system of Jim-Crow- ism is seen in the forced labor camps. Negro and. white workers must unite to enforce these rights on aM jobs greet ‘official of the Northampton end! (CONTINUED O% “OM PAGE —FovE, | and under oll conditions,