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The Workingmen's Party of California (WPC) was an American labor organization, founded in 1877 and led by
Denis Kearney Denis Kearney (1847–1907) was a California labor leader from Ireland who was active in the late 19th century and was known for his anti-Chinese activism. Called "a demagogue of extraordinary power," he frequently gave long and caustic speeches ...
, J.G Day, and H. L. Knight.


Organizational history

As a result of heavy unemployment from the 1873-78 national depression, Sand Lot rallies erupted in San Francisco that led to the Party's formation in 1877. The party won 11 seats in the
State Senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...
and 17 in the State Assembly by 1878 and then rewrote the state's constitution, denying Chinese citizens voting rights in California. The most important part of the constitution included the formation of California Railroad Commission that would oversee the activities of the Central and Pacific Railroad companies that were run by Crocker, Huntington, Hopkins and Stanford. The party took particular aim against cheap
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
immigrant labor and the
Central Pacific Railroad The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by Pacific Railroad Acts, U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete the western part of the "First transcontinental railroad" in N ...
which employed them. Their goal was to "rid the country of Chinese cheap labor." Its famous slogan was "''The Chinese must go!''" Kearney's attacks against the Chinese were of a particularly virulent and openly
racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...
nature, and found considerable support among
white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
Californians of the time. This sentiment led eventually to the
Chinese Exclusion Act The Chinese Exclusion Act was a United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law excluded merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplom ...
of 1882. By 1883, there were no WPC members left in either the state senate or state house of representatives. Kearney's party should not be confused with the
Workingmen's Party of the United States The Workingmen's Party of the United States (WPUS), established in 1876, was one of the first Marxist-influenced political parties in the United States. It is remembered as the forerunner of the Socialist Labor Party of America. Organizational h ...
, which was mostly based in the Eastern United States. The branches of the Workingmen's Party of the United States that were in California were absorbed into the Workingmen's Party of California after the latter was growing at a rapid rate and had adopted similar language.


References


Further reading


Books and pamphlets


George W. Greene, ''The Labor agitators, or, The Battle for Bread: The Party of the Future, the Workingmen's Party of California: Is Birth and Organization. Its Leaders and Its Purposes: Corruption in Our Local and State Governments. Venality of the Press.'' San Francisco: George W. Greene
n.d. . 1879 * Denis Kearney, ''The Workingmen's Party of California: An Epitome of Its Rise and Progress.'' San Francisco: Bacon, 1878. * â€
''Speeches of Dennis Kearney, Labor Champion.''
New York: Jesse Haney & Co., 1878.
''Chinatown Declared a Nuisance!''
San Francisco, 1880. * Neil Larry Shumsky, ''The Evolution of Political Protest and the Workingmen's Party of California.'' Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1992.


Journal articles and dissertations

* Frank Michael Fahey, ''Denis Kearney: A Study in Demagoguery.'' Ph.D. dissertation. Stanford University, 1956. * Roger William Hite, ''The Public Speaking of Denis Kearney, Labor Agitator.'' M.S. thesis. University of Oregon, 1967. * Helen Havens Ingalls, ''The History of the Workingmen's Party of California.'' M.A. thesis. University of California, Berkeley, 1919. * Charles Herzl Kahn, ''In-group and Out-group Responses to Radical Party Leadership: A Study of the Workingmen's Party of California.'' M.A. thesis. University of California, Berkeley, 1951. * Carole Carter Mauss, ''The San Jose Branch of the Workingmen's Party of California, 1878-1880.'' M.A. thesis, San Jose State University, 1997. * Doyce B. Nunis, Jr., "The Demagogue and the Demographer: Correspondence of Denis Kearney and Lord Bryce," ''Pacific Historical Review,'' vol. 36, no. 3 (August 1967), pp. 269–288. * Mary Gabriel O'Connor, ''Denis Kearney, Sand-lot Orator: A Chronicle of California.'' M.A. thesis. Dominican College of San Rafael A 1937. * Robert Dean Potter, ''Denis Kearney: A Reappraisal.'' M.A. thesis. Chico State University, 1969. {{Authority control Anti-Chinese sentiment in the United States History of racism in California White supremacist groups in the United States Anti-immigration politics in the United States White nationalist parties Left-wing populism in the United States 1877 establishments in California