Today in Labor History May 9, 1934: Longshoremen up and down the West Coast of the U.S. began a strike for union recognition. After World War One, West Coast longshore workers were poorly organized or represented by company unions. The IWW had tried to organize them and had some successes, like in San Pedro, and in Portland in 1922, and in Seattle in 1919, but they were ultimately crushed by injunctions, imprisonment, deportation and vigilante violence. While longshoremen lacked a well-organized union, they retained a syndicalist sentiment and militancy. Many Wobblies were still working the docks. On May 9, 1934, longshoremen walked off the job at ports up and down the West Coast, soon to be followed by sailors. Goons shot at strikers in San Pedro. There was also violence in Oakland and San Francisco. Street battles between the cops and strikers continued in San Francisco, heating up on July 3. Things came to a head on Bloody Thursday, July 5, when police, who were helping the Waterfront Employers Association deliver cargo, attacked picketers. Scores were beaten or wounded by gunfire, including bystanders. And when police raided the union mess hall, at the corner of Steuart and Mission, in San Francisco’s Rincon Hill neighborhood, they shot and killed Howard Sperry, a striking sailor, and Nicholas Bordoise, a member of the cooks' union. This attack led to a four-day general strike of over 150,000 workers that effectively shut down commerce in San Francisco, despite police violence and attempts to weaken it by national unions. On July 17, the National Guard blocked Jackson Street with machine gun-mounted trucks and, along with SFPD, assisted vigilante attacks on the headquarters of the Marine Workers' Industrial Union and the ILA soup kitchen at 84 Embarcadero. They also attacked the Workers' School on Haight Street, and the Mission Workers' Neighborhood House at 741 Valencia Street, as well as destroying the Communist Party headquarters.
Overall, nine people were killed during the West Coast Waterfront Strike. Over 1,000 were injured and over 500 were arrested. But it did ultimately lead to the unionization of all the West Coast Ports, from Los Angeles to Seattle. And, along with the Minneapolis and Toledo General Strikes of 1934, helped pave the way for the growth of Industrial Unionism in the U.S.
One of the leaders of San Francisco’s ILWU local at the time of the strike was Harry Bridges, an Australian immigrant and former member of the IWW. The authorities tried to deport him in 1939, but failed because they couldn’t prove he was a member of an organization that advocated the overthrow the U.S. government. So, the government wrote (and passed) the Smith Act, in 1940, specifically to deport Bridges and, generally, to deport other foreign born opposition leaders. And again, they were unsuccessful, going all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled that they had failed to prove membership in CPUSA.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #sanfrancisco #generalstrike #longshoremen #union #strike #policebrutality #police #massacre #IWW #harrybridges #bloodythursday #solidarity #prison #communism #scotus #immigration
Today in Labor History March 30, 1990: Harry Bridges died at age 88. He helped found the ILWU (International Longshore and Warehouse Union) and led the union for 40 years. Bridges was born in Australia in 1901 and moved to the U.S. in 1920. He joined the IWW in 1921 and participated in an unsuccessful nationwide seamen’s strike. In 1922, he moved to San Francisco, to become a longshoreman. His militancy won him considerable support and he was soon elected a leader of the new longshoremen’s union. He helped lead the 1935 San Francisco General Strike. This was one of the last General Strikes to occur in the U.S. because the Taft-Hartley Act banned them in 1947 (in the wake of the 1945-1946 Strike Wave, with over 4.3 million U.S. workers going on strike, including General Strikes in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Stamford, Connecticut; Rochester, New York; and Oakland, California). One of Bridge’s most famous quotes was, “The most important word in the language of the working class is solidarity.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #HarryBridges #IWW #ilwu #generalstrike #sanfrancisco #waterfront #solidarity #TaftHartley #longshore
Today in Labor History March 4, 1933: Frances Perkins became U.S. Secretary of Labor, the first female member of the United States Cabinet. As labor secretary, she helped develop the social security system in 1935. She also played an important role in the development of other New Deal programs. And in 1939, she came under fire from Congress for refusing to support the deportation of ILWU chief, Harry Bridges, who they accused of being a Communist. As a young woman, Perkins worked with Florence Kelly, a social and political organizer who fought against sweatshops and for the minimum wage, eight-hour workday and children’s rights. Kelley was a follower of Karl Marx and a friend of Friedrich Engels. Perhaps for these reasons, people accused Perkins of being a Communist, which she was not. Perkins had also volunteered at Hull House, with Jane Addams.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #feminism #womenshistorymonth #communism #harrybridges #francesperkins #florencekelly #marx #communism #janeaddams #socialsecurity #newdeal #sweatshops #ilwlu
Today in Labor History July 5, 1934: Two strikers were shot and killed and more than 100 were injured by San Francisco police in what came to be known as "Bloody Thursday," leading to one of the last General Strikes in U.S. history. The West Coast maritime strike lasted 84 days and spread from San Pedro, in Los Angeles Country up to Puget Sound, in Washington. One of the strike leaders in San Francisco was Harry Bridges, a former member of the IWW who had immigrated from Australia. Teamsters supported the strike by refusing to handle “hot” cargo that had been unloaded by scabs. 7-9 workers, in total, were killed during these strikes (in San Pedro, Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco); over 1000 were injured; and over 500 were arrested. In San Francisco, the National Guard, along with vigilantes, patrolled the streets with armored vehicles with machine guns mounted on them.
