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Rozner, Sarah (audio interview #10 of 20)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the eighteenth interview with Sarah Rozner conducted in her home. She seemed more vigorous and healthy on this occasion. TOPICS - discussions of various women active in ACWA, including Hilda Shapiro and Ruth Miller; health problems; Brookwood Labor Colleges school for children; Women in Industry Conference; and meaning of Brookwood Labor College experience;Topics on this side of the tape focus on the way that people in ACWA were disadvantaged by going to Brookwood Labor College, in contrast to those in other unions; 12/13/1973
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- 2020-04-06
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- File: lhgwsrozner35.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-5:12)... Tape begins abruptly with a discussion about Katie Brooks. Brooks attended Bryn Mawr and was a delegate on the Joint Board for a year. She worked in the sportswear industry as a shirtmaker. Rozner met Brooks in Los Angeles approximately thirty years ago. Brooks supported women's issues, but never spoke out in defense of women in an open forum. The women Rozner tried to help cared more about surviving than an ideal. Although she made her mark in the union, the women only supported her behind closed doors. At presentations and meetings, the women did not have the courage to stand up for their rights because they were afraid of losing their jobs. Sadie Goodman was on the Joint Board with Brooks. Rozner defended Goodman in several instances throughout her career with the ACWA; however, Goodman never supported Rozner when she addressed women's issues in public. When Rozner moved to Los Angeles, she did not pursue women's issues separately like she did in Chicago. (5:12-7:48)... Rozner discusses Ruth Miller, who she feels could accomplish more. Miller blames the Business Agents for not cooperating with her, but Rozner contends that no men are willing to cooperate with female union officials. In general, men are not interested in promoting women in union offices, but only want to dictate to women and "play" with them. It makes Rozner very angry when she thinks about these injustices towards women. She believes that if she had a better education, she would have been a better fighter in the union. Instead, she fought instinctively without any intellectual understanding. (7:48-9:47)... Hilda Shapiro was not as arrogant or tough as Rozner, but she believed in helping women. Rozner recalls the mistreatment she received as a Business Agent, indicating that when she felt like she was at her breaking point, she got sick and went away for a couple of weeks. The men never knew that she suffered from their abuse because she refused to let it show. (9:47-14:08)... When she was ill, she formally requested sick or vacation leave from the shop or the union. Although her journal entries indicate that she was ill most of her life, she personified a strong and healthy appearance. Most of the time, when she requested lengthy sick or vacation time, it was precipitated by struggles in the shop or with the union. (14:08-16:08)... She describes her personal relationship with Oscar Ellet, indicating that she once joked with him about getting married. She talked about going to the city hall, but he backed out. She did not want to marry him, but wanted to prove that he was a coward and not seriously interested in her. At a party, she was pressured to kiss him, but she put her hand over her mouth. She was not interested in irresponsible or haphazard men like Ellet, but intellectuals. (16:08-19:44)... The founder of Brookwood Labor College also developed a small school for exceptional children of radicals and labor leaders. The students were not graded in their studies; there were approximately fifty children who attended the school, ranging in ages six to twelve. The school was located near Brookwood Labor College and was closed at the same time that Brookwood was. The children's school was also financed by the labor movement. (19:44-31:22)... The women's conference in Washington, D.C. in 1925 was organized by women who advocated the ERA. Labor women from several trade unions attended the conference because they were arguing for protective legislation. The two groups of women debated over the issues of gender equality versus protective legislation. She did not have any intellectual or educational knowledge of the issues at hand, but only knew what needed to be done instinctively. Her efforts were motivated by an inner feeling to help women. Even though she had no knowledge of the skills or responsibilities required of a Business Agent, she wanted this position so that she could open the door for other women because they had a right to be represented in the union. (31:22-32:58)... Although her other sisters were sympathetic to women's issues, they were not active in the union. Rozner's sister Fannie worked in the shop, but her real dream was to become an opera singer. (32:58-42:59)... Rozner describes Shapiro as a woman who was constantly seeking love because she did not have the love of her parents. Shapiro left her home when she was twelve or thirteen years old and