Minneapolis has an exceedingly rich working class history that long pre- and post-dates 1934’s famous Teamsters strike. The year following those events, as the city seethed with a new unionism, Machinists Local 1313 led an organizing drive on an industrial basis in the city’s south side ironworks. On September 9, 1935 Minneapolis police–under its Farmer-Labor Party mayor Tom Latimer–fired into a crowd of thousands of strikers and their supporters at the Flour City foundry, killing two completely uninvolved bystanders as it wounded dozens of workers. In response masses came to the streets to demand the mayor and police chief’s resignation, sparking days of fighting.

‘Minneapolis Sees Mass Uprising Against Traitor ‘Labor’ Mayor’ from New Militant. Vol. 1 No. 39. September 21, 1935.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn., Sept. 16. Not for a year has Minneapolis had such a hectic week of working class struggles as took place during the past week. On Monday, September 9, around 9 o’clock at night, a group of strikers and sympathizers staged a demonstration at the Flour City Ornamental Iron Company, where a strike of structural iron workers, Local 1313, A.F. of L., has been in progress for about two months. Again on Tuesday night, over 5,000 demonstrators gathered at the plant, to be finally scattered at midnight by repeated police charges. Armored cars patrolled the district, drenching block after men and block with tear gas, and mercilessly clubbing women.

Scores were injured by the police, acting under the orders of Mayor Tom (“Let ’em have it!”) Latimer, Farmer-Laborite.

Wednesday night climaxed the picketing demonstrations. By nine o’clock in the evening, over 5,000 workers and sympathizers had again gathered outside the plant. A double shift of police and half-a-dozen armored cars were on hand to greet the crowd. Within the plant were over a dozen imported Pinkerton thugs, armed to the teeth, protecting two scabs. It was this provocation, staged by Walter Tetzlaff, plant owner, which had aroused the ire of Minneapolis workers. At eleven o’clock sharp, things began to happen. There are many differences of opinion as to just how events developed. Some workers on the picket line claim that the first shots came from the Pinkerton gangsters within the plant. Others say the cops, after tear-gassing the crowd across the street from the plant and driving them back between the houses, whipped out revolvers and began to fire hysterically into the crowd. Other cops fired shotguns into the demonstration from the confines of the armored cars. Inspector Fritz Ohman, on the other hand, when questioned Friday by the grand jury, said, “It just started. No one knows just how.”

One fact is indisputable. Aside from slight injuries sustained from thrown rocks, no cop was hurt. Two innocent bystanders were instantly killed from gunshot wounds in the chests. An eye-witness has described the death of 18-year-old Eugene Casper, killed on his way home from a church gathering: “I saw a policeman shoot Casper as he was crossing the street in a little trot. Casper staggered when struck by the bullet. He walked on a few steps, tried to say something, and then slumped to the ground.” Aside from the two killed, a dozen or more were injured by police gunfire. Dozens more were injured by the clubs and blackjacks of the cops. One woman was struck in the mouth by a tear gas bomb fired at her just as she was descending, from a street car. The Minneapolis Journal writes that “the receiving room at General Hospital, took on the appearance of a wartime behind-the-lines hospital as the stream of wounded started coming in. The hospital corridors were literally running with blood.”

Fighting continued until 2 o’clock in the morning, with the armored cars patrolling for blocks around, continually pouring tear gas into small grouplets wherever they gathered. Finally the pickets and the crowd left, vowing to come back the next night.

Mass Pressure Closes Down Plant

The reaction to the wanton police savagery was so great that the next morning the mayor was forced to clear out all scabs and gunmen from the plant. These people were escorted to St. Paul. The grand jury immediately prepared a whitewash investigation, as Tetzlaff hid himself in the bosom of the Citizens Alliance. In the meantime, the rank and file of the Farmer-Labor party were boiling at the actions of their strike-breaking mayor and city council. A special meeting was hurriedly arranged for Thursday night at the large Eagles Hall, called by the Farmer-Labor Women’s Federation and the F.-L. Veterans Association.

Mayor Booed Down

The hall was packed with rank-and-file Farmer-Laborites as Mayor Latimer, the first speaker, was introduced from the platform. The mayor turned pale as he was booed by the enraged crowd. Finally he managed to make himself heard and made a lame statement, crying that the Hennepin County grand jury bound him hand and foot. promising that a “thorough investigation would be made of all that occurred” and begging for three more months, at the expiration of which it was understood he would have fully proved himself. Alderman Ed Hudson, another Farmer-Labor member, was jeered when he started to say that what was done by police at the riot was done “by men who in the skirmish lost their minds.”

“You’re trying to whitewash the mayor. Don’t play politics!” yelled the audience.

State Representative Bellman (F.-L.) drew cheers from the audience as he placed direct responsibility for the situation upon Latimer, and demanded the dismissal of the policemen participating in the riot. Alderman Scott earned the cheers of the crowded hall by taking a clear-cut position on the whole affair, and exposing the excuses of Latimer and the police. He called for the expulsion of Latimer from the Farmer-Labor party, and asked that he resign as mayor.

