Booklet

To Unite... Regardless

Booklet. A 23 page, staple-bound booklet entitled, "To Unite... Regardless," published by the UAW-CIO. The cover depicts a white factory worker shaking hands with an African American worker. The booklet is written from the perspective of a fictional union member named James Pierson. Pierson, in response to witnessing the "hate-strike," planned in protest of several African American women who work at his plant, seeks to educate white workers about African Americans. Several pages are dedicated to the contributions of African Americans in war time, ranging from Crispus Attucks, to contemporary World War II examples. The booklet also mentions negative stereotypes propagated by film and radio, disparities in funding for education between African American and white students in southern states, and Jim Crow laws in the north and south. Examples of successful African Americas are citied, including Ernest E. Just, W.E.B. DuBois, and the UAW's own Shelton Tappes. The booklet also discusses how companies use racism to divide workers, citing a 1901 strike against U.S. Steel where the AFL's racist policies hurt the effort. In contrast the booklet mentions the UAW's special efforts to combat race-baiting during the 1941 strikes. The booklet concludes with mention of a demonstration in Cadillac Square on April 11, 1943, where the Cadillac Charter was presented. The text of the charter is reproduced on the back cover; it's seven articles call for the end of discrimination and segregation in the army and at home.