The Old Print Shop

United Auto Workers, 1936-1937.

  • ARTIST: Antonio Frasconi

  • MEDIUM: Woodcut and offset lithograph,

    DATE: 1991.

  • EDITION SIZE: Edition 10. Image size 24 1/16 x 27 7/8" (61.1 x 70.8 cm).

  • DESCRIPTION: From "The Enduring Struggle, Tom Joad's America" graphics by Antonio Frasconi, introduction by Leon F. Litwack, published 1991. <BR><BR> From the colophon "... In my many years of being involved with fine printing, this project has been a most challenging one; the combination of offset lithography and woodcut within the same image created problems that I could not have solved without the tremendous help of our Master Printer "extraordinaire", Technical Specialist, and Computer Programmer, John Mastracchio, as well as his associates, Cliff Meador and Ilse Schreiber."<BR><BR> On December 30, 1936, the United Auto Workers (UAW) went on strike against General Motors at the Fisher Body Plant Number One in Flint, Michigan. It was the first sit-down strike in the US. The workers were striking to make the UAS their bargaining agent for GM workers, establish a fair minimum wage, a grievance system to help protect assembly-line workers from injury and to stop sending work to non-union shops. The strike lasted 44 days.<BR><BR> GM went to court stating the workers were trespassing, however, the workers stayed put. January 11 they cut off food to the workers resulting in a riot called the "Battle of the Running Bulls." In the riot, 16 UAW workers and 11 policemen were injured. In the end, the UAW took over Fisher Body Plant Number Two and Chevrolet No. 4 Engine Factory. Finally in February GM recognized the Union the plants reopened. <br><br>

  • ADDITIONAL INFO: Inscribed "2/10."

  • CONDITION: Very good condition.

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