64-851: The Finnish Labour Temple (also known as the Big Finn Hall or Finlandia Club ) was a Finnish-Canadian cultural and community centre (" Finn hall ") and a local landmark located at 314 Bay Street in the Finnish quarter in Thunder Bay , Ontario . Built in 1910, the Finnish Labour Temple was at one point one of the largest workers' halls in Canada in addition to being the centre of Finnish cultural and political life in Northwestern Ontario . The hall housed
128-541: A bricklayer who was president of the Trades and Labour Council, and socialists such as R.B. Russell , a machinist who favoured the OBU. At 11 am on Thursday, May 15, 1919, virtually the entire working population of Winnipeg went on strike. Somewhere around 30,000 workers in the public and private sectors walked off their jobs, and the city experienced a sudden cessation of many normal activities. The Strike Committee requested
192-466: A contented existence ... then the Government might find it necessary to step in and let the state do these things at the expense of Capital." The impact of the strike was evident in subsequent elections. Labour had elected some representatives prior to the strike but the number significantly increased afterwards at all three levels of government. While awaiting trial, Queen was re-elected to
256-723: A forerunner of the New Democratic Party . That party was elected to provincial government in Saskatchewan in 1944 and in Manitoba in 1969. Heaps was elected as the Labour Member of Parliament for Winnipeg North in 1925 and re-elected until 1940. Organized labour built on the legacy of the strike to strengthen the union movement and to pursue formal collective bargaining rights. The One Big Union flourished briefly, achieving its greatest popularity in 1920. This
320-468: A gathering of strikers and was dragged off his horse and severely pummelled. This led to claims that he was attacked by "enemy ruffians". The local newspapers, the Winnipeg Free Press and Winnipeg Tribune , had lost the majority of their employees due to the strike, but once they were able to resume publication, they took a decidedly anti-strike stance. The Winnipeg Free Press called
384-509: A general strike, 8,667 to 645. Ernest Robinson, secretary of the Labour Council, issued a statement that "every organization but one has voted in favour of the general strike" and that "all public utilities will be tied-up in order to enforce the principle of collective bargaining". A Strike Committee was established, with delegates elected by the city's unions. The leadership included both moderate trade unionists, such as James Winning,
448-556: A generation separated from their Finnish-Canadian brethren and had no connection to the social struggles of the past. In addition, the newly arriving immigrants were either apolitical or conservative, associating any left-wing activity with the brutality of Stalinism and the Finnish Winter War . This was despite the fact that the Finnish Wobblies in Canada and the U.S. had actively supported and aided Finland in
512-416: A kitchen where hundreds of meals were served every day. On June 12 a "ladies day" was held at Victoria Park, where women occupied seats of honour to cheer a speech by J.S. Woodsworth promoting the emancipation of women and the equality of the sexes. An emerging working-class activist named Edith Hancox , who became a notable defender of the city's dispossessed during the 1920s, is the only woman reported as
576-400: A plaque marking the Finnish Labour Temple as a National Historic site. The Hoito Restaurant was a very popular eatery for locals and tourists; recently, there has been a marked increase in activity in the hall as a new generation of locals stepped in to revive and breathe new life into this historic building. This includes a mojakka competition; an annual Finnish-Canadian art exhibit during
640-518: A series of arrests on charges of seditious conspiracy. In the early morning hours of June 17, the RNWMP apprehended several prominent leaders of the strike, including George Armstrong , Roger Bray , Abraham Heaps , William Ivens , R.B. Russell and John Queen . In addition, Bill Pritchard , a Vancouver union organizer who was returning from Winnipeg, was arrested in Calgary. R. J. Johns, of Winnipeg,
704-543: A speaker at the huge outdoor gatherings at Victoria Park. Negotiations between members of the Strike Committee, city council and local businesses produced an arrangement to continue milk and bread deliveries. To make it clear that the delivery men were not strikebreakers, a small poster was printed for display on their wagons reading "PERMITTED BY AUTHORITY OF STRIKE COMMITTEE." Although the cards were suggested by management, they were also attacked as evidence that
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#1732779957459768-630: A young adult novel by Melinda McCracken about a girl who distributes the strikers' newspaper. In the same year, 1919 A Graphic History of the Winnipeg General Strike was published by the Graphic History Collective. Among remembrances of this event in Canadian popular culture is the song "In Winnipeg" by musician Mike Ford , included in the album Canada Needs You Volume Two . In 2005, Danny Schur created
832-624: The Finnish Building Company . The lot for the hall had been purchased by socialist local in June 1907 and blueprints for the hall had already been prepared in early December 1908 by architect C.W. Wheeler. The building opened its doors to the public in March 1910, holding three consecutive days of opening ceremonies. The inscription on the top of the building reads "Labor Omnia Vincet," meaning "labour conquers all." Already in 1910,
