The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-05-19
Fair Enough

| Editors note-The Star and the News
accept no res :onsibility for the personal
! views of Mr. 2egler and often disagree
| with them as much as many OF his read
| ers. His articles serve the good purpose
! of making people Think
BY wEsTBROOK PEGLER
| Copyright 1945, by King Features Syndicate.)
! LOS ANGLEs.-Cecil B. De Miles one
man revolt against arbitrary political asses
ments levied by labor unions against involun-
tary contributors has grown into an organiza-
ton comparable in method and structure to
the Political Action Committee of the COM
munists and the CO. 1t is called by the
pretentious name of the De Mile Political
| Freedom. Foundation.
Last summer, the Los Angeles local Of
the American Federation Of Radio Artists
of the American Federation of Labor, arbi-
tarily assessed all its members 81 each to
finance a campaign against proposed
amendment to the state constitution which
was carried on the ballot in the November
election. AS a citizen, De Mile. personally
favored the amendment which would have
forbidden discrimination in employment against
persons who were not members of Unions. 1t
was frankly, an open-shop proposition in
highly organized union state.
De Mile, who for ten years has conducted
ire of the air, refused to pay the dollar on
the ground that such compulsion violated
his olitical freedom. On December II, there
fore, he was Suspended by his union and put
off the air. He had no trial in the union. In
deed, he was not even confronted with
charges. His dismissal was automatic for
violation of a decree of the locals board of
directors which the members were not
invited to vote.
no 1nI tn Tho
court and lost The courts opinion reached the
curious conclusion that even though politics
is the art of government and the California
Constitution is the governing document never
theless the money raised by the assessment
and spent to defeat the amendment was not
uSed fol- political purpose. He is appealing
this decision, although, unions through
out the state spent $757,375 to beat the measure
| again. S176,435 spent by its advocates
Nevertheless the vote for the amendment was
more than one million, and the soldier vote
was more than two to one in its favor, a
resu-- which has further perturbed those profess
sional rnioneers who already have heard
authentic growls from the fighting forces over
| seas against the conduct of unions on the home
'front.'
| And now an initiative proposition is be.
ing prepared, again for the same purpose,
| to be voted on at the next general election:
0C AlAAle ID dill orator no less uOrlQ ana
dramatic than those Hollywood beauties of
both sexes who exhorted the voters in the
interests of the Hillman committee, the com.
munist conspiracy and the Roosevelt candi-
dacy and since election day he has made many
patriotic speeches. On March II, he. went to
Omaha for lrnching party given by william
LETTERS, president OF the Union Pacific Rail-
road, the man who developed synthetic rub
Der production and then went back to his
al vyoha anti
about political freedom.
| Last week in Los Angeles his foundation
held large rally Under the auspices of the
| Southern California Republican Women at
which Mary Pickford appeared, escorted by
her husband, Buddy Rogers, naval officer
on leave, to introduce De Mile.
| To adorn the occasion and emphasize the
outrage, De Mile exploited the case of three
young women, clerical employees in the movie
industry, who had been dismissed from their
union and, consequently from their jobs, for
appealing to the public courts in protest against
similar political assessment of So each. Com
plicating this situation, many such workers
have property rights in employees insurance
and penson funds which may be arbitrarily
abrogated should they defy DEGREES issued
| by union executives.
De Miles mail, almost unanimously en-
dorsing his campaign, and much of it contain
ing voluntary contributions, has amounted to
about 900 letters thus far from all sections
Of the country and from soldiers and sailors
overseas. Like the Political Action Committee
he invites membership blanks which may be
obtained from the foundations headquarters
at BOT West Eighth street. Los Angles. Mem
bership is free.
Lately, a fascinating proposal has been
discussed Informally but nevertheless serious
| ly among the professionals Of unionism which,
apparently, would be legal and feasible should
De Mile lose his crusade. The proposition is
that Congressman and Senators are underpaid
and that the unions therefore should match
the salaries and thus double the income of
those who can be regarded as faithful SER
wants, not of their respective districts and
states, but of the Unions.
De Miles campaign, for the present, is
local to California, on the military theory
that detectives are best captured one at
time Eventually, he would enlarge to a
national scale, copying, with suitable varia-
tons, the organization and methods of Hill
man, the communists and the CIO, for a
Illustration Of their purposes.
II