TOP SECRET.
SERIES “К”
SPECIAL REPORT
on the moods among factory workers and the unemployed in the city of Kharkiv at the time of May Day holidays.
As a whole, the first May Day holiday proceeded appropriately, factory workers actively participating therein. At big plants and factories, factory workers’ turnout at the May Day demonstration equaled 70-80% except for particular groups of factory workers directly headed for the hippodrome. The rallies held on that day at the assembly points of the biggest plants before the demonstration / such plants as Kharkiv Steam Locomotive Plant and Hammer and Sickle Plant/ were highly enthusiastic.
The factory workers’ first impression of the holiday resulted in conversations about preparatory work well done by all the organizations. In particular, factory workers emphasized uninterrupted food supplies to the demonstration.
KHARKIV STEAM LOCOMOTIVE PLANT/Today at 09:00 a.m. a rally was held at the hippodrome before the factory workers went on the demonstration. HORBIK, the chairperson for the plant’s workers committee, congratulated the factory workers on May Day and briefly described its significance. He was followed by NAKONECHNY, the plant’s director, who announced the written call for competition issued by Luhansk Steam Locomotive Plant. The speech given by NAKONECHNY who said that Kharkiv steam locomotive builders were receiving the call and promising to reduce the products’ prime cost from the proposed 8½% to 9½% aroused thunderous applause and shouts of approval. The rally was cheered by the factory workers [.] When the rally was over, the factory workers headed for the hippodrome in the well-organized manner. In their view, this year May Day celebration received a greater number of factory workers than it did last year.
MECHANICAL PLANT/The turnout at the demonstration was up to 80%. The factory workers were feeling cheerful and festive. People were heard saying: “IN NO OTHER COUNTRY MAY DAY IS CELEBRATED THE WAY IT IS CELEBRATED HERE, IN RUSSIA. THIS IS TRULY OUR HOLIDAY, THE FACTORY WORKERS’ HOLIDAY”.
“MAY DAY CELEBRATION DRAWS ATTENTION OF THE WHOLE POPULATION”.
HAMMER AND SICKLE PLANT. Before the beginning of the march, a brief rally was held at the hippodrome, where Comrade ZATONSKY gave his welcoming speech. The turnout at the demonstration was full except for the factory workers living in the country.
Those working at smaller plants were a little bit passive, which manifested itself as poor turnout at the demonstration and lack of festive moods.
COALMINER’S LIGHT PLANT. The demonstration was attended by about 400 factory workers and their families, the total number of the plant’s workers being 1.000 men. The demonstration was mostly attended by the young; there were few old workers [.] In R. Luxemburg Square, the plant’s column began thinning out. As few as about 200 men reached the hippodrome.
KOFOK №2. Not more than 100 lady workers out of 430 turned up at the assembly point. The factory was to have held a general meeting of workers dedicated to the festivities on May Day’s Eve but the meeting was disrupted because the lady workers skipped it.
PRINTING HOUSES. As far as such printing houses as “Book-Lovers Society”, “Trans Print” and “Petrovsky Publishers”, the turnout did not exceed 30-35%.
The noticeable passivity roots back to the pre-holiday moods observed prior to May Day, namely to a number of negative responses due to dire straits caused by food shortage, dissatisfaction with the wages, etc.
5TH TOBACCO FACTORY. By 09:00 up to 150 lady workers out of the total number of 500 turned up at the assembly point. In discussing the poor turnout of lady workers, some of them, such as BUDENKO Kseniia or PODLUZHNA Efrosiniia for example, said: “SHOULD WE CARE FOR HOLIDAYS WHEN WE HAVE NO FOOD TO EAT?”
RED THREAD FACTORY. Speaking to a group of factory workers at the assembly point, Worker ABRAMCHYK said: “CAN FACTORY WORKERS ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE IN THE DEMONSTRATION WHEN FOODS HAVE BECOME ALMOST 100% MORE EXPENSIVE AND THEN THEY ARE SQUEEZING THE LAST BLOOD OUT OF A FACTORY WORKER?”. The group of factory workers were feeling the same way, paying respect to his words.
TANNERS. A group of tanners were heard saying at the hippodrome: “INSTEAD OF ARRANGING HOLIDAYS AND SPENDING MONEY ON VARIOUS HOLIDAY DECORATIONS, THEY SHOULD HAVE RAISED THE BREAD RATION”.
Workers of Kutuzov Factory were heard having a similar talk.
The ban on sales of alcohol during at the time of May Day holidays aroused apparently undesired conversations among some particular groups of factory workers.
