Arkansas Bans Anarchy and "Bolshevism" (1919)

Fri Mar 28, 1919

Image: Charles Brough, the Arkansas Governor who signed Act 512 into law, in 1919

On this day in 1919, Arkansas, joining the majority of U.S. states at the time, passed a law to explicitly "punish anarchy and to prevent the introduction and spread of Bolshevism and kindred doctrines" within its borders.

The law, known as Act 512, also banned advocating for the overthrow of the state of Arkansas or federal government, as well as any flag "which is calculated to overthrow present form of government".

Act 512 categorized these behaviors as a misdemeanor crime, punishable by a fine of between $10 and a $1,000, and the perpetrator could be imprisoned in the county jail for up to six months. On March 28th, 1919, the Act was signed into law by Governor Charles Brough (shown).

These anti-Bolshevik laws were used against socialist, communist, and union organizers in Arkansas a number of times in the 1930s, approximately the same time that the Communist Party of Arkansas reached its zenith. Examples of repression enabled by this law include the 1934 arrest of George Cruz, associated with the Original Independent Benevolent Afro-Pacific Movement of the World (OIBAPMW) and the 1935 arrest of Ward Rodgers, a member of the Southern Tenant Farmers' Union (STFU).

• Date: 1919-03-28
• Learn More: encyclopediaofarkansas.net, en.wikipedia.org.
• Tags: #Communism, #Labor, #Anarchism.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Clara Lemlich (1886 - 1982)

Sun Mar 28, 1886

Clara Lemlich Shavelson, born on this day in 1886, was a Jewish communist and labor leader of the "Uprising of 20,000", a massive strike of shirtwaist workers in New York's garment industry in 1909. Later blacklisted from the industry for her labor union work, she became a member of the Communist Party USA and a consumer activist.

Before the shirtwaist strike began, Clara had been listening to men speak at a union meeting about the disadvantages and cautions about the shirtwaist workers going on a general strike. After four hours of this, she rose and declared in Yiddish that she wanted to say a few words of her own.

She declared that the shirtwaist workers would go on a general strike, which received a standing ovation from the audience. Clara then took an oath swearing that if she became a traitor to the cause she now voted for, then that the hand she now held high wither from her arm.

The strike was successful - under a "Protocol of Peace", factory owners and the union agreed to end the strike under improved wages, working conditions, and hours.

• Date: 1886-03-28
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, jwa.org.
• Tags: #Communism, #Labor, #GeneralStrikes, #Birthdays.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Sergei Kirov (1886 - 1934)

Sat Mar 27, 1886

Image: A photo portrait of Sergei Kirov, unknown date and location [Spartacus-Educational]

Sergei Kirov, born on this day in 1886, was Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet politician. In 1934, Kirov was assassinated by an ex-Party member, the catalyst for a series of purges and state repression led by Stalin, sometimes called the "Great Purge".

Sergei Kirov (1886 - 1934) began his career as an engineer, becoming after in politics after moving to the Siberian city Tomsk, where he became a Marxist and joined the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) in 1904.

After the RSDLP split, Kirov followed the Bolshevik faction. During the Russian Civil War, he became commander of the Bolshevik military administration in Astrakhan, and fought for the Red Army until 1920.

In 1921, Kirov became First Secretary of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan, the Bolshevik party organization in Azerbaijan. Kirov was a loyal supporter of Joseph Stalin, the successor of Vladimir Lenin, and in 1926 he was rewarded with command of the Leningrad party organization.

On December 1st, 1934, Kirov was shot dead in his office by Leonid Nikolaev, a disaffected and expelled ex-Party member. Kirov was buried in the Kremlin Wall necropolis in a state funeral, with Stalin and other prominent members of the CPSU personally carrying his coffin.

Stalin called for swift punishment of the traitors and those found negligent in Kirov's death, announcing that Nikolaev had been put up to the job by "Zinovievites" (supporters of Grigorii Zinoviev, who had been ousted as Leningrad party boss in 1926).

Nikolayev was swiftly found guilty and executed on December 29th, 1934. Arrests of Zinoviev, Lev Kamenev and many of their associates followed, as did summary executions of alleged White conspirators.

