The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-03-20
DAILY WORKER
WINSPLACE IN
PICKET LINE.
Police Say 1t Hurts to Arrest
Our Reporters
The DAILY WORKER has

ne OAAL1 WONhEN mas
won its fight, temporarily, at
least, for the right to report
the events of the garment
workers strike. On successive
days Victor Zokaitis and Ar
thur Shields, DAILY WORKER
reporters, had been roughly
handled, abused and arrested
while peacefully going about
their business of gathering
strike news.
To arrest an accredited re-
porter is an almost unheard-of
act, that even the most hard
ened "Dick" would not con-
template. It is left for the
Chicago policeman on strike
duty to violate all tradition
of his caste and commit the
asinine act of arresting a re-
porter while he is gathering
news.
Our Publicity Doesn't Pay.
When a man in plain clothes yes
terday grabbed a picKeter and
slammed her violently against >the
wall, on South Market street, Carl
Reeve, reporter for the DAILY
WORKER, who had just distributed
a bundle of his papers to the strik-
ers, stepped up to the man-handler
and asked him his name.
"Tm the deputy sheriff. Who are
you came the gruff answer.
The DAILY WORKER reporter
was Immediately surrounded by uni
formed policemen, including officers
$500 and 1888, and three brutal
looking plain clothes men. The air
was impregnated with the ,odor Of
bad whisky.
Like hell I'll give you my name"
said the deputy sheriff. Not to the
DAILY WORKER. It doesn't pay"
The deputy sheriff marched the
striker, Emma Deering, down the
street, looking for more victims.
We Win Our Rights.
"We're not going to arrest you,
or any other DAILY WORKER re-
porter any more" said Officer 1909.
'You haven't got police card, but
we'll take your word for it that
you're a reporter. The DAILY
WORKER is getting too much pub
litcy." The DAILY WORKER re-
porter did have a police card.
The fact is" said Officer 1888,
shat the strikers are on one side of
the fence and we policemen are on
the other. That's all there is to it.
If we didn't make these arrests the
lawyers wouldn't have anything to
do. the DAILY WORKER wouldn't
have anything to boiler about and
the cops wouldn't have any work."
81 don't think there will be many
arrests this morning" Officer 1888
continued, growing confidential. "You
see the strikers get more courage in
the evening, when there's more of
a crowd, and we have to pinch more
Of them. I think Wen arrest lot
tonight"
Policemen Read DAILY WORKER.
"Say, Officer 1881 is getting a lot
OF publicity, isn't he! Yes, he's the
one who beat up Sophie Altschuler.
That was too bad, wasn't it? But
/ guess she must've got kind Of
gay"
The DAILY WORKER had seen
Officer 1881 absorbed in the DAILY
WORKER a little further down the |
street. As he passed Officer 1881
was heard to calculate, "Jesus
Christ. these fellows are a bunch Of
AGITATORS."
"By the way" said Officer 1888,
"can't you let me have a copy Of the !
DAILY WoRKER?" He took the
DAILY WORKER, and as he saun- |
tered gravely down the street.
tucked the folded paper ceremoni-
ously into his coat tail.
Reeve distributed a large bundle |
Of DAILY WORKERS to the picket
ers. He says he is going to take an
extra bundle this morning for the |
policemen--to supply the popular
demand.