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ovenut

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Htvanivinverenneesld ie

Whine ‘it

aoses eathnssutl irate

Beaten by Nazi DP’s

Still in hospital suffering from severe internal injuries is Tom
Kremyr, member of the Mine-Mill union and of the Association of
United Ukrainian Canadians in Timmins, Ontario. Kremyr was
at the door of the Ukrainian Hall when 150 DP’s attacked the —
building and battered down the doors, seized Kremyr,, threw him
down the steps and kicked and beat him. Eight others were also
injured, Only one DP was arrested. Photo shows Kremyr with his

family.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE

Continued insurance
benefits demanded

ond meeting this week to discuss the unemployment crisis.

At the first

meeting CCL and Unemployed Action Association representatives

were not invited to attend, and the press was ‘barred.

It is hoped that

the group will broaden its activities and meet. with all interested ‘organ-

izations in the future.

The task that faces the labor movement | is clear, on

the sank of

past experience, and the conditions that confront unemployed ds well

as employed.

The first thing is to organize
the unemployed in the fight for
jobs, and for opening up public
works employment (promised by
the Liberals) at trade union
rates of pay.

‘ ‘
The second is to get unity’ be-
tween the organized workers in
the unions, and the unemployed.
Union members who are out of
work have a demand on their
union to do
fighting for their special needs.
Unions should set up special com-
mittees of their own unemploy-
ed members to cooperate with
the unemployed associations.

The third is to establish the
right of unemployed associations
to exist, to demonstrate, to take
their case ‘to the authorities
without police interference. The
happenings in Toronto, where a
concerted and planned police at-
tack was launched on the Un-
employed . Workers Union and
several arrested, is a warning to
the _whole labor movement that
must be heeded. We want no
repetition of the terror, jailings
and beatings of the Hungry
Thirties! This must be the de-
mand of the whole labor mo6ve-
ment.

_ Fourth, .unemployment insur-
ance benefits must be increased
by 50 percent and the benefit
must be paid to the unemployed
workers for the whole period
they are out of work.

Fifth, to win an extension of
unemployment insurance to cover
farm laborers, domestic workers
and all who are not now covered
by the Act. (The labor force was
estimated to number 4,964,000 at
‘November 20, 1948; of this only
2,447,000, or. not quite half were
: insured. )

These are’ the plain Sanat

something about.

not only of unemployed workers

but the whole labor movement.

The state machine—municipal,
provincial, federal—must be com-
pelled by public pressure to take
immediate steps to deal with
growing .unemployment, ..The
best way to do this is to organ-

ize the unemployed and to estab-.

lish the closest unity between
the million-strong trade union

movement and the jobless work-
ers.

CCL backs stand

of Boilermakers

All Canadian Coen of Labor affiliates from coast to coast this week received a letter signed by
CCL president A. R. Mosher and secretary-treasurer Pat Conroy urging “every possible support’’ be given

- the Boilermakers Union in connection with the Kuzych case.

This Saturday, January 7, members of the Marine Workers and Boilermakers Industrial Union, local

number one, will decide the status of Kuzych by referendum vote.

Kuzych was expelled from the union

several years ago but a recent court decision ordered his reinstatement and Boilermakers’ leaders William

White and William Stewart were sent to Oakalla jail on “

to obey the court’s decree without sanction of union members.

“It is quite evident that the
labor movement in B.C. and in-
directly elsewhere in Canada is
faced with a serious situation as

-a result of a recent court order

affecting the Marine Workers
and Boilermakers Industrial Un-
ion,” says the CCL letter.

“It appears that a member of
the union was expelled for what
were believed to be good and
sufficient reasons, and in accor-
dance with the provisions of the
union’s constitution. Since the
union had a closed shop agree-
ment with the company which
employed the expelled member,
he was dismissed. The court or-
der not only decreed the rein-
statement into the union of the
suspended member, but assessed
damages of $5,000 plus legal
costs, against the union, and for
failure to re-admit and issue a
membership card to the _ sus-
pended member, the president
and secretary of the union were
committed to jail.

“An application was made to
the Appeal Court for'a hearing
regarding the jailing of the two
union officers, and they were re-
leased until the appeal is to be
heard, on or about January 10,
1950.

“It seems to. us that if there
is a law which permits a court
to force a union either to ac-
cept or retain in membership any
person who violates the provis-

‘ions of its constitution, or who

acts contrary to its principles
and policy, every union is sub-
ject to the infiltration of per-
sons who, of their own volition
or at the direction of others,
have no other purpose than to
spy upon and disrupt the union.

“In such circumstances, we be-
lieve that every posgibhe support

BANQUET, DANCE TO BE HELD IN CITY

should be given to the Boiler-
makers Union in carrying its
case to the highest court of ap-
peal, if necessary; that a nation-
wide effort should be made to
secure appropriate amendments
to any statute capable of the in-,
terpretation which has _ been
placed upon it by the ss a
‘the instance referred to,
that the B.C. Federation of a
bor be supported in every law-
ful effort it may undertake in
connection with this matter.”

This week B/C. Federation of
Labor has circularized all affili-
ates with union material on the
Kuzych case and in an accom-
panying letter urged locals to
have the issues fully explained
at membership meetings. BCFL
recently set up a committee con-
sisting of George Home, Pen
Baskin, Jim Bury, Dan Radford
and Stewart Alsbury to keep ful-
ly informed on all developments
in the case and give assistance
to the Boilermakers if they con-
sider it necessary.

