Oklahoma Labor (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 1, No. 45, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 24, 1936 Page: 1 of 8
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Oklahoma City merchants
appreciate your dollars and will
handle Union Label goods if
Union men and women call for
them and Oklahoma City mer-
chants will employ Union men
and women if enough Union
men and women demand the
Union Label on all the articles
they purchase
VOL 1
r gressives t
IDLE IDEAS
of a
BUSY MAN
By O L (Bed) Crain
I have just read the Oklahoma
City and Tulsa "literary" critics'
review of George Milburn's new
book "Catalog" The Oklahoma
author who rates among the na-
tion's six best story-writers comes
in for a general panning by home
state critics because s he chooses
to present the inglorious truths
about the petty big shots of a
small Oklahoma town In fiction
of course — and yet so real that
you instantly recognize every
character if you have ever lived
in any small town anywhere
Such an expose of the little-
ness and commonness of those
would-be leaders of artificial
higher social strata which labor
and labor' s wives frequently at-
tempt to attain will do the aver-
age working man good
It not only puts Min in his place
(often higher than he himself had
- thought) but shows that the so-
cket) dictator the banker the
chamber of commerce leaders the
ministers and school teachers and
all the "better element" ot the
community are collectively and
individually about as low-down or
as high-up as the average man
who grovels in the dirt or the
woman who takes in washings
George Milburn does labor a favor
every time he writes a line
As to his bitterness against
Lanai! town hypocrisy you'd have
to know George and something
of his home town and earlier
days to understand much of
that You'd have to grow up
under the constant rialculo of
your eiders because you were a
youngster with ambiLions high-
er than theirs
Milburn debunks fiction by tell-
ing the story not as it usually
occurs in books but as it actual-
ly happened in small town life
George holds that if anything is
good it doesn't have to be bragged
suout If it's bad he exposes it
for publicity is the quickest way
to stamp out an evil I can best
explain why millions of men like
Mnburn's stories by illustration
Here is a society item clipped
from a small town newspaper as
the editor MUST print it:
"Honoring Mrs A B Smith
Mrs B M Brown entertained
with a party and gift shower in
her home yesterday afternoon
A pink and blue note was car-
ried out in gift wrappings dec-
orations a a d ref reshment
Bridge and various contests
formed the diversions with
prizes going to Mrs Jones and
Airs Black Many beautiful
and useful gifts were presented
to the honoree"
You've read items like that ia
your own home town paper But
suppose the editor forgot that
Mrs Smith is the wife ot his best
advertiser and that Mrs Brown is
the wife of the banker who holds
the mortgage on his shop or that
Mrs Jones husband is a deacon
in the town's largest church etc
Suppose the editor gets drunk or
turns Milburnish and writes the
TRUTH about the affair Here
ttis:
"Because Mrs A B Smith is
going to have a baby soon and
Is too damn lazy to prepare for
the ordeal she got Mrs B M
Mown to hold a stork shower
for her yesterday
-
"Some of the old hens tried to
play bridge but most of them
pawed around over the gifts try-
ing to remember how many they
had seen before and where The
(Continued on Page 2)
0 KLPtH 0 M A
Delegates to the State Federa-
tion of Labor annual convention
at Ponca City last week were
unanimous in but one event and
that was in praise of the hospi-
tality of the city and the com-
mittee that arranged for their en-
tertainment and comfort
Outside of that the delegates
declare it was just a WarrenCampbell-Wood
convention and so
far as any good being accomplish-
ed for the organized labor move-
ment in Oklahoma is concerned it
might better have been postponed
until next year
Whether the wrath of returning
Oklahoma City delegates bears
fruit in the way of general with-
drawal of local unions will be evi-
denced within the next few days
Breath Widens
The steam-roller tactics of those
in official control served it is ap-
parent to alienate quite a large
number of otherwise neutral mem-
bers indicating that Oklahoma la-
bor is likely to join more demon-
stratively in the national breach of
the labor movement
This is a much more healthy
sign than is apparent on the face
When governments become sub-
servient to some clique and unre-
sponsive to the people's wishes
then governments must of neces-
sity give way to some other form
of authority And when labor
unions become dominated by a
clique in bad repute and the or-
ganization fails to serve the pur-
pose for which it was chartered
they too of necessity experience
a rebirth
A Rival Organization
Formation of a state C 1 O
rival to the federation was fore-
cast by David Fowler of Musko-
gee president of the United Mine
Workers of District 21 if the na-
tional convention of the American
Federation of Labor fails to dis-
avow the action of its president
William Green and his executive
council in suspending C I a
unions Mr Fowler said however
he believed the A F of L will re-
