The Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1931-1952, 1941-10-17
AFL Force A. Randolph, Negro
Delegates, Foes of Discrimination In
Gov. Def. Ind. To Ride Sunset Bus.

al president of the Brotherhood OF
Sleeping Car Porters, and delegate
to the American Federation OF
Labor convention, charged the
AF'L and its unions are discrimin-
ating against Negroes in national
defense employment.
Randolph's charge precipitated
a bitter fight on the floor of the
convention. Like the Christ when
he drove the money changers from
the temple, the glorious iconoclast,
striking right and left, reigned
blow after blow upon the discrim-
mating unions.
President VIM. Green, squirming
under the last of the brilliant foe
of discrimination went off on a
tangent to refute a charge of dis
elimination in an attempt to or
ganize the Ford Motor Co. Turn
ing like a flash, Randolph faced
the ringmaster of the AFL: you
know, Mr.. Green, that you permit
ted the Brotherhood of Railway
Clerks to take over the freight
handlers, federal union, and now
the freight handlers are organized
into auxiliary Jim Crow unions
with no power to vote"
Despite the heroic efforts of
Race delegates to breach the wall
of discrimination in AFL unions
and save it from playing into the
hand of Hitlerism, it was plain
ly evident that Negroes were not
considered a part of the democracy
as practiced by the American Fed
Grafton of Labor. Randolph's res
olution to appoint a committee to
abolish discrimination because of
race, color, religion or national or
igin, was put on the Sunset Bus.
Opening the debate in which he
charged discrimination. Randolph
said:
Zone of the most conspicuous
examples in the United States of
Race Discrimination is at Boeing
Aircraft Company in Seattle,
which from the very beginning of
the national defense emergency
has refused to employ Negroes"
"Boeing has a contract with
Aeronautical Mechanics Union
Local ISL, International Associa-
ton of Machinists, and Paul Fred
rickson, personnel manager, has
written letters stating Boeing can
hire only whites because of union
regulations.
Boeing officials, informed of the
charges, said the company is oper-
ating under a contract with the
international Association of Ma
chinists, under which all employees
must be members of the assOcia-
ton. Questions of eligibility are
determined by the association and
are outside the company's juris-
diction, company officials said.
The fight began over the report
on a resolution proposing estab-
lishment of a trade-union commit
tee "to abolish discrimination on
account of race, color, religion or
national origin" The resolutions
committee recommended reaffir-
nation of a 1941 A. F. of L. con-
vention stand against discrimina-
ton.
Not satisfied with the committee
recommendation, Randolph de-
manded appointment of a COM
mittee.
Randolph's appeal was lost when
the delegates voted to reaffirm the
1910 conventions stand on racial
discrimination.
Randolph charged that the me-
tai trades unions have a monop-
oily of trainees for shipyards and
are excluding Negro workers. He
said also that the Boilermakers
Union in Portland has barred all
Negro labor in Portland shipyards.
Randolph said John P. Frey,
president of the Metal Trades De-
partment of the A. F. of L., is
obligated to make public state
ment explaining discrimination OF
metal-trades unions against Ne
groes.
Frey says the unions are not
responsible for the plight of Ne
gro works in the shipyards al
Tampa, Fla.," Randolph said. "He
said the Ku KluX Khan runs Tam
pa but we know it also controls
the Central Labor Council in Tam.
pa. His statement is indefensible
Refers To Khan
Saying these locals in some ar.
cas- used as an excuse that they
were protecting the Negroes from
the Ku Klux Khan, Randolph
shouted:
"The Negro workers don't give
a damn about the Ku Klux Khan
What tho Non.n ,xro-l-n.. .xun-.Ae. L.