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VOL. XIX; NO. 23
CHARLOTTE, N. C- THURSDAY. OCTOBER 13. 1949
Subscription Price $2.00 Year
Convention Urges
Taft-Hartley Repeal
St. Paul.—The 68 th annual con
vention of the American Federation
of Labor unanimously threw its
full support into the formation of
a new democratic world labor fed
eration and declared for a United
Stater, fo eign policy to strengthen
the f;ee peoples all over the world.
These are the highlights of the
AFL stand on international ques
tions:
1. Crea ion of a new world trade
union movement to cement free
democratic trade unions of the
world into a powerful federation
to oppose communist efforts to in
filtrate the trade union movement
and to wipe out slave labor.
2. Provide military aid to Asia
and China to repel Communist ag
gression and economic aid tc
strengthen Europe on a continental
scale.
3. Withhold friendship from
antilabor and antidemocratic gov
ernments in Latin America.
4. Throw the full resources o'
this country into President Tru
man’s “point 4” declaration to sup
ply technical assistance to the un
derdeveloped areas of Asia, Latin
America, Africa and other part
of the world.
Against Russian Appeasement
Summarising the critical inter
ismMi
the atomic explosion by imperialist
Russia has violently contracted the
peaceful world.
“We firmly warn against any
attempts to revive a poucy of a;,
pessement of Soviet imperialism a.
this critical juncture,” the AFL
said.
The AFL called the Communist
totalitarian empire ua robotized
monolithic despotism stretching
from Berlin to beyond the Yang
tse.” v
“This Red tyranny is further but
•» (Continued on Page 2)
GREEN CONGRATULATES HUMPHREY ON SPEECH
AFL President William Green (right) congratulates Senator Hubert
H. Humphrey, great Minnesota liberal, on fighting call to actiort
made to 68th convention at St. Paul.
European Representative Sees
World Situation Worsening
St. Paul.—The international sit
uation has quickly taken a very
serious turn for the worse, Irving
Brown, AFL representative in
Europe, told the 68th AFL con
vention.
He said the new democratic
world labor organisation to be
vember 28 by the AFL and other
free trade union movements must
move swiftly and purposefully to
defeat the Soviet Union's menac
ing moves against world peace.
Brown said the new world labor
movement must begin immediately
1. Resist and throw back the
attempts of the Cominform to uti
lize the labor movement in order
to achieve the objectives of the
Soviet Union.
2. Deal with the economic and
political problems that the Com
UNION PRESIDENTS DISCUSS POINT
Hmui Wlater (left), proaId eat of the Bakery aad Ceafeetloaery
Workers Iateraatieaal Uaioa sad chslnaaa of coaiaiittee of adjuat
meat at the Mth AFL convention. discusses a point with Jssms M.
Duffy, president of the National- Brotherhood of Operative Potters.
CEMENT WORKERS GIVE $3,100 TO LLPE
George Meany (left), secretary-treoanrer of the AFL end Labor.
League for PoUtirml Ed oration receives check for IS.1M for the
from President William Schoenberg of the Cement Lime and
Gypeam Workers Union during St. Pan!
I
munists have forced upon the work
ers in various parts of the world.
“This new world labor move
ment,’' Brown said, “will either be
an aggressive, dynamic, fighting
world labor movement for the res
toration of free trade unionism, or
it will not succeed, in the light of
is so charged with war and aggres
sion.”
Blown said the London coofer
r nee has attracted delegates f »m
more than 35 countries represent
ing more than 46,000,000 trade un
ionists. He said the AFL has
played a great role in bringirg
about this new world movement
and will play a great role at the
London congress.
These are the “g ave and elit
es!” developments which Brown
said threaten new wars:
1. The Chinese Communists
march continues unchecked and is
beginning to dominate entire south
east Asia; the whole Far East is
ablaze with a very hot war.
2. Western Europe and Englanc
are on the eve of and have been
in the process of going th ough
grave economic developments.
3. On the borders of Yugoslavia
the Soviet Union is engaging in
war-rattling- moves that Hitleri
himself never engaged in without
going to war; Eastern Europe is
being whipped into a totalitarian
system under Soviet domination.
