The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-12-30
Paterson JObleSs
Force Aid Action
OIL Weekly Relief
Organizing in Block
Committees for More
Struggles for Aid

Struggles for AID
PATERSON, N. j. (by maiD-The
unemployed workers of Paterson have
gained victory. They have shown
that through organization the work.
eTs can gain victories and achieve re-
suits.
The Unemployed Council decided to
concentrate in the Mill st. neighbor-
hood and build up block committee.
Workers were assigned to canvass the
block and get all information possible.
This was done One of the workers
on the block offered his home for q
place to meet in.
After athorough canvass, it was
found that nearly all the workers on
this block were unemployed. All of
them were suffering Of hunger and
cold. There was one family in par
ticular, family of eight, who were
suffering most Of all No one IN the
family was working; out of work
more than year. One son is lying i'll
in bed. He is completely paraly5ed.
He got this sickness while in the
army. Since he didn't serve during
the war but after he gets no compen-
sation. This family was getting the
grand sum of 50 per week.
The workers on the block held
meeting and decided to go to the city
relief commissioner, Mr.. Mahoney,
and ask for more relief for this fam
lily as well as for the others. A COM
nlittee of five was elected to present
the demands Of these workers.
On Tuesday morning all Of the I'M
employed workers of Mill St. went
with the Committee to the City Re-
lief Bureau, situated above the police
station. The committee of five with
member of the Unemployed Coun-
Gil as spokesman, asked to see Mr..
Mahoney. What do you want. I'm
busy" The Committee insisted on
presenting it's demands and Mr.. Ma
honey was forced to listen. The work
ers demanded $25 a week for this
family of eight and $40 and SIS for
the other families.
Mahoney got excited, tried to push
the committee out, threatened to ar
rest the spokesman. The workers
came to the rescue and the police
were forced to release the spokesman.
Go to the mayor" was Mr. Mahoney's
final answer.
The committee went and the mayor
was forced to listen to the demands.
He promised them that he would
take it up with theBoard of Alder
men. They were told to come the
next day for an answer.
Mayor Gives Answer.
The mayors answer was that the
unemployed were getting So week
and that was sufficient. Anyway, the
committee we're bunch Of Commu-
nists and he'd have nothing to do
with them. One of them asked the
mayor whether he could live on So
week. You're wasting my time, I"
was the mayors answer to the work
ers demand for bread.
The workers returned to the neigh
borhood and reported what the mayor
had to say. At meeting of the block
committee 1t was decided to tackle
another block and organize the work
ers into block committees.
The workers are by no means dis
couraged for even though they didn't
win all OF the demands nevertheless,
a partial victory was gained, The city
is now forced to give 81 and S. per
week instead of SO. Single men who
were forced TO go TO the Salvation
Army are now getting SO per week.
One Of the outstanding demands of
| the workers is cash relief instead of
slips to groceries. The workers point
out that they only get $50 worth OF
food for SO slips. They can't buy what
they want but must take what the
grocer gives them. These grocers are
usually friends of the ward boss or
ward bosses themselves. Plenty of
graft falls into the hands of the city
politicians.