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Goodman, Emma (audio interview #3 of 3)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This third interview with Emma Goodman, conducted in her home as part of a student project , as in previous interviews doesn't have any clear chronological sequence, and is rather short on details. Nevertheless, it provides many valuable insights into the activities and life of a labor activist. TOPICS - United Neckwear Makers Union; birth control, gender ideology; juggling work and domestic responsibilities; activities as a Business Agent and organizer for the ILGWU; labor education; and views on "illegal immigration;" 12/2/1974
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- File: lhgwegoodman3.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-1:39)... The United Neckwear Makers Union comprised approximately 1,000 women. Eighty-five percent of the industry consisted of women finishers and the men worked as operators, pressers, and cutters. The finishers were paid less than the men and she wanted to become active in the union to fight for better wages. (1:39-3:57)... Both Margaret Sanger and Emma Goldman advocated birth control. At the time, birth control clinics were illegal, but Sanger provided verbal advice at birth control meetings. She recalls that the anarchists advocated no government, but then soon realized that some form of leadership was necessary because their meetings were very chaotic and unorganized. (3:57-5:45)... While in New York, the union leadership positions were dominated by men. It was taken for granted that men should manage and lead the organizations, but women like Emma Goldman, were rebels and protested male domination, arguing that women were just as capable as men. The question then arose of whether women should leave the home and their family to seek work and social activism outside the home. (5:45-7:04)... In the early 1920s, Los Angeles was considered an open city with several open shops. Even though there are still open shops today, unionization has forced these employers to take better care of their workers so that they are motivated to work for them, rather than leave and join a union shop. (7:04-9:04)... After moving to Los Angeles, she married in 1920 and gave birth to her first child in 1922. She joined the ILGWU in 1929-30, and remained an active member until her retirement in 1968. She combined her domestic responsibilities with her career. Her husband was very understanding and did not question her activities with the union. When he returned home from work in the evening, she was free to pursue activities outside the home. She never neglected her children or her home as a result of her work and labor union activities. (9:04-11:31)... Israel Feinberg was the father of the retirement fund of the ILGWU. He opposed communism and worked as a vice president of the union. She digresses into a discussion on her role as Business Agent, recalling how in the early days of the garment industry, four or five women worked to finish one garment, which is no longer the process today. (11:31-13:53)... She participated in picketing during strikes whenever it was necessary. She recalls that the union often called in workers to participate on the picket lines. In 1956, she was elected as a Business Agent. (13:53-17:14)... She recalls that the union offered sewing lessons to workers who were not accomplished in sewing skills. When closed shops needed workers, they called the union and workers were sent to these shops. She recalls that there were a lot Black workers, but they wanted to become managers of the union. She digresses into a discussion of how finishing work changed as a result of new developments in machinery. Business Agents dealt with the employers and workers directly, while managers worked in the union office. As a Business Agent, she handled the complaints on both ends. (17:14-18:46)... When she moved to Los Angeles, the city was dealing with the Red Scare. Unionists were often equated with communism and targeted. During this period, she recalls that both Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman were deported from the United States for their radical beliefs. (18:46-20:47)... Although she does not oppose immigration, she believes that people should come to the US legally and be required to undergo medical examinations before they are allowed to enter the country. It was always difficult to organize the workers, particularly non-Jews. She believes that the majority of Jewish people were imbued with unionism, making it easier to organize them. Other groups of people, such as the Italians, were harder to organize because they did not like paying union dues. She recalls that some ethnic groups abused the system by duplicating a union card and giving it to several members of their family. (20:47-21:57)... She recalls that there was some discrimination against organizers when they went to work at non-union shops. [Note: the audio quality is very poor in this segment.] (21:57-24:02)... If there was work in the shops, she worked for eight hours a day, which was a dramatic decrease in the number of hours the average person worked earlier in the century. The majority of the work was piecework, and when there was no work, people were not paid for their time. She believes that hourly work is much better than piecework; however, most workers preferred piecework because no one monitored how they spent their time. (24:02-25:20)... While in Los Angeles, she was not arrested for her labor union activities. When picketers were arrested, they did not stay in jail for very long because union officials bailed them out in a timely manner. (25:20-27:53)... As part of a labor education program, she took courses in political science, socialism, and public speaking, which was a typical program for people interested in becoming union organizers. She believes that a person also needed experience working in the shop in order to become a good organizer. Most of the union officials were from the rank and file. She contends that it is too difficult to teach a person who just graduated from college how to organize. (27:53-30:52)... Interruption in tape as result of doorbell ringing. She did not neglect her family as a result of her labor union activities. She digresses into a discussion on her attitude towards illegal immigrants working in the United States. She believes that although manufacturers want to help these people by providing them with steady work, she opposes these efforts because the immigrants take jobs away from taxpaying Americans. (30:52-32:32)... She is active in the Workmen's Circle and the Jewish Labor Committee, which raises money for scholarships and provides assistance to Israel so that the country can afford to send children to school. End of tape
- SUBJECT BIO - Emma Goodman became involved in labor struggles almost from the moment she landed in New York from Russia in 1912. During her stay in New York, she also had contact with the WTUL (Women's Trade Union League). She moved to Los Angeles in 1920 and married, and left the work force in1922 after the birth of her first child. She returned to work and joined the ILGWU in 1929-1930 and became active once again, eventually becoming a part-time organizer and later, in 1956, the Business Agent for Local 58. She retired after twelve years, in 1968, when her husband became ill. The interview with Goodman was conducted as a student project at UCLA. INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This third interview with Emma Goodman, conducted in her home as part of a student project , as in previous interviews doesn't have any clear chronological sequence, and is rather short on details. Nevertheless, it provides many valuable insights into the activities and life of a labor activist. TOPICS - United Neckwear Makers Union; birth control, gender ideology; juggling work and domestic responsibilities; activities as a Business Agent and organizer for the ILGWU; labor education; and views on "illegal immigration;"
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