4. Communist infiltration con
tinues in the western European
trade union movement and men
aces the economy of France, Italy,
and all democracies of western
Europe and our own.
“We stand in the shadow of a
new world treachery and the cold
War is being dangerously trans
formed into one of increasingly
warm temperature,” Brown said.
“Once again the world is in danger
of war. Once again aggression is
threatening from a single totali
(Continued Ob Page 4)
JUDGES PICK WINNER OF CLERKS’ CONTEST
Joseph Keenan director of Labor’s League for Political Action*
and APL President William Green, both seated, pick entry of Don
Beverige, East St. Louis, III., as winner of readers’ contest conducted
by “The Advocate," official publication of the Retail Clerks Interna
tional Association. Looking on are Retail Clerks’ President. Vernon
Houswriglit and Secretary-Treasurer James A* Suffridge.
President Truman Promises
- %
Support For AFL Program
St. PauL — j President Truman
praised tfaa AFL for helping to!
make America ‘“the best fed, best
clothed, and bait housed nation in
ail history.”
In a messagejto President Green
seed tt» the! 6gth annual conven
tion, Mr. Truman pledged his “full
gtain to give many additional
Ameficau* the protection of ade
quate minimum wages, agricultural
price auppoit, more and better
housing, and greater educational
opportunities.
Mr. Truman promised that repeal
of the Taft-Hartley law "is a mat
ter of unfinished business which
we can agree will be finished to
the satisfaction of working men
and women in response to the voice
and wishes of the American peo
ple.”
In extending hia greetings to the
convention, Mr. Truman said:
“The American Federation of
Labor through all its long history
has been a leader in championing
the rights of wage earners and
helping *to gain for them better
and safer working conditions,
greater social security and an in
creasingly high standard of living.
Particularly since 193b has youi
lorganizat.on cooperated with the
[national administration for the en
M^ment of a wide program of for
ward-looking legislation in the in
terest of wage earners, farmers
and in the public interest as well.
"Such legislation has been a most
important factor in making the
American standard of living the
highest in the world. We are the
best fed, best clothed, and best
housed nation in all history. With
approximately 60.000.C90 men and
women At work with the profits
of industry high we can, and we
will, maintain our living standards
and improve them for those of our
people who are underprivileged.
“M % n y additional Americans
DUBINSKY GREETS CHICAGO GROUP
ll
David DaMeskjr (served fro* left), preaideet ef the lateraatieoa
Ladies Gament Worker* Uaiea sad AFL vice preoidset, chats ah
St. Paal coeveatiee with (L to r.) Joseph Keeaaa, director ef Leber’s
League far Political Bdecatiee; Willises Lae, Chkafe Federatiee ef
aher, and Morris Blabs, ILGWU vice prseideet, .U of Chkapo.
need the protection of adequate
minimum wage*, of agricultural
price supports, of more and better
housing and of greater educational
opportunities. They will have their
needs satisfied through the coop
ers with their government. B.<
.. -
gressive Americans will have my
full support in rbunding out muen
needed programs to insure the Fair
Deal goal for the benefit of all the
people of the nation.
“This is the cause to which v.\
are dedicated. It may be delayed
by the tactics of those who live
in the dark ages of social thinking
and oppose anything to benefit
their less privileged fellow men,
but in the end it will triumph it
we continue to stand together am.
meet the challenge in the best in
terest of all patriotic American
groups.
“Since your last convention the
U. S. Department of Labor, which
had been stripped of its power and
influence by the 80th Congress,
has been largely restored to its
proper status as I pledged you it
would be. However, the Taft
Hartley Labor Law has not yet
been repealed although the na
tion voted for such action in ac
cepting the forthright platform of
the Democratic party last Novem
ber.
“That is a matter of unfinished
business which we can agree will
be finished to the satisfaction of
working men and women in re
sponse to the voice and wishes of
the American people."
