On this day in labor history, the year was 1937.
That was the day Indiana Governor, M. Clifford Townsend, dispatched State National Guard troops to Anderson, Indiana.
The national strike against GM had just ended in victory for the union two days earlier.
UAW forces were emboldened by the militancy, solidarity and public support for the union in Flint. But Anderson was a company town.
It was home to GM’s Guide Lamp and Delco-Remy divisions.
GM employed over 11,000 of the town’s 40,000 residents.
Guide Lamp workers struck in late December and Delco-Remy plants closed to prevent sit-downs.
Foremen visited workers in their homes, demanding signatures for back-to-work petitions.
The Citizens League for Industrial Security whipped almost half the town into an anti-union frenzy.
The entire month of January was so marred by anti-union violence and intimidation, the strike had to be abandoned.
When the national strike ended, the UAW organized a victory meeting.
It was held virtually under siege by an anti-union mob.
Victor Reuther recalled he aged 10 years that night.
Anti-union violence broke out the next evening at the Gold Band Tavern.
The bar owner shot and wounded at least 10 UAW members.
Union backup headed to Anderson. Fearing UAW forces, the Indiana National Guard was deployed and Madison County was placed under martial law for 10 days.
In the classic history of the Flint Sit-Down, Sidney Fine explains that anti-union sentiment began to break down once workers learned GM had been forced to eliminate incentive pay.
The union newspaper proclaimed: “The men and women who fought on the picket line; who withstood the terror of the vigilantes; who kept their faith under trying conditions; these people changed the conditions in the shops.”
September 25 - Martyred for the Vote
September 24 - Banned in Canada
September 23 - Dr. Harriet Louise Hardy is Born
September 22 - The First Farm Aid
September 21 - Fighting Just to Maintain Standards
September 20 - The Fight for Equality
September 19 - The End of My Sweet Jennie
September 18 - The Atlanta Compromise
September 17 - Striking in the South
September 16 - NHL Managers Lock Out Players
September 15 - The Invergordon Mutiny
September 14 - The Murder of Ella Mae Wiggins
September 13 - Attica!
September 12 - The Making of a National Treasure
September 11 - The Christiana Riot
September 10 - Minneapolis Printers Organize
September 9 - The Hanapepe Massacre
September 8 - Defying Nazi Occupation
September 7 - The Federal Employees Compensation Act
September 6 - Jane Addams is Born
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