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Rozner, Sarah (audio interview #8 of 20)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the sixteenth interview with Sarah Rozner conducted in her home. Rozner was feeling much better on this occasion than during the two previous sessions. TOPICS - family background; immigration; siblings; sex education;immigration to the US; conditions of the ship; arrival at Ellis Island; and first impressions of life in the United States; 11/20/1973
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- 2020-04-05
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- File: lhgwsrozner31.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-2:20)... Tape introduction. (2:20-5:42)... Rozner recollects some experiences in Hugary, before her emigration to the US, including her feelings about a wealthy Jewish family. In retrospect, she compares her feelings towards these people to how Negroes felt towards White people in the South. She describes Hungarians as a proud and rebellious people. Although she did not know this while growing up in the culture, she learned of these characteristics at an older age. She did not question cultural traditions or religious guidelines as a child, but did what she was told. (5:42-17:35)... When her parents immigrated to the United States, she and three of her siblings were separated and sent to live with family members in other cities. [Note: tape interruption.] Her parent's immigration to the US was precipitated by a letter her father wrote to one of Rozner's sisters who was already living in Chicago. This sister had been living there for two years, working as a domestic. Rozner's oldest brother, Morris, and another sister were also living in the US. (17:35-28:19)... She was sent to live with her maternal grandmother, two uncles, and an aunt in Nagy when her parents left for the United States. At the time, Rozner was almost fifteen years old. While living with her maternal grandmother, she had plenty to eat. She went to work for a seamstress in the town, but did not stay long because the other children who worked there smelled very bad. Her mother's family enjoyed Rozner because she was raised in a good household. It was difficult for her and her two younger sisters to be away from their mother. Her oldest sister was wealthy and owned several stores in Budapest, where her brother and her youngest sister were sent. She recalls that her mother often sent things to Budapest to be sold in these shops in an attempt to make extra money for the family. (28:19-33:59)... Rozner started menstruating when was staying with her grandmother. Her grandmother took her to the doctor because she was bleeding heavily. At the time, Rozner had no idea what was happening to her because her mother did not explain menstruation to her and she was totally unprepared. Before she left her grandmother's home, she went to the rabbi in Halmi for a blessing. She was treated very well because she was a rabbi's daughter. Her family was held in high esteem in the community. (33:59-45:53)... Before she left for Budapest, her grandmother supplied her with food to take on her trip from Halmi. When she arrived in Budapest, her siblings ate all of the food. Her brother was a tailor and had an address in Vienna and a passport. Her sister, Fanny was his apprentice, but Rozner had no documents with her. Before she left for Vienna, her sister Molly instructed her to throw all of her writings away, which recorded all of her experiences up until that point in her life. She was very confused at the train station and when she got on the train she sat in the corner, away from her brother and sister. A man sat next to her and started talking to her, which she did not like. She believes that she was good looking and had a very nice face. When they arrived in Vienna, they contacted a friend of the family to see them onto the next leg of the trip. end of tape File: lhgwsrozner32.mp3 (0:00-7:51)... <tape begins abruptly with a continued discussion on her emigration experience> States> When she arrived in Bremen, they missed the ship they were to take to the United States and were stranded in Bremen for a week before they caught the next ship. They were penniless and homeless; they sold some buttons she had to buy some type of fruit that was very foul. The second ship that came in was a cattle ship and she does not believe it was meant to transport humans. She and her siblings were housed in the third-class section of the boat; all the girls slept in one section, while the boys were in a completely opposite compartment. She digresses to talk about battling with lice when she was in her hometown, recalling that she use to wash her hair every Saturday night with kerosene. When she boarded the ship, she was immediately exposed to lice again. The food on the ship was very poor and, although she was starving, she did not eat. Her brother made friends with a sailor who had coffee cake and they shared this. They also purchased a can of sardines and she bought beer. (7:51-13:52)... The passage to the United States took sixteen days. The ride was very rough. At one point, the sailors thought the boat may go under. People were very sea-sick. She recalls laughing at these events, which resulted in a sailor slapping her because it was a very tense situation. When they arrived at Castle Gardens (Ellis Island), they were quarantined on the ship for two days. They did not have an address or any money and remained on the island until her sister in Chicago sent them money. They purchased some packages of salami to eat and left for Chicago at 1:00 a.m. (13:52-20:33)... When Rozner arrived in Chicago, she went to work as a domestic servant for a butcher's wife. Although she was ignorant and unaware of her surroundings, she wasn't afraid. However, on her way home one day she got lost. She went into every butcher shop hoping to find someone with whom she could communicate. A woman helped her get home and Rozner kissed this woman's hand in gratitude. By contrast, when she was in Hungary, she refused to accept tips or kiss the hands of the women to whom she delivered dresses because she was too proud. (20:33-25:43)... She was born in a town called Varece and then moved to Novshella (?) when she was five years old. Her father taught rabbinical studies and worked at various odd jobs. She collected the payment from families for his teaching. She recalls that her mother drafted promissory notes to several people in the community and Rozner distributed these notes and collected the money. (25:43-30:15)... Most of the people in the third-class compartment on the ship to the United States were Russian and Polish Jews. She contrasts the experience on this ship to her trip to Europe on the Queen Mary. Reflecting on her life, she comments that it was not a bed of roses. She thinks about going to sleep and not waking up the next day. [She reads an entry from her journal about the birth of her nephew, recorded during the 1910 labor strike in Chicago.] 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 sixteenth interview with Sarah Rozner conducted in her home. Rozner was feeling much better on this occasion than during the two previous sessions. TOPICS - family background; immigration; siblings; sex education;immigration to the US; conditions of the ship; arrival at Ellis Island; and first impressions of life in the United States;
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