Interracial Unionism in the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union and the Development of Black Labor Organizations, 1933-1940

THEY SAW THEMSELVES AS WORKERS: INTERRACIAL UNIONISM IN THE INTERNATIONAL LADIES’ GARMENT WORKERS’ UNION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF BLACK LABOR ORGANIZATIONS, 1933-1940 A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY by Julia J. Oestreich August, 2011 Doctoral Advisory Committee Members: Bettye Collier-Thomas, Committee Chair, Department of History Kenneth Kusmer, Department of History Michael Alexander, Department of Religious Studies, University of California, Riverside Annelise Orleck, Department of History, Dartmouth College ABSTRACT “They Saw Themselves as Workers” explores the development of black membership in the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU) in the wake of the “Uprising of the 30,000” garment strike of 1933-34, as well as the establishment of independent black labor or labor-related organizations during the mid-late 1930s. The locus for the growth of black ILGWU membership was Harlem, where there were branches of Local 22, one of the largest and the most diverse ILGWU local. Harlem was also where the Negro Labor Committee (NLC) was established by Frank Crosswaith, a leading black socialist and ILGWU organizer. I provide some background, but concentrate on the aftermath of the marked increase in black membership in the ILGWU during the 1933-34 garment uprising and end in 1940, when blacks confirmed their support of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and when the labor-oriented National Negro Congress (NNC) was irrevocably split by struggles over communist influence. By that time, the NLC was also struggling, due to both a lack of support from trade unions and friendly organizations, as well as the fact that the Committee was constrained by the political views and personal grudges of its founder. Yet, during the period examined in “They Saw Themselves as Workers,” the ILGWU and its Local 22 thrived. Using primary sources including the records of the ILGWU and various locals, the NLC, and the NNC, I argue that educational programming was largely responsible for the ILGWU’s success during the 1930s, not political ideology, as others have argued. In fact, I assert that political ideology was often detrimental to organizations like the NLC and NNC, alienating many blacks during a period when they increasingly shifted their allegiance to the Democratic Party. Conversely, through educational programming that ii brought unionists of various racial and ethnic backgrounds together and celebrated their differences, the ILGWU assimilated new African American members and strengthened interracial working-class solidarity. That programming included such ostensibly apolitical activities as classes, dances, musical and theatrical performances, sporting events, and trips to resorts and places of cultural interest. Yet, by attracting workers who wanted to expand their minds and enjoy their lives outside of work to combat the misery of the Depression, the ILGWU cemented their devotion to the union and its agenda. Thus, through activities that were not overtly political, the ILGWU drew workers into the labor movement, and ultimately into the New Deal coalition in support of President Roosevelt and the Democratic Party. As the union flourished, part of an increasingly influential labor movement, it offered African American workers a better path to political power than the Negro Labor Committee or the National Negro Congress during the mid- late 1930s. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS At the end of the long process of writing my dissertation, I realize just how many people there are to thank for their advice, assistance, and support. I am particularly indebted to my doctoral advisory committee, spearheaded by the indefatigable Bettye Collier-Thomas. Her knowledge is boundless and her insights on the dissertation were profound, but perhaps her greatest gift to me was one of confidence-building; that not only helped steel me for the long, hard slog of writing a dissertation, but will be of help to me throughout my career. Kenneth Kusmer values strong writing much as I do, and his guidance has improved my work in that respect. Beyond that, his assistance with exploring the relevant historiography and with understanding conceptual frameworks was invaluable. Michael Alexander was my biggest cheerleader when he taught at Temple. He helped me to think about black-Jewish relations in new ways, and even after his move to California, he remained an active, supportive advisor. Annelise Orleck has been extraordinarily kind and generous with her time, and has reminded me to bring a human element to my work. I hope in the future to explore the lives of some of the historical actors in this dissertation—doing so will be a tribute to Dr. Orleck’s influence. The first places where I conducted research a number of years ago were the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University and the Bund Archives at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. The staffs at both archives were helpful and prepared me