Sawmill Workers Call for Exclusion of Asian Laborers
Meeting in Everett, the International Brotherhood of Sawmill Workers and Woodsmen adopt a resolution demanding the strict application of anti-Asian exclusion laws.
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The International Brotherhood of Sawmill Workers and Woodsmen met in their fourth annual convention at Everett, Washington, in Labor Temple, on Tuesday, September 7th. President Woodcock called the convention to order and appointed a committee on credentials. The convention unanimously adopted a resolution regarding the influx of Japanese, Koreans and other Asiatics. The resolution stated that as it is impossible for white laborers to compete with these groups, all affiliated unions are instructed to assist organizations that work to bring these populations under the provisions of the Geary Chinese Exclusion Act of 1892.
“It is impossible for us to compete with these people in any line of work, or profession and earn a competent living.”
This resolution reflects the pervasive, organized xenophobia that dominated early 20th-century labor politics in the Pacific Northwest. It highlights how economic anxiety among white mill workers was institutionalized into exclusionary movements that targeted Asian immigrants.
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