896-743: The general strike . As a result, the Finnish socialists were ousted and bought their own building next door at 316 Bay Street or the "Little Finn Hall", and became affiliated with the Communist Finnish Organization of Canada. The Finnish workers who maintained control of the Finnish Labour Temple affiliated to the Industrial Workers of the World after the Winnipeg General Strike and the collapse of
960-478: The summer solstice . This, along with more traditional dances, celebrations, and events like St. Urho's Day make the Finnish Labour Temple a distinctive tourist attraction in Thunder Bay. The Finnish Labour Temple was home to The Finlandia Association Of Thunder Bay, previous owner of the building, and other local companies such as The Walleye Magazine and Seek Tours. In May 2020, because of outstanding debt,
1024-614: The 1940s. With the younger generation rapidly being assimilated into dominant Canadian society, the IWW and CTKL in Northwestern Ontario became friendship and mutual aid societies for an aging membership. In the late 1960s, following the last major wave of Finnish immigration to Canada , a new organization called the Finlandia Club of Port Arthur became the majority shareholder of the hall. The new wave of immigrants were
1088-471: The Citizens' Committee during the strike. Seven of the accused (Armstrong, Bray, Ivens, Johns, Pritchard, Russell and Queen) were found guilty by the largely rural juries selected for the trials. Most were sentenced to one-year sentences, but Russell was sentenced to two years and Bray, who was convicted on a lesser charge, was sentenced to six months. (As well, John Farnell, who had filled the void left in
1152-497: The Finlandia Association voted to liquidate its assets, including the hall. A group - The Finlandia Co-operative - was created to raise money to buy the building, but was unsuccessful. In October 2020, the sale of the new building to a private owner was confirmed. The new owner said he wanted to reopen The Hoito Restaurant and convert the rest of the building into "high-end apartments". It had been anticipated that
1216-639: The Finnish community in the commemorative booklet given to convention delegates. During the First World War , the foreign-language affiliates of the Social Democratic Party were declared illegal by the Canadian Government. This led to many difficulties as several Finnish-language newspapers were banned and leading organizers were arrested. At this time, many Finnish workers joined the rapidly emerging One Big Union and
1280-458: The OBU instigated the general strike is misleading, as the OBU was not formed until June 1919. However, the "one big union" idea contributed to the atmosphere of unrest. Similar volatile conditions existed elsewhere in Canada, and in other countries around the world, at the end of World War I , but the combination of circumstances in Winnipeg proved to be explosive. The most immediate cause of
1344-533: The One Big Union. The syndicalist oriented Finns remained affiliated with the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and the auxiliary organization, Canadan Teollisuusunionistinen Kannatusliitto (Canadian Industrial Worker Support Circle or CTKL). This was the group responsible for establishing and operating the Hoito Restaurant as well as establishing a chain of People's Co-operative stores in
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#17327799574591408-489: The Strike Committee was taking control of the city. In a city divided on class lines, opposition to the strike was led by a group of local businessmen and professionals who described themselves as the Citizens' Committee of One Thousand. From their headquarters in the Board of Trade building, they encouraged employers not to give in to the strikers and attempted to stir up resentment of "alien" immigrants, who, they charged, were
1472-575: The Winnipeg City council. While serving out their sentences in prison, Armstrong, Ivens and Queen were elected to the Manitoba legislature. Queen later served seven terms as mayor of Winnipeg. Woodsworth was elected as a Labour Member of Parliament from Winnipeg in 1921 and was repeatedly re-elected until his death in 1942. In 1932 he helped found and became leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation ,
1536-465: The Winnipeg strikers; some arose from both causes. Eight of the strike leaders were brought to trial on charges of seditious conspiracy. The evidence against them focused less on their actions than on their socialist ideas, which were seen as the root cause of the unrest that led to the general strike. Under arrangements accepted (and paid for) by the federal government, the prosecution was conducted by Andrews and other "legal gentlemen" who were active in
1600-409: The belief in ultimate victory strong." Participants assembled in city parks to listen to speakers report on the progress of the strike and discuss the many related social reform issues of the time. To ensure that strikers were kept informed of developments, the Strike Committee also published a daily Strike Bulletin . This newspaper urged the strikers to remain peaceable as well as idle: "The only thing
1664-461: The city also dismissed almost the entire police force for refusing to sign a pledge promising to neither belong to a union nor participate in a sympathetic strike. With the assistance of the Citizens' Committee, the city police were replaced with a large body of untrained but better paid special constables who patrolled the streets with clubs. Within hours, one of the special constables, a much-medalled World War I veteran Frederick Coppins , charged into
