Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-10-05
Acts of Terrorism
During Steel Strike
1919 in West Penna.

New York. Oct 3-Two hundred
affidavits charging violation of civil
| rights through alleged acts of terror
ism by the authorities of Western
Pennsylvania during the steel
strike of 1919. were made public by
the Commission of Inquiry of the In
| terchurch World Movement tonight.
| These charges were contained in a
| supplementary report written by
| George Soule, which gave the basis
for the Commissions finding in it's
main inquiry that the steel strike
made thousands of citizens believe
that our institutions were not dem
| ocratic or not democratically admin
J istered and that local mag istrates
and police often tried to break strikes
with the aid of state and federal
authorities.
The Commissions report declared
that the steel corporations actively
engaged in local politics and dom
mated the local governments. adding
that 1.-The moment any subordinate in
the mill begins actively to oppose the
political machinery, he becomes a
marked man."
"Often political candidates are
themselves members of the mill man
agement." the report added, having
the power of discharge, but in any
case the superintendents and fore
men take an active part in election
eering.
There are always watchers from
the mill lounging about the polls.
The chances of corruption, either
through threat Or through bride,
| which are latent in this possibility
are obviously large.
I'm short, the prestige and power
of the dominating industry is so
great that political opposition rarely
grows beyond it's primitive stages.
An observer of long residence in
Pittsburgh declared that the only
thing that would make the steel
worker independent in politics was a
union capable of protecting them
from discharge"
An important clement in the whole
situation, asserted the Commission
was the question of naturalization.
as many of the workmen never had
become citizens, because of their in
ability to learn English and attend
!
hours a day, seven days a week"
The press was charged by the
Commission with suppressing the
truth about conditions in Western
Pennsylvania during the strike.
Local newspapers 8 suppressed
what they knew and for the most
part did not try to find out what was
happening to the hunkie strikers F"
said the report. Correspondents of
out of town newspapers signally
failed to investigate"
The affidavits made public by the
Commission deal with the alleged
persecution by public authorities of
strikers in Pittsburgh. Braddock, But
Ter, Clarion. Donora, Duquesne,
Farrell, Homestead, Johnstown, Nc
keesport, Monessen, New Castle,
New Kensington, Natrona and Wood
lawn. Conditions were contrasted
with conditions in Ohio and West
Virginia, where civil rights. it was
stated were not denied and no vio-
lence attended the strikers exercise
of their rights
The Commission said that the
charges brought against the state
constabulary, deputy sheriffs, and
company police, in affidavits and
statements to its Investigators, deal
with the murder of men and women
one as ne was in his own yard
and the wounding. of hundreds Of
others: the clubbing of hundreds; the
assaulting Of men while they were
lawfully and peacefully pursuing er
| 10 r-t, e 1ric
crs while they were locked up in their
cells; the arresting and holding of
men and women for long periods in
the jails and police stations without
provocation and even without def
mite charges being lodged against
them; the excessive punishment
meted out to these strikers by the
different justices of peace, burgesses
and police courts, and the frank dis
elimination of the courts between
those who were at work and those
who were out on strike; the frequent
| surrender of law and its administra-
tons by public authorities to local
/ company officials
an few towns the public officials
made FIAT denials of the charges Of
unwarranted arrests and assaults, as
was done for example by the head of
the state constabulary at Bra ddock
to a member of this Commission:
! other officials such as the sheriff and
chief of police of Newcastle admitted
that of about 100 persons arrested
j during the first week of the strike at
least 40 were held without bail as
suspicious persons and that these
would be held until the strike is
ever, even If we have to build new
house to house them
! The report found that denial of the
rights of free speech and assembly to
workingmen was practiced in Penn
| sylvania before the strike began.
Local regulations and state laws. it
was stated were such as to facilitate
suppression by local authorities who,
in PENNSYLVANIA steel towns, fire.
cuently we're steel mill officials as
| well. The denials. it was asserted
long before the strike were based on
the reasoning that meetings would
lead to unions, unions would lead to
strikes. and strikes to violence;
therefore meetings would be prohib
tied.
After describing certain peaceful
assemblages of strikers after the
strike started, the Commission said:
Says Big Eaters Get
T:I~oxr T~o.,h1o