Lewis versus Howat: Political Action
The strikes that happen between 1919 and 1922 show the difference between President of the United Mine Workers of America, John L. Lewis and President of District 14, Alexander Howat.
Most protracted of all the US industrial disputes of 1919 was the mass strike in the coal fields, with sporadic strikes, national strikes, and armed battles.
At the meeting, a United Mine Workers official who urged the men to return to work was shouted down, and instead the miners decided to continue the strike and called a meeting for workers from other mines that Sunday. Meanwhile, word of the strike began to spread around the district, and the men from nearby mines independently struck and held meetings to decide what action they would advocate at the Sunday meeting.
The U.S. government intervened. President Wilson declared the strike "not only unjustifiable but unlawful." At the request of the U.S. Attorney General, a Federal judge issued an injunction sequestering the union strike fund and prohibiting the union leaders from any action furthering the strike.
Federal troops were moved into the coal fields of Utah, Washington, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania. On November 8th, the Federal Court further ordered the union officials to rescind the strike order and send the men back to work. Acting President John L. Lewis ordered the strike call cancelled, declaring, "We are Americans, we cannot fight our Government."
Howat, however, was opposed to stop striking. He led strikes in open defiance of the new industrial court arrangement. When he refused to participate in the proceedings of the industrial court, Howat was arrested. Over the next three years Howat was repeatedly jailed and released for his refusal to acknowledge the legitimacy of the Kansas Industrial Court system.
Lewis believed that striking was not the way to win, shown by the fact that he dropped out of the strike very early on. He wanted to work with the government not against it. Howat, on the other hand, continued to led and join strikes believing that was the most effective way and that workers had the right to do so.
