Fighter for the unemployed

Scan page 10

beginning of that period, McKinney The Unemployed Leagues organized As a Black trade union organizer and remarked, labor meetings for Black Ernest Rice Mckinney, a Black labor thousands into a • militant, grass-roots socialist, McKinney fought for full workers could only be organized under leader, socialist educator and founder of movement, especially in the Pennsylva- social, political, and economic equality, the cover of religious meetings. But by the Socialist Workers Party, died in Man- nia and Ohio areas. The organizers saw but for him that meant a unification of 1942 open meetings could be held, hattan at the end of January. He was 98 the unemployed movement, not as a per- Black and white workers. He was although lynchings were still common in years old manent feature of American life, but as opposed to all expressions of national- the area.

McKinney was a central leader of the a base upon which to set the stage for ism, and he was the first Black writer to During World War II McKinney orgaNational Unemployed League (NUL) in building a militant labor movement. polemicize against the Garvey move- nized informal meetings with Black steelthe 1930s and editor of its paper, Mass workers and autoworkers in Buffalo, Action. He was a fighter for civil rights, N.Y. While Black steelworkers had been active in the NAACP and in organizing active in an earlier strike, after the Little Black workers into the Congress of Steel formula was imposed upon the Industrial Organizations (CIO). union, Blacks took a back seat in the Born in Malden, W. Va., in 1886, organization. The purpose of these inforMcKinney remembered his grandfather mal leadership meetings was to help being brought home on a stretcher, Black unionists loyal to the union make wounded in a struggle to organize Black demands on the organization that would coal diggers. His father became a teacher enable it to fight for full rights for all and principal of a Black school in Hun- working people. It also functioned to tington, W. Va. McKinney attended educate Black workers to see the union Oberlin College, where he, along with W. as a genuine instrument to help them E. B. DuBois, organized a branch of the overcome the prejudice they encountered NAACP. He joined the Socialist Party in daily. After several sessions, one of the 1912. After serving in the army in France workers told the story of how some during World War 1, McKinney moved white workers had approached Black to Pittsburgh. He became a social workers at the mill. At first, the Blacks worker at Kingsley House and was secre- thought, well now they are in trouble tary to the Western Pennsylvania and they come to us for help. Then they NAACP in 1920-22. realized, no, it's the union that is in trouMcKinney was associated with A. ble, and that means all of us. Philip Randolph in helping to unionize Over the last 30 years Mckinney Pullman car porters beginning in the taught labor history to Black and labor 1920s. He also contributed to Randolph's Labor studies session in 1930s groups as well as at Rutgers University. magazine, The Messenger, a militant He rejoined the Socialist Party, remainAfro-American paper with an interna- ing with its right wing. He worked tionalist and proletarian socialist orienta- tion. of the NUL." That is the unions affili- Once the CIO got organized, McKinney noted, it "adopted basically the program to understand the dynamic interplay inherent in Black working-class experi- ment. This conception limited his ability Teachers, conducting a course in human closely with the United Federation of Mckinney joined the Communist ated to the CIO adopted a program of ence. He saw the SWP position support- relations and helping the union establish Party in 1920 but soon left. Yet his theo- organizing the unemployed, and of being ing self-determination for Blacks—a its paraprofessional program. He was an retical and tactical differences with the not just "business" unions, but unions position which grew out of discussions adviser to the A. Philip Randolph EduCP did not lead him to abandon politics. that fought for the aspirations of their between C.L.R. James and Trotsky-as cation Fund. He was attracted to the work of A. J. members. counterproductive to American working- As a writer and labor educator, McKMuste and the Brookwood Labor Col- The Trotskyists entered the Socialist class life. inney educated several generations of lege. By 1929 these labor radicals formed working people. He helped them to Party in 1936 and were expelled the folthe Conference for Progressive Labor lowing year. They reestablished themsel- Yet McKinney devoted many years to understand their history, discover their Action (CPLA). own capacities, and use these tools in the ves in 1938, founding the Socialist Work- organizing Black workers in the fight for ers Party (SWP). McKinney was the first full rights. He was active in recruiting daily class struggle. -Black elected to the SWP's National Black steelworkers to the Steel Workers Ernest McKinne Commitee, and served on its Political Organizing Commitee (SWOC) in the Committee. Youngstown, Ohio, and Western Penn1886-1984 McKinney had been reluctant to sup- sylvania area. He experienced the diffi- Where to find us: port the merger of the three unemployed culty of organizing industrial workers in groups-the Unemployed Councils, led places like Weirton, where the whole Chicago Socialist Action In the course of the 1930s the "Mus- by the Communists, the Workers' Alli- town was owned by the company. Box 80 B teites" became a political party, the ance, led by the Socialist Party, and the On the eve of World War II, there was 2520 N. Lincoln Chicago, IL 60614 American Workers Party. At the end of Unemployed Leagues, led by the Trot- a major split in the SWP. About 40 per- (312) 248-1094 skyists-in 1936. By 1938 he was con- cent of the entire membership, led by 1934 they merged with the Communist vinced that the unified Workers' Alli- Max Shachtman, split over the question Cleveland Socialist Action League of America-a Trotskyist group ance was dying under the impact of the of whether the Soviet Union was a work- P.O. Box 6151 that had been expelled from the Commu- Communist Party's popular front tactics. ers" state. The majority of the Socialist Cleveland, Ohio 44101 nist Party in 1928—to form the Workers (216) 429-2167 At a time in which militant mass action is Workers Party understood that despite Party.

