Taken from:
Pre-Revolutionary America: A History
Joe Andrews, PHD (USAS, 1957)
The logo of the Socialist Party USA (SPUSA), circa 1901
...At the turn of the century, America was ruled by a powerful authoritarian regime, one which was slowly rotting away. It was just fresh from its victory in the Spanish-American War, in which it annexed many Spanish colonies. The USA was at last becoming a superpower. But under this veneer there was unrest. Immigrants arrived into America to find themselves barely accepted by the populace. Although the immigrants worked hard, in the eyes of the bourgeoisie, they hardly worked. Under the presidency of William McKinley, America was becoming a capitalist power. But McKinley was a right-wing conservative. He adored big business and such capitalist tendencies. America seemed to be on the path of capitalism.
Following the defeat of Spain in the Spanish-American War, several of Spain's colonies were annexed by the USA. The American Eagle spread its values to places as far apart as Cuba and the Philippines. It seemed that, for the nation, the future was bright. In addition, a severe recession ended during this period, no doubt due to the war. McKinley's first term was filled with republican imperialism. The USA was becoming a power. But in his second term, this went to ruin. Several strikes occurred, the largest being the Coal Strike of 1902.
A cartoon portraying the fighting between the miners and owners.
Because the employers of mines were refusing to increase pay, reduce work hours, and even recognize worker's unions, the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) held a strike. One hundred and fifty thousand workers in total are known to have gone on strike. Tens of millions of people needed coal, but with workers on strike, they were out in the cold. As a result, many became strikebreakers. Violence grew between the two factions.
With mass violence erupting, the mines were even more paralyzed. They had no workers. Many strikebreakers got into fights with workers and a few even died. The owners of the mines refused to negotiate. And, for the time being, the government was putting a blind eye to the riot. Vice President Theodore Roosevelt, a prominent progressive, wished to intervene, but he was told by the more right-wing President McKinley not to intervene for the time being. As a result the strike continued.
The owners were angry at the quiet government and, with winter coming up, if the strike continued, business would be lost, in addition the smaller factor of people dying. Hence, a group of representatives from both sides was set up. They met on November 18, 1902. The union was happy that such a meeting was occurring. They considered it to be recognition. But the president had a very different plan.
He sent the military to take over the coalfields and force the miners to work. Many miners were forced to work. This is the beginning of the decline in the popularity of McKinley, supporting the owners unfairly rather than the workers. He supported the bourgeoisie rather than the proletariat. This was not the last time an American president did such a thing.
This massacre was near-universally hated. Many hated the cruel fact that anyone could massacre such workers like that. They saw it as unfair, that workers wanting better conditions were murdered by their own government, which was supposed to protect them. By the 1904 elections, the Socialists gained quite a bit of strength and gained influence in both houses. Many newspapers were angry at such an event. The murder of so many innocent people led to it being termed "the Great Betrayal," an appropriate term for the massacre.
The result of this strike was that the UMWA was brought to the point of radicalism. It wished to try to put an end to such unfairness. As a result, they supported the Socialist Party USA (SPUSA) in all of their attempts to increase fairness. The union supported the party and gave the party much-needed support. This is considered to have made the SPUSA a party capable of competing with other ones. It began the rise of Socialist America.
Pre-Revolutionary America: A History
Joe Andrews, PHD (USAS, 1957)
The logo of the Socialist Party USA (SPUSA), circa 1901
...At the turn of the century, America was ruled by a powerful authoritarian regime, one which was slowly rotting away. It was just fresh from its victory in the Spanish-American War, in which it annexed many Spanish colonies. The USA was at last becoming a superpower. But under this veneer there was unrest. Immigrants arrived into America to find themselves barely accepted by the populace. Although the immigrants worked hard, in the eyes of the bourgeoisie, they hardly worked. Under the presidency of William McKinley, America was becoming a capitalist power. But McKinley was a right-wing conservative. He adored big business and such capitalist tendencies. America seemed to be on the path of capitalism.
Following the defeat of Spain in the Spanish-American War, several of Spain's colonies were annexed by the USA. The American Eagle spread its values to places as far apart as Cuba and the Philippines. It seemed that, for the nation, the future was bright. In addition, a severe recession ended during this period, no doubt due to the war. McKinley's first term was filled with republican imperialism. The USA was becoming a power. But in his second term, this went to ruin. Several strikes occurred, the largest being the Coal Strike of 1902.
A cartoon portraying the fighting between the miners and owners.
Because the employers of mines were refusing to increase pay, reduce work hours, and even recognize worker's unions, the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) held a strike. One hundred and fifty thousand workers in total are known to have gone on strike. Tens of millions of people needed coal, but with workers on strike, they were out in the cold. As a result, many became strikebreakers. Violence grew between the two factions.
With mass violence erupting, the mines were even more paralyzed. They had no workers. Many strikebreakers got into fights with workers and a few even died. The owners of the mines refused to negotiate. And, for the time being, the government was putting a blind eye to the riot. Vice President Theodore Roosevelt, a prominent progressive, wished to intervene, but he was told by the more right-wing President McKinley not to intervene for the time being. As a result the strike continued.
The owners were angry at the quiet government and, with winter coming up, if the strike continued, business would be lost, in addition the smaller factor of people dying. Hence, a group of representatives from both sides was set up. They met on November 18, 1902. The union was happy that such a meeting was occurring. They considered it to be recognition. But the president had a very different plan.
He sent the military to take over the coalfields and force the miners to work. Many miners were forced to work. This is the beginning of the decline in the popularity of McKinley, supporting the owners unfairly rather than the workers. He supported the bourgeoisie rather than the proletariat. This was not the last time an American president did such a thing.
This massacre was near-universally hated. Many hated the cruel fact that anyone could massacre such workers like that. They saw it as unfair, that workers wanting better conditions were murdered by their own government, which was supposed to protect them. By the 1904 elections, the Socialists gained quite a bit of strength and gained influence in both houses. Many newspapers were angry at such an event. The murder of so many innocent people led to it being termed "the Great Betrayal," an appropriate term for the massacre.
The result of this strike was that the UMWA was brought to the point of radicalism. It wished to try to put an end to such unfairness. As a result, they supported the Socialist Party USA (SPUSA) in all of their attempts to increase fairness. The union supported the party and gave the party much-needed support. This is considered to have made the SPUSA a party capable of competing with other ones. It began the rise of Socialist America.
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