The Right to Protest: Washington's 1916 Anti-Picketing Fight
A strong defense of organized labor's right to picket as a 'necessity' for economic survival.
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The anti-picketing act is a blow aimed directly at the workingman. It prohibits banners or signs calling attention to strikes, effectively stripping labor of its only weapon for improving conditions. The history of milk strikes in Illinois and New York demonstrates that farmers and laborers alike rely on picketing to gain leverage against monopolies. The farmers of the Yakima Valley and the dairymen of Puget Sound may one day need these same tactics to survive against powerful distributing agencies. It is to the interest of every farmer and worker in the state to vote against this measure.
“Labor as a whole has had little help except when it has helped itself.”
The 1916 fight over the 'Anti-Picketing Measure' highlights the long-standing tension in Washington state politics regarding the right to organize. Labor rights and the role of the state in regulating protest remain highly polarized, echoing the ongoing discourse surrounding collective bargaining today.
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