caucus99percent

free-range politics, organic community

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Sunday February 11, 1906
Greensboro, North Carolina - Mother Jones Speaks on Child Labor

From the Greensboro Daily Industrial News of February 9th:

"MOTHER JONES" ON CHILD LABOR
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Socialist Declares That Factories Are Responsible
for Mental Degenerates
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LABOR AND CAPITAL ARE DULY COMPARED
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Laboring Man's Champion Speaks to a Small Audience
in Labor Union Hall But Holds Her
Hearers' Interest to the End.
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Mother Jones talked in Labor Union Hall last night to an audience made unfortunately small by the inclemency of the weather. But the few people who were there were profoundly interested and were besides very greatly taken with the "spunky" little woman who tried to stir up in them the revolutionary spirit and to implant in them a firm purpose to benefit their brothers and help them forward to a higher civilization.

Mother Jones related first the history of the tool, told how it had become a machine, and how its change, and its ownership by the few had brought about the present economic conditions. She told about how young men used to go West to escape the servitude of labor, but now, she said, the conditions were the same everywhere.

Cuba appealed for relief from Spain, said she, and could have had it without war, but in the interests of capital war was brought about. Then capital went on to the Philippines, to work up that country. In the Far East, before the gates of Pekin, Militarism and Capitalism for the first time in history, joined their interests and worked together. The whole thing means that we are face to face with a competition as the world has never known it before.

Calls Child Labor Murder.

As I’d said about Part I, some of this diary might cause readers discomfort in varying measures.  All I’d ask is that you set aside your preconceptions for a bit to examine some of the facts and opinions, and gauge how much of it resonates, even over time, as…believable.  I’ll wait until Part III to discuss organizational and personal Liberal Climate Change media  brands; those may be harder to accept, as I’ve discovered only too well in the past (smile).

One of the favorite memes on the GOS is that Republicans are doomed because of demographics. The assumption is that minorities will always vote Democratic and will become more and more of the population.
It sounds good...until you dig into the numbers.

Let's start with Latinos.

You should meet Lucy Tidd. She is 8. It is unusual for such a young child to be scaring the bejeezus out of adults across the land.

Because looking at the behavior of those adults...adults who enough people judged to be sufficiently mentally competent that they elected them to public office, you'd think she was a serial killer.

It was the first day of third grade and 8-year-old Lucy was sitting in the principal’s office with her parents, crying her heart out. She was terrified. Mark and I sat with her and said: ‘This is your journey. We will go and do whatever you want.’ She had this blue bunny and she just held onto that and sobbed and sobbed. And then Mark carried her to the classroom.

--Briget Tidd

The scariest thing is that nobody knew except for the teachers. The kids saw Benjamin walk into school dressed like a girl, and they were like, ‘Hey, Benji.’ They were confused, but there was no malicious intent.

--Mark Tidd

Lucy didn’t relax until recess, when her mother helped a group of curious girls understand what was happening.

I said to them, ‘This is the same person you played with last year, that you played four square with, that you played jump rope with, that you ran around and played ball with. This is the same exact person.’ Only now, Benji wants to be just like you...like a girl.

--Briget Tidd

“I said, ‘Do you think that we can let her be herself and do this?’ ” Bridget asked the girls, who nodded in agreement. “Then the next thing I know they took her hand and they ran and that was it.”

I stood there with tears in my eyes, trusting that the rest of the day would be OK, and I let her go. And at that moment she was completely free, and we’ve never turned back.

Hey! Good Evening!

This evening's music features jazz pianist, bandleader and composer, Count Basie. Enjoy!

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Saturday February 10, 1906
Greensboro, North Carolina - Mother Jones Interviewed, Tells of Children in the Mills

The following is an interview with Mother Jones which was published in the February 8th edition of the Greensboro Daily Industrial News:

NO STRIKE COMING SAYS MOTHER JONES
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Noted Socialist Thinks General Uprising
Will Be Avoided by Both Sides.
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SPEAKS OF CHILD LABOR AND
ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
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Amusing Anecdotes Related By Her Show Her Fearlessness and
Sense of Humor as Well as Her Lack of "Respect of Persons."
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Mother Jones leading the March of the Mill Children, 1903
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In Sunday's paper:

The Boston Globe editorial board called out "irrational objections" to a Massachusetts bill that would provide non-discrimination protections for transgender people, debunking the right-wing myth that these protections would endanger women and children.

--Media Matters

The bill is H1577/S735. Speaker Robert deLeo is polling members of the House to see if the bill has enough support to override a potential veto by Gov. Charlie Baker.

What I’m starting to do is to do polling and see where the members stand, but I also have to be concerned that the governor’s going to veto it: Do we have enough to override the veto? So that’s the quandary. Although the governor hasn’t said one way or the other, I have to be prepared in case he does it.

--deLeo

(Educated Marxists will recognize the title of this "new essay" as riffing off of Marx's eleven Theses on Feuerbach. For Marx, writing in 1845, this text represents a final break from Feuerbach's contemplative materialism and an embrace of historical materialism, a doctrine familiar in name but not in spirit to those for whom this "new essay" is written.)

Hey! Good Evening!

This evening's music features jazz trombonist and bandleader Jack Teagarden. Enjoy!

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Friday February 9, 1906
Greensboro, North Carolina - Interview with Mother Jones

The Daily Industrial News of Greensboro published the following interview with Mother Jones in its February 7th edition:

MOTHER JONES TELLS OF HER MISSION IN LIFE
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Noted Socialist Visits Greensboro and Chats Most Entertainingly of Her Work,
Her Purpose and the Tactics She Invariably Pursues.
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"Mother" Jones, the noted socialist who is to speak in Labor Union Hall on tomorrow night, came to this city two days ago. She was seen by a Daily Industrial News reporter last night, and talked freely of her life and work.

So many people picture "Mother" Jones as a kind of Carrie Nation who wields her hatchet against governments instead of saloons that the sight of the real woman fairly takes away the breath.

The best description of "Mother" Jones is her own soubriquet "mother," and when to that wholesome-hearted out-reaching motherliness is added humor, even mischievousness, jollity, and "spunk" immeasurable the reality is almost approached.

To reach it quite, however, would be impossible, for "Mother" Jones is one of those indescribable little persons who always just eludes description and analysis. Classify her as a woman fighter and striker, and her tender, sweet gentleness comes up in contradiction. Classify her as the woman with heart so exquisitely sympathetic and pitying that it aches for every hurt suffered by a fellow creature and the picture of the intrepid woman marching at the head of a great army of workmen baffles one.