The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-08-21
Roosevelt and the Textile
Strike

THE Northumberland leadership of
the United Textile Workers Union is
low attempting to follow the same road of
sidetracling the general textile strike
voted for by the workers, as was followed
in the steel and auto industries. The Mac
Mahon leadership has already departed for Wash
ington together with William Green, and is camp
ing on the doorstep Of President Roosevelt.
Thomas NacMahon, president, and Francis Cor
man, president of the union, have already stated
that they hope for the personal intervention" Of
President Roosevelt to prevent the strike of 100000
textile workers During the convention of the union
recently concluded where the delegates voted almost
unanimously for the strike, MacMahon did not en-
phasze in his speeches the question of actually or
ganizng the strike. Instead, MacNGahon tried to
put brake on the strike vote by his declaration
that IT would hate to give my consent to anything
like a general strike unless I absolutely con-
WINGED that it was the only way out. see other
way
However as soon as MacNdahon was reelected
president, he saw another way" and announced
that President Roosevelt has the power to prevent
the strike" The Daily Worker predicted before the
convention that MacMahon would seek to sidetrack
the strike with the help of the Roosevelt govern
ment.
Now the MacMahon- German leadership is taking
the strike question back to the empoyer-controled
NR.A They are trying to create the illusion that
"the great humanitarian Roosevelt differs from the
MIRA. machinery which he created. They want the
textile workers to forget that Roosevelt is not only
the author of the NR.A, but its head who signs
all codes, and whose government is identical with
the NR.A. and its policies They want the textile
workers who have had their demands several times
defeated by the Roosevelt government to give
Roosevelt zone more chance"
THE betrayal of the textile strike will be much
more difficult this time. The workers have
learned something from the fact that Roosevelt
defeated the demands Of the steel workers and the
auto workers by sdetracking their strike and throw
ing their demands into the N. R. A. arbitration
boards The Tighe leadership in the steel industry
and the Collins leadership in the auto industry,
in both cases working with Green, called of the
auto and steel strike demanded by the workers.
They accepted "Roosevets personal Intervention"
And what did the steel and auto workers get
by calling of their strikes and relying on Roose-
velt They got sharp increase In company
unions in both industries instead Of union recog-
milton They lost their demands against the speed
up and for higher wages.
BY accepting Roosevelt arbitration and fore
going strike action, the steel and auto workers
lost every single one Of their demands Their
burning grievances only intensified.
This should prove to the textile workers that
Roosevelt's NRA. boards are committees of the
big employers. The Germans and the MacNIahons
are members of these boards not to win the de-
mands of the workers, but to be able the better
to betray the workers struggles
The United Textile locals should at once or
gani8e the strike, set up their broad mill strike
committees, and prepare their mass picket lines
The MacMahon- German leadership should be
told by every local union to end the begging at
Roosevelt's doorsteps The locals should take the
leadership of the actual strike preparations.
All A. F. of L. local unions should prepare sup
port for the textile strike, and should demand Of
Green that he take decisive steps to mobilize the
A. F. Of L. for support