STRIKE STRATEGY
utilized to the utmost are the womenfolk of the strikers. Ordinarily conservative leaders pay little or no attention to this element. But the left wing must enlist the women. The womenfolk in a strike can be either a great help or a great hindrance. Strikers' wives out of sympathy with the struggle and ignorant of its significance can destroy it. Or, militant supporters of it, they can be its very soul.
Hence, in all strikes our strike strategy must aim at enlisting the co-operation and active participation of the women. They must be inducted into the strike machinery and the general strike activities; they, must be organized into housewives' unions. Thoroly aroused women possess an indomitable spirit. They make strikers unconquerable. Innumerable strikes among the miners and textile workers testify to their splendid fighting qualities. No strike can afford to dispense with this important reserve.
The co-operatives must also be considered and utilized as strike reserves. In European countries the co-operatives are many and large and powerful. They are often important depots of supplies for strikers. In this country, however, the co-operative movement is very weak and conservative. Nevertheless it must be utilized in support of strikes wherever the opportunity presents. Likewise, the labor banks, although not real co-operatives, should also be called upon to assist in strikes by making loans to the embattled unions.
8—Public Opinion—Its Limitations.
Finally, there is a certain element of strike reserve in the lower middle class elements; farmers, professionals, petty business men, etc., which must not be neglected. Ordinarily these groups, under present conditions in the United States, look rather askance at the organized workers and their struggles. Often they are frank supporters of the "open shop" campaigns of the employers. But in eases of bitter and spectacular conflicts, especially where
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