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Z. S e
“here will
come 2 tLme...
our SNIENCE
will be_more
powerfull Than
Lhe voices

Ou are SlranB-
if g today”

fing

‘With these words on their lips as they were sent to the
gallows, the martyrs of the struggle in Chicago for the
eight-hour day defied the bosses’ attempts to smash
abor’s fight for a better life.

OE yaya?
Dir one: wake

- all our

All-in unity vital to

win Communists tell CCF

An appeal to the CCF to join in the broadest possible electoral co-operation to ie
the people of B.C. to ensure Social Credit is not returned in the next provincial elec-

tion was contained in a letter by the B.C. Com
at the CCF annual convention meeting in Vance

The letter signed by pro-
vincial leader Nigel Morgan
said: “Participation in united
struggles for new national poli-
cies of peace and people’s wel-
fare are primary means of
turning back the bosses’ offen-
sive. It can bring labor right
into the centre’ in shaping
Canada’s policies for peaceful
co-existence.

The history

The origin of May Day is directly
workday in the United States. Although the demand for higher wages ¥
prevalent cause for early strikes in that country,’/the question of shor
the right to organize was always kept to the fore when t

demands against the employers and the government.

The 8-hour day movement,
which directly gave birth to
May Day, originated in the
United States. On August 20,
1866, a score of trade unions
gathered in Baltimore to estab-
lish the National Labor Union.
The following resolution was
passed;

“The first and great neces-
sity of the present, to free Iabor
of this country from capitalist
slavery,-is the passing of a law
by which 8 hours shall be the
normal working day in all
States in the American union.
We are resolved to put forth
strength until this
glorious result is achieved.”

Eight - hour leagues were
formed as a result of the agit-
ation of the N.L.U. and as a
result of their activities, sev-
eral state governments adopt-
ed ‘the 8-hour day on public
‘work, ae

In 1866, the Geneva Con-!
gress of the International went
on record’ as follows:

“The legal limitation of
working day is a pr
‘condition witho
further atiempis
ments and eman
working class m'
tive ... The Congress propose:
the 8 hours as the legal limit
of the working day.”

The N.L.U. disappeared from
the labor scene, but in 1884 the
Federation of Organized Trades
and Labor Unions of the Unit-
ed States and Canada (now the
AFL-CIO) met in its fourth
convention and passed the
following resolution:

“Resolved by the Federation
of Organized Trades and Labor
Unions of- the United - States
and Canada that eight hours
shall constitute a legal day’s

the
ary |

ed in Paris. After*hearing re-

labor from May First, 1886,

of May.

connected with the struggle fo

he workers for

and thai we recommend to
labor organizations throughout
their jurisdiction that they so
direct their laws as to conform
to this resolution by the time
named.”

On May 4, Chicago workers
demonstrated at Haymarket
Square to protest the brutal
attack of the police upon a
meeting of striking workers at
the McCormick Reaper Works
on May 3, where six workers
were killed and many wound-
ed. The Haymarket meeting
was peaceful, but as it was
dispersing, the police attacked
again. A provocateur threw a
bomb into the crowd, killing a
police sergeant. In the battle
that followed, seven policemen
and four workers were killed.

Parsons, Spies, Fischer and
Engel, labor leaders known as
anarchists, were railroaded to
the gallows and other mili-
tants were sent to prison for

long’ terms. This -was the
answer of the Chicago bosses
th mand the eight

ports on the eight-hour move-
ment in the USA, that body
called for “a great
tional demonstration, so that
in all countries and in all
cities. on one appointed day
the toiling masses shall de-
mand of the state authorities
the legal reduction- of the
working day to eight hours.”

At the next Congress of the
International, in Brussels,
1891, the International reiter-
ated the original purpose of
May Day, to demand the eight-

hour day, bu ‘
must also serve:
stration to impi
conditions and to
among the natioj
At the Zurich”
1893, the followi
was adopted: _
“The demons!
First for the 8-1
serve at the sa
demonstration of
mined will of the
to destroy cla
through social c
enter on the r
road leading
peoples, to inte
peace.”
The top _ refo:
leaders in the Uni
and Canada ha
turned to class eo
policies. They no
their support to Mi
cept to organize ar

munist Party distributed to delegates
ouver last weekend. :

“Members. of both our par-
ties are working to achieve
similar immediate objectives.
Differences in our attitude to-
wards ultimate political objec-
tives and the methods of their
achievement we do not deny.
But neither can we let them
stand in the way of co-opera-
tion to accomplish definite,

,| limited, immediate tasks, par-

ticularly when united action

would ensure success in a

number of pressing issues.”
Issues on which united -ac-

| tion could be beneficial, said

Morgan, were a fight against
Bill 43; stopping the giveaway
to Wenner-Gren; public owner-
ship of B.C. power and gas
utilities; increased civic and
school grants; higher welfare
allowances and pensions; and

it} measures to ensure peace,

Pointing to the prospect of
an early provincial election the
Communist Party letter said:
“It is quite clear to any serious

student of politics, that the
CCR:
election of a CCF government,
cannot succeed in winning the
election. All the~ discussions
} al with the CLC unions has not
f changed this, as the recent
elections in Manitoba, New-

alone, appealing for

$s; ist and anti-Soviet demonstra-
yj tions, as in West Berlin last
year. But May Day lives on as
|a day of demonstration by the
‘workers of the world. In the

socialist countries, it “is the

‘most important holiday of the
| year.

May Day, which originated

e|in the United States of
America, belongs to the work-j

ing class of the world.

foundland and Ontario have :

demonstrated.

“Nothing short of the broad-
est possible united front of all
labor, farm and progressive
forces in B.C., around an anti-
monopoly platform, holds any
hope of providing a realistic
alternative.”

Pointing to the repeated ap-
peals of the Communists for
unity which have “fallen on
deaf ears” the letter notes that
“it is still not too late to recoB-
nize that efforts to compress
labor political action within
the confines of any one of the
existing parties, to narrow
down labor political activity
to one of delivering funds and
union membership lists to the
CCF is courting disaster and
can only result in the return
of the Socreds.”’ s

Drawing attention to the
fact that the Communist Party
has nominated 15 candidates

the letter states “we are PFC

pared to meet with CCF, trade
union, farm and other organ-
izations to explore all possibili-
ties of selecting one unity Can-
idate and block the extension
of big business policies.’

May Day Greetings
to all our friends and

supporters

ADVANCE CLUB

Communist Party
of Canada

interna-

PARADE eee

HEAR-HARVEY MURPHY —
- HAROLD PRITCHETT —C. P. of C.
M. BEAGLE — U.F.A.W.U, — and others.

les Powell Street Grounds at 12:30 p.m.

Corner Powell and Dunlevy :
Proceeds along Powell to EXHIBITION PARK —

RALLY begins 2 p.m. - OUTDOOR THEATRE

CONCERT PROGRAM

In case of rain, meeting in Pender Auditorium, 2 p.m.

Y - MAY Ist

Mine - Mill Union

April 29, 1960—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 8 _