The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-03-24
By WILLIAM z. FOSTER

0t WAaAsAA4NA Il TVS 4 I'm
It Is high time that a powerful
mass movement be set on foot TO
fight for the release Of the political
prisoners, J. B. Mcnamara and Mat
Schmidt. These working class
fighters have been languishing in
San Quentin penitentisry, Califor-
mia, even longer than their fellow
prisoner, Tom Mooney. Mcnamara
has served % years, and Schmidt,
ID. Mcnamara is the Oldest IN
point Of time served Of any polit-
icsl prisoner now in Jail in any
country IN the world.
The imprisonment Of these men
grew out of the bitterly fought gen.
ersl metal trades strike in Los An
geles in 1910. The unionists of San
Francisco, strongly organized them
selves, were carrying on a big cam
paign to organize the notorious
open shop city of Los Angeles. This
eliminated in the metal trades
general strike. The employers, led
by General Otis of the Los Angeles
Times" used every violent method
to break the strike: professional
scabs, injunctions, wholesale arrests
Of workers, police brutality, etc. It
was a ruthless struggle.
Mcnamara Betrayed, Attacked
by A F. of L. Leaders
As the fight grew more and more
intense, suddenly on oct. 1, 1910,
the L. A. Times" building was
dynamited. The bomb, it turned
out later, was intended only to
damage the building, but through
the ignition Of the gas mains and
because of faulty fire escapes, 1t
caused the death Of a non-union
workmen. In April, 1911, J. j. Nc
Namara. General Secretary of the
international Union Of Bridge and
Structural Iron Workers, and his
brother, J. B. Mcnamara, were ar
rested and charged with the dyna-
hitting. The employers mustered
every force to convict these men.
The Steel Trust and the Merchants
and Manufacturers Association saw
in the situation an opportunity to
destroy the powerful Iron Workers
Union and to cripple the whole
labor movement of the Pacific
Coast. They cooked up a lynch
atmosphere in Los Angeles.
The workers rallied all over the
country in support of the McNa-
maras. The A. F. of L. top Off
cialdom had to make q gesture Of
assistance. The workers held great
protest demonstrations and pa
rades everywhere and over quar-
ter of million dollars was raised
for defense fund. The Socialist
Party and the union leaders riding
the movement, put up candidate
for Mayor, job Hartman, and con-
Quoted an active election cam
paign. Altogether, 1t was the great
est defense movement ever organ
lied, before or since, by the Amer
lean working class.
Socialist Party Leaders Cut Loose
From Defense
Right In the midst OF this tense
situation, suddenly the announce
ment was made that the Mcnamara
brothers had pleaded guilty. This
came as a terrific shock to the labor
movement. The employers were
quick to use the guilty plea to heap
insult and injury upon the trade
unions. The great defense cam
paign collapsed like a pricked bubble.
The S. P.-Union labor mayoralty
candidate in Los Angeles was over
whelmingly defeated, 1t was a
devastating anti-chmsx.
At once, throughout the trade
union movement, the labor takers
Joined in the bosses bloody cry
against the McNamaras. thereby
aiding the formers attack upon the
workers. Numbers of union Off
Gals denounced the prisoners as
murderers and traitors. Many
others demanded that they be
hanged. The Socialist leaders also,
of course, cut loose from the Nc
Namaras with loudsounding cries of
treachery. Doubtless great masses
of workers, even many revolution
aries, we're confused by this whole
sale denunciation of the McNa-
maras.
Hypocrites Raise Hands in Horror"
These attacks by the so-called lead
ers of labor upon the integrity of
the McNamaras did the latter
great injustice. They were based
upon cowardice and hypocrisy. OF
this rotten character was their
nationwide cry of surprise" and
horror" Of these people that the
McNamaras had actually used
dynamite in the labor struggle. Now
it is q matter of common knoTl-
edge that upon innumerable occa-
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