1728-495: The confidence of the Strike Committee, and on June 25, they announced the end of the strike for 11:00 a.m. the next day. After six weeks, workers drifted back to their jobs, but many were blacklisted or otherwise punished for participating in the strike. In May and June 1919, general strikes broke out in as many as thirty other cities, from Amherst, Nova Scotia, to Victoria, British Columbia. Some of these strikes were protests against local conditions; some were in solidarity with
1792-487: The country. Blumenberg found his feet in the U.S., organizing workers in the Duluth area and even running for municipal office there on the socialist platform. A provincial royal commission headed by H.A. Robson investigated the strike. The report deplored sympathetic strikes but concluded that the Winnipeg strike was not a criminal conspiracy by foreigners and stated that "if Capital does not provide enough to assure Labour
1856-666: The crowds on horseback, wielding clubs in an attempt to disperse the assembly. A streetcar operated by a strikebreaker attempted to travel south on Main Street towards Portage Avenue but was stopped and tipped off the tracks and briefly set on fire. After the Mayor read the Riot Act , the Mounties entered the fray again, this time discharging their .45 revolvers in three separate volleys. About 120 shots were fired. One man, Mike Sokolowski,
1920-429: The end of World War I. Shortly after the strike, two novels, Ralph Connor 's To Him that Hath (Toronto, 1921) and Douglas Durkin 's The Magpie (Toronto, 1923), explored some of the labour and social themes raised by the strike. Fox , a 1991 novel by author Margaret Sweatman , is a work of historical fiction about the events leading up to and following the strike. In 2019, Fernwood Publishing released Papergirl,
1984-506: The enormous profits enjoyed by employers during the war. Soldiers returning from the war were determined to see improved social conditions and opportunities after their harrowing experiences overseas. Most workers did not have union representation, but many were influenced by the hope of achieving greater economic security through unions. Many workers were also influenced by socialist ideas voiced by local reformers, radicals and revolutionaries. These attracted greater interest, especially among
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2048-427: The events of Bloody Saturday, the editors, J.S. Woodsworth and Fred J. Dixon , were arrested and charged with seditious libel. They had published articles with headings such as "Kaiserism in Canada" and "The British Way". The charges against Woodsworth included his quotation of a verse from Isaiah: " Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees ." Further publication of the newspaper was suppressed. These events broke
2112-465: The federal government amended the Immigration Act to allow for the deportation without trial of any British citizens not born in Canada who were charged with seditious activity. The municipal government also took action. As large numbers of veterans were holding marches in the streets in support of the strike, on June 5 Mayor Charles F. Gray announced a ban on public demonstrations. On June 9
2176-608: The hall was referred to as the "Port Arthur Finnish Socialist's Local Temple" as the socialist local had become the majority share holder in the hall and was connected to the Port Arthur Branch of the Socialist Party of Canada . The Temperance Society had basically become a committee of the socialist local. By December 1910, however, foreign language locals of the Socialist Party had been expelled from
2240-591: The historic Hoito Restaurant , a museum, and featured a large stage, dance floor, and hall as well as meeting rooms for various groups. The Finnish Labour Temple served as one of the main locations of the Bay Street Film Festival . The construction of the Finnish Labour Temple was initiated by two organizations, the Finnish-American Workers' League Imatra #9 and the "Uusi Yritys" or New Attempt Temperance Society , who formed
2304-579: The large population of immigrants from Eastern Europe, after the Russian Revolution of 1917. A meeting of western labour delegates in Calgary in March 1919 adopted numerous radical resolutions, including support for a five-day week and a six-hour day. They also called for the establishment of a new union centre, the One Big Union , to promote class solidarity by uniting workers from all trades and industries in one organization. The idea that
2368-421: The largely urban jury acquitted him. This result caused the prosecution to abandon the similar charges against Woodsworth. In the case of the "foreigners" arrested on June 17, there were no criminal proceedings. The attempt to deport Almazoff failed, and Charitonoff appealed successfully against a deportation order. Blumenberg and Schoppelrei were deported on technical grounds related to their original entry into
2432-480: The leadership of pro-strike returned soldiers after Bray's arrest, was sentenced to nine months in prison. He was released three months early, due to his wife's illness.) Heaps conducted his own defence. He was acquitted on all charges. Dixon, who was charged with seditious libel, delivered a strong defence of the right to free speech as an essential element of the British tradition. After forty hours of deliberation,
