Eugene V Debs was a member of the Democratic Party: wonder if he knew Upton Sinclair?

[silvershadow]

Eugene Victor "Gene" Debs (November 5, 1855 – October 20, 1926) was an American union leader, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW or the Wobblies), and five times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States.[1] Through his presidential candidacies, as well as his work with labor movements, Debs eventually became one of the best-known socialists living in the United States.

Early in his political career, Debs was a member of the Democratic Party. He was elected as a Democrat to the Indiana General Assembly in 1884. After working with several smaller unions, including the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen, Debs was instrumental in the founding of the American Railway Union (ARU), one of the nation's first industrial unions. After workers at the Pullman Palace Car Company organized a wildcat strike over pay cuts in the summer of 1894, Debs signed many into the ARU. He called a boycott of the ARU against handling trains with Pullman cars, in what became the nationwide Pullman Strike, affecting most lines west of Detroit, and more than 250,000 workers in 27 states. To keep the mail running, President Grover Cleveland used the United States Army to break the strike. As a leader of the ARU, Debs was convicted of federal charges for defying a court injunction against the strike and served six months in prison.

In jail, Debs read various works of socialist theory and emerged six months later as a committed adherent of the international socialist movement. Debs was a founding member of the Social Democracy of America (1897), the Social Democratic Party of America (1898), and the Socialist Party of America (1901).

Debs ran as a Socialist candidate for President of the United States five times, including 1900 (earning 0.63% of the popular vote), 1904 (2.98%), 1908 (2.83%), 1912 (5.99%), and 1920 (3.41%), the last time from a prison cell. He was also a candidate for United States Congress from his native Indiana in 1916.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_V._Debs

[malthaussen]

1. Well, Sinclair was 20 years his junior...

... but as Mr Debs was active in politics when Mr Sinclair was active in journalism, it would be astonishing if they hadn't met. The more so as they were both Socialists.

For your amusement: https://thelitworks.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/the-socialism-of-upton-sinclair/

-- Mal

[silvershadow]

3. thank you! nt

[Omaha Steve]

2. K&R!

[silvershadow]

4. thank you! nt

[malaise]

5. Thanks for reminding everyone that today is May Day

[silvershadow]

6. You are welcome! Happy May Day! nt

[kentuck]

7. Happy Mayday!

Everybody !

[silvershadow]

8. Indeed! nt

[kentuck]

9. :-)

[silvershadow]

10. :)

[dharbigt]

11. The answer is yes.

Greetings,

I am the treasurer of the Eugene V. Debs Foundation. It is absolutely so that Mr. Debs and Mr. Sinclair were acknowledged acquaintances and I don't think it is much of a stretch to say they were friends.

Mr. Debs had a huge number of letters, most of which were destroyed while he was still alive to make room for more letters, but many have survived including a letter from Sinclair to Debs, who was in the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary at the time.

If you'd like a PDF of this letter, I can provide.


In solidarity,
Benjamin Kite

[nemo137]

12. Fantastic

I'm glad to know there is a Eugene V. Debs foundation, and that they're active on the internet. Thank you for this post.

[kentuck]

13. Thanks for responding to this thread.

Stay around and offer some opinions.

[Odin2005]

14. Debs is my hero!