Today in Labor History November 25, 1941: Three Schlurfs were arrested in Austria for their resistance to fascism. No, these were not an early version of little blue gnomes, but members of a full-fledged working-class youth movement opposed to the Nazis, and everything they stood for. In some ways, they presaged later youth movements, like Skiffle scene, in the UK, and the early Rock and Roll and Rockabilly scenes, in the U.S. They wore their hair long, shiny with brilliantine, with a swallow tail in the back, and listened to American jazz and blues. The boys wore sharp, double-breasted suits and the girls ("Schlurf kittens") wore colorful dresses with high hemlines. They rebelled against the heavy work ethic and conservative sexuality of the era. And they would battle Hitler Youth in the streets. The origin of the word “Schlurf” was a reclaiming, or embracing, of the term “Schluaf,” an old Viennese insult of boys and men who preferred fun to responsibility. After the war ended, the new authorities in Austria continued to denounce them, as did the Nazis, as ne’er-do-wells for their rejection of work and authority. #workingclass #LaborHistory #nazis #fascism #antifascism #youth #jazz #hitleryouth #rebellion

NSFW? A Nice Piece of Tail! #cats #nsfw

Today in Labor History November 25, 1947: The "Hollywood Ten" were blacklisted by Hollywood movie studios for refusing to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). The blacklist lasted for 13 years, when Dalton Trumbo, a former Communist Party member, was finally credited as the screenwriter of the films “Exodus” and “Spartacus.” Some of the stars accused of having Communist ties included Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, Katharine Hepburn and Fredric March. In 1941, Walt Disney blamed "Communist agitation" for the cartoonists and animators' strike. In 1945, Gerald L. K. Smith, founder of the fascist America First Party, began giving speeches attacking the "alien minded Russian Jews in Hollywood." Ronald Reagan, who was president of the actor’s union, testified before HUAC that a clique within the union was using "communist-like tactics." His first wife, actress Jane Wyman, blamed his allegations against friends and colleagues as a factor leading to their divorce. #workingclass #LaborHistory #communism #fascism #union #anticommunism #huac #FreeSpeech #redscare #hollywood #sagaftra #reagan #antisemitism #wga

Today in Labor History November 25, 1946: St. Paul teachers, led mostly by women, walked out of their classrooms in American’s first organized teachers’ strike. 1,165 teachers and principals (all represented by the same union) remained out until Dec. 27 in what they called the “strike for better schools.” 90% of teachers voted to strike. Conditions were deplorable. Classrooms designed for 35 students often had 50. Teachers had to buy textbooks for students, yet they were among the lowest paid teachers in the nation. #workingClass #LaborHistory #teachers #strike #union #students #children #school #women #wages #saintpaul #minnesota

Right to Work? How ‘bout the right to the necessities of life? The right to material security, healthcare, food, housing, and free time? How about the right to not have your existence constantly challenged or threatened? (Right-to-Work laws in the U.S., contrary to the euphemistic name, do not aim to provide a guarantee of employment to people seeking work but rather guarantee an employee's right to refrain from being a member of a labor union)

If you already dislike Thanksgiving, here's another reason to add to your argument: In the early days of the American Revolution, there were calls to make Thanksgiving a national holiday. But Quakers refused and kept their shops open, arguing that it was the state imposing religion on them. Consequently, they were accused of being unpatriotic, British loyalists. They were fined, imprisoned and their businesses were vandalized. It is important to note that, back then, holidays like Thanksgiving were intended to instill obedience through patriotism and unity by creating a shared religious experience. An example of the patriotism came from George Washington himself, who called for a day of Thanksgiving to give thanks for a form of government for their safety and happiness (nevermind that the vast majority were completely disenfranchised, with a large minority literally enslaved, who were neither safe nor happy to be in that state). The Quakers were not wrong in identifying it as the state imposing a religious practice on them. But by the mid-19th century, when Lincoln declared a National Thanksgiving holiday focused on food and family, the Quakers stopped resisting, according to historian Tara Thompson Strauch. Apparently, they were ok with having the state try to coerce obedience through patriotism, as long as they kept it secular. No idea how they felt about Native American cultural appropriation in the schools, or the holiday's role in white washing the genocide of America's indigenous people.

JSTOR Daily

Quakers Against Thanksgiving - JSTOR Daily

In colonial America, government “thanksgivings” blurred faith and politics. For Quakers, rejecting them was an act of religious conviction.

#thanksgiving #quakers #churchandstate #religion #indigenous