‘HOLD PEARSON TO PLEDGE
ON COLISEUM’ — STEWART

ssistance to the construction. of
a coliseum,

Support for a Civic Trade Cen-
tre Coliseum jointly financed by
federal, provincial and municipal
funds instead of a Maple Leaf
Coliseum was voiced by the Van-
couver Communist Party in a
radio broadcast over CKLG last
Sunday.

Calling attention to the propo-
sition being considered by city
council from Stafford Smythe,
president of the Toronto Maple
Leaf syndicate, to build a 20,-
000 seat coliseum in downtown
Vancouver if the city made a
gift of land costing $2 million,
city Communist Party secretary
William Stewart charged the truth
of the matter was not being placed
before the people.

Stewart recalled that Van-
couver at present has a plan for
a combination sports stadium,
international trade centre and
convention centre, and has been
negotiating with the federal gov-
ernment for construction of such
a centre as a centennial pro-
ject for the city. He said that
when Lester Pearson spoke in
Vancouver in the last federal el-
ection campaign he promised the
city a coliseum if elected.

The Prime Minister should be
held to that promise, said Stew-
art, and whether it is through a
centennial grant, or some other
form of assistance, the federal
government should provide major

All Alberni labor ba

Special to PT :

ALBERNI— Maximum solidari-
ty behind the 62 office workers at
the Pulp and Paper division of
MacMillan & Bloedel is in evi-
dence this week in Alberni, Not
since the 1946 woodworkers’
strike for the 40-hour week has
there been such a degree ofunity
and determination to achieve a
goal, This strike seems to have
caught the imagination of all the
workers in the district and a
warm fraternal feeling of unity
and strength prevails,

The ‘union should receive all-
out support from the entire trade
union movement because success
in Alberni could well be the start
of asuccessful organization drive
in the all but unorganized “white
collar” field—the weak linkin the
Canadian trade union movement,

Success here could bring union
wages and conditions to that vast
army of workers in the banks,
-real estate offices, etc., through-
out the country,

Local 15 of the Office Employ-
ees International Union posted
pickets at the Alberni pulp and
paper mill Tuesday morning, May
19th, after long and protracted
negotiations, A last ditch attempt
by Deputy Minister of Labor
Sands failed to convince the com-
pany that the union and union
conditions are here to, stay. At
one point Sands is reported to

Such a centre, Stewart said,
could accommodate a major
league hockey franchise, but whe-
ther or not it would be the Maple
Leaf club would be within the
scope of the people of Vancouver
to decide,

«Should such a coliseum be
built in downtown Vancouver?

-There are many strong senti-

ments against such a proposal.
The strongest being the traffic
parking problems that would
arise,” said Stewart. He said
ratepayers have a right to know
just how the city intends to cope
with the traffic congestion im-
plicit in the proposal to locate
the coliseum in downtown Van-
couver.

Stewart said there was astrong
argument for considering either
an area on East Broadway, Ex-
hibition Park or Burnaby, which

would be in the centre of the |

Lower Mainland area such
a hockey franchise would ser-
vice,

He urged that the Vancouver
Planning Board prepare a detail-
ed report on the matter indi-
cating the advantages and dis-

_ advantages of a number of alter-

native locations for such a cen-

_tre, and that the people of Van-

couver be given an opportunity
to express their views.

have asked Kennedy of M,B.&
Powell River if he realized this
was 1964 not the Hungry ’30’s,

, @

The crude attempt ofthe com-
pany to scuttle the strike vote by
calling a meeting of office work-
ers, during working hours, an-

‘Flagissue must not divert
Canada from real problems
of unity and. independence

Prime Minister Pearson is using the healthy patriotic sentiments of the Cana

dian people for a new flag as an election gimmick, {
them from the real issues of unity and independence, charged John Boyd, editor 0!

the Canadian Tribune, last week in a front page article.