I used to have a neighbor who was a lifelong member of the typographical union. A really big guy named Herb, who told me that his most vivid memory of the strike was that the streets had become white from all the milk being dumped by dairy delivery drivers, in solidarity with the striking maritime workers.
The ILWU Mural General Strike Sculpture/Mural was created in 1984-86 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1934 SF General Strike. The artists were Miranda Bergman, Tina Dresher, Nicole Emanuel, Lari Kilolani, James Morgan, Ray Patlán, Eduardo Pineda, James Prigoff, O'Brien Thiele, Horace Washington. The artwork now stands at the corner of Mission and Steuart Streets, in the old Rincon Hill neighborhood, the epicenter of the 1934 San Francisco Waterfront Strike and Bloody Thursday. This photo of the artwork was taken by James Prigoff, and can be found in the Found SF project: https://www.foundsf.org/Artist!_Mike_Mosher
I’ve included a close-up of the artwork in its current home, at Mission and Steuart Streets, along with a commemorative plaque (both photos by me). The plaque reads:
“In memory of Howard Sperry and Nick Bordoise, who gave their lives on Bloody Thursday, July 5, 1934, so that all working people might enjoy a greater measure of dignity and security.
Sperry and Bordoise were fatally shot by San Francisco police at the intersection of Mission and Steuart Streets, when longshoremen and seamen attempted to stop maritime employers from breaking their joint strike. Community outrage at these killings sparked a General Strike by all San Francisco unions.
The maritime strike continued through the middle of the summer, concluding with a union victory which brought decent conditions to the shipping industry and set the stage for the rebirth of a strong and democratic labor movement on the west cost.
An Injury to One is an Injury to all.”
#workingclass #LaborHistory #sanfrancisco #GeneralStrike #BloodyThursday #IWW #longshoremen #ilwu #police #PoliceBrutality #HarryBridges #maritime #nationalguard #Teamsters #solidarity #mural
Today in Labor History May 9, 1934: Longshoremen began a strike for a union hiring hall and union recognition, ultimately leading to the San Francisco general strike. After World War One, West Coast longshore workers were poorly organized or represented by company unions. The IWW had tried to organize them and had some successes, like in San Pedro, in 1922, but they were ultimately crushed by injunctions, imprisonment, deportation and vigilante violence. While longshoremen lacked a well-organized union, they retained a syndicalist sentiment and militancy. Many Wobblies were still working the docks. On May 9, 1934, longshoremen walked off the job at ports up and down the West Coast, soon to be followed by sailors. Goons shot at strikers in San Pedro. There was also violence in Oakland and San Francisco. Street battles between the cops and strikers continued in San Francisco, heating up on July 3. Things came to a head on Bloody Thursday, July 5, when police shot 3 workers (two of them died). The attack led to a four-day general strike that effectively shut down commerce in San Francisco, despite police violence and attempts to weaken it by national unions. In 2017, San Francisco renamed the big plaza across from the Ferry Building Harry Bridges Plaza. Many of the city’s recent Palestinian solidarity protests have taken place there.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #sanfrancisco #generalstrike #longshoremen #union #strike #policebrutality #police #massacre #policemurder #IWW #harrybridges #bloodythursday #palestine #solidarity #prison
#LongBeach has begun demolition of a faux English village next to the #QueenMary hotel ship. Long-vacant and in disrepair, the Queen Mary Village, a complex of former shops & offices at Queens Highway and Windsor Way is beconing a #ParkingLot to support #events.
