The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-05-12
ROCHESTER AGAIN
CELEBRATES MAY
DAY WITH PARADE.
United Front Celebration
After Hard Fight
BY SAM EssMAN.

Juem members Oh Ln6 AIudlBdHdleu
Clothing workers of America, with
crimson colors and militant banners,
paraded thru the principal streets of
Rochester on May 1. All traffic was
stopped while the long line Of march
ers demonstrated to the workers that
May 1 is the international holiday of
labor. Banners calling for recognition
of Soviet Russia, support Of Passaic
strikers, and of the British miners,
for the unionization of industries, the
improvement of working conditions,
and for a shorter workday. were car
ried from end to end of the parade.
The Workers (Communist) Party,
together with the Young Workers
League and the Young Pioneers, were
the only other organizations to march
in the parade. Nearly 100 pioneers,
with wide ribbons on which the name
Young Pioneers" was printed, car
ried across the chest was the out
standing feature of the parade. How
ever, no banners greeting the Com
munist International or bearing the
name of the party was permitted by
the Amalgamated officials. Three ban
ners were forced from the line by the
police.
No Parade Last Year.
The Amalgamated officials, who in
the past had usually initiated a call
for the May Day parade, last year is
sued no such invitations. Instead
these officials went to the police and
asked that we be excluded from the
procession as a distinct organization
bearing our own banners. AS the
whole parade was called off by these
officials on the pretext Of threatening
weather our party did nothing about
it last year.
Force Parade This Year.
This year, these officials, thru the
May Day committee, at the head of
which is proletarian partyite, intro
duced a resolution to the Joint Board
that the Amalgamated have no parade.
Vigorous protests from our party
members and the progressives on the
board forced them to change their at
titude. However, they again arrang-
ed with the police to prevent the
Workers Party from participating
with our own banners. So fearful
were they of the wrath of their own
membership that they sought to throw
the responsibility for this damnable
action upon the police chief who, they
claimed, objected to certain banners
carried by our Party in past parades.
When asked how it was that the chief
was perfectly willing that we carry
these same banners providing we
formed an independent parade, these
officials remained silent.
All doubts as to where the RESPONSE
bility rested disappeared when COM
mittee from the Workers (Commu-
nist) Party accidently met with the
committee from the Amalgamated
Clothing Workers in the deputy
chiefs Office. There, Stroebel, ma
tional organizer and member of the
committee admitted that last year he
had been one of the committee that
had asked the chief Of police not to
permit any organization to participate
that gave a certain political color to
the parade for the Amalgamated con-
sisted of Republicans, and Democrats,
Socialists, etc" The chief, according
ly ruled that the Workers Party men,
bers could participate in the parade
providing they carry no Objectionable
banners. When asked what banners
were Objectionable, the deputy chief
pointed to the Amalgamated commit
tee and said, "They will point them
out"
Oppose Use Of Police.
The Workers Party and many Pro-
gressive members in the Amalgamat-
ed are up in arms against this use
of police to break up the May Day
parade. Protests will be raised in
every local.
At the conclusion Of the parade a
mass meeting with a program of mu-
sic interspersed with speeches was
held in Convention Hall. The spirit
of the meeting was of militant char
acter and wholly opposed to the spirit
of Judge Pankin, the N. Y. socialist
Judge, who wanted the workers ito
save justice, freedom and liberty pre-
sumably for another war.
In the evening an enthusiastic cele-
bration was held by the party in the1
Labor Lyceum. The Young Pioneers
sang revolutionary songs and render
ed several poems which were well re-
ceived. The Young Pioneers intend
to be a part OF our celebrations here
after.
Comrade Darcy, national secretary
Of the Young Workers League, de-
livered splendid attack on the i'm
perialist designs and military prepa-
rations OF American capitalism, and
called upon the youth to present a
solid phalanx of class conscious and
militant opposition to this program.
Comrade Lifshitz, secretary Of the
Jewish Bureau, pointed out from re.
cent actions of the government its