VOL. XXI: NO. IT CHARLOTTE, N. C, THURSDAY, AUGUST M, 1951 Subscription Price, S2.N Per Year nr Brown Tells Of Labor’s Fight Against "Reds” New Leader Magazine Article Featvrea Full Length Article On Unions’ “Cold War” ' (Front August AFL Auto Worker) MILWAUKEE, WIS.—An arti cle by Irving Brown, former AFL Auto Worker, in the July 2 issue of the New Leader has won ac claim as the most revealing story yet published on “How Labor Fights the Cold War,” Brown, who was UAW-AiFL Regional Di rector on the east cost for several years, is now the American Fed eration of Labor’s European Rep resentative and is described by the New Leader editors as "a uni que troubleshooter who is just as likely to be the moving force be hind French dock workers unload ing arms as a key factor in build ing the resistance of Asian labor to Communism.’** Here are excerpts from Brown’s article: The Battle For Europe This is perhaps the most dra matic of international labor activ ities. But throughout Europe, free workers are fighting some of the toughest battles of the cold war. IiV France and Italy, Communist strength has declined in the area of legitimate trade unionism, but Communism has retained concen trated and disciplined fogfes in many economic sectors, where it could carry out quasi-military sabotage operations in the event j of war. These forces art aided by the many just economic griev ances of the workers, which Com munist-controlled unions can still exploit, and by the resistance of employers to the valid demands of non-Communist workers. Unlike labor in France and J Italy, the West German labor movement, with about five mil lion members is directed and con- j trolled by almost completely dam-1 1 $ ocratic forces. The Communists are still a strategic minority, especially in the Ruhr. But the dictators of East Germany pro mote the idea of a united Ger many and threaten offensive ac tion. Trade Unions Participate To counter this drive from the East and to offset the growth* at tempts of the old crowd to take over German industry, the trade unions have demanded, and finally received, the right to participate in the control and management of the Ruhr Iron, coal and steel in dustries; the so-called “co-determ ination” program. When this is in full operation, it and the Schu man Plan will serve as the best guarantees against a new Ger man-Soviet pact, which I believe is the main danger facing the democratic world today. In Berlin, the thin line dtvtding. freedom and totalitariana remains both a barrier to aggression and (Centfeoed On Rage 7) A. F. L. Mexican Labor To Meet In ' Paso Sept 6 ATLANTA. GA— President William Green, American Fed eration of Labor, baa officially catted a conference of the of ficers or repreoentatives of the i State Federation of Labor of Texas, New Mexico, Arixona and California on the gncstion of the interchange of labor be tween Mexico and the United State*. The conference* will be held in El Pane, Texaa. Hil ton Hotel. 10 A. M., Thursday, September C, 1951. The subject of ^conference will be to give consideration and further study to a number of the problems on the inter change of labor'across the Mex ican border. A specific agenda is designated as follows: 1. Migratory Labor (Bracero) Agreements. 2. Wetback (.Espaldo Mujero) Labor. 3. Enforcement of Immigra tion Laws. 4. Control of workers enter ing border cities legally and illegally for daily work. > 5. Consideration of entering pacts with Free Trade Un ion Movement of the Re public of Mexico. <1. -Strengthening of Legisla tion. President Green expressed re grets at not being able to at tend the conference personally * x» and has assigned Southern Di rector of Organization, J. L. Rhodes, to represent the Amer ican Federation of Labor in the conferences. The conference will last for one day, during which time consideration of the above sub pects will bo handled and rec ommendations arrived at In order that unity of purpose and action may be attained through out the labor movement along the Mexican border from the lower Rio Grande valley of Texan to California. The calling of this conference of State Federations of Labor is the first major effort to cor relate activities of the labor j movement and to give consider ation to the Mexican labor problems and to encourage co operative action between the Mexican Labor Movement and the American Federation of La bor on the over-all subject of the inter-change of Labor. WHEN YOUR “E” BONDS MATURE I The Treasury Department offers three choices to holders of Series E, United States Defense Bonds, when their Bonds mature: ^ Choices: You may: One, accept cash, if you so desire; Tuv, continue to hold the present bond with an automatic interest-bearing extension; Three, exchange your bonds in amounts of $500 or multiples for a Defense Bond of Series G, which earns current income at the rate of 2% percent payable semi-anntlally. Action: If you want to obtain