Montana labor news., 1938-03-31

.urrently featured in walking Down
effective April FOOLS day trick to
Ii t0mfoOiery is also rampant IN
day.
rock, but real battlers in the class
struggle. And, as further proof of
their devotion to the movement, they
work here without pay, even doing
manual labor in addition to the class
room work, till such time as duty
calls them to active service in La
boris ranks in the outside world
So, when a worker enrolls for a
term here he knows that he will
receive instruction in the practical,
everyday, working fundamentals of
the Labor movement, as well as in
theoretical knowledge and not just
a head full of theory that he does
not know how to apply. And when
a local union or other Labor body
contributes to the support of Com
monwealth, it contributes to the
general welfare of all Labor. 1t is
strengthening the movement through
the practical and direct aid it en-
ables the school to extend to Labor
generally in the South.
Commonwealth does research
work on any problem given to it for
solution; it conducts short courses
in union methods for Labor organi-
cations, large or small, throughout
the South; it loans books and other
material to Labor organizations that
want to put on their own educational
program; and it holds conferences
on the campus to discuss any specific
problem facing any Labor body. By
way of showing further just what
commemorative activity means in
the South the following brief account
of some concrete work is given:
Horace Bryan, till the first of the
year Union Methods instructor, was
active in recognizing Dist. 81, U. M
w. of A.. where, due to terror, al
underground campaign was neces
sary. Afterwards he organized thu
relief workers in Fl. Smith and Sc
bastian County, Of which Fl. Smith
is the county seat, and led a hard
fought strike against WPA wag'
cuts. He has been actively con
Injected with the T. W. O.. c. and ha
aided in the field work of High
Handler Folk School, Mont Eagle
Tennessee. At present he is working
with the Fl. Smith Labor movemen
where he is carrying on workers
education, helping edit a Labo
J paper and doing organizing work
His wife, Margaret, has worked ant
, studied at Highlander, helping t
put on Workers Dramatics in tn
field.
Donald Kobler was largely instru
mental in getting the garment work
, ers at Little Rock organized. Re
quested by Doris Preisler of the In
r ternational Ladies Garment Worker
/ Union to make a preliminary surve
= of the industry in Little Rock, h
pushed matters till an /. L. G. w. |
: organizer was secured and aide
! materially in the subsequent organ
ization of the shops there. He ais
E worked with Claude Williams, the
!, director of New Era Schools at Lift
S Rock and director of Commonwealth
i in putting on a training school IL
Southern Tenant Farmers Union o.
a ganizers. J.. R. Butler, president
: S. T. F. u, and Miles Horton, EdI
cational Director of Highlander Fol
e School, both commended this wor
e in the highest terms. w. L. Blacl
+ stone, an organizer and executlN
council member of S. T. F. u, W
h appointed on the Federal Tenant
e Commission while a student at tn
it session. And Don Kobler continu,
to serve Labor and workers educ
= ton as the highly efficient secretal
It of Commonwealth College.
g Claude Williams, present direct
IS of Commonwealth, has had a colo
d full and strenuous career fighting tt
workers battles. Beginning as pa
1t tor of a church in Paris, Arkanss
al he helped Dist. 81, U. M. W. A.
its fight for union recognition al
lie helped organize the relief worke
re SO successfully that he was kick
out of his parish. Going to Lit
Rock, he founded, with the aid
his wife, Joyce, and others, the Ne
st Era Schools for workers, becomil
10 director of Commonwealth when t
TX two institutions were merged. Du
h ing this time he was fighting
US workmen's compensation, for wor
te ers' education under the FEEDER
-l nt1AI 4