Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1946-04-04
ORGANIZED RACKETS MAY
RETURN TO UNITED STATES
Released BY western Newspaper Unior

ORGANIZED RACKETS MAY
RETURN TO UNITED STATES
l LIVED IN CHICAGO during
those years when the city was in
tested with racketeers and gang
sters. They preycd without him
drance on the small business peo-
pie. One such was a small, one
man, repair, cleaning and press.
ing shop for mems clothing 1t was
but practically a hole in the wall,
with front shop. and one room in
the back in. which the operator
lived. He had no family. He had no
pickup and delivery for his Gus
toners. He was but one lonely old
man Of some SIS years.
The gangsters insisted he
must join their so-called organ
izatiOn, or else. To Join he must
pay monthly dues or they would
close his shop. with a bomb, II
that were needed. He paid that
mob $50 month that he might
be privileged to earn a living
with his hands. and the city
authorities countenanced such a
hold-up.
Today organized labor Is copying
the methods of the Chicago gang
sters Of few years ago. Organ
lied labor is insisting that the own
ers Of small city and town stores,
those small business places that
employ not more than one to three
people, and In which there is fire.
quently no help other than the own.
er, with possibly son or daughter
as assistant. sign labor contract.
They must pay tribute for the privi-
lege of keeping their stores open.
Failure to sign means that
they cannot receive shipments
Of merchandise. Transfers and
truck drivers, belonging TO 9TH
er unions, will not cross picket
lines to make deliveries. They
can either sign an agreement
to pay tribute or lock their
doors. II is organized labor,
considered one of our great So
cial movements, carrying the
petty grating of city gangsters
into rural America.
II is happening throughout many
sections of America. Along with II
is the effort to organize farm labor,
to force Farmer Jones, and his son
John, to pay tribute il they are to
be allowed to SOW and reap. These
things are theoretically sanctioned
by the federal government under
the collective bargaining statutes.
CONTROL RESTS WITH
INDIVIDUAL STATES
The prevention of such petty graft
is not federal government prob
lem, but 1t is job for the states.
Interstate commerce is not involved.
The stores and the farms are To-
cally owned and operated. The state
can reach such gangsters by legis-
lation. and some states have laws
that make a criminal offense of
those Of union not on strike as
sisting in the enforcement of condi-
tons detrimental to the public in
terest, as would be the refusal to
deliver merchandise. California is
one Of the states in which these pet
ty gangsters are operating.
In permitting or encouraging such
methods labor leaders are not serv-
ing the interests Of the cause of la
Dor. They are sacrificing the pres
tige and standing Of organized la
Dor. Success of such an effort
can result only in the garnering Of
some extra dollars to further swell
the already swollen union treasu-
ries. The small shops employing
one. two or three people are not
the legitimate field of organized la
Dor. Any attempt to prey on them
will injure the cause Of organized
labor as a whole.