most needed to respond to the Roosevelt bureaucratic degeneration, the Soviet Houston Socialist Action Unemployed leagues administrations's cutting of public works system represented important gains for University of HoustonThe "Musteites" organized the programs and social services, McKinney the Soviet masses and the world proletar- Campus Activities Box 551, 4800 Calhoun National Unemployed League. The NUL argued, the unemployed movement was iat. Although the bureaucratic dictator- Houston, Tx 77004 was a militant organization built on the finding its hands tied by its leadership's ship should be overthrown, the Soviet (713) 643-2030 principle that the Unemployed Leagues support for Roosevelt. system was an advance beyond capitalmust be rooted in the community, just as At the founding convention of the ism and should be defended. Shachtman Los Angeles Socialist Actior unions must be rooted in an industry. It SWP, McKinney submitted a minority and his supporters disagreed and were Box 217 18653 Ventura Blvd. sought to organize all the unemployed— resolution that projected the importance bitterly hostile to the Soviet Union. Los Angeles, Ca 91356 the politically backward workers as well of organizing a new national organiza- McKinney sided with Shachtman on this (213 343-4511 as the most advanced—in order to build tion of the unemployed—one that could question. From 1940 until his resignation the kind of nonexclusive, mass-based organization that could affect American conduct a fight. But organizing the unemployed dwindled under the impact in the early 1950s, McKinney was a member and leader of the Workers Party, P.O. Box 4523 Ann Arbor, Mich 48106 Michigan Socialist Action society. Its leadership believed that the of war preparations. the party founded by Schachtman. demands of the unemployed must Minneapolis Socialist Acti develop out of their own concrete experi- P.O. Box 14087 Dinkytown Station ence, and not be foisted upon them by Minneapolis, MN 55414 any outside organization or group. It ACTiON was to be through the power of united New York Socialist Action mass action that real change could come P.O.Box 20209 Cathedral Finance about. 693 Columbus Ave Sit-ins, picket lines, mass marches on New York, NY 10025 relief stations, as well as raising the demand for public hearings and then Enclosed is $6.00 for 12 issues of Socialist Action Phoenix Socialist Action P.O. Box 5161 attending them in force were frequent Phoenix, AZ 85010 methods the Unemployed Leagues uti- Name (602) 951-0354 lized. The NUL combined both informal discussions and educational classes as a Pittsburgh Socialist Action Address P.O. Box 10769 means to expose unemployed workers to Pittsburgh, PA 15203 the debate over a labor party as well as City/State/Zip — international events, such as the Spanish San Francisco Socialist Action Civil War. McKinney was the education 3435 Army Street, Rm.308 director of the Pittsburgh organization. Telephone San Francisco, CA 94110 (415) 821-0458 He taught courses on American labor history and organized classes on public Union/Organization Washington D.C. Socialist Action speaking, English for working people, Socialist Action, 3435 Army St., Rm. 308, San Francisco, CA 94110 P.O. Box 3467 and the principles and program of the Washington D.C. 20009 NUL.

10 Socialist Action February 19

Scan page 11

"Stalin made very serious mistakes," she says. "But after all, he did a lot of good. ists, not even driblets arrived. This is why there were only three guns for 300