The circumstances of Kirov's death have been the source of great speculation and conspiracy, particularly by Soviet dissidents. One conspiracy, alleged by Nikita Khrushchev and anti-Soviet defectors such as Alexander Orlov and Alexander Barmine, is that Stalin himself secretly ordered the assassination, fearing Kirov as a political rival and requiring a justification to begin mass purges.

Despite these claims, at least two official investigations, one in the 1960s and another in 1989, failed to establish Stalin's or the NKVD's complicity in Kirov's assassination.

Many cities, streets, and factories were named or renamed after Kirov in his honor, including the town of Kirov (formerly Vyatka).

"Whenever there is a conflict between precept and example, the latter wins because deeds speak louder than our words."

- Sergei Kirov

• Date: 1886-03-27
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, soviethistory.msu.edu, spartacus-educational.com.
• Tags: #Marxism, #Birthdays.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Annie Mae Aquash (1945 - 1975)

Tue Mar 27, 1945

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Annie Mae Aquash (Mi'kmaq name "Naguset Eask"), born on this day in 1945, was a First Nations activist and Mi'kmaq tribal member from Nova Scotia, Canada who played a prominent role in the American Indian Movement (AIM).

In the 1960s, she moved to Boston and joined other First Nations and indigenous Americans who were focused on education and organizing against police brutality against urban indigenous peoples. Aquash participated in several key events, including the 1973 occupation of Wounded Knee at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, the 1972 Trail of Broken Treaties, and the occupation of the Department of Interior headquarters in Washington, DC.

On February 24th, Aquash's body was found in Wanblee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, murdered by an execution-style gunshot. In his book "In the Spirit of Crazy Horse", Peter Matthiessen writes that the FBI and CIA had previously disseminated rumours that she had been an informant and that Aquash had claimed an FBI agent threatened her life.

On the matter of Aquash's death, Leonard Peltier stated, "I know that [the FBI's] behavior hasn't changed just as I know that Anna Mae was not an informant."

• Date: 1945-03-27
• Learn More: www.canadashistory.ca, en.wikipedia.org.
• Tags: #Birthdays, #Indigenous.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Food Not Bombs Serves First Meal (1981)

Thu Mar 26, 1981

Image: Food Not Bombs in Harvard Square, 1981 [foodnotbombs.net]

On this day in 1981, Food Not Bombs shared their first meals outside the Federal Reserve Bank during the stock holders meeting of the Bank of Boston to protest the exploitation of capitalism and investment in the nuclear industry.

Food Not Bombs is a loose-knit group of independent collectives, sharing free vegan and vegetarian food with others. Food Not Bombs' ideology is that corporate and government priorities are skewed to allow hunger to persist in the midst of abundance.

As evidence of this, a large amount of the food served by the group is surplus food from grocery stores, bakeries, and markets that would otherwise go to waste (or, occasionally, has already been thrown away).

• Date: 1981-03-26
• Learn More: foodnotbombs.net, en.wikipedia.org.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Vine Deloria Jr. (1933 - 2005)

Sun Mar 26, 1933

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Vine Deloria Jr., born on this day in 1933, was an indigenous theologian, historian, professor, and activist who authored "Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto" (1969). The book helped bring national attention to Native American issues, the same year as the Alcatraz-Red Power Movement.

Deloria also worked on the legal case that led to the historic "Boldt Decision" of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. This decision granted legal fishing rights to Native Americans in Washington state, and was used as legal precedent for other lawsuits that sought to restore rights granted in Native American treaties.

From 1964 to 1967, Deloria also served as executive director of the National Congress of American Indians, increasing tribal membership from 19 to 156. Beginning in 1977, Deloria was a board member of the National Museum of the American Indian, which now has buildings in both New York City and Washington, DC.

"Until America begins to build a moral record in her dealings with the Indian people she should not try to fool the rest of the world about her intentions on other continents."

- Vine Deloria Jr.