The city has plans to construct a temporary #amphitheater for outdoor #concerts – dubbed the Long Beach Bowl – which would encompass about five or six acres along Queens Highway near the Queen Mary and the #HarryBridges #Memorial #Park named after the Longshoreman Union leader. Officials recently selected ASM Global/Legends to operate the future venue on the waterfront and is also preparing to welcome visitors for the 2028 Summer #Olympics.
Today in Labor History March 4, 1933: Frances Perkins became U.S. Secretary of Labor, the first female member of the United States Cabinet. As labor secretary, she helped develop the social security system in 1935. She also played an important role in the development of other New Deal programs. And in 1939, she came under fire from Congress for refusing to support the deportation of ILWU chief, Harry Bridges, who they accused of being a Communist. As a young woman, Perkins worked with Florence Kelly, a social and political organizer who fought against sweatshops and for the minimum wage, eight-hour workday and children’s rights. Kelley was a follower of Karl Marx and a friend of Friedrich Engels. Perhaps for these reasons, people accused Perkins of being a Communist, which she was not. Perkins had also volunteered at Hull House, with Jane Addams.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #feminism #womenshistorymonth #communism #harrybridges #francesperkins #florencekelly #marx #communism #janeaddams #socialsecurity #newdeal #sweatshops #ilwlu
Today in Labor History May 9, 1934: Longshoremen began a strike for a union hiring hall and union recognition, ultimately leading to the San Francisco general strike. After World War One, West Coast longshore workers were poorly organized or represented by company unions. The IWW had tried to organize them and had some successes, like in San Pedro, in 1922, but they were ultimately crushed by injunctions, imprisonment, deportation and vigilante violence. While longshoremen lacked a well-organized union, they retained a syndicalist sentiment and militancy. Many Wobblies were still working the docks. On May 9, 1934, longshoremen walked off the job at ports up and down the West Coast, soon to be followed by sailors. Goons shot at strikers in San Pedro. There was also violence in Oakland and San Francisco. Street battles between the cops and strikers continued in San Francisco, heating up on July 3. Things came to a head on Bloody Thursday, July 5, when police shot 3 workers (two of them died). The attack led to a four-day general strike that effectively shut down commerce in San Francisco, despite police violence and attempts to weaken it by national unions. In 2017, San Francisco renamed the big plaza across from the Ferry Building Harry Bridges Plaza. Many of the city’s recent Palestinian solidarity protests have taken place there.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #sanfrancisco #generalstrike #longshoremen #union #strike #policebrutality #police #massacre #policemurder #IWW #harrybridges #bloodythursday #palestine #solidarity #prison
Today in Labor History March 30, 1990: Harry Bridges died at age 88. He helped found the ILWU (International Longshore and Warehouse Union) and led the union for 40 years. Bridges was born in Australia in 1901 and moved to the U.S. in 1920. He joined the IWW in 1921 and participated in an unsuccessful nationwide seamen’s strike. In 1922, he moved to San Francisco, to become a longshoreman. His militancy won him considerable support and he was soon elected a leader of the new longshoremen’s union. He helped lead the 1935 San Francisco General Strike. This was one of the last General Strikes to occur in the U.S. because the Taft-Hartley Act banned them in 1947 (in the wake of the 1945-1946 Strike Wave, with over 4.3 million U.S. workers going on strike, including General Strikes in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Stamford, Connecticut; Rochester, New York; and Oakland, California). One of Bridge’s most famous quotes was, “The most important word in the language of the working class is solidarity.
#workingclass #LaborHistory #HarryBridges #IWW #ilwu #generalstrike #sanfrancisco #waterfront #solidarity #TaftHartley #longshore
Liam O'Mara IV, PhD
MikeDunnAuthor
LilMikeSF