The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-06-09
fused to eat his spaghetti.

! There are few large rooms for de-
tended passengers, deportees and de-
| portees with criminal records. All
the rooms are overcrowded. Room
222, in which I stopped twice, last
December and May, was filled some
times up to $50 Many cannot find
seats. The noise, especially when
there was somebody coming in or
shipping out, which happened every
hour, could drive a nervous person
to greatness. The porches adjusted TO
the rooms we're not opened. Foul
smell found fertile soil there. Twice
or thrice a week we were allowed to
60 out in the open yard for Is min
utes only, as if tn esunshine and
fresh air are too expensive in this
land Of private property and pros
perity." The sleeping quarters are
worse. One large room takes more
than 300 people. while in a small
room of 20 by "a, Il people are stuffed
in. One cannot stretch ones arms.
Those who stay in the small rooms
are deprived of baths permanently.
OF course. these bad conditions give
rise to nothing but sickness, primar-
lily from the food. Almost every de-
portee has been sick once or more.
Are the doctors careful or the hos
pital the real place for sick people?
No. The doctors are careless They
give aspirin to cure every kind of
sickness. The Marine Hospital is too
small for the sick crowd. Corrup-
ton runs high in this lousy place,
too. If you do some work, like sweep
ing, etc, you have a chance to stay
there the time required; otherwise,
you will be elected as soon as pos
sible. With the same instrument, the
nurse puts solutions on the sexual
organs of all in the room on the
acSumCtion that everybody has some
kind Of venerable disease. When an
Italian worker protested against the
maltreatment of the doctor, he found
himself in the jail for ITO days with
only bread and water. An English
sailor told me that for the months
Of February and March about "a
persons, including s Enghshmen, died
in the hospitali Many times, the
workers, unless very serious, refused
to call for the doctor or to go to
the hospital
Workers Protest.
Against these hellish conditions,
workers have constantly made spon-
taneous protests. The authorities
turned deaf ear. Last December,
when a rigid protest for better food
was sent in, I and Guido Serio we're
put into solitary cells. Since then
few more protests were made. But
the conditions are still the same.
With the increasing number Of de-
portees and the summer weather. it
becomes worse.
On the very day, May Is, when I
surrendered to Ellis Island a Ger
man worker died in Room 222. How
did it happen? This worker was
sick the day before from stomach
sickness and the dostor told him to
wait until next morning. But he was
SO sick that night that the guards
put him out of the room. The next
morning the doctor found him dead
in the hall! He was only % years
old! On Saturday a Greek worker
suffered again from the food. Again
the doctor told him to wait. Know
ing what happened the other day,
the workers forced the guards to
send him to the hospital before it
was too late. Next morning a few
more were sick. One West Indian
Negro worker reported he was sick. A
guard, without any reason, beat him
up before sending him to the hos
pitall
Everyone was nervous. 1ndigna-
ton ran high The news spread in
other rooms A strong fighting spirit
began to crystalline On the next
Tuesday morning a joint protest.
signed by Room 90, 204 and B wsk
sent to the Commissioner. 1t de-
manded only: % better food, CD
porches opened, C3) two hours out
in the yard every day, "a reduction
of numbers sleeping in one room, and
go doctors be instructed to be care
ful about the patients The workers
displayed very good spirit and soil
darity. Out of the 100 in Room 222,
ia workers signed, including II Chi
nese.
Again the authorities answered this
cutlery for humane conditions with
h-handed suppression. On We'd
nesday night again and two Ital-
ian workers were put in solitary cells
when many workers refused to eat
the rotten supper. But this time the
better organization, militant spirit
and unity compelled the authorities
to open the porches and give some
improvement in food, which were two
of the demands.
This struggle did not develop as
it should be. Considering the ex-
IRENE diversity of nationalities, pro-
LESSONS and localities, this struggle
is yerJ instructive. Conscious of the
partial victory of this struggle, with
the worsening conditions there, the
workers will inevitably give fresh
waves Of protest. But only with the