CHAPTER V THE INDUSTRIAL WORKERS OF THE WORLD Characteristics of I. W. W. Type of Unionism Hitherto we have been considering the unionism which limits itself to a single industry, but we must now turn our attention to that which reaches out to the whole working class, seeking to include all under the banner of one great union which shall eventually overthrow capitalism and bring in a new and better day. Of this type of in-' dustrial unionism we have three examples in America at the present time; the Industrial Workers of the World, the Workers' International Industrial Union, formerly known as the Detroit branch of the I. W. W., and the One Big Union. All of these are revolutionary in aim and class conscious in spirit. The first two will be considered in this chapter. Origin So much has already been written about the I. W. W. that no attempt will be made here to give its history in detail, but attention will be centered rather upon the present policies of the organization and its general philosophy. A few of the outstanding facts in its development must be noted, however. Before the formation of the I. W. W. in Chicago in June, 1905, there had been various attempts to form all-inclusive organizations of workers, which should seek definitely to bring about a new social order. One of these of course was the Knights of Labor, which was described in the first chapter. Another was the Western Labor Union, later known as the American Labor Union, which was formed in 1898 under the leadership of the Western Federation of Miners. This industrial organization officially endorsed Socialism but admitted workmen of various political views. Another was the Socialist Trades and Labor Alliance which was formed in 1895 under the leadership of Daniel DeLeon and endorsed by the Socialist Labor Party the following year. It was patterned after the Knights of Labor, having both craft locals and mixed locals, but was always more of an organ for revolutionary propaganda than an industrial union, as all of its members belonged to the Socialist Labor Party. Although starting with a membership of about 15,000,1 mostly in and around New York, and spreading rapidly to other centers, it soon declined in numbers and included only about 1,400 when it merged with the I. W. W. in 1905. There were also various individuals among the United Brewery Workers and the United Mine Workers and other organizations who felt the need of widening the scope of industrial unionism and uniting all workers in one powerful organization. In order to bring together all interested in forming such an organization, a group of radical labor leaders, after a preliminary conference, met in January, 1905, and issued a manifesto calling for a convention to be held the following June to launch a new body based on the principles of all-inclusive revolutionary industrial unionism. At this convention, which was attended by delegates from 43 different organizations, including 16 belonging to the A. F. of L., and about 40 different occupations, the organization known as the Industrial Workers of the World was inaugurated, with the Western Federation of Miners, the American Daniel DeLeon, A Symposium, published by the National Executive Committee of the Socialist Labor Party, 1919, p. 30. Brissenden, The I. W. W., pp. 70-71. Labor Union, the Socialist Trades and Labor Alliance, the United Metal Workers, the United Brotherhood of Railway Employees, and a few smaller bodies included as integral parts of it. The balance of power was held by the W. F. M., which had 27,000 members, all the other bodies being relatively weak and some of them existing chiefly on paper. Conflicting Elements There were many conflicting elements in the organization, which was held together, as has been well said, only by the "binding force of common antipathies." All were 7 opposed to capitalism and to craft unionism, but they were divided into three main groups in regard to tactics: (1) members of the Socialist Labor Party who placed chief emphasis on political action; (2) members of the Socialist Party, who were less doctrinaire than those of the Socialist Labor Party and wished to subordinate political action to economic organization; (3) anarchists who wished direct action wholly to take the place of political action. Contrary to expectation the influence of the Socialist Trades and Labor Alliance was much stronger than its numerical power, and hence the new organization declared in favor of political action at its first convention. Friction between the different elements made the progress of the organization difficult and resulted in two separate splits during the next few years. The first came at the convention of 1906 when the so-called "reactionaries" withdrew, after the "revolutionists" had captured the convention, deposed President Sherman on the grounds of extravagance and autocracy, and abolished the office of president. As was stated in the previous chapter, this Ibid, p. 82. |