Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1951-04-13

union from the smallest local of MNk&%S8a W SMsSN
flee to the international president
who have the courage of their rete Zvara
convictions as they fight for programs that will
serve the best interest of our people and
try whole.
Unfortunately it is impossible to have such a
gallery. Perhaps future conventions will be docu-
mented sound film so that our people at home
can and hear their representatives in the work
of hammering out the program of this great union.
X X
IF SUCH A DOCUMENTARY film were avail
able from this convention, our membership could
see President Reuther in action he keynoted
this gathering, dedicating its work and it's efforts
to program that will the interest of only
our membership but that of the country and the
world as a whole know that some people violent
ly disagree with the program advocated by Presi-
dent Reuther and the leadership of this union. But
these people are either shortsighted or so biased
that they cannot tell the forest from the tree For
how disagree with Reuther when he says:
eff we going to make freedom secure and
really stop the forces Of communist tyranny. then
we have to fight against poverty and hunger and
insecurity with the same devotion with which we
fight against communist aggression on the battle
fronts"
And he continued:
"The struggle today is not a new struggle. 1t
is the old struggle of the many with too little
against the few with too much. 1t is the old struggle
Of human rights against property rights 1t is the
struggle to establish the sovereignty of the
people the sovereignty of profits. want to be
a part of that struggle inside the UAW because 1
believe with all my heart that the UAW is the most
important force in the vanguard of the forces of
free men in this historic struggle"
So spoke the president of this union And the
convention, with a handful of exceptions, cheered
these words because these delegates too feel that
the fight for freedom, for human dignity, for
curity and happiness is worth all our efforts.
X
YET DESPITE THIS lofty program, dedicated
it is to the very essence of human happiness,
there were some who disagreed with it, No, these
1vn,f
freedom happiness. They're more clever than
that. What they did to try to stffle the prac-
teal - program advocated by the administration
without which all of Reuther's words, all the
vention resolutions would have been but empty
words shouted in the desert.
A sad example of this type of obstruction was
demonstrated by Jack Thompson of Auto Lite. Mr.
Thompson spoke against the dues increase He had
right to speak, especially if he would have made
his speech in all honesty. But he did not and he
knew it. "The international union does not need
this money he cried to the convention "What i
want to know is what the international union is
ing with the money it has?" he asked.
Jack Thompson regional director of the
UAW at one time. So he should know little about
where the dues money goeS?' But he pretended
ignorance The truth is that he is well aware OF
what happened just to cite one example, in the
Auto-Lite Dept. Jack Thompson knows that up
wards of 100000 was spent by this international
union to organize unorganzed Auto-Lite plants all
over the country. Jack Thompson knows that large
of money will have to be spent by this union
TO organize tneSe plants SO IL can protect JOD,
his security his seniority, his wages in the Auto
Lite plant of Toledo, Ohio.
Yet he opposed giving sufficient revenue to the
international union to do this job so desperately
necessary. When Jack Thompson took this posi-
ton he stabbed his Auto-Lite workers in the
back simply to advance his political interests
There other similar performances. Per
haps the outstanding in this respect that of Carl
Stellato, President of Ford Local 600. Emil Mazey
international secretary treasurer right when
he lashed into Stellato and his supporters telling
tha
membership of this union, Ford workers today
would be without union.' How true that is! For
the UAW-CIO spent millions of dollars to organize
Ford before single dues dollar collected from
the sprawling River Rouge plant Of any other Ford
plant. ~s~s ".ssss ett~ : - =