2496-406: The nature of labour reform and radical activism in western Canada. Churches, immigrants, women, soldiers, and municipal politics have also been the subject of study. The "red scare" promoted by business and government spokesmen attracted attention, as did the legal manoeuvres that led to the arrest and conviction of prominent strike supporters on charges of sedition. While some historians regarded
2560-777: The party. In 1911, a new organization called the Finnish Socialist Organization of Canada had been formed, which then became affiliated to the Social Democratic Party of Canada . In January 1910, during the first annual meeting of the Finnish Building Company, the membership voted to rent the downstairs of the hall to the Finnish Publishing Company, who occupied the basement until the summer of 1912 when it moved to its own building next door. Of note,
2624-399: The police force, who had voted in favour of the strike, to remain on duty. Workers at the city waterworks also remained on the job to provide service at reduced pressure. Union membership had increased substantially during the spring of 1919, but most of the people who came out in support of the general strike were not union members. For instance, the first to leave work, at 7:00 a.m., were
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2688-425: The principal leaders of the strike. They also put pressure on governments to take action against the strike. They published a newspaper, The Winnipeg Citizen , that claimed that "the so-called general strike is in reality revolution – or a daring attempt to overthrow the present industrial and governmental system." At the end of the first week of the strike, two federal cabinet ministers arrived in Winnipeg to assess
2752-674: The region. The Finnish Labour Temple acted as the Canadian IWW administrative offices for several years and housed the Canadian news service headquarters for the Industrialisti , the Finnish-language daily newspaper of the IWW . The Finnish Wobblies were also able to pay off the mortgage on the building. The IWW competed for the hearts and minds of members with the communist-dominated unions, and held union locals well into
2816-547: The regional support group became the majority share holder of the Finnish Building Company. In 1919, a split occurred at the One Big Union National Convention held at the Finnish Labour Temple. The split was essentially between two different factions; Finnish socialists who believed that the working class needed a political arm, and Finnish syndicalists who felt that social change could best be achieved through economic direct action such as
2880-433: The restaurant would reopen in early summer 2022. However, during the early evening hours of December 22, 2021, amid on-going renovations, smoke could be seen billowing from the rooftop, and The Hoito restaurant suffered extensive damage when a massive fire burned through the Finnish Labour Temple building above. By mid-February 2022 the remains of the building destroyed in the fire were completely demolished and removed from
2944-427: The scope of their activity. Discussion of the Winnipeg General Strike often begins with whether it was a conspiracy to overthrow the government or a fight for union recognition and a living wage. Given the scale of the strike and its political impact, it was difficult to consider it only an ordinary collective bargaining dispute. This led some historians to study local labour relations in detail, while others examined
3008-454: The site. The property owner anticipates rebuilding and recreating the former façade of the structure including the iconic cupola. It is also anticipated that the Hoito restaurant would be re-established on the main floor of the new building and not in the basement as it existed previously. On March 3, 2022 it was announced that the time capsule hidden in the foundation during construction in 1909
3072-550: The situation was discussed at meetings of the Winnipeg Trades and Labour Council, the umbrella body for the city's unions. The Labour Council decided to call on their 12,000 affiliated members to vote on a proposal for a general strike. On a smaller scale, this tactic had achieved success for striking city workers a year earlier in 1918. Preliminary results of the vote among the Labour Council's member unions were announced on May 13. The outcome showed overwhelming support for
3136-445: The situation, acting Minister of Justice Arthur Meighen and Minister of Labour Gideon Robertson . They refused to meet with the Strike Committee, but consulted with the Citizens' Committee, who greatly influenced their conclusions. Meighen issued a statement that the strike was "a cloak for something far deeper—an effort to 'overturn' the proper authority". Robertson reported back to Ottawa that "the motive behind this strike undoubtedly
3200-441: The strike as a western labour revolt rooted in unique conditions in western Canada, others have pointed to widespread labour unrest across Canada, both in 1919 itself and also during the years from 1917 to 1925. Recent accounts of the strike have also noted that most strikers were not union members, suggesting that the events might be described as an urban rebellion against the failings of the capitalist social order as it existed at
3264-561: The strike involved support for collective bargaining in the metal trades and building trades, where workers were attempting to negotiate contracts through their trades councils. When the Metal Trades Council and the Building Trades Council had both failed to secure contracts with employers by the end of April, they went on strike, the building trades on May 1 and the metal trades on May 2. Shortly afterwards,