cash, you simply present your bond, with proper identification, to any paying agent. If you want to extend the matured bond you have ABSOLUTELY NOTH ING TO DO—just continue to hold it. pxtended bonds mav be cashed at anv time vou wish. If vou * * * * * want a G Bond, see your bank for details. Interests The extended bond will earn simple interest on the face amount at the rate of 2% percent for the first seven and one-half years. Thereafter it will be at a higher rate sufficient to provide a total return for the 10-year extension period of 2.9 percent compounded. TaXnstYou have the choice of (1) reporting E Bond interest for Federal income taxes on an annual basis or (2 > paying the taxes on the interest in the year when the bonds finally mature or are redeemed. The privilege of deferring taxes does not apply if the E Bond is exchanged for a G Bond. BUY n current issues that will make ;>age one news; Some red-hot campaigning and the election of new national YD afficers; Lots of warm St. Louis hospi tality in crisp, autumn weather yes, the schedule will give yon time off for socialising and danc ing; Convention headquarters will be at the Hotel Jefferson in StJ Louis. However, correspondence' should be directed to Washington J headquarters until you receive further notice. This year we will have all our meetings at the one hotel. The Gold Room on the mezzanine seats 1,600 and will be need lor- set- . sion of the Convention. Meeting looms for Committees are on the mezzanine and second floor. Bert Femmer, YD National Committeeman for Missouri and Director of Region** No. V, has been named Chairman of the Con vention Committee, which is lay ing plans to accomodate the big gest turnout in YD history. Now is the time to start plan ning to have a fuil delegation. Fill in the form on naff# 4, ask-! ing for further information re garding program, hotel rates, reg istration fee. etc. There is plenty of time to Or ganize dances, picnics and other events to raise the funds to send a full delegation. And now’s the time to get to work on that Job. So let’s all get busy. I’m looking forward to seeing you in St Louis. WILSON GILMORE. History Of Young Democrats Conventions The first national meeting of the Young Democratic Clubs of America was held in Washington, D. C., March 4 and 5, 1932., This gathering of eager Young Doaeocrats was attended by 173 delegates representing 27 States. Five States were represented by proxy. Although previous to this meet ing there had been sporadic at tempts to organise Young Demo crats as far back as 1912, when Woodrow Wilson was elected President, it was not until 1932 that a concentrated nation-wide ef fort was launched to interest the youth of America to take an ac tive end purposeful part in poli tics and public affairs- * * In recognition of his efforts in spearheading the drive for na tional organisation of Young Democrats, Tyre Taylor of North Carolina was elected the first na tional president at the 1932 meet ing in Washington, D. C. Elisa beth Wheeler of Montana was elected Vice President, and John Boydeta of Utah, Secretary. No permanent Treasurer was elected until 1936. Claim Southern Teachers Salaries Doubled From 1925 To 1949 Ltatca to Fiwrit Edwards! ME NO SMOKUM...M wl,»re UNION LABEL? i Salaried of public school teach ers in the large communities of the South more than doubled from 1925 to 1949, as compared with a national increase of about 94 per cent, it was announced reJ cently by Brunswick A. Bagdon, Southern Regional Director of the U. S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Both the southwestern states and the border states reported an increase of 111 per cent, and in the south eastern states, the advance reached 114 per cent. This was slightly higher than the 76 per cent increase for another large group of municipal workers, name ly, policemen and firemen in cit ies of 100,000 or over. However, it was much less than the 126 per cent increase in weekly earn ings of production workers in manufacturing industries. During the same 26-year period, the Bu reau’s Consumers’ Price Index of goods and services usually pur chased by moderate-income fam lies rose 36 per cent. Since 1939, however, retail price* hove in creosed 71 per cent os compered1 with on increose in teacher's sol ories of 62 per cent. Within this quorter • century there were four more or less dis tinct periods of sslory change for teochers. Modest increases marked the period from 1928 to 1981. Depression-induced reduc tions In local budgets from 1981 to 1938 were reflected in salary cuts—by 1938, in fact, salaries in large cities were back to 1925 levels. The third period. 