well for the extensive archival research I had yet to do. The staff at the Library of Congress, Manuscript Division was extremely efficient, as was the staff at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in both their Manuscripts, iv Archives and Rare Books and General Reference Divisions. The Schomburg Center was a goldmine of primary materials and remains a vital part of the Harlem community. However, my greatest thanks go to Melissa Holland and Patrizia Sione at the Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives at Cornell University, where I spent weeks buried in the contents of dozens of archival boxes. Holland and Sione were as cheerful as they were helpful, making my time in Ithaca as enjoyable as it was fruitful. However, no people deserve more thanks than those who populate my universe of friends and family. I realize that there is not enough room to thank all of the friends who have encouraged and put up with me as I’ve written this dissertation, but a few deserve to be mentioned by name. The friends I’ve had in Philadelphia have endured the bulk of my complaining and have been the first to hear about revelations made while digging through photocopies and secondary materials. They include Ellisha Caplan, Rebecca Levine, Chris Morrell, and Macha O’Brien. Friends from college, many of whom have shared the travails of grad school with me, such as Laurie MacPherson, Alyson and Bill Olander, Daniel Olbris, Kate Rapoport, and Emily Regan-Wills have stuck with me over the last decade offering unfailing encouragement. Finally, my closest friends in the History program at Temple were like fellow soldiers in the trenches with me, the ones who understood most fundamentally what this experience called writing a dissertation is like. To Timothy Lombardo, wherever you are, you were the best sounding board for me at my most intellectual moments, and yet you made me laugh endlessly. To Lynnette Deem, you once told me to “look on the bright side,” which became a joke between us because it was such an uncharacteristic comment. What you didn’t realize is that you helped me to look on the bright side just by being there as a great friend and an understanding peer. v Of course, I don’t think I could have completed my dissertation without the encouragement of my family and the confidence they instilled in me. I love my brother Eric more than he knows, and I miss my sister Stephanie who is far away, but who I always want to be proud of me. But it is my parents, Anita and Hilary Oestreich, who are at the center of my world and at the core of who I am. I am a better historian for the stories they have shared with me about my family and about their own experiences of the past, but more importantly, I am a better human being having been raised by such kind, caring people. I will love them forever. Finally, I dedicate this dissertation to Erica Schmitt. On my good days and on my worst days, she remains my greatest inspiration. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………………………ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS………………………………………………………………..iv CHAPTER INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………viii 1. AFRICAN AMERICANS AND ORGANIZED LABOR, 1909–32: THE INTERNATIONAL LADIES’ GARMENT WORKERS’ UNION SETS ITSELF APART………………………………………………………..1 2. UPRISING! THE 1933–34 GARMENT STRIKE AND THE INFLUX OF AFRICAN AMERICANS INTO THE ILGWU…..67 3. TOWARD A TENUOUS UNITED FRONT: PROGRESSIVE DOMINANCE OF THE ILGWU, 1935-1937…………...123 4. ENRICHING WORKERS’ LIVES AND ENCOURAGING INTERRACIAL SOLIDARITY: ILGWU EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING, 1935-1940………………..178 5. SUCCESS AND FAILURE: BLACK LABOR-RELATED ORGANIZATIONS OF THE MID-LATE 1930s………………………….262 6. A UNiTED FRONT? PROGRESSIVES, SOCIALISTS, AND COMMUNISTS IN THE ILGWU, 1937-1940………………………346 CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………427 BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………………....441 vii INTRODUCTION In early 2011, teachers filled the Wisconsin State House protesting against a budget bill that aimed to cut their salaries and strip their collective bargaining rights. While many people around the country were sympathetic to the teachers’ plight, pundits across the media vilified the teachers’ union, which became a catalyst for going after unions in general. The teachers were called greedy despite their open willingness to take the budgeted salary cuts and union officials were labeled thugs. As governors across numerous states considered enacting similar bills that stripped public employees of collective bargaining rights, the very future of unions in America seemed to be growing ever more tenuous. In an increasingly hostile environment, what have unions been doing to encourage increased labor activism and restore political influence? In January 2010, the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the main umbrella group for the nation’s labor unions, turned to an old strategy to try to strengthen its ranks: education. The organization announced that it was joining with the National Labor College and the Princeton Review to create an online college for its members and their families.

Load more