treat from its position and that
the rift will be healed
Leonard H Dickerson president
of the Oklahoma City Trades and
Labor Council says he is positive
that at least five Oklahoma City
' unions are planning to withdraw
from the federation as the result
of the raw deal Oklahoma City
delegates got from the Ed Warren-
Joe Campbell regime at the Ponca
City convention Mr Dickerson
said that Ponca City unions also
planned drastic action
Tonight's meeting of the Trades
Council will probably witness a
general protest and "walkout" on
the State federation and if what
is anticipated does come to pass
the Lewis Committee for Indus-
trial Organization will have a host
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OKLAHOMA CITY OKLA THLTIISDA 0 0 ) 1 1936 --
isN in t ‘
4 c'i ' frO
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b :tattle Witk Labor for F
State Fe i'eration
Convention Draws
Delegates' Wrath
The intolerable face of Fascism is de-
finitely exposed There is no doubt as to
its outlines or content We may set down
without inaccuracy the following nine-point
portrait:
(1) Fascism is completely and sweep-
ingly anti-labor
(2) Fascism is completely and sweep-
ingly anti-democracy
(3) Fascism arises always wearing a
liberal mask Behind that mask is mon-
archy or dictatorship absolute and cruel
repression
(4) Fascism is militaristic in the ex-
treme deifying armed force
(5) Fascism is aggressive and anti-
social It uses spies it practices bribery it
of "ready-made" recruits when it
comes this way
"Central body delegates have
told me they plan to introduce
resolutions condemning our treat-
ment at the federation convention
when we were literally steam-
rollered by the administration"
the Trades Council president said
"I know the garment workers of-
fice workers barbers operating
engineers street car railway and
several building trades unions are
sore enough to quit the federa-
tion" First Union Out
Rebelling against the present ad-
ministration of the State Federa-
tion ot Labor the Oklahoma City
stenographers typists and book-
keepers' union Monday night voted
to suspend payment of per capita
tax to the State Federation
The union took the lead in the
expected secession from the state
organization as a result of "steam-
roller" tactics used during the
federation convention at Ponca
City last week
Campbell Urged Rebuke
Mr Dickerson said that he had
heard that friends of L G Maund
barbers' delegate were planning a
resolution to rebuke Joe C Camp-
bell city councilman for rtriking
Mr Maund during an argument at
the convention hotel in Ponca City
Predicting that the federation
would "rue the day it rolled over
us" Mr Dickerson said that many
city unions had become so dis-
couraged that they were willing to
withdraw from the federation He
cited the report that L T Johnson
' federation secretary who said 22
unions were suspended from the
federation during the past year
Mr Dickerson revealed that he
had written Mr Green Saturday
HEMMING AND
GERMER SPEAK
AT FAIR OCT 1
Manager Ralph T Hemphill of
the State Fair Association has
announced that H C Fremming
president of the International As-
sociation of Oil Field Gas and Re-
finery Workers and Adolph Ger-
mer vice-president of the United
Mine Workers will be the princi-
pal speakers at the Oil Men's Day
Program at the state fair Thurs-
day October 1
D T Spry president of the
Oklahoma City local of the asso-
ciation said oil companies in the
state would be requested to allow
employes to attend the program
Germer will represent John L
Lewis president of the Committee
for Industrial Organization who
had been invited to attend
In reply to the renewed challenge
by Mr Johnson of a vote in the
central trades council 10 months
ago removing The Federationist as
official organ of the council
The office employes again tak-
ing the lead have voted to name
It committee to work with simliar
committee expected to be named
by other unions in informing city
merchants and the Better Business
Bureau that The Federationist is
not the official organ of the City
Trades and Labor Council
MURPHY TO TAKE
PART IN TOPEKA
LABOR MEETING
The International Association of
Government Labor Supervisors
which meets in Topeka Kans
Friday will have as guest and
principal speaker Frances Perkins
U S Secretary of Labor
Mr Murphy a vice-president of
the organization took the respon-
sibility of issuing a personal in-
vitation to the New Deal labor
secretary to attend the meeting in
the home city of Gov Alf M Lan-
don Republican presidential can-
didate The Oklahoma commissioner will
appear on the program Friday
discussing state labor departments
and the civil service system
Mr Murphy-a staunch advocate
of the election of all state labor
commissioners announced he will
take a very positive and vigorous
stand against the advocacy of
making the labor commissioner an
appointative office
"My observation" said Mr
Murphy "is that an adequately
financed and properly and fairly
administered State Labor depart-
ment is of equal importance to
that of the governor
"The Commissioner of Labor
should be from the ranks of or-
ganized labor because they have
advocated and been instrumental
in the enactment of all progressive
labor legislation and should be
elected by the people of his or her
