University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Archives Department.

Hirsch, Alfred, 1908- .

Oral history interview, 1982.

UWM Manuscript Collection 39

7 audio cassettes

ABSTRACT: An oral history interview by Stanley Mallach with Alfred Hirsch, a labor newspaper journalist who was editor of the CIO News (Wisconsin) from August 1942 to March 1944, conducted on November 8 and 18 and December 13, 1982 in Brookfield, Wisconsin. The interview covers Hirsch's early life and education; his work with the International Labor Defense, the National Committee for the Defense of Political Prisoners, and the Sunday Worker; his affiliation with the Cafeteria Employees Union and his editorship of the Cafeteria Call; and his editorship of the CIO News.

ACCESS RESTRICTIONS: There are no access restrictions on the materials, and the collection is open to all members of the public in accordance with state law. However, the researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright which may be involved in the use of this collection. (Wisconsin Statutes 19.21-19.39).

SCOPE AND CONTENT: The first part of the interview covers Hirsch's family background and education at the Horace Mann School in New York City, at the Roger Ascham School in White Plains, New York, at Harvard University, at Columbia University, and in France.

The next section covers the years 1932 to 1938 when Hirsch worked for a series of Left organizations and publications, including the International Labor Defense and its publication Labor Defender, the National Committee for the Defense of Political Prisoners, and the Sunday Worker.

Between 1938 and 1942 Hirsch worked for the Cafeteria Employees Union in New York City. Especially notable are his recollections of his supervision of the union's social, cultural, and athletic activities and his memories of his founding and editing the union's newspaper, Cafeteria Call. This section provides an excellent picture of the internal operations and spirit of a small union of unskilled workers in a service industry.

In 1942, the Industrial Union Councils of Wisconsin and Milwaukee County hired Hirsch to edit the CIO News (Wisconsin). Most of the interview deals with his editorship of the paper from August 1942 to March 1944, when he began his military service. There are detailed recollections of the internal operations of the paper, including discussions of staffing and the sources of stories; layout, production, advertising, and distribution problems; editorial policy; and relations with individual unions and labor federations. Hirsch's account is especially strong on how he was hired, the problems of getting stories, distributing the paper, and the paper's relations with the Wisconsin and Milwaukee County Industrial Union Councils and their leaders.

The interview deals extensively with a variety of subjects and significant personalities relevant to the Wisconsin and national labor movements and the Left during the late 1930s and World War II. Among the subjects covered are the AFL-CIO split; the national CIO News; factionalism in the Wisconsin and Milwaukee County Industrial Union Councils; racism and the CIO; organizing drives; unions and the war effort; women in industry during World War II; labor management relations at companies such as Allis-Chalmers Corporation, Chain Belt Corporation, and the Gisholt Machine Company; Hirsch's labor journalism classes; War Chest campaigns; the CIO Political Action Committee; and the second front. Among the state and national labor and Left leaders Hirsch discusses are John L. Lewis, Len De Caux, Joseph North, Walter Burke, Meyer Adelman, Harold Christoffel, and Emil Costello.

COLLECTION CITATION: This collection should be cited as:

Hirsch, Alfred, 1908- . Oral history interview, 1982. UWM Manuscript Collection 39. University Manuscript Collections. Golda Meir Library. University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee.

RELATED COLLECTIONS:

Christoffel, Harold, 1912- . Oral history interview, 1987. (UWM Manuscript Collection 40)

ACQUISITION: The interview was by Stanley Mallach, with transcription by Joseph Broderick and Stanley Mallach. The interview was part of a series of Fromkin Memorial Collection interviews on the history of the labor press in Wisconsin before, during, and after World War II. The interview was conducted at Mr. Hirsch's house by Stanley Mallach. There were three sessions: November 8, November 18, and December 13, 1982.

PROCESSING: Mark A. Vargas processed the collection at the Archives in May 1994. An index was part of the original transcript, but its page numbering was rendered obsolete when the interview was reformatted on the computer.

MARC RECORD SEARCH TERMS: The following terms were used in the online bibliographic MARC record to this collection:

Adelman, Meyer.
Allis-Chalmers Corporation.
Burke, Walter, 1911- .
Cafeteria Call (New York, N.Y.).
Chain Belt Company, Milwaukee.
Christoffel, Harold, 1912- .
CIO News. Wisconsin ed.
Congress of Industrial Organizations (U.S.). Political Action Committee.
Costello, Emil.
Congress of Industrial Organizations (U.S.).
Daily Worker (New York, N.Y.).
De Caux, Len, 1899- .
Gisholt Machine Company (Milwaukee, Wis.).
Hotel and Restaraunt Employees and Bartenders International Union. Cafeteria Employees Union. Local 302 (New York, N.Y.).
International Labor Defense.
International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America. Local 248 (West Allis, Wis.).
Lewis, John Llewellyn, 1880-1969.
Milwaukee County Industrial Union Council.
National Committee for the Defense of Political Prisoners.
North, Joseph.
Oral history--Wisconsin.
Press, Labor--United States--History--20th century.
Press, Labor--Wisconsin.
Trade-unions--Wisconsin--Organizing.
Trade-unions--Food industry employees--New York (N.Y.).
Wisconsin State Industrial Union Council.
World War, 1939-1945--Wisconsin--Public opinion.

TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW: Interview transcript available for viewing.