Debs: His Life, Writings and Speeches, with a Department of AppreciationsDebs, Eugene V. (Eugene Victor)
History
Debs: His Life, Writings and Speeches, with a Department of Appreciations
Debs, Eugene V. (Eugene Victor)
Socialism -- United States; Socialist Party (U.S.)
The defeat of this and other strikes, together with the fact that most
railway employes were ineligible to the then existing brotherhoods, led
to the organization of the American Railway Union in 1893, which
embraced all the employes in the railway service. The new union grew
rapidly. Soon after it was organized it engaged in and won several minor
strikes. In April, 1894, the strike on the Great Northern, involving all
the employes of the entire system, was fought, and resulted in a
complete victory for the union in less than three weeks. A short time
later another strike was threatened owing to disagreement growing out of
the construction of the agreement. For the second time the A. R. U. came
out victorious. At this time thousands were pouring into the union all
over the country. Then followed the Pullman strike, in the latter part
of June.
The Pullman company, backed by the combined railway corporations,
represented by the General Managers’ Association, resolved to crush the
union. They not only failed, but the union paralyzed their traffic and
defeated them all. Seeing that the union was triumphant they changed
their tactics. They had the United States marshal of Illinois swear in
an army of deputies, ostensibly to protect property, but in fact to
incite tumult. In his official report to the council of Chicago the
Chief of Police said that these “deputies” consisted of thieves, thugs
and ex-convicts, the worst element that had ever been turned loose on
any city. As soon as the deputies began to operate, as directed by their
leaders, and under cover of night, trouble began, and this is what the
corporations wanted. Peace and order were fatal to them as turbulence
and violence were fatal to the union. They understood this perfectly.
Hence the deputies and disorder. Immediately these thugs began to
perform, the capitalist papers and Associated Press flashed broadcast
the falsehood that the strikers were on the warpath and threatened
destruction to every living thing. The falsehood caught on like magic.
Far and wide the cry went up: “Down with the A. R. U.! Down with
anarchy!” The tide turned. The triumphant union and defeated
corporations changed places. With practically the whole population
aroused against the A. R. U. every outrage upon it was not only
possible, but perpetrated with mad zeal in the name of patriotism. The
A. R. U. had no press, no way of getting its side before the people, and
thousands of the very workers in whose behalf it was fighting and had
staked everything, turned upon it and joined in the flood of angry
denunciation that was launched upon it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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