R.B. (Robert Boyd) Russell (October 31, 1888 – September 25, 1964) was a socialist Canadian trade unionist, labour organizer, and politician. He was a prominent figure in the

Winnipeg General Strike The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 was one of the most famous and influential strikes in Canadian history. For six weeks, May 15 to June 26, more than 30,000 strikers brought economic activity to a standstill in Winnipeg, Manitoba, which at the ...

of 1919 and was later the leader of Winnipeg's One Big Union.

Biography

Born in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, Russell was raised in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

and came to Canada in 1911. He moved to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, and worked as a machinist in the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

's Weston Shops. He was a member of the Machinists Union Local Lodge 122 in Winnipeg. He also became a prominent member of the

Socialist Party of Canada The Socialist Party of Canada (SPC) was a political party that existed from 1904 to 1925, led by E. T. Kingsley. It published the newspaper, '' Western Clarion''. History Establishment The Socialist Party of Canada was founded at the Sociali ...

, which at the time represented the left-wing of the labour movement in Manitoba. In 1919, he attended the Western Labour Conference in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, which called for the replacement of narrow

craft unionism Craft unionism refers to a model of trade unionism in which workers are organised based on the particular craft or trade in which they work. It contrasts with industrial unionism, in which all workers in the same industry are organized into