• Date: 1933-03-26
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.nytimes.com, archives.yale.edu.
• Tags: #Birthdays, #Indigenous.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Rudolf Rocker (1873 - 1958)

Tue Mar 25, 1873

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Johann Rudolf Rocker, born on this day in 1873, was an anarchist theorist, historian, and activist, known for critical anarchist texts such as "Anarcho-Syndicalism: Theory and Practice" (1938) and "Pioneers of American Freedom" (1949).

Though often described as an anarcho-syndicalist, Rocker was a self-professed anarchist without adjectives, believing that anarchist schools of thought represented "only different methods of economy" and that the first objective for anarchists was "to secure the personal and social freedom of men".

Rocker was involved in helping organize a number of labor strikes and represented the federation at the International Anarchist Congress in Amsterdam in 1907. Rocker was well-read in his lifetime - his readers included figures Thomas Mann, Albert Einstein, Herbert Read, and Bertrand Russell.

"Anarchism is no patent solution for all human problems, no Utopia of a perfect social order, as it has so often been called, since on principle it rejects all absolute schemes and concepts."

- Rudolf Rocker

• Date: 1873-03-25
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, libcom.org, theanarchistlibrary.org.
• Tags: #Birthdays, #Anarchism.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire (1911)

Sat Mar 25, 1911

Image: A photo of the factory on fire, taken March 25th, 1911. First published on front page of The New York World 1911-03-26 [Wikipedia]

On this day in 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire took place in New York City. Managers had locked the exits to prevent theft and unauthorized breaks; the fire killed 146 garment workers, mostly young immigrant girls. It was the deadliest industrial disaster in the history of the city, and one of the deadliest in U.S. history.

The fire caused the deaths of 146 garment workers - 123 women and girls and 23 men - who either burned to death, choked on smoke, or jumped to their deaths from high windows. Most of the victims were recent Italian and Jewish immigrant women and girls aged 14 to 23.

The death toll was high in part because the doors to the stairwells and exits were locked (a then-common practice to prevent workers from taking unauthorized breaks and to reduce theft). The incident led to legislation requiring improved factory safety standards and helped spur the growth of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU), which fought for better working conditions for sweatshop workers.

The owners (who survived the fire by fleeing to the roof when it began), were acquitted of manslaughter charges, but found liable for wrongful death. Although they had to pay out $75 per victim killed, their insurance provider paid them out $400 per casualty. Two years later, one of the owners was arrested and fined $20 for again locking his doors during factory hours.

A week later, on April 2nd, 1911, Rose Schneiderman, a prominent socialist, feminist, and union activist, spoke to workers, saying this about the incident: "I would be a traitor to these poor burned bodies if I came here to talk good fellowship. We have tried you good people of the public and we have found you wanting...I know from my experience it is up to the working people to save themselves. The only way they can save themselves is by a strong working-class movement."

• Date: 1911-03-25
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, aflcio.org.
• Tags: #Labor.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

NATO Bombing of Yugoslavia Begins (1999)

Wed Mar 24, 1999

Image: A man leads his daughter away from destroyed buildings after NATO air strikes hammered the center of Pristina, the Kosovo capital. Photo credit to Goran Tomasevic/Reuters. [rferl.org]

On this day in 1999, the first NATO airstrikes of Yugoslavia began, initiating a wave of violence that killed 1,500 people, damaging hospitals, schools, cultural monuments, and private businesses alongside military targets. The bombings lasted until June 10th of that year.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) bombing campaign was its first military action taken without the endorsement of the U.N. Security Council. James Byron Bissett, former Canadian ambassador to Yugoslavia, called the campaign a "war crime", and Noam Chomsky referred to it as an act of "terrorism".

Supporters for the campaign claimed the bombing was necessary to stop a genocide of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo and to remove Slobodan Milošević from power, although claims made by the Clinton administration along these lines were later found to be highly exaggerated.

Approximately 500 of the people killed were civilians, and the bombs damaged many civilian structures alongside legitimate military targets. Chomsky has argued that the main objective of the NATO intervention was to integrate Yugoslavia into the Western neoliberal social and economic system.