PROLETARIAN PRINTING HOUSE. Worker PETROV said: “PERHAPS, THE POWER MADE A CONSCIOUS DECISION TO STOP SELLING VODKA IN MAY DAY PERIOD. PERHAPS, THE COMMUNISTS ARE AFRAID LEST THERE BE SOME BAGPIPES AT THE TIME OF THE DEMONSTRATION”.
Prior to May Day, some groups of factory workers spoke about the possibility of oppositionists giving speeches and dispensing leaflets at the time of May Day holidays the way it is done during October Revolution Anniversary festivities. In this respect, the following is noteworthy:
CANDY FACTORY, FOOD PLANT. While the columns were marching past Astoria Hotel in R. Luxemburg Square, somebody threw down leaflets about physical culture. Worker PANOV was the first to pick up one of those leaflets and in response to the other workers’ questions what the leaflet was all about, he said; “OPPOSITIONISTS ARE THROWING THEM DOWN”. As soon as he said it, the whole column became disarranged and began picking up the leaflets. Finding out that PANOV had done it for fun, the workers began laughing, showing their disappointment.
Both on May Day Eve and on May Day itself, the unemployed were demonstrating negative moods. The sections of builders, printers, textile workers and teenagers conceived arranging an independent demonstration of the unemployed, demanding ‘BREAD AND JOBS”.
BUILDERS SECTION. On May Day Eve, a group of unemployed conspired to arrange an independent march to the hippodrome and to demand an increase in the bread ration.
TEENAGERS SECTION. 30/An unemployed woman came to the section of unskilled laborers, gathered a group of them around her and said that unemployed teenagers were gathering near their section, willing to go on an independent demonstration on May Day.
PRINTERS SECTION. On May Day, when printers and unemployed began gathering near the printers’ club, KUTARYN, one of them, addressed the unemployed, saying: “GUYS, LET US TAKE THE BANNER AND WRITE “LONG LIVE MAY DAY BUT GIVE US FOOD AND JOBS”. He said that in the presence of Printers KOHAN, VELYKOV and REZNYKOV. But none of them paid attention to his words.
At the hippodrome, on occasion of May Day celebration, Unemployed KUBRAK and POHORELTSEV said: “PREVIOUSLY, THE DEMONSTRATION WAS ATTENDED WITH ENTHUSIASM. THEREFORE, RULES WERE OBSERVED. NOW THEY GO TO CELEBRATE MAY DAY LIKE A FLOCK OF SHEEP. PEOPLE HAVE NO FOOD TO EAT BUT THEY ARE ARRANGING A DEMONSTRATION. WE SHOULD GOME OUT TO THE TRIBUNE AND DEMAND THAT THEY SHOULD GIVE US BREAD INSTEAD OF A DEMONSTRATION”.
Among the incidents that occurred at the hippodrome and aroused negative conversations among factory workers, one should mention that Tribune 2 was damaged / food workers and other unions /, which brought about human victims / one of them is badly wounded and five of them are slightly wounded /.
DEPUTY HEAD OF POLITICAL HEAD OFFICE OF USSR /CARLSON/
ALL CORRECT: [signature]
The presented report illustrates types of information that are hard to find in other sources. Those are conversations during a celebratory demonstration. In the source text, we can see that people found pressing issues more important than party slogans. Workers were mostly interested in the availability of bread, work, and free sale of alcohol on festive days. Certainly, the quotes and statements of people presented in the report do not represent the entire range of topics discussed during the demonstrations. However, they allow us to at least take a look behind the settings of official manifestations. It is critical, for in 1929, Soviet celebration canon was still on the development stage. It is illustrative that party officials were mostly concerned about the massive turnout of workers at the manifestations. Those signs are distinct markers of Soviet celebrations during further decades.
Soviet special services collected information through their agents or through the ”signals from the grounds” (denunciation reports). During 1920-1930, such reports had been drafted on a regular basis, according to chronological and theme-based approaches. Authorities were collecting such information to be able to have a more realistic view on the current internal political situation. The research of such reports was made possible after Ukraine’s independence since they had had classified access in Soviet times. They include information about the attitudes of people to different political, social and economic issues, such as the update of collective agreements at enterprises, government loans, arrests of opposition leaders, foreign policy actions of Soviet state, etc. Their analysis offers detailed characteristics of the everyday life of different social groups (mostly workers), to see them as agents of historic reality who reflect on their situation and assess it. It makes the reports about the attitudes an invaluable source in studying the history of Soviet society.