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Rozner, Sarah (audio interview #5 of 20)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the thirteenth interview with Sarah Rozner, conducted in her home. In the beginning of the interview, it was obvious that Rozner was not feeling well. She had some problems with her speech and was not able to concentrate very well; however, by the end of the interview she seemed to be feeling better. Although the interview shifted between several topics, it generally followed a chronological sequence. TOPICS - Los Angeles laundry workers strike, 1939; struggle between AFL and the CIO; attitudes toward leaders in the union; power struggles in the union and shop;power struggles in the union in Los Angeles; role and programs she instituted at Louart; decision to retire; 10/23/1973
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- 2020-04-05
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- File: lhgwsrozner25.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-2:07)... Tape introduction. (2:07-8:04)... In 1939, she participated in the laundry workers strike involving the cleaners, dyers, and the laundry workers from Local 268. The cleaners and dyers were controlled by Slim Connelly and the communists, while she and Bellano (?) organized the wardrobe laundry workers. During the strike, the government was investigating the dyers and the cleaners because there was a scandal involving the Local and events that transpired prior to Connelly taking control of the Local. The biggest problem with organizing the laundry workers was with the dryers, who lead the laundry industry. Most of the laundry workers were Blacks and Mexicans, and she recalls distributing strike funds to these workers. When the strike was settled and a union agreement was being negotiated, the manager of the union was golfing and could not be reached. (8:04-9:33)... During the 1930s, and even today, there were jurisdictional disputes between the AFL and the CIO. She recalls that there are still two unions for the laundry workers. She did not experience any difficulties during the strike because of these internal conflicts. (9:33-12:44)... Following the laundry workers strike, Peppercorn (?) was sent in to manage the union. He was later arrested because an employer framed him. Rozner took this employer to the Labor Relations Board for labor abuses and he went out of business. (12:44-16:54)... Rozner first met Rose Pesotta when they were enrolled at Brookwood Labor College together. She recalls that Pesotta came from Bryn Mawr. They did not become friends when Rozner moved to Los Angeles. In general, while she attended Brookwood Labor College she was consumed with her studies and was not overly interested in cultivating friendships. She digresses and talks about the death of her father at the time she was sponsoring a dance for the laundry workers in Los Angeles. She did not stop her activities and did not attend his funeral. (16:54-20:25)... The laundry workers strike was successful. The majority of workers were Mexicans and Blacks. It was always difficult to organize the Black workers, but she pursued them and was able to gain their confidence in a short time. Many of these people helped her in the kitchen during the strike. Although she has a difficult time remembering the 1939 laundry workers strike, her recollection of the 1910 strike in Chicago is clearer. She recalls marching through the red light district during this strike and encountering the prostitutes on the street. (20:25-21:40)... She did not take any steps to organize a Women's Local in Los Angeles, but generally did whatever she could to promote women's activities. She attempted to send women to summer school and made efforts to get women elected to the Joint Board and the Executive Board. (21:40-31:21)... In 1953, she decided to leave her position as chairwoman at Louart and she began training a person to take her place. She decided to run for the election because she opposed the other candidate who was picked by the employer and the Business Agent. There were approximately 150 people working in the shop, yet there were 200 ballots cast. Union officials denied fixing this election, but she knew what occurred. After 1953, she stayed in the shop and began experiencing problems with the employer and with the Business Agent. She was sent home on several occasions for poor work and then was fired. The Business Agent (Brock) refused to help her. She believes that he was taking orders from the manager (Posner) with whom she had problems in the past. When she requested to go to the convention in 1956, Posner denied her credentials. She explains that some of the union officials were powerless to make decisions on their own and simply took orders from the labor manager or higher union officials. She did not attack union officials at open meetings because it looked bad for the union and she didn't want to hurt the union. Her confrontations with union leaders took place in private. Many unionists did not remain committed to their original union principles, but used the union as a stepping stone in their careers. Although she does not like to criticize the union, her attempts to record these events are meant for scholars to analyze the union and be made aware that the ACWA was not a perfect organization. (31:21-34:03)... She describes her attitudes towards three union officials: Schlossberg, Rosenblum, and Hillman, all of whom were different in their ideology and character. Schlossberg was an idealist whom she admired because he was a fatherly figure and possessed qualities very similar to a rabbi. She admired Rosenblum for his intelligence, not his personality. She views Hillman as an opportunist, but describes him as a the body of the ACWA and Schlossberg as the soul. (34:03-37:38)... She describes Los Angeles as an unstable city with mentally unstable inhabitants. When she arrived in 1938, it was very difficult to find work. She believes that the only reason she found a job with the union was because the communists were ousted. When she worked as chairwoman at Louart she was very strict and did not allow people to play cards or bet on the horses while working, which caused many people to dislike her. It was for these reasons that people in the shop believed she was defeated. However, she claims that she could not have stayed working for too much longer and wanted to prepare herself for retirement. Two years before she retired, she gave up caring about the opposition from the workers and the union. (37:38-40:14)... While working in Los Angeles, she believes she held a substantial amount of power, which was the main reason why