Honoring Frank Jenkins Jr: The Coast Longshore Division and Local 19 are helping to preserve the legacy of ILWU leader Frank Jenkins Jr. with an endowed fellowship at the University of Washington’s Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies.
On August 10th at an event held at ILWU Local 19 in Seattle, Coast Committeeman Cam Williams on behalf of the Coast Committee and the Longshore Division, presented a $100,000 check to the University of Washington’s Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies to establish a new $250,000 endowment named in honor of Local 19 member and Seattle CivilRights leader, Frank Jenkins, Jr. The donation to the Frank Jenkins Jr. Fellowship was unanimously approved by the Coast Long- shore Division Caucus this past June. The membership of Local 19 approved the initial $100,000 for the Jenkins Fellowship at a membership meeting in February of this year.
Williams noted the many contributions made by Jenkins to the labor movement, the struggle for Civil Rights and his impact on shaping work on the Seattle waterfront.
ILWU leader Frank Jenkins Jr
“This fellowship will allow the legacy of Brother Jenkins to live on,” Williams said. “I didn’t have the plea- sure of knowing him but I know he did a lot of really great work, not only by being able to strengthen the ILWU with his leadership in the union but also his dedication to the Civil Rights movement. We are honored to be a part of helping to preserve the legacy of Frank Jenkins Jr.”
Local 19 President Rich Austin, Jr. praised the generosity of Local 19 members, the Longshore Division and the hard work of the Seattle Pensioners. “There are times as an officer when you have the opportunity to be inspired by your union and this whole process has been one of those moments,” Austin said. “The generosity of the membership of Local 19 has been amazing—700 members
and we came up with $100,000. And at the Caucus, the resolution passed unanimously. I’d like to thank the Seattle Pensioners and Local 19 representative Herald Ugles for their work on the committee that crafted this proposal. The way they brought this forward to the Local 19 member- ship and to the Caucus was a big part of the success of this effort.”
Williams read a letter from ILWU International President Robert McEllrath.
Coast Committeeman Cameron Williams
“On behalf of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Coast Longshore Division, please accept a donation of $100,000 to the Frank Jenkins Memorial Fund. It has been our pleasure to work with you over the years and we are thrilled to donate to an honorable cause in memory of Frank Jenkins,” McEllrath said.
Michael McCann, Director of the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies and Professor of political science at the University of Washington was at the event to accept the check on behalf of the University of Washington and the Bridges Center.
“Once again, the generosity of the labor community has been overwhelming,” McCann said. “Jenkins put his heart and soul into a union that dramatically changed social norms by placing men of all different ethnicities and races side by side in the workforce. An endowed fellowship in his name will recognize emerging leaders follow- ing in Frank’s footsteps.”
McCann read a statement from University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce.
“It is my honor to thank the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 19 for the establishment of a new fellowship in memory of Seattle civil rights and labor leader Frank Jenkins. Housed within the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies, the fellowship will honor Jenkins’ legacy through annual financial awards to students at the University of Washington who have dedicated their education to the pursuance of labor and civil rights,” the statement said.
Local 19 President Rich Austin Jr.
Jenkins was the grandson of an escaped slave. His father, Frank Sr., served in the US Army and was a Buffalo soldier of the 25th Infantry Regiment stationed in the Philippines where he met and married his wife Rufina. Jenkins was born in 1903 and began working on the waterfront in the 1920s. He was a veteran of the 1934 strike and emerged as an early leader in the union. He held official positions within the union starting in 1936 until his retirement in 1967.
Jenkins was known for his extensive knowledge of the longshore con- tract which he acquired serving on the Joint Port Labor Relations Committee for more than 30 years. He worked alongside Martin Jugum for many years. One of their most notable contributions of Jugum and Jenkins was instituting a rotation system that allowed for everyone to receive an equal amount of work. This replaced the system of steadymen that Jenkins believed was a self-defeat- ing system of favoritism that denied fair opportunities to Black workers and ran counter to the democratic principles of the ILWU.
Pensioners Ian Kennedy (left) and Robert Duggan were two of the members of the fellowship committee.
Jenkins ran afoul of the US Government during the prosecution of Harry Bridges in the 1950s. Jenkins testified on behalf of Bridges during his deportation trial and in retaliation, the government accused Jenkins of being a member of the Communist Party. The US Coast Guard then revoked his pass which he needed to access “strategic” areas of the waterfront, depriving him of the ability to work. Jenkins appealed the decision and ultimately prevailed.
“A fellowship in Frank’s name will honor him and memorialize his contribution to the Seattle waterfront,” friend and pensioner Robert Duggan said. “Frank started on the waterfront at a time when longshore workers were considered unskilled labor and easily replaced. At the time of his retirement in 1967, he had led the establishment of practices and procedures resulting in longshore workers being highly skilled and highly paid. He had the foresight to see how cranes and containers would change the industry and the nature of the work.”
The Harry Bridges Center anticipates soliciting applications for the Jenkins Fellowship in the spring, with the first annual fellowship awarded in fall of 2019.