It remained for Bill Brown, president of Local 574, to say what had to be said. Brown completely exposed the gutlessness of Mayor Latimer, told the crowd how a true working class mayor would have acted even though it led to his impeachment, and called for immediate removal of the police butchers. Brown also completely exposed the mayor’s latest “employer-employee” arbitration board, which is a 1935 pocket edition of the Citizens Alliance. He was cheered for several minutes, as Latimer, sitting at the back of the stage, looked like a whipped dog. As other Farmer-Laborites rose and tried to ease the pressure on the mayor, the meeting almost broke up through indignation. Order finally was restored and the meeting was officially adjourned. It fell to Harry Mayville, local Stalinist, to demonstrate the Communist Party’s bankruptcy by telling the Farmer-Laborites that “your party is not rotten. I and my party want to see a mass Farmer-Labor party in the state and city.”

Now we of the Workers Party know better than Mayville that the Farmer-Labor rank and filers are certainly not “rotten”; but we also know that if ever the workers have had a chance to see the complete impotence of reformism, it has been in this state and city during the past few years. To claim otherwise is to cry for a Stalinist moon. The meeting ended with representatives of the next day’s relief demonstration appealing to the crowd for support. As Latimer left the hall with his bodyguard through the rear door, he was accosted by an angry iron worker and struck in the mouth. Friends hurried him away to his limousine.

Latimer Gets In Deeper and Deeper

As was to be expected, the Citizens Alliance-dominated grand jury completely exonerated the police from Wednesday’s murderous onslaught, saying “we believe the police department did the best they could with the number of men they had.” The report concluded with the observation that “the unemployment being so great, so many people with nothing to do but follow disturbances for excitement, the spirit of unrest existing in Minneapolis will undoubtedly responsible for additional outbreaks.” (As though the unemployed demonstrated “for excitement,” instead of for increased relief, for jobs, and in a spirit of solidarity with employed workers.) The grand jury also asked for an addition of 200 to the police force.

The Farmer-Labor mayor fell in with this report and meekly asked for 200 more police. This was too much for the Farmer-Labor councilmen even, one of whom, Alderman Pearson, said: “I am opposed to the proposal to add more policemen for the explicit purpose of clubbing laboring men.” The anger of the city rose even higher.

On Saturday afternoon, hundreds of workers participated in the funeral processions of the two bystanders shot down Wednesday night.

Investigations Continue

Latimer intends to continue his phony riot investigation this afternoon at 4:30, calling in some “impartial observers.” When representatives of the Non-Partisan Labor Defense called on the mayor’s secretary yesterday and offered scores of witnesses, including many people who live in the neighborhood of the scene of the riot, they were told that no more witnesses are needed.

The Central Labor Union, the Hennepin County F.-L. Association and the Non-Partisan Labor Defense plan to hold separate public hearings during the next few days, so that the true story of what took place can be brought to light for all to see and understand.

Workers Party Plans Meeting

On Friday night, Sept. 20, a meeting at the Pythian Hall is called by the Minneapolis branch, Workers Party of the U.S., where V.R. Dunne, prominent Minneapolis trade unionist and member of the National Committee of the Workers Party, will speak on “Three Months of Farmer-Labor Rule in Minneapolis: What They PROMISED and What They GAVE!”

Among the questions to be discussed by comrade Dunne are: the Mayor’s employer-employee board and the meaning of the phrase, “industrial peace”; can the Farmer-Labor Party be reformed?; what is the meaning of the present attacks upon progressive trade unionists in Minneapolis and throughout the nation?; what is the attitude of a real workers’ political party toward the trade unions? etc.

In the meantime, resentment among all the workers continues to seethe and grow. And what a working class there is in Minneapolis! For dauntless, inspiring courage against all odds, for solidarity against the bosses and the labor fakers, Minneapolis workers need not bow to working class fighters anywhere in the world.

Hundreds of relief workers Local 574’s Federal Workers Section have already demanded that the united front with the Stalinists be immediately broken off. They can no longer stomach the quackery of these charlatans.

Governor Olson, eager to place his heel on Latimer’s neck as a maneuver to get back in the good graces of the Minneapolis workers, has mobilized 150 national guardsmen in St. Paul and is keeping them in readiness for any further outbreaks.

Today a movement was making headway to read Latimer out of the Farmer-Labor party, and petitions for his impeachment began to circulate all over town.

At this writing, word comes that the Non-Partisan Labor Defense will open its public trial tonight at the General Drivers Auditorium. The trial of the people vs. Mayor Latimer, Police Chief Forestal and the city administration will get under way with the hearing of dozens of witnesses to the Wednesday massacre witnesses that were refused a “hearing by Latimer’s star chamber proceedings.

The New Militant was the weekly paper of the Workers Party of the United States and replaced The Militant in 1934, The Militant was a weekly newspaper begun by supporters of the International Left Opposition recently expelled from the Communist Party in 1928 and published in New York City. Led by James P Cannon, Max Schacthman, Martin Abern, and others, the new organization called itself the Communist League of America (Opposition) and saw itself as an outside faction of both the Communist Party and the Comintern. After 1933, the group dropped ‘Opposition’ and advocated a new party and International. When the CLA fused with AJ Muste’s American Workers Party in late 1934, the paper became the New Militant as the organ of the newly formed Workers Party of the United States.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/themilitant/1935/sep-21-1935.pdf