"Was a reference to Renee Good spelled out on cargo ship in Tacoma?"

https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article314465172.html

#ReneeGood #ice #uspol #cargoShipping #ports #Tacoma #ILWU

The NDP leadership race just got a little more exciting.

Rob Ashton: "The federal NDP needs to build on what's already working."

#ndp #canpoli #cdnpoli #robashton #ilwu

Today in Labor History November 24, 1984: San Francisco longshore workers (ILWU) refused to unload cargo from a South African ship in solidarity with South Africans fighting to end Apartheid. They went without pay for eleven days, as they continued the boycott, until a federal court forced them back to work under threats of fines and prison. At the time, the U.S. government fully supported the Apartheid regime. Concurrent with this longshore boycott, there were encampments on many U.S. universities, with protesters demanding that their schools divest from South Africa. San Francisco’s ILWU had refused to load and unload South African ships in the past, too, with one of the earliest anti-Apartheid union protests back in 1962 (see image). In 1976, after the legendary Soweto uprising, an African American longshoreman from Oakland named Leo Robinson helped form Local 10’s Southern Africa Liberation Support Committee. The SALSC, was the first anti-apartheid group in an American labor union, helping to raise awareness up and down the West Coast.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #apartheid #racism #solidarity #union #boycott #directaction #ilwu

Today in Labor History August 1, 1938: Police opened fire on 200 unarmed trade unionists protesting the unloading of a ship in Hilo Harbor, on the Big Island of Hawaii, in what became known as "the Hilo Massacre." The protest was in support of striking waterfront workers. 50 workers were injured. Police also used tear gas and bayonets. The workers came from numerous ethnic backgrounds, including Japanese, Chinese, Native Hawaiian, Luso (Portuguese) and Filipino. They belonged to several unions, including the ILWU. They were fighting for equal pay to dockers on the U.S. west coast and for a closed, union shop. Harry Kamoku (depicted in the original woodblock poster shown in this post) was the primary organizer and leader of the strike, as well as a member of Hawaii’s first union to be legally recognized. He was a Chinese-Hawaiian, a longshoreman, born in Hilo.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #union #strike #hilo #hawaii #police #massacre #ilwu

The San Francisco General Strike began on July 16, 1934 in response to the police murders of two longshoremen, Howard Sperry and Nick Bourdoise, July 5, 1934, on Rincon Hill, near the Ferry Building, during the West Coast Maritime Strike.

This sidewalk mural commemorates these events. It is located in front of the ILWU Hall, near Fishermens Wharf.

I remember taking my son to Pier 39 once when he was about six or seven, to play games at the arcade there. On our way back to the car, we passed this mural. He was intrigued. As I was explaining it to him, describing the history, a young longshoreman came out and asked if we'd like to come inside, see the other murals and statues. He gave us the full tour, explaining everything, and my son was completely mesmerized, as was I.

#sanfrancisco #GeneralStrike #ilwu

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