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Let social busybodies and professional “public morals experts” in their fads reflect upon the perils they rashly invite under this pretense of social welfare.

Samuel Gompers

To be free, the workers must have choice. To have choice they must retain in their own hands the right to determine under what conditions they will work.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Choice Condition Determine Hand Must Own Retain Right Under Worker
You can’t do it unless you organize.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Labor Organized Union
There may be here and there a worker who for certain reasons unexplainable to us does not join a union of labor. That is his right. It is his legal right, no matter how morally wrong he may be. It is his legal right, and no one can or dare question his exercise of that legal right.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Certain Exercise Join Labor Reason Unexplainable Union Worker
The labor of a human being is not a commodity or article of commerce.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Article Commerce Commodity Human Being Labor
Our mission has been the protection of the wage-worker, now; to increase his wages; to cut hours off the long workday, which was killing him; to improve the safety and the sanitary conditions of the workshop.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Cut Cutting Hour Increase Long Mission Now Protection Safety Wage Workday Kill Worker
Show me the country that has no strikes and I’ll show you the country in which there is no liberty.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Country Liberty Show Strike
There is not a right too long denied to which we do not aspire in order to achieve; there is not a wrong too long endured that we are not determined to abolish.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Abolish Aspire Denied Determine Endure Long Order Right Wrong
Doing for people what they can and ought to do for themselves is a dangerous experiment.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Dangerous Done Experiment Fads Ought People Themselves
To make manhood more noble, womanhood more beautiful, and childhood more happy and bright.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Beautiful Bright Childhood Happy Manhood More Noble Womanhood
You can’t weigh the soul of a man with a bar of pig-iron.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Bar Iron Man Pig Soul Weight
What does labor want? We want more schoolhouses and less jails; more books and less arsenals; more learning and less vice; more leisure and less greed; more justice and less revenge; in fact, more of the opportunities to cultivate our better natures.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Arsenal Beautiful Book Labor Less More Nature Opportunity Revenge Schoolhouse
The right to say the things which convey the new and yet unexpected thoughts, the right to say things, even though they do a wrong.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Convey Life New Right Say Thing Through Unexpected Wrong
So long as we have held fast to voluntary principles and have been actuated and inspired by the spirit of service.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Actuated Decision Inspire Long Principle Service Spirit Voluntary Wise
Show me that product of human endeavor in the making of which the workingman has had no share, and I will show you something that society can well dispense with.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Make Man Product Share Show Society Something Working
The freedom of speech and the freedom of the press have not been granted to the people in order that they may say things which please, and which are based upon accepted thought, but the right to say the things which displease.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Been Freedom Granted Order People Please Press Say Speech Thing
The trade union movement represents the organized economic power of the workers… It is in reality the most potent and the most direct social insurance the workers can establish.
SAMUEL GOMPERS

Economic Movement Organization Organized Power Reality Represent Trade Worker

Let social busybodies and professional “public morals experts” in their fads reflect upon the perils they rashly invite under this pretense of social welfare.

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Let social busybodies and professional “public morals experts” in their fads reflect upon the perils they rashly invite under this pretense of social welfare.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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