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#17327799574593328-413: The strikers " bohunks ", "aliens", and "anarchists" and ran cartoons depicting radicals throwing bombs. These anti-strike views influenced the opinions of some Winnipeg residents and contributed to the deepening atmosphere of crisis. A plan to offer a modified form of collective bargaining to the Metal Trades Council was in the works at the middle of the month, but any efforts at compromise were ended by
3392-399: The telephone operators, the so-called "hello girls" at the city telephone exchanges, who were not at this time union members. Also on the first day of the strike, the major organizations of returned soldiers announced their support and were active throughout the six weeks of the strike. In the early days of the strike, according to historian David Bercuson, "The atmosphere was almost festive,
3456-399: The tradition of social democratic politics in Canada. There were many background causes for the strike, most of them related to the prevailing social inequalities and the impoverished condition of the city's working class. Wages were low, prices were rising, employment was unstable, immigrants faced discrimination, housing and health conditions were poor. In addition, there was resentment of
3520-519: The war against the Soviet Union and denounced Bolshevism , from a libertarian socialist perspective, since the Kronstadt uprising . The Finnish Labour Temple remains a highly visible local landmark and a symbol of the city. The Temple is the last remaining Finnish cultural centre in Canada, and has been designated a National Historic Site of Canada . In 2015 a ceremony was held to install
3584-546: The workers have to do to win this strike is to do nothing. Just eat, sleep, play, love, laugh, and look at the sun ... Our fight consists of doing no fighting." Women leaders played an important part in building solidarity among the strikers. Experienced organizers such as Helen "Ma" Armstrong , one of two women on the Strike Committee, encouraged young working women to join the strike and often spoke on street corners and at public meetings. The Women's Labour League raised money to help women workers pay rent. They also set up
3648-487: Was followed by the rise of new industrial unions in the 1930s. The renewed poverty and insecurity of the Great Depression led to a long period of labour militancy across Canada in the 1940s, when union membership increased substantially. By the end of that decade, a formal industrial relations regime was established in Canadian law that provided some security for unions and their members but also threatened to limit
3712-475: Was in Montreal and not arrested at this time. With the exception of Armstrong, who was Canadian-born, they were all British immigrants. Several foreign-born socialists, including Sam Blumenberg, Max Charitonoff and Solomon Almazoff were also arrested, as was Oscar Schoppelrei, an American-born Canadian war veteran of German ethnic origin. The climax of the strike came a few days later, on Saturday, June 21, which
3776-472: Was killed on the spot. Another, Steve Szczerbanowicz, died later from his wounds. Hospitals reported about 30 injuries, mainly from police gunfire. Others were tended to by friends and family. As the crowds were chased into sidestreets and broken up, some 80 people were arrested by the "specials" and military patrols that took over the downtown area. When the Strike Bulletin published its account of
3840-522: Was one of the most famous and influential strikes in Canadian history . For six weeks, May 15 to June 26, more than 30,000 strikers brought economic activity to a standstill in Winnipeg , Manitoba, which at the time was Canada's third largest city. In the short term, the strike ended in arrests, bloodshed and defeat, but in the long run it contributed to the development of a stronger labour movement and
3904-548: Was recovered and would be opened at a special ceremony at a later date. Finnish-Canadian Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.237 via cp1104 cp1104, Varnish XID 204238697 Upstream caches: cp1104 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 07:45:57 GMT Winnipeg General Strike The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919
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#17327799574593968-400: Was soon known as Bloody Saturday. To protest against the arrest of the strike leaders, the returned soldiers had announced a demonstration in the form of a "silent parade" on Main Street for Saturday afternoon. Crowds assembled in the thousands in the streets around City Hall. When the soldiers refused to call off the demonstration, Mayor Gray requested assistance from the RNWMP, who entered into
4032-486: Was the first Finnish-Canadian newspaper Työkansa (The Working People), which was published by the Finnish Publishing Company. Between 1910 and 1914, the basement of the hall also housed several co-operative restaurants and a billiards room. On September 12–17, 1910, the Trades and Labour Congress of Canada held its annual convention at the Finnish Labour Temple complementing the "industry, thrift and co-operative spirit" of
4096-509: Was the overthrow of Constitutional Government." They warned striking postal workers, who were federal employees, to return to work or lose their jobs. At this time, they also authorized the local government to use the armed forces and the Royal Northwest Mounted Police as needed. In preparation for arrests, at the beginning of June, and on the advice of one of the leaders of the Citizens' Committee, A.J. Andrews,
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