#bonus march

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Artists went hungry during the Depression, too. Some denizens of the Village joined the Bonus March on Washington in 1932.

Photo: Associated Press

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

World War I veterans seeking early payment of a promised service bonus gather on the grounds of the Washington Monument June 2, 1932.

Upwards of 17,000 veterans and another 28,000 family members and supporters descended on Washington, D.C. and camped in a number of different locations around the city, including vacant buildings. The largest and most famous was on Anacostia flats.

Note that black and white veterans are mixing freely on the Monument grounds in contrast a nearby segregated beach on the Tidal Basin.

Source.

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

July 28: On this day in 1932, federal troops broke up the "Bonus March," World War 1 veterans demanding early payment of promised bonuses during the Great Depression.

(from USHistory.org) "Under the leadership of General Douglas MacArthur, the army, complete with infantry, cavalry, and tanks, rolled into Anacostia Flats forcing the Bonus Army to flee. MacArthur then ordered the shanty settlements burned. ...

"Hoover maintained that political agitators, anarchists, and communists dominated the mob. But facts contradict his claims. Nine out of ten Bonus Marchers were indeed veterans, and 20% were disabled. ...

"As Hoover campaigned for reelection that summer, his actions turned an already sour public opinion of him even further bottomward."

Via Cheryl LaBash

[libraryofva]

Recent Acquisition - Photograph Collection

Original caption: “Dissatisfied Veterans Leave the Bonuseers Camp at Fort Hunt, VA.  A group of dissatisfied veterans shown as they leave the Bonus Camp at Fort Hunt, Va., on May 22nd. They refused to accept the offer to sign up with the Reforestations Army - although some of the veterans did. With their meager belongings they start homeward - some having to go as far as California.” May 22, 1933

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

Tanks and mounted troops advance to break up a Bonus Marchers’ camp of veterans protesting lost wages, Washington D.C., July 28, 1932.

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

“Hoover Acts to Put End to Riots And the "Defiance of Civil Authority",” Ottawa Journal. July 29, 1932. Page 5. ---- Associated Press by Direct Wire. WASHINGTON. July 28.- President Hoover, explaining his reasons for ordering Federal troops into the Capital. said today he took that action to put an end to "rioting and defiance of civil authority" by members of the bonus expeditionary force. 

In a formal statement, the President said he had been notified by District of Columbia Commissioners they could "no longer preserve law and order.”

Saying that a considerable part of the bonus seekers are not veterans and many are Communists and persons with criminal records, the Presi dent added: "The veterans amongst these numbers are no doubt unaware of the character of their companions and are being led into violence which Government can tolerate." 

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

R. B. Bowman, one of five members of the Workers Ex-Servicemen League to meet with Vice President Charles Curtis to demand early payment of a World War I bonus, is shown with his youngest son Jerry near the Capitol in Washington, D.C. July 18, 1932.

Curtis declined to support the early payment of the bonus and then gave the child two dimes during the visit.

Source.

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

Carrying signs demanding immediate payment of a World War I bonus, black and white veterans march out of New York City and on to Washington, D.C. June 6, 1932. Source.