1935 to 1939, was characterised by the restoration of previous reduc tions; in 1939, salaries were slightly higher than in 1931. Since 1939 the trend has been steadily upward. Increase* were generally small in the early war years, but beginning with 1943 the rise was more rapid. The increase from 1939 to 1949 was 62 per cent; after 1945 it was 40 per cent. Salary movements of elemen tary and secondary school teach (Continued On Page S) The following letter has been authorised and ordered sent to Honorable Alban W. Barkley, president of the U. S. Senate, and Honorable Sam Rayburn, Speaker of the House, and Presi dent Harry S. Truman, relative to a movement underway to have Dr. Ralp Brimley reinstated to the educational mission to Japan. The letter is signed by delegates from Central Labor unions throughout North Carolina to the forty-fourth Annual Convention of the North Carolina Federation of Labor held in Asheville, Au gust 13, 14 and 15, and a resolu tion was adopted by the Conven tion authorising it to be sent to Washington. The letter reviews the history of the Dr. Brimley case and also includes a letter from President William Green, addressed to Col onel Robert Qutsen, Chief, Re orientation Division, Office of the Secretary of the Army, Washing ton, D. C., in which Mr. Green lodged the original protest of North Carolina labor against the appointment of Dr, Brimley be cause of his alleged biased atti tude to unionisation of teachers. The letter follows: Headquarters FORTY-FOURTH ANNUAL CONVENTION of the North Carolina State Federation of Labor August 13, 14, 15, 1951 Asheville, North Carolina Re: Attempt to Slaughter Democracy in the Democratic South. Honorable Alban W. Barkley, President of the Senate; Honorable Sam Rayburn, Speaker of the House, This communication is ad dressed to you gentlemen because two members of the United , States Senate, and one member of the House of Representatives, have made misleading and erroneous statements on the floor of the Senate and the House, some of which they had printed in The Congressional. Record. We are referring to Senator Clyde R. Hoey and Senator Willis Smith, of North Carolina, and Representative Graham A. Barden of the Second N. C. Congressional District. In addition to the misleading and falsa stetaments Senators Hoey and Smith made in the Sen ate, both of them have addressed absurd and wholly unjustified and undignified letters to Secretary of Defense Marshall and Secretary of the Army Pace, while Repre sentative Barden threatened Col. Robert Outsen, chief of reorienta tion division in the office of Sec retary of the Army, with future reprisals, should the Colonel*! name ever come up in Congress. All of these aetions and aetivi ties are based upon the Arayur withdrawal of its invitation taw Dr. Ralph Brimley to be one dT ; fifteen educators named by tha» i Army to go on a mission to Japan 1 to instruct the Japanese in deow I cratic education. Dr. Brimley in Superintendent of Public School* in Forsyth County, North Ctns lina, of which Winston-Salem in the county seat, ft was at the 1 request of President Wm. Green | of the American Federation of Labor, acting upon information and at the request of C. A. Pink, president of the North Carotin* State Federation of Labor, that Dr. Brimley** invitation was re called, and for the following^ very valid reasons: Teachers in the Forsyth County Schools are organizing a local' Union of the American Federa tion of Teachers affiliated to the American Federation of Labor in April and May of this year. Oss May 8 the following news items appeared in the afternoon papers* sent out With a Winston-Salem date line by the United Press: Teachers Warned Of Uaterisre County School SuperintendenT Ralph Brimley warned ‘r here today that their chancre far advancement er jobs thswlao would be influenced unfavorably by union activity. Brimley said he would nut rec ommend any teacher for a Jsh active in attempts to fens m teachers union in Forysth County. “When any of you alt etrlflaa out once, wo are going to tat yam flat year second start somewhere alee,” he said. “And I da net be lieve I weald recommend to schools elsewhere a *n»rtiir wha> has been active fa a union in thin county." Brimley satt he “deahte*”' whether he Would recommend" teachers who were active in a are> ion for administrative peats. « Brimley called teachers to gether yesterday for a “heart-to heart talk” at Mineral Spring* School. On that date President Hole • was In Asheville on business con nected with the N. C. State FWf cration of Labor. In speaking at the meeting of the AsheviBn Central Labor Union that sight he reed the above quoted aeons article and branded it as mhir, undemocratic and non-Christian for a school official thus to threaten Ms teach*vs with, aneha dire punishment for exercising; their American privilege of farm ing and affiliating with a local union of the American Federation of Labor* His remarks were car ried in the morning papers Hay 9, and over the AP to other pre pen. President Pink wee ob jecting to ,such autocratic an* dictatorial action by a- public school official, here in n demos* (Contianeod On Pege I) Put On the Heat . UNION LABEL WEEK—SEPT. M