In 2000, Michael Parenti authored "To Kill a Nation: The Attack on Yugoslavia", which argues that the bombing was predicated on capitalist rather than humanitarian interests.

• Date: 1999-03-24
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, chomsky.info.
• Tags: #Terrorism.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Dorothy Height (1912 - 2010)

Sun Mar 24, 1912

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Dorothy Irene Height, born on this day in 1912, was an activist part of the "Big Six" of civil rights leaders (including MLK and John Lewis) who focused on issues facing black women, including unemployment, education, and voting rights.

Height is credited as the first leader in the civil rights movement to recognize inequality for women and African Americans as problems that should be considered as a whole, and was the president of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) for forty years.

While working with both the Young Women's Christian Association and NCNW, Height participated in the civil rights movement and was considered a member of the "Civil Rights Six" (a group with up to nine members, including Martin Luther King, Jr., James Farmer, John Lewis, A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, and Whitney Young). In his autobiography, civil rights leader James Farmer noted that Height's role in the "Big Six" was frequently ignored by the press for sexist reasons.

"If the times aren't ripe, you have to ripen the times."

- Dorothy Height

• Date: 1912-03-24
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, naacp.org.
• Tags: #CivilRights, #Birthdays.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Norris-La Guardia Act (1932)

Wed Mar 23, 1932

Image: Photo collage of U.S. Congressman George W. Norris (left) and NYC Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia (right) [Wikipedia]

The Norris-La Guardia Act, passed on this day in 1932, is a U.S. labor law that bans yellow-dog contracts, federal injunctions against non-violent labor disputes, and employers from interfering in workers' attempts to form a union. Yellow-dog contracts are binding agreements where employers ban workers from unionizing as part of the hiring process.

The title comes from the names of the sponsors of the legislation: Senator George W. Norris of Nebraska (shown left) and Representative Fiorello H. La Guardia of New York (shown right). The law helped mitigate decades of anti-union activity, enabled in part by the precedent of court cases like In re Debs (1895), which affirmed the right of the federal government to end the Pullman Strike with an injunction.

The Norris-La Guardia Act was a precursor to the sweeping National Labor Relations Act of 1935, which established the National Labor Relations Board and is considered one of the most important pieces of labor legislation in the 20th century United States.

• Date: 1932-03-23
• Learn More: www.britannica.com, en.wikipedia.org.
• Tags: #Labor.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Bhagat Singh Executed (1931)

Mon Mar 23, 1931

Image: Photograph of Bhagat Singh taken in 1929, when he was 21 years old [Wikipedia]

On this day in 1931, Marxist Indian revolutionary Bhagat Singh was executed by the colonial British government at 29 years of age after assassinating a police officer and exploding two bombs in a government building.

Singh was an avid reader of Bakunin, Marx, Lenin, and Trotsky. He was also openly critical of Mahatma Gandhi, having become disillusioned with his non-violent tactics after Gandhi called off the non-cooperation movement.

In December 1928, Bhagat Singh and an associate fatally shot a 21-year-old British police officer, John Saunders, in retaliation for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai, a popular Indian nationalist leader who died after being attacked by police. On the run from the police, Singh was arrested when he, along with Batukeshwar Dutt, exploded two improvised bombs inside the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi, showered leaflets onto the legislators below, and allowed the authorities to arrest them.

Awaiting trial, Singh gained public sympathy after he joined fellow defendant Jatin Das in a hunger strike, demanding better prison conditions for Indian prisoners. Das died from starvation in September 1929. Singh was convicted and hanged in March, 1931. Four days before his execution, Singh refused to sign a letter drafted for him that would appeal for clemency.

"Non-violence is backed by the theory of soul-force in which suffering is courted in the hope of ultimately winning over the opponent. But what happens when such an attempt fail to achieve the object? It is here that soul-force has to be combined with physical force so as not to remain at the mercy of tyrannical and ruthless enemy."

- Bhagat Singh

• Date: 1931-03-23
• Learn More: www.britannica.com, en.wikipedia.org, www.marxists.org.
• Tags: #Assassinations, #Colonialism, #Marxism.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org