LABOR: Greeting and Warning

The printing bill of the American Federation of Labor will next month contain an item for 36,158 (more or less) copies of a letter by President William Green. For he addressed an epistle to 110 national and international unions, 1,000 city central labor bodies, 48 state federations of labor and 35,000 local unions. It bore the superscription:

“To ALL ORGANIZED LABOR—

“Greeting:”

And its substance was:

“To ALL ORGANIZED LABOR—

“Warning!”

The letter said:

“. . . After Mussolini first entered Rome with many thousands of the black-shirted Fascisti, he forced the fall of the Government and his appointment by the King as Premier.

“He immediately began to oppose the established voluntary trade unions. In Moscow, when genuine trade unionists rebelled against communism, their leaders were stood against a wall and shot to death. Mussolini set out to crush the existing bona fide trade unions of Italy. Labor papers were suppressed, union halls raided, thousands sent to prisons and others disappeared. And now Mussolini points with pride to his victory in suppressing the workers’ real trade union movement of that country.

“Mussolini has organized what he terms Fascist ‘unions,’ which limit the membership to 10% of the employes of a district. These Fascist ‘unions,’ however, are given jurisdiction over all wage earners in their respective districts, but only members can take part and vote on matters of any kind. The decisions of these Fascist ‘unions’ bind all employes, and Mussolini dictates the policies of the Fascist ‘unions’!

“His first action after being declared absolute dictator was to order Parliament to enact a compulsory arbitration law. Violators will be punished by fine or imprisonment or both. Imprisonment to an Italian is most abhorrent, as he knows the horrible condition of the various Italian prisons. Therefore he will work for underpay and under any conditions rather than go to prison.

“Not satisfied with the powers of a dictator in Italy, he has extended the tentacles of Fascismo into other countries. His dictum that ‘once an Italian always an Italian to the seventh generation,’ prohibits Italian immigrants to the United States becoming naturalized. They must remain Italian citizens to Fascismo. If they enter any organization having for its purpose opposition to Fascismo their property in Italy will be confiscated.

“Like the Communists who seek to overthrow all governments, Fascismo is endeavoring to instil that blighting philosophy among the people of every nation. Fascismo and communism have the same fangs and the same poison which it is intended to inject into the political life of our nation.

“. . . The Executive Council hopes that none of the Italian members of trade unions will submit to the threats of the dictator. He and his Fascismo are as great a menace to the peace of the world as is communism. . . .”