The referendum vote on Jan-
uary 7 will take place at the
‘Boilermakers Union offices at
Pender Auditorium from 9 a
to 6 p.m. Union officials request-
ed that officials of the provin-
cial labor department act as
scrutineers, but Labor Minister
John H. Cates replied that “it is.
my considered opinion that the
matter upon which this vote is
being taken is strictly an inter-
nal affair of the union, and
therefore is beyond the scope of
this department.”

From Cates’ letter it may be
concluded that the labor depart-
ment holds a radically different
view from. that expressed by the
court, which apparently feels
that unions should not have the
right to handle union matters.

contempt of court”

charges following refusal

One million
housing units
needed now

“For the 300,000 unemployed in
Canada today, for several million
who never had a cent of savings,
for thousands of elderly people,
the most urgent need ig subsi-
dized low -rental housing,” said
Bert Marcuse, director of the
Vancouver Trade Union Research
Bureau, at a Town Meeting in
Canada broadcast over CJOR
Wednesday night.

“The housing problem is a na-
tional emergency—we cannot tol-
erate any bickering between mu-
nicipal, provincial or federal gov-
ernments,” Marcuse continued.
“Our governments must accept
their responsibility and we; the
people, must see to it that they
do.”

Marcuse declared that “acad-
emic philosophizing” and “cluck-
ing our tongues” will never solve
the problem, Bold positive “ac-
tion alone will do the job. And
this action must not be delayed.

“We have to face) up to certain
basic facts,’ said Marcuse. “First,
new and accumulated housing
needs in Canada at the present
time amount to approximately
1,000,000 dwelling units, Second,
the majority of wage-earners
have an income between $1,500
and $2,000 per year. Third, most
people have virtually no savings.

“Therefore the only practical
answer to the problem is sub-
sidized low rental housing.

pias celebrate 35th anniversary

Branches of the Lithuanian
Literary Society across Canatla
will celebrate the 35th annivers-
ary of the founding of their
cultural and educational organ-
ization this month. In Vancou-
ver the LLS will hold a banquet
and dance on January 14 at the
Russian Hall, 600 Campbell Ave-
nue.-

“Our organization has branch-
es in most of the larger cities in
Canada and the U.S.,” said Al
Grinkus, secretary of the local
branch of the Lithuanian Liter-
ary Society. “Headquarters are
in New York, and sub-district
headquarters in Toronto. Daily
papers
York and Chicago, and a weekly

_ paper, Llaudies Balsas (The Peo-

ple’s Voice) is printed in Tor-

~ onto.”

There dre only 400 Lithuanian- |

Canadians in _ Vancouver, and
about half are newly | arrived
DP’s. Many, of the newcomers
who lived under the Hitler re.
gime were strongly influenced
by fascist propaganda; one of
the aims of the LLS is to com-

are published in New.

bat the growth of such Nazi
ideology in Canada,

“Our oval club was started in
Vancouver in 1932,” said Grin-

kus. “We have 36 members, and

hold meetings once a month. We
also organize dances and other
social activities, and give sup-
port to labor’s battle for a bet-

tex life. We are not, however, a:

political organization, but con-
centrate on educational and cul-
tural work.”

Lithuanian-Canadians are nat-
urally interested in. life in the
land of their birth, and many
subscribe to papers published in
the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist
Republic. Southernmost of the
three Baltic republics, Lithuania
has a population of about three
millions, _

Between the two world wars,
Lithuania was dominated for 20
years by a government of reac-
tionary bourgeois nationalists,
and became transformed into a
semi-colony, completely depend-
ent upon the major capitalist
states, Industry was poorly de-

veloped, the working day was 12
hours, wages did not cover the
cost of living. Foreign capital
controlled industry;, Belgians
Owned the main power stations,
Swedish capitalists controlled the
match industry, and Germans the
cellulose industry.

Peasants used the _ primitive
wooden plough and suffered from
land shortage and poverty, Un-
employment forced thousands to
emigrate to South America, the
United States and Canada.

On July 21, 1940, the National
Diet of Lithuania, in compliance
with the wishes of the electorate,
proclaimed Lithuania a Soviet
Socialist Republic. The country
was admitted into the Soviet
Union; unemployment was abol-
ished and industry started to
grow rapidly. Land was expro-
priated from the big landowners
and divided among the peasants.

The attack of Hitlerite Ger-
many interrupted this develop-
ment. The fascists invaded the
country, killed over half a mil-
lion Lithuanians, murdered every
Jew, destroyed villages and
towns, shipped all tractors to

Germany and slaughtered more
than half of the. livestock.

The Soviet army liberated Lith-
uania from the German invaders
and also freed the Lithuanian
town and port of Klaipeda (Me-
mel) on the shores of the Baltic
Sea, which Hitler had seized
from bourgeois Lithuania in
1939, ;

Soviet Lithuania is fast be-
coming an industrial country.
Machine-tool plants and an agri-
cultural machinery factory have
been built; industrial plants are
beginning to produce electric
motors, steam boilers, radiators,
lathes, woollens, linen and silk
fabrics, knitted goods, leather
and rubber footwear.

Lithuanian-Canadians celebrat-
ing the 35th anniversary of their
Literary Society heré can also
find reason to rejoice in the tre-
mendous; advances being made in
their native land, The new five-
year plan has brought Soviet
Lithuania on to the highroad
of rapid economic development,
ensuring further progress in ma-
terial well-being and culture in
the future.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—JANUARY 6, 1950—PAGE 12