state owing allegiance to all the
people rather than be hampered by
a reactionary appointing author
ity and should have full authority
to appoint the personnel of all
branches of the department and
be big enough to administer the
duties of the office in a fair and
impartial manner for the reason
that we have the extreme radical
in the labor movement and the ex-
treme reactionary in the employ-
er class both important but
neither of them right Somewhere
between these two elements is
right"
BACK ON THE JOB
J Luther Langston conductor of
"The Mirror" and all around acro-
bat on Oklahoma Labor has suf-
ficiently recovered from his late
indisposition to be able to toss the
ball of "jaw" around and prom-
ises that various and sundry will
see their reflection in "The Mirror"
next week
Fascism's Intolerable Face
disrespects treaties and covenants It vio-
lates willingly the sovereignty of other
states
(6) Fascism reduced the standard of
life for the masses lowering wages and
the standard of living
(7) Fascism is backed in every coun-
try where it exists by industrialists feudal
nobility and munition manufacturers
(8) Fascism is more dictatorial than
absolute monarchy more militaristic than
munition manufacturers more treacherous
than savagery
(9) Fascism apparently intends to
make no corr promise with democracy It
has thrown down the gauge and seeks de-
mocracy's destruction — The Journal of
Electrical Workers
The main idea in life is to
eat sleep work and be happy
and you know there is no sub-
stitute for organization as a
means to this end Education
and agitation are necessary in
the battle for bread and butter
Keep the fires burning by se-
curing a new reader tor this
paper It will be a dividend
paying investment
No 4 4
Powerful Independent Groups
Formulate Declaration Of
Principles and Pick "Young
Bob" To Direct Vigorous
Campaign — Labor and
Farmers Represented
The Progressive conference which
met in Chicago recently was an
inspiring affair and one that at-
tracted more attention in political
cirrles than any event in the pres-
ent campaign and will prove the
La Follette Group Joins
Labor To Aid Roosevelt
After an all-day conference
with Senator Robert M La Fol-
lette George L Berry presi-
dent of Labor's Non-Partisan
League announced Monday that
a coalition bad been formed
with the Progressive National
committee recently formed in
Chicago for a nation-wide cam-
paign for the re-election of
Roosevelt
Mr Berry said campaign de-
velopments had convinced both
groups of "the existence of a
very common cause" with the
result that they had reached an
agreement to co-operate in their
support of President Roosevelt
La Follette said he hoped to
arrange for similar co-operation
with other "non-partisan" or-
ganizations which also are sup-
porting the president
cementing fiber of all progressive
groups seeking the re-election of
Roosevelt
The high lights of the confer-
ence are taken from a story in
Labor by Donald Ramsey:
The invitations were issued by
a group headed by Senator George
W Norris of Nebraska Senator
Robert M La Follette Jr of Wis-
consin Senator Homer T Bone of
Washington and Mayor F H La-
Guardia of New York From the be-
ginning it was emphasized that the
gathering was to )e a conference
and not a convention and invita-
tions were limited to Progressives
conspicuous in public life and to
the responsible leaders of labor
farm and other civic organiza-
tions however the interest was so in-
tense that many Progressives who
had not received formal invita-
tions trooped into Chicago and
packed the comparatively small
hall in the Morrison Hotel beyond
its capacity The weather man did
his worst but the sweltering heat
could not dampen the ardor of the
delegates
Without a dissenting voice they
sent the following message to
President Roosevelt:
"F D" Indorsed
"The Progressive Conference
composed of liberals of all par-
ties meeting in Chicago today
has indorsed you for re-election
We are now proceeding to or-
ganize in every state of the
Union for the purpose of waging
a vigorous campaign for your
re-election and the furtherance
of the fight of equality of op-
portunity "Robert M La Follette Jr
"Chairman"
A declaration of principles draft-
ed by a committee headed by May-
or LaGuardia was adopted with a
cheer
It was decided to leave this corn-
paign to a committee of 15 with
Senator Norris as honorary presi-
dent and Senator La Follette as ac-
tive chairman and chief ofopera-
tions Senator E P Costigan of
Colorado and Grace Abbott former
chief of the U S Children's Bu-
reau were made honorary vice
presidents A call for funds netted
contributions of about $10000 and
Frank P Walsh head of the New
York State Power Authority and
noted liberal lawyer was given
custody of the funds as temporary
treasurer
Labor Well Represented
All branches of organized labor
were represented in the conference
(Continued on rage 2)
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Shelden, L. N. Oklahoma Labor (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 1, No. 45, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 24, 1936, newspaper, September 24, 1936; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc2104675/m1/1/: accessed July 18, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.