In addition to a report from New York, where 15,000 marched in a parade and 25,000 gathered at Tompkins Square Park from May 30, 1934’s National Youth Day Against War and Fascism, are paragraphs from events across the country.
‘Huge Demonstrations on National Youth Day’ from Young Worker. Vol. 12 No. 12. June 5, 1934.
15,000 Parade in a Gigantic N.Y. Turnout
25,000 Demonstrate at Conclusion of 3 Hour March Thru East Side
NEW YORK Shouting slogans, singing proletarian battle songs, chanting in unison the demands of the youth until the canyon-like walls of the tenemented East Side became a sounding board for the struggle against Imperialist war and fascism, fully fifteen thousand youths paraded for three hours over a five-mile route in the mightiest united front National Youth Day ever held in the last four years.
Tens of thousands of workers, young and adult, lined the sidewalks as the parade surged through the narrow streets of New York’s most proletarian residential area and cheered to the echo the greatest youth demonstration against war and fascism staged so far.
Thousands in Square
Thousands marched along the sidelines over the whole course and wound up with the marchers at Tompkins Square where a huge crowd had already gathered to await the marchers. Twenty-five thousand attended the demonstration in Tompkins Square.
Led by an Immense banner carrying the inscription “United Youth Demonstration Against War and Fascism on National Youth Day. Auspices of the Youth Section of the American League Against War and Fascism,” the parade started promptly at 12:45. Then for a solid hour and a half, according to accurate timing, legion after legion of singing, cheering youth marched past the starting point into the parade.
With spectacular banners and streamers carrying slogans against Imperialist war and fascism, for defense of the Soviet Union, against the naval maneuvres, for the freedom of Thaelmann and all anti-fascist prisoners, for the freedom of the Scottsboro boys and Angelo Herndon, for unemployment insurance, for substitution of the C.C.C. camps by unemployment insurance and many others, hundreds of clubs and organizations marched in solid compact groups.
Particularly noticeable were the masses of young Communists who paraded under the banner of the New York district of the Young Communist League,
Children Section Cheered
One section cheered to the roof by the onlooking thousands was the blue uniformed Young Pioneers of America whose tots, some of them no more than ten years old, paraded sturdily along led by a well trained bugle and drum corps.
As if in proud defense of the splitting edict of their leaders who had forbidden then to march, four branches of the Y.P.S.L. controlled Young Circle League swung along in impressive unity with the thousands of other youth.
In the center of the parade and directly in front of the trade unions, in addition to the many hundreds of Negro youth marching together with their various organizations, came almost 1,500 Negro workers, youth and adult, men and women, who marched in a group under the banner of Father Devine’s Peace Mission. In addition to the fifteen hundred who marched on foot there were 42 cars, 8 busses and 2 trucks that brought up the rear of the Peace Mission contingent.
Sing Religious Hymns
Singing religious hymns, and bible songs, shouting slogans for peace, the Peace Mission contingent led by Father Devine, a Negro preacher who is attempting to swing the mass discontent of the Negro masses in Harlem into religious channels, presented an impressive indication of the united front character of the National Youth Day parade and demonstration.
It was clear that the tremendous anti-war and anu-fascist sentiment of the Negro masses even under the religious influence of Father Devine had compelled the participation of that organization in the parade.
At about four o’clock, the front ranks of the parade led by James Lerner of the Youth Section of the American League Against War and Fascism, Norman Tallentire of the American League, Gil Green, national Secretary of the Young Communist League, Charles Krumbein, district organizer of the Communist Party, John Little, district organizer of the Young Communist League, James J. Ford, member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party swung into the thickly crowded Tompkins Square.
Many Organizations Have Speakers
Among the speakers at the demonstration were James Lerner, chairman; Sid Spencer of the Y.C.L.; Joe Cohen of the National Student League: I. Plotkin of the Youth Division of the American Jewish Congress: Rosengarten of the International Workers Order; Norman Tallentire of the American League against War and Fascism; Father Devine of the Peace Mission.
Upon the conclusion of Father Devine’s short speech, James Lerner announced that while the majority of those present did not agree with the religious sentiments of Father Devine, the masses welcomed the participation of his organization in the joint struggle against war and fascism.
The demonstration was a mighty answer to the charges of the Y.P.S.L. leaders and the renegade groups, the Trotskyites and Lovestonites, that the National Youth Day committee had been following a sectarian policy.
***
Coast Police Open Fire; 2 Shot; 1 Dying
Union City Fascists Brutally Beat Youth At Workers’ Hall
SAN FRANCISCO, Cal. Two young workers were shot, one is dyeing in a local hospital and twenty-two others were seriously injured when the police murderously attached the National Youth Day demonstration in this city.
Police, even according to the capitalist newspapers, outdid even the fascist savagery displayed in the bloody attack on striking longshoremen last week when one worker was murdered by a cop.
