The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-08-15
ecoNr1NUEn FRoM PAGE oNEl

place. end slao en- the strength Of
the strike in each mine. The strike
committees will insist on no discrimi-
nation Ito stop the BLACKLIST, union
acknowledgment, recognition Of mine
committees, so far as may be done in
each set of local demands. Strikers
are particularly cautioned that the
companies aim to victimize the most
militant Negro strikers, and the Ma
tional Miners Union and strike COM
nittees will fight to the last ditch to
stop discrimination against Negro
strikers.
The strike committee executive es-
pecially cautions that all action, the
formulation Of strike demands, the
sending Of negotiation committees to
the employers, the decisions to re-
turn to work on the basis of these
negotiations if and when such deci-
sions are made, must be handled
through the local strike machinery
with the knowledge and under the
| general direction Of the central strike
committee. The local strike commit
tees will decide when and under what
conditions work will be resumed. The
strike is NOT called off; and relief
collections are more urgent than
ever. There is strong restrike senti-
ment among the workers. With the
new policy Of reshaping the struggle
around the local demands, much To-
cal strike action will be developed.
The policy is TO broaden and deepen
these strikes, to give them a mass
character.
Masses now at work in the mines
will come out against the unbsarable
conditions, and fight for their imme-
date grievances: for checkweighmen,
against paying dues to the UMWA,
through the check-off or for other
local demands. The strike continues,
and will continue but on a different
basis, not so much for the whole list
Of district strike demands, but for
immediate, partial demands formu-
lated for each mine.
This does not mean, either. that
the strike stops spreading into other
fields, or that the district demands,
for IS cents ton, etc. are shelved.
1t means a reorganization of forces
while the center of the great strike
against starvation is stiffened. that
is, while the western Pennsylvania
district is re-organized and prepara-
tons made for a greater, united
struggle in many districts. Actual
starvation while working, lack OF
clothing, aand shoes, cheating at the
scales and in company stores, terror
of many sorts, prevail in central
Pennsylvania, in Illinois, in the An
tharcite, in Kentucky and the whole
South, in Ohio and West Virginia
fields not yet touched by the strike.
The organization of the United Front
Committees of Action provided for by
the National Conference which met
in Pittsburgh, July 1915 and the Or
ganization Of the National Miners
Union spreads through all these
fields. Ten new locals and IL groups
which soon will become locals have
been formed already in Central
Pennsylvania, within the last two
weeks. Thousands of Kentucky min
ers have joined the NMU. One rank
and file miner alone signed up SIS new
members in Kentucky in one day, and
this is typical of what the others are
doing there. The perspective is for
deepening and sharpening strikes
throughout the local industry.
Conferences in West Virginia re-
Gently showed the SCOTS Run miners,
5000 st~"7g, ready to revolt against a
1 wage c of cents a ton when the
/ UNIV agreement was made, and a
new cut under the agreement now of
9 cents ton.
Events are shaping up for wide
spread strike struggles in the coal in
dustry and the new tactics proposed
by the strike executive for the pres
ent strike are to solidify these dis
tricts and place them in position to
participate fully in such movement,
The closer contacts with the mass
es who have been driven back to
work will be utilized to build organ
ization in Western Pennsylvania at
an increased rate. A full program of
reorganization and activizing of mine
committees (united front committees
in each mine) and of NNIU locals is
being pushed forward There are al
ready over 80 new NNIU locals in
Western Pennsylvania, formed since
the strike started.
With the actual intensification of
struggle, though on a somewhat diff
ferent basis, which the new tactics
will bring in Western Pennsylvania,
local and national strike relief organ
ization and activity must be intensi-
fled. The still greater. struggles in the
near future, and the present struggles
likewise the care of blacklisted min
ers, shout to the workers of this
country to rush relief, donations Of
food and clothing and funds, to the
Penn-Ohio-W. Va.-Ky Striking Min
ers Relief Committee, Gil Penn Ave,
Room 205, Pittsburgh. Push the
building of relief collection organiza-
tons to the utmost!
The NMU is not like the UNIV,
which never attempts to conduct such
an organized retreat as IS contem-