The lock out 1913 is a major event in the history of the Irish working class. Six months
of struggle that tore Dublin saw the unprecedented opposition between a new militancy in
the unions and local capitalism. ---- What is "larkinisme"? ---- The word "syndicalism"[1]
has now disappeared from the Irish political and union speech, though it was central in
the debates of the period. In his diary, the Irish Independent, William Martin Murphy
regularly took unionism, for example in a number of 21 September 1913 when a worker
blindfolded appeared (on the banner was written the word " syndicalism ") and his family
begged him to return to work. Murphy frequently attacked this concept in his speeches, but
what was its true meaning and why this term he begat such fear among the great patrons of
Dublin and conservative unionists?
John Newsinger writes in his book that the larkinisme Rebel City " was a revolt against
the authority of employers, a rejection of the place that was given to the working class
in society, and [that] it contained the seeds of opposition consistent with the employing
class and the capitalist system. That was certainly what people believed at the time . "
Larkin believed in the power of "One Big Union" (one large union covering all sectors) and
thought that industrial action was the primary means by which the working class could
overthrow capitalism. In a speech to the end of the movement, Larkin stated that
"employers know no division into sectors. They give us the title of 'working class'. Are
proud of this term. Therefore build THE union and us not, as now, all 1100 separate acting
differently unions. When a union is subject to a lockout or strike when the other unions
or sections or apathetic or behave in yellow. We must put an end to this case organized
strikes."
A central element of the political philosophy of Larkin was the solidarity strike.
Although it was widely condemned by the bourgeois press at the time, the words of an
independent observer seem to resonate truth when he speaks of the hypocrisy of employers
who condemned the solidarity strike then " they don ' had no problem of conscience to use
the lockout solidarity . "
The lockout, a defeat for the labor movement?
It is clear that the fight which lasted until 1914 can not be regarded as a failure of the
organized working class in Ireland. However, we can draw some lessons from this fight and
approach the left of these events. One aspect of the period that the left tend to forget
is the role of the media in the fight. While the Irish Independent and other publications
Murphy had the ability to attack the trade union movement and Larkin Larkin managed to
spread socialist ideology with a large part of the working class through Dublin Irish
Worker , established in 1911. C. Desmond Greaves noted that if Larkin had probably
overestimated its distribution, all reasonable estimates of the time show that the union
newspaper at the base actually touched a mass readership. While the nationalist Sinn F?in
newspaper was sold between 2000 and 5000 copies of the newspaper Larkin sold 25 000 copies
per week during movement.
At the beginning of 1914, swathes of the Dublin working class back to work, even promising
to distance themselves from the larkinisme in the future. However, as shown by Greaves,
one of the main effects of the lockout " on workers in all industries was to strengthen
their sense of belonging to the same class . " The extraordinary solidarity during
movement, not only between workers of Dublin but also those who are furthest-supported
them financially crucially, must inspire us today. The Irish working class reaffirm
various occasions during what is commonly called the "revolutionary period" of Irish
history. For example, during the movement against conscription in 1918, the workers of the
whole island laid down their tools and machines stopped to protest against imperialism and
war.
Nationalism, working class emancipation?
However, the state that emerged from the independence honored any of promise to the
working class Irish nationalists during the years of revolt. Repression of struggles in
the world of work in the newly independent Ireland shows how virtually nothing has changed
for the working class after 1922. It is difficult not to support the conclusion drawn by
the historian Cathal Brennan in his study of postal strikes in 1922 (the first major
strike in the new Irish state): " despite the birth of a sovereign and independent state
( at least for the 26 counties), the aspirations contained in the Democratic Programme of
D?il ?ireann in 1919 seemed as distant as before . "
The lockout should not simply be seen as a part of the nationalist narrative of the years
1912-1913, but as the most significant confrontation between labor and capital in Irish
history. That this confrontation took place under the British flag, or that of the Irish
Independent, has no impact on the class struggle. We must remember that in many ways what
began in 1913 has not yet been completed in Ireland where workers do not always have today
the recognition of their right to join a union at their place of job.
Donal ? Fall?in. Translation David (AL Alsace)
[ 1 ] The term syndicalism is the class struggle unionism advocated by Larkin, while trade
unionism , a term usually used means corporatist unions in sectors and branches with more
hardware and small claims.
Home »
» (en) France, Alternative Libertaire AL #233 - The lockout of 1913 and the larkinism: Behind the Myths (fr, pt)