On foot, mounted, in squad cars and cars, wearing gas masks and carrying shot guns and riot guns, police closed streets in all directions around Third and Howard where the parade was scheduled to begin.
Horses Ride Over Youth
At a signal from one of the officers, the police ran their horses and squad cars rough shod into the mass of young workers clubbing and shooting wildly. Mounted police trampled fourteen persons, including a thirteen year old girl under the iron hoofs of their vicious horses.
***
2,000 Demonstrate In Detroit, Mich.
DETROIT, Mich. While war veterans marched down Woodward Avenue in their annual Memorial Day parade, whipping up patriotic sentiment for a new world slaughter 2,000 young workers, Negro and white, gathered in Times Square in a militant National Youth Day demonstration against imperialist war and fascism.
The Times Square demonstration was the culmination of the parade extending over two miles, starting from Perrien Park on the East Side and Clark Park on the West Side.
***
Battle Police for Right To Meet in Bridgeport
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. Fighting between police, and workers lasted for five minutes today before police gave up their attempt to prevent Morris Liss, of the Connecticut League Against War and Fascism, from opening the National Youth Day meeting at Main and Cannon Sts. Over 500 workers including a large delegation from Stamford took part in the parade that followed the meeting.
Despite the fact that a permit had been issued for the parade, one worker was arrested for distributing leaflets and Martin Hall, a workers center, was raided on the morning of National Youth Day.
***
Arrest 19 Youth In Hartford, Conn.
HARTFORD, Conn. Over one hundred young and adult workers paraded and demonstrated here despite the fact that the Mayor and the Hartford Common Council refused to grant a permit.
Immediately upon the opening of the meeting after the parade, police arrested Richard Farber, chairman of the American League Against War and Fascism and attacked the demonstration. The youth immediately formed ranks and started parading. After proceeding three blocks, they were again attacked by the police who brutally attacked the marchers and arrested 19 workers.
***
Police and Legion Smash Union City Meet
UNION CITY, N.J. The biggest force of police and legionnaires ever mobilized in this city since the war was called out to smash up the National Youth Day parade and demonstration here. The police outnumbered the marchers by four to one with the entire police force, fire department and an array of city ambulances drawn up in front of the scheduled place of demonstration.
The police and Legionnaires swooped down on the Bricklayers Hall on Summit and Fifth, that was used as the mobilization point for the parade and dragged the youth out brutally beating them right and left. One young worker Christy Saporto was sent to the hospital as a result of the bloody beating given him by the police; four were arrested. Frank Berke, a fire captain was taken to the North Hudson Hospital suffering from cuts and bruises.
***
2,000 Demonstrate In Paterson, N.J.
PATERSON, N.J. Fifteen hundred youth took part in the National Youth Day parade here and 2,000 attended the demonstration held on a lot accrued by the National Youth Day Committee.
The lot had been secured after a permit had been issued. Despite this, police instructed the speakers not to dare to mention anything about war and fascism. Immediately a ring of young workers was thrown around the police and the speakers disregarded instructions given. Sensing the fighting mood of the youth, police refrained from at- tacking.
***
1,000 Meet in Reyburn Plaza on N.Y.D.
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. One thousand youth massed on Reyburn Plaza in a mighty National Youth Day demonstration against war and fascism. Harry Wicks, Irving Keith and Heary Brown were the main speakers.
***
250 in Boston
BOSTON, Mass. Two hundred and fifty youth participated in the National Youth Day demonstration against war and fascism held in Douglas Square in the South end of Boston.
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Vigilantes Smash Meet In Haverhill, Mass.
HAVERHILL, Mass. The National Youth Day demonstration here was smashed by the fascist Pentucket Vigilant Committee formed during the last strike of the shoe workers in this city. Alliance of the city government with this fascist group was shown by the support of the police captain to this action.
***
3,000 Turn Out in Cleveland Meet
CLEVELAND, Ohio. About 3,000 workers assembled at Public Square in Cleveland on National Youth Day in a militant antiwar demonstration called by the Y.C.L Marches from three points were organized and the workers cheered enthusiastically as the colorful parades with red banners signs and posters reached square.
Cops Mount Machine Guns in Worcester
WORCESTER, Mass. With fifty cops surrounding Kelley Square over which three machine guns were mounted, almost four thousand workers massed to greet the 150 young workers who paraded here on National Youth Day despite the police ban on both the parade and demonstration.
The Young Worker was produced by the Young Workers League of America beginning in 1922. The name of the Workers Party youth league followed the name of the adult party, changing to the Young Workers (Communist) League when the Workers Party became the Workers (Communist) Party in 1926. The journal was published monthly in Chicago and continued until 1927. Editors included Oliver Carlson, Martin Abern, Max Schachtman, Nat Kaplan, and Harry Gannes.
PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/youngworker/v12%20n01%20-%2013%20Young%20Worker%201934%20Jan%20June.pdf