Pointing out that progressive

Canadians and Communists favor

a distinctive new Canadian flag,

Boyd says that ‘‘the desire ofthe

Canadian people for a new flag
is based on the desire for a dis-
tinctive Canadian identity, for a
united and an independent Canada,

‘“‘Canada needs a new flag but
the way Pearson is going about

‘getting it will only serve to ag-

gravate age-old animosities and
create needless divisions among
the people,’’

The Canadian Tribune editor
says: ‘Were the government to

carry out policies and measures
that would truly bring about unity
and independence of our country,
it could very quickly rally andwin
the people of both our nations for
a new flag that would symbolize

CANADA'S NEW FLAG. This is the desi
duced in Parliament Wednesday by the Pearson governm

that newly-won unity and indepen-
dence.

“*1t could do so by:

. *(1) Working for a new con-
stitution based on a free and
equal partnership be tween
French and English Canada;

*¢(2) Adopting a new indepen-
dent foreign policy in which our
country would be working with all
nations for peace and disarma-
ment instead of being tied to and
at the mercy of Washington and
the Pentagon, :

‘¢(3) Charting a new. program
of independent economic growth
and expansion and ending the
present sellout of our’ resources
and wealth to the United States,

‘red maple leafs on a white background with blue bars.

nouncing a wage increase just
hours before the vote, apparent-
ly had the opposite effect as the
result was a solid strike vote, -

The projected wage increases
were deposited in employee bank
accounts as is apparently the way

cks office worker’s striké

‘staff’? are paid. This is the
method used so that no one work-
er knows what the next person
receives in wages, Presumably,
if cheques were issued the grape-
vine would soon spread the infor-
mation around and that would eli-
minate the favoritism and work

ALBERNI WORKERS RESPECT PICKET LINE. This photo office workers picket line. Two of the office workers
sent us by a reader shows workers outside the Mac- are seen in the centre.
Millan, Bloedel main gate in Alberni respecting the

to confuse the people and divert

gn for the new flag formally intro-
ent. it has three

’ of
any
in-
yen

it:

“The Pearson government
course, is not contemplating
such policies or measures:
deed, the opposite is true.
while talking about a new flag
is preparing to put its final Se
of approval on the sellout of i"
Columbia River to the unite”

~ States,

‘© new flag must not be made

into the main election issue i
which the Pearson governm at
can ride back to power. art
counts is not the flag 2 P é
supports but the policies it ine
cates and is ready to carry 0"

‘¢We have no doubt that in a,
vote on this issue, the major i
of Candians would vote ce
new flag, But unless this oo
also adopts new, far-reae
policies of unity ner
dence, the people could gind the é
selves the day after the ait
still as disunited as ever an! iil
economy and sovereigt Soma,
subservient to a foreign powe™

eppe
Boyd points out that the : ba

red Ensign is not the
Canada, Like the Union Ja"
replaced by an order-in-C°

in 1944—in a fatuous 8 t
Canadian independence
remains a symbol of Br
one-time imperialist rule
this country, the last ve
of which — along with oUF ale
to the monarchy and othe? e re
onial trappings — most “ow

i ft.
dians hope will soon disappe™

tain’ >

competition implied in the and
system, A union agreemem ay
wage scale would sweeP ty
this obnoxious practise ~~
clean west wind dispels 198

‘sine

Tuesday morning’s picket
was respected by all unions wil:
ing in and around the pu un
including Pulp and Sulphités
‘jted Paper Workers, IBEW
the construction trades 27°" ine

nig
shoremen, Wednesday pivisi

-

IWA crew in Somass jth
sawmill refused to work pil!
steam piped from the Pu log
and a picket line place el”
mass division Thursday jot
noon closed off all product
2 2.
Thursday night and rie
morning information pické 1 ot

at Alberni Pacific Saw” | ie
Alberni Plywoods. comple ive!
closure of all M,B.-Powell A
processing plants in Alber tne
maximum pressure ole 7
whole labor movement moan
being exerted on the ©

This is new for Alberni!

‘ie

Strike-wise the situat® wv
time of writing is 0
berni, but support form z
M.B,—Powell River OP? yo!
would ensure that this rs
little band of office work ja
win; and in winning make "of?!
easier for other office