Tacoma longshore celebrates 125 years of strength and solidarity

A cemetery may seem like an ironic place to begin a celebration of the beginning of the Tacoma longshore local, but this is no ordinary cemetery. On the morning of March 22, Local 23 active members, pensioners, ILWU International President Robert McEllrath, International Secretary-Treasurer Willie Adams, and Coast Committeeman Leal Sundet, Tacoma community members, and representatives from ILWU locals along the coast gathered in the Old Tacoma Cemetery at the burial site of 23 of the original 47 workers who formed the Stevedores, Longshore and Riggers Union of Puget Sound 125 years ago. Many of the grave markers of those founding members have disintegrated over the years. Local 23 members and pensioners raised over $18,000 to replace and set new markers so that the union’s founding members could be appropriately honored.

The union was formed on March 22, 1886 after a unanimous vote by the men working the lumber ship Ivy. They struck for five days before winning their demands for union recognition, wage increase, and the right for the job dispatcher to be elected by union members.

“Seven of the 23 [founding members buried] in Old Tacoma Cemetery were killed on the job,” honorary member of local #23 and historian Dr. Ron Magden noted in an article he wrote for the 125^th anniversary celebration. “Two others died of exhaustion beside the ship. Another died a week after being injured on the job. Two died in the hospital after each lost a leg on the job.”

“It was heart wrenching to know that these people gave their lives to set the table for us,” said Local 23 President Scott Mason. “The turnout at this event was incredible. It shows the support we have in this community from being active in various civic organizations and from the hard work of Local 23 members which has made the port the economic engine of Tacoma.”

“It was amazing to see our pensioners, active members and ILWU members from along the coast come together at the cemetery and pay respect to our founding members and celebrate our 125^th anniversary,” added Local 23 Vice President Holly Hulscher, who was also a part of the committee that planned the celebration for several years.

The atmosphere at the cemetery was at times somber and at other times celebratory. The event paid equal recognition to the sacrifices and fortitude of the local’s founding members as well as celebrating the tenacity and spirit of the following generations that grew the Tacoma longshore local from its original 47 members to over 5,500 A-men and women who have worked the Tacoma waterfront since the beginning.

Local musician John Vance played and a moving rendition of Amazing Grace on the bagpipes and Local 23 members Zeek Green and Vance Lelli put their talents on display at the event. Green gave a spoken word performance of a piece he wrote specially for the 125^th anniversary. Lelli led a sing-along of the Woody Guthrie classic Union Burying Ground.

ILWU International President Robert McEllrath spoke at the celebration luncheon held at the Local 23 dispatch hall later that afternoon. While reminding everyone of the sacrifices made by Tacoma longshore’s founding members, McEllrath also noted important challenges that must be confronted on the waterfront today to ensure that Local 23 will be around to celebrate its 150^th anniversary.

“One hundred and twenty-five years ago, the people working those docks were giving their life and limbs, working logs, stacking lumber without safe working conditions and protections many workers today take for granted. But they still found the time to organize a union,” McEllrath said.

“When I came on the docks in 1969, I got to do some of that work where you shook hands with the cargo. You didn’t have it in a container. The work was done like our forefathers that we are celebrating today—they were looking at each other in the hole of a ship. They were talking to each other and we cannot lose that.

“Today, we’ve got a worker who sits up in the crane alone, we’ve got a trucker that drives around alone, and we’ve got a clerk that sits in the tower. There’s no more talking. There’s no more interaction. That’s one step to divide us. Don’t let them succeed in dividing us.”

International Secretary Treasurer and Local 23 member, Willie Adams, also spoke at the luncheon and highlighted the fighting spirit that the workers from the Ivy imparted to following generations of Tacoma longshore workers.

“Those founding members gave us the attitude to fight for our jurisdiction and to fight for who we are as the working class in America. Everybody should have what we have as ILWU members. They should have a pension. They should have healthcare. They should have respect,” Adams said. “Anyone can lead during good times. True leaders get us through the hard times. That’s what makes the old timers so tough.”

The film, “In Unity There is Strength,” a 20-minute documentary on Local 23 produced by Nancy Bourne Haley for Local 23 members, also premiered at the luncheon. Copies of the DVD are available from Local 23 for $5 a copy PLUS SHIPPING (253-383-2648 EXT. 3).

True to the community spirit of the Tacoma longshore local, members used the celebration as an opportunity to raise over $2,000 for Tacoma’s Hospitality Kitchen for the hungry. Raffle tickets were sold during the event to raise the funds and the lucky ticket holders received gifts—many of which were handcrafted—donated by Local 23 members and ILWU local 500 Canada.