SOCIALISTS

Questions

1. Why did Debs object to workers being called "hands?"
2. Is it better, as Debs argued, to vote right and lose than to vote wrong and win?
3. What were some of Rochester's settlement houses and who did they serve? Why were they established?

Activities

1. Research and report on the history of one of Rochester's settlement houses. What role do settlement houses play in our community today?
2. Propose a topic for a Labor Lyceum program; outline your own ideas on the issue.
3. Research and report on the life of Emma Goldman.

Vocabulary conscription

lyceum

dispensary

agitator

militant

Glossary

socialism: organizing economic and governmental activities democratically to overcome social inequality and to serve the interests of society as a whole. Machinery, raw materials, capital, etc. are owned collectively and used to produce goods and services to benefit human needs rather than yield private profit. Decision-making is based on citizen input.

anarchism: Literally, government by none. Anarchists hold that authority is inherently wrong and desire a society based on the voluntary association of individuals. They oppose the State which they believe imposes the will of the majority on minorities. Some anarchists support violence as a means of abolishing the State.

Resources

Map/Guide, # 13, 14, 21, 50, 52-55
Emma Goldman, Anarchism and Other Essays (1911); Living My Life (1931).
Nick Salvatore, Eugene V. Debs: Citizen and Socialist. (1982)