Urge Councils Form
Housing Committees
St. Paul. — Each Central Labor
Council and Building Trade* Coun
cil is urged to form a local hous
ing committee “to maintain par
ticular vigilance in the coming
gear” in handling housing prob
lems.
The 68th annual AFL convention
said these committees should:
1. Take an active interest in
local public housing and slum clear
ance projects under the new hous
ing law, making certain that or
ganized labor is fully represented.
2. Follow developments in rent
control seeing that the interest of
union families is protected.
3. Stimulate interest in labor’s
“middle-income” housing program.
RHODES SAYS POLITICS
NOW AN EVERY DAY JOB
St. Paul.—Congressman George
M. Rhodes, an AFL organizer in
Reading, Pa., told the 68th AFL
convention;
“Politics is a job day in and day
out throughout the year. It isn’t
only a job for a few weeks before
election day.”
January Rallies Will Start
Gompers Memorial Campaign
St. Paul.—The American Fed
eration of Labor ordered a two-!
piunged drive for 1950 to organise
a million new members and to re
peal the Taft-Hartley law by elect
ing a liberal Congress.
Winding up it* <>8th annual con
vention, the AFL welded this strong
platform of aetion on tire oomenti
front to a program of wond ac
tion backing tup the formation of
a new democratic free international
trade union o.ganisation and sup
porting a firm United States for
eign policy to repel communism
and fascism in Asia, Europe and
Latin America.
The convention sounded a cry
for a new battle against the Taft
Hartley law. Its repeal was listed
as the paramount issue of a broad
1950 platform. The convention’s
closing sessions brought these out
standing developments;
1. Plans to start in January
a drive for a million new members
as a tribute to Samuel Gompera
first AFL president, and to co
ordinate it with the political edu
cation campaign for repeal ef Taft
Hartley and election of • libera
Congress. #
2. Adoption of on international
relations program supporting for
mation of a new tree democrats
month
atfainat appeasement or commun
ism and fascism anywhere.
3. Unanimous reelection of AFL
President William Green, Secre
tary-Treasurer George Meany and
sll other members of the Executive
Council.
4. Adoption of proposals to get
the Senate to liberalize the social
security bill passed by the House
of Representatives; to get congres
sional enactment of a broad na
tional health program, and repeal
cf taxi's on sales, pay rolls, amuse
ments.
5. A change in the convention
meeting time to the third Monday
in September annually and receipt
of invitations to go to Houston,
Texas; Cleveland, or M'ami In 1950.
6. Speeches by Secretary of
Defense Louis A. Johnson and
Maritime Commission Chairman
I’h lip Fleming, praising AFL co
ope ation in building the national
defense. Both pledged continued
cooperation with the AFL.
7. Endorsement of a shorter
work week to spread jobs and re
duce unemployment.
8. Further moves to induce the
International Association of Ma
chinists to reaffiliate with the
AFL and to merge all organized
labor under the AFL banner.
Link Drives aa Memorial
The convention undertook a drive
for a million new members next
year as a means of paying tribute
to the memory of Mr. Compere on
the 100th anniversary of his birth
la 18S0. It directed “complete co
ordination of political activity with
the expansion of organisation
among the unorganised.”
"These two gigantic efforts,” the
eenvention said, "cannot help but
increase the prestige and member
mocracy of all organised workers."
The AFL expressed disappoint
ment with the filure of the 81at
Congress to repeal the Taft-Hart
ley law in accordance with the
mandate given by the 1948 elec
tions.
"If the 81at Congress persists
in its refusal to act affirmatively,"
the convention said, “we ere pre
pared again to take our appeal to
the people of this country end to
(Continued On Page 4)
MAINE PRES. SWAPS VIEWS WITH BRICKLAYER
President Beniamin Dorsky of the Maine Federation of Labor]
swaps views with John 1. Murphy, secretary-treasurer of Bricklayers,
Masons sad Plasterers, at St. Paal convention.
ELECTRICAL WORKERS STUDY RESOLUTIONS
J. Scott Milo* (left), secretary-treasurer, airi Dan W. Tracy, presi
jnt of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Worker. »■“*
\FL rice president, study resolution^ at St. Paul