Report of the Committee on Education and Labor…The Chicago Memorial Day Incident

“The encounter of May 30 should never have occurred. It was not necessary from the standpoint of police protection or as part of well-planned strike tactics. It resulted in no gain for the State, or the property owners, or the laborers.” – pg. 41. This discouraging report outlines the government’s official findings from its inquiry into the Memorial Day Massacre, a 1937 labor strike that saw Chicago police open fire on peacefully protesting members of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee. Most of the victims (10 killed and 50 wounded) were shot in the back or clubbed with hatchet handles. Numerous photographs capture the chaos, while a small map offers a ‘Situation Plan in the Vicinity of Plant of Republic Steel Corporation.’ The report was issued as part of the broader inquiries by the La Follette Committee. Officially known as the Senate Committee on Education and Labor, the subcommittee was established in 1936 to investigate violations of workers’ rights, particularly employer anti-union practices and industrial espionage. Led by Senator Robert M. La Follette Jr., the committee operated for five years and exposed widespread abuses by major corporations, private detective agencies, and local municipal bodies.