Leo Krzycki
Pronunciationk-ZHIT-ski
Born
Leo C. Krzycki

(1881-08-10)August 10, 1881
Milwaukee, WI, USA
DiedJanuary 22, 1966(1966-01-22) (aged 84)
Milwaukee, WI, USA
NationalityAmerican
Other namesLeon Krzycki (Polish)
CitizenshipAmerican
Occupation(s)Union leader, Socialist leader, activist
Years active1895-1950
EmployerAmalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA)
Organization(s)Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), American Slav Congress (ASC), American-Polish Labor Council (APLC)
SuccessorBessie Abramowitz Hillman (ACWA), John Marsalka (ASC)
Political partySocialist Party of America
MovementSocialism
Opponents
SpouseAnna Kadau
ChildrenLeona Krzycki, Eugene John Krzycki, Victor Leo Krzycki
Parent(s)Martin Krzycki, Katherine Wobszal
AwardsOrder of Polonia Restituta (1946)

Leo Krzycki (1881-1966) was a chairman of the Socialist Party of America and vice president of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America.[1][2][3]

Background

Leo C. Krzycki was born on August 10, 1881,[1][4] in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Martin Krzycki and Katherine Wobszal.[2]

Career

In 1918, Krzycki ran for the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 8th congressional district. He lost to incumbent Edward E. Browne. In 1924, he was a candidate for the House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 4th congressional district.[5] He lost to incumbent John C. Schafer. Krzycki ran for the United States Senate in 1926, losing to John J. Blaine. He then ran for Secretary of State of Wisconsin in 1928, losing to incumbent Theodore Dammann.

In 1933, Krzycki was elected chairman of the national executive board of the Socialist Party of America, succeeding the lately deceased Morris Hillquit.[1]

Krzycki's 1937 involvement in the strike of about 1,500 people against the Republic Steel plant was criticized, especially the "march" forward that the strikers took towards the plant gates. One first-hand account stated that he knew beforehand that the police captain was a "sadist" and stayed on-stage, trying in vain to dissuade the protests from going forward.[6] Krzycki was also a key figure in organizing the 1937 strike against Ford Motor Company, and shares a historic image leading the strikers with labor leaders Richard Frankensteen and Ed Hall.[7]

Personal life and death

In 1909, Krzycki married Anna Kadau, a neighbor; they had three children.[1][2]

Krzycki was a member of the American Committee for Protection of Foreign Born.[8][9]

Leo Krzycki died age 84 on January 22, 1966, in Milwaukee.[1][2]

Awards

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Binkowski, Don (2002). "Leo Krzycki: no one like this Milwaukee Polish leader". Wisconsin Labor History Society Newsletter. Wisconsin Labor History Society: 3–4.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Binkowski, Don (2001). Poles Together: Leo Krzycki and Polish Americans in the American Labor Movement. XLibris. p. 554.
  3. 1 2 Binkowski, Don (2001). Leo Krzycki and the Detroit Left. XLibris. pp. 159 (Restituta).
  4. ↑ "Krzycki, Leo". Our Campaigns.com. Retrieved 2013-06-23.
  5. ↑ "Krzycki, Leo". Political Graveyard. Retrieved 2013-06-23.
  6. ↑ Arthur G. McDowell. Labor History. Volume 6. Fall 1965. pp. 274–275.
  7. ↑ Patricia Zacharias (1997-10-22). "Richard Frankensteen, the UAW's 'other guy'". Detroit News. Archived from the original on 2012-07-09. Retrieved 2013-11-26.
  8. ↑ Report on the American Slav Congress and Associated Organizations. USGPO. 26 June 1949. p. 34. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  9. ↑ Communist Political Subversion: The Campaign to Destroy the Security Programs of the United States Government. USGPO. 16 August 1957. p. 70. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
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