the union leadership opposed her. She contends that Rosenblum knew of the attempts to unseat her as chairwoman, but no one acknowledged this. Allegations were even made against her that she was hoarding work. (40:14-44:05)... Originally, Rozner wanted to train a Black woman to replace her as chairwoman at Louart, but this woman declined the offer. She then selected a Mexican presser who was active in all of the shop committees. Unfortunately, he left the shop because the employer and the Business Agent made his life very difficult. She believes that the union used this as an opportunity to take her out of power. They knew that she wanted to leave the position and that she wanted to guide someone to take her place. She did not believe that a person was meant to monopolize any one position. When she retired, she remained active and often spoke at other Locals. However, the union was still afraid of her power. In fact, when she was invited to speak at a Local in San Diego, the union tried to stop her from going. end of tape File: lhgwsrozner26.mp3 (0:00-2:04)... Tape begins with a continued discussion of an invitation to speak in San Diego. When she received an invitation to speak in front of the Joint Board and at the Locals in San Diego, the union discouraged her from going. She believes that it was because she was not part of the union organization, but was working independently. Nevertheless, she believes that she was always a part of the union. Digressing, she comments that although she originally believed in Hillman and thought that he would change things in the union, she could no longer support him after he became involved in politics. (2:04-9:02)... Sadie Goodman was not very rebellious in the union and neither was Hilda Shapiro, although she had her rebellious moments. Rozner claims that she herself was more active than these women, particularly in relation to advancing women in the union. In general, women did not support Rozner's efforts to help them. She did get support from the women in the union who were more enlightened, but there were very few of them. She contends that women were easily bought and sold and if Rosenblum promised them a delegation to the next labor convention, they aligned themselves with him and the union. It was the same in Los Angeles. She returns to a discussion of Brookwood Labor College and her activities in Chicago, indicating that she was interested in educating the workers even before she went to the college. Local 275 (the Women's Local) was very active in this regard, but by the time of the interview it no longer existed. Interruption in tape (9:02-13:01)... When the person she was training to take her place as chair at Louart left the shop, she decided to run because the opposing candidate was not beneficial for the workers. Following the election, there was a three-year period when the shop was running fairly smoothly, but then it got worse because the employer began taking advantage of the workers even with the knowledge of union officials. (13:01-22:23)... When she was chairlady [sic] at Louart she developed several programs, including a leadership training program; these classes educated the workers about the union. As a result, many workers organized and persuaded people to join the union. She developed these programs as an example for other shops to follow in the city and throughout the country. If there was a strike, the people at Louart were at the forefront of the picket lines. After she left the shop, all of these programs slowly disappeared. She believes that while her influence helped some people to become loyal trade unionists, other people never became active. Her main interest, however, was promoting people and exposing them to activism and trade unionism. (22:23-23:53)... Although at the time she was unaware of it, the union leadership resented her activities. However, she did not care what these people thought of her programs because she was convinced that she was doing the right thing. The union opposition was very difficult to deal with and she often became frustrated that these people could not see that she was trying to help the union and the workers. (23:53-36:46)... Some of the workers who attended the leadership training classes became class conscious as a result of their education. While she worked at Louart there were some communists working in the shop. She had the power to fire them without waiting for instructions from the employer, but she did not concern herself with people's political ideologies as long as it didn't interfere with their shop responsibilities. However, she purposely would not place a communist in a position of power. The majority of people were not willing to sacrifice themselves for the union as she did. When she worked as a Business Agent and chairwoman, she insisted that people attend Local meetings and participate on the picket lines. She believes that this was the main purpose of joining the union. Although she describes herself as a rough person who often used foul language, she did not show these personality traits in front of the workers. However, she was strict and did not allow workers to gamble in the shop. (36:46-43:34)... Even though she retired at the age of sixty-five, she wanted to continue her activities and speak at Locals. She decided to retire in 1958 and probably could not have continued to work because of her physical condition. Even though people made her life miserable while she worked in the labor movement, she never gave them the satisfaction of seeing her hurt or suffering. She returns to a discussion regarding union leaders, noting that Rosenblum believed that he did more in the union than anyone else. Although she did not care for his personality, she admired him for what he did for the union. She felt very warmly about Sam Levine and describes him as a father figure, while Schlossberg was similar to a rabbi.
- 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 thirteenth interview with Sarah Rozner, conducted in her home. In the beginning of the interview, it was obvious that Rozner was not feeling well. She had some problems with her speech and was not able to concentrate very well; however, by the end of the interview she seemed to be feeling better. Although the interview shifted between several topics, it generally followed a chronological sequence. TOPICS - Los Angeles laundry workers strike, 1939; struggle between AFL and the CIO; attitudes toward leaders in the union; power struggles in the union and shop;power struggles in the union in Los Angeles; role and programs she instituted at Louart; decision to retire;
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