The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-08-14

The events that took place
around 22nd and Master Street on
August l and the day following is
an accumulation of a long cam
paign of terror, wholesale eyictions,
discrimination in relief and jim
crowism in the neighborhood.
A few years ago money was col
lected to build a playground at
26th and Master Sts., the edge OF
the Negro neighborhood, the be-
ginning of the white. The money
was collected in both sections
equally but when this playground
was built Negro children were not
allowed to swim in the swimming
pool. Many attempts were made to
keep the Negro children out of the
playground The Negro children
are forced to go to jim-crow school.
All this has helped to arouse the
nationanstic feeling among the
Negro people in this section of
Philadelphia and only needed a
spark to cause a revolt against this
oppression.
What Happened
On August l, Mrs. Lucille Suber,
10, who lives at 2215 Master St.,
purchased bar of soap and sugar
from grocer at the corner of 22d
and Master. Edmond Morton beat
and kicked this woman, who was
an expectant mother. The news
spread around the neighborhood.
In a few minutes, thousands of
Negro workers gathered.
More than five hundred police
Immediately swooped down on the
neighoorhood, attacking the Negro
workers and driving them off the
street. Negro youths and adults
fought back the attacks of the-cops.
During the night many windows of
white store keepers in the territory
were smashed. More than seventy
Negro workers were arrested.
The next morning in the Magis-
trates Court capitalist justice was
displayed when the grocer who at
tackled the girl was held under
$500 bail and was permitted to
sign his own bail bond, while a
Negro youth who had taken part
in the struggle was held under $500
bail and was held for court.
Offers Suggestions
From this struggle our Party
must draw an important lesson.
First, the Importance of our
white comrades to work in this
territory About four years ago our
Party began to work in this sec
ton. Our Party built up a mass
influence; the unemployed council
was built and led struggles against
evictions and hunger. The I. L. D.
was able to grow by developing the
Scottsboro case into real cam
paign. The I. L. D., together with
the help of two Y. G. L. comrades,
were able to call school strike
Of more than 200 children in con-
nection with the Scottsboro case.
With all this mass work carried
on, our Party made many mistakes.
The most active white comrades
were taken out of the section to do
other work; the white comrades
who remained were not active and
only came to unit meetings. Some
OF our Negro comrades began 10
manifest nationalistic tendencies
against every white comrade in the
Patty by raising the question of
white chauvinism
All this time the Negro reform
lists were not asleep. Reformers of
every shade began to come to the
section preaching natonalism in
order to turn the Negro workers,
who were beginning more and
more to realize and follow the
leadership of the Communists, tell
ing the Negro people that the Com
munist Party was not sincere in
their talk This nationalism began
to take root among the Negro
workers, with the help of the police
in the evictions.
Comrades Under Influence
Even some of our Party COM
rades began to fall under this in
fiuence, and began to say that
nothing can be done as long as the
Jews in Strawberry Mansion are
running things. Our section COM
mittee sensed the danger and i'm
mediately called section member
ship meetings, where the Negro