began working. She was involved with the YWCA, where she received an education and then went to Bryn Mawr College. Shapiro worked as an organizer and then became a Chairlady of a shop in Los Angeles. Shapiro was appointed union organizer because of her educational background at Bryn Mawr. However, Rozner's education at Brookwood Labor College did not advance her political or professional career in the ACWA. In general, she believes that men and women from the ACWA who attended Brookwood Labor College were treated differently when they returned to the union. In fact, when she campaigned for an office in the Local, people used her education at Brookwood against her. She digresses into a discussion of her perception as a union official. She believes that she was unfit for these positions because she wanted to give up and was tired of feeling the misery of the workers. She gave up her positions as Chairwoman and Business Agent because of the struggle and because she did not believe in holding one position for too long. end of tape File: lhgwsrozner36.mp3 (0:00-7:00)... Tape begins with a continued discussion of Brookwood Labor College. She cannot give a definitive reason why the union perceived her education at Brookwood Labor College as a negative attribute. The other members of the ACWA who attended Brookwood were also negatively affected, while people from other unions who attended, such as the ILGWU, were honored. (7:00-16:48)... Personally, she believes that sending her to Brookwood Labor College was an opportunity for the ACWA to get her out of their way and out of the union. Although she will never know their reasons, she believes that the union was tired of her opposition. She came into the union in 1910 with a good record, but did not turn out like the union wanted her to. Most of the people from other unions went into leadership positions after their attendance at Brookwood Labor College, for example Rose Pesotta of ILGWU. She recalls that one woman from the ACWA entered Brookwood as an organizer in Philadelphia, but did not amount to anything when she returned to the union. Rozner also believes that this phenomena happened to Goodman, who worked as a Business Agent before she went to Brookwood. After Rozner left Brookwood, she campaigned for shop Chairwoman and her opposition told people that she was too good for the workers and would talk down to them because she went to Brookwood. She valued her education at Brookwood and recalls it as the best two years of her life. Prior to going, the workers looked up to her and she was earning comparatively more than the average tailor. She had the least amount of schooling among the students at Brookwood, but no one looked down on her and she was liked by the faculty and the students. Over the years, her experiences at Brookwood made her feel like her life was worthwhile. (16:48-18:23)... At Brookwood Labor College, the environment was very cooperative. There was a cooperative store and students were required to work at least ten hours a week, cooking, cleaning, completing work outside, doing laundry, etc. While she was there, her main responsibilities were waiting on tables and cooking, which made people happy because she was a good cook. End of tape
- SUBJECT BIO - Sarah Rozner joined the ranks of the labor movement the minute she set foot on US soil and began working in men's clothing in Chicago just prior to the 1910 strike. She organized practically every shop in which she worked - unless she was fired first - and was particularly interested in mobilizing women and helping them to assert their rights. Her woman/feminist consciousness led her to work on the establishment of a Woman's Local of the ACWA in Chicago (Local 275). She worked with other women in the ACWA to establish a Woman's Bureau, but did not succeed. She became one of the first women Business Agents in tailoring in Chicago in 1921, and held various positions in the shops and in the union. When she moved to Los Angeles in 1938, she continued to organize at the shop level, establishing education programs for workers at Louart. She continued to advocate for women, and when she retired in 1959, she established a scholarship for women. Even after her retirement, Rozner remained involved with the union, became a member of CLUW (Coalition of Labor Women) after its formation, and remained outspoken on women's issues, particularly in the labor movement. The interviews with Rozner totaled almost hours, divided fairly evenly between her activities in Chicago and in Los Angeles. She was interviewed as part of the Feminist History Research Project labor series, referred by the ACWA. INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the eighteenth interview with Sarah Rozner conducted in her home. She seemed more vigorous and healthy on this occasion. TOPICS - discussions of various women active in ACWA, including Hilda Shapiro and Ruth Miller; health problems; Brookwood Labor Colleges school for children; Women in Industry Conference; and meaning of Brookwood Labor College experience;Topics on this side of the tape focus on the way that people in ACWA were disadvantaged by going to Brookwood Labor College, in contrast to those in other unions;
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