Salt of the Earth Strike
United States 1950
Synopsis
In October 1950, after several months of unsuccessful bargaining with Empire Zinc, the members of Local 890 of the International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers (IUMMSW, or Mine-Mill) went on strike in Hanover, New Mexico. Neither side was willing to back down, and the strike lasted for 15 months. The strike sometimes became violent, as local authorities attempted to arrest picketers or strikebreakers tried to push through the picket lines. Finally, in January 1952 the sides negotiated a settlement in which both the company and workers made concessions.
The strike, which became known as the "Salt of the Earth" strike, was important on a number of levels. It took place in the context of the cold war, and the issue of communism was always present. In fact, the IUMMSW had been dispelled from the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) because it was seen as being overly influenced by communism. After the strike, several blacklisted Hollywood filmmakers made a film about the strike. The film, however, was suppressed because of the anticommunist sentiment prevalent in Hollywood at the time. Ethnic relations in the United States also played a role in the strike, as most of the miners were Mexican American.
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