Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495050a51525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534536537538539540541542 of 542

We must remember that American workmen - and these are bona fide Americans - have not and never have had the slightest class consciousness, not the slightest. They feel more closely related to their employers, to the foremen and to the bosses than they do to Joe Ryan, Sidney Hillman, and other immigrants or children of immigrants who have come here and have made what the middle western American is pleased to call trouble.

In other words, these automobile workers for the most part astonished me as I began to know them better with the scorn which they held for trade union organizers and leaders, and the deep-seated prejudice which they had against foreigners, as they called them. One realized that it was that same spirit that you see in the Chicago Tribune today (1953). It was the same attitude of mind that sprang from the same soil, and I suppose from the same pioneer settlement concepts.

Of course, American society is not class stratified, never has been. The automobile people saw that even more clearly, because it was a new industry, than did some of the old industries like textiles where there has tended to be a stratification as the owners went on for two or three generations, always being rich and being owners,