Today in Labor History March 6, 1930: 100,000 people demonstrated for jobs in New York City. Demonstrations by unemployed workers, demanding unemployment insurance, occurred in virtually every major U.S. city. In New York, police attacked a crowd of 35,000. In Cleveland, 10,000 people battled police. In Detroit, the Communist Party organized an underemployment demonstration. Over 50,000 people showed up. Thousands took to the streets in Toledo, Flint and Pontiac. These demonstrations led to the creation of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), sponsored by Republican congressman Hamilton Fish, with the support of the American Federation of Labor, to investigate and quash radical activities.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #unemployment #huac #communism #policebrutality #greatdepression #riot #police #newyork #cleveland #detroit #flint #republican

Today in Labor History February 10, 1898: Marxist playwright Bertolt Brecht was born. Brecht was a doctor, poet and playwright. He fled the Nazis only to be persecuted in the U.S. by HUAC during the Cold War. He is most well-known for his play, “The Three Penny Opera.” He also wrote “Mother Courage and Her Children” and “The Days of the Commune,” about the Paris Commune. Additionally, he wrote poetry and composed the lyrics to many of the songs performed in his plays, like “Mack the Knife” and “Alabama Song” (AKA Whiskey Bar).

https://youtu.be/6orDcL0zt34

#workingclass #LaborHistory #nazis #fascism #huac #Anticommunist #witchhunt #BertoltBrecht #marxist #Poet #books #writer #author #fiction #playwright #ParisCommune @bookstadon

a sidetrack I shall have to return to after I finish my PMBS research but damn the HUAC interrogation of musicians here is very sadly fascinating. came to it when searching the names of some minor PMBS members on Internet Archive.
https://archive.org/details/investigationofc5702unit/page/n7/mode/2up

#HUAC #MusicHistory #McCarthyism #AFMlocal802

Today in Labor History November 25, 1947: The "Hollywood Ten" were blacklisted by Hollywood movie studios for refusing to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). The blacklist lasted for 13 years, when Dalton Trumbo, a former Communist Party member, was finally credited as the screenwriter of the films “Exodus” and “Spartacus.” Some of the stars accused of having Communist ties included Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, Katharine Hepburn and Fredric March. In 1941, Walt Disney blamed "Communist agitation" for the cartoonists and animators' strike. In 1945, Gerald L. K. Smith, founder of the fascist America First Party, began giving speeches attacking the "alien minded Russian Jews in Hollywood." Ronald Reagan, who was president of the actor’s union, testified before HUAC that a clique within the union was using "communist-like tactics." His first wife, actress Jane Wyman, blamed his allegations against friends and colleagues as a factor leading to their divorce.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #communism #fascism #union #anticommunism #huac #FreeSpeech #redscare #hollywood #sagaftra #reagan #antisemitism #wga

A quotation from Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962) First Lady of the US (1933-45), politician, diplomat, activist
Column (1947-10-29), “My Day”

More info about this quote: wist.info/roosevelt-eleanor/80…

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #eleanorroosevelt #America #freedomofthought #inquiry #marketplaceofideas #mccarthyism #RedScare #society #trust #huac #unamerican

In 1971, Ariel Dorfman and Armand Mattelart published “How to Read Donald Duck,” a book-length essay critiquing Disney comics as capitalist propaganda for U.S. corporate and cultural imperialism. It became a bestseller throughout Latin America and is still considered a seminal work in cultural studies. It was first published in Valparaiso, Chile when Allende was in power. Pinochet banned it and conducted public book burnings.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #disney #anticommunism #antilabor #unionbusting #communism #witchhunt #huac #fbi #union #censorship #bookburning #BookBans #Chile #allende #pinochet #dictatorship #writer #author #books #comics @bookstadon

Today in Labor History October 20, 1947: HUAC launched its anti-Communist witch hunt of Hollywood stars, resulting in a blacklist that barred many from working in the industry for years. The list included Humphrey Bogart, Katherine Hepburn, James Cagney, Charlie Chaplin, Lena Horne, Pete Seeger and Orson Welles. Fascist Gerald LK Smith assailed them as “alien minded Russian Jews.” Ronald Reagan and Walt Disney were also key accusers. The blacklist lasted until 1960, when Dalton Trumbo, a Communist Party member from 1943 to 1948, was officially credited as the screenwriter of the films Exodus and Spartacus (both 1960).

#workingclass #LaborHistory #huac #communism #anticommunist #witchhunt #hollywood #blacklist #antisemitism #fascism #waltdisney #orsonwelles #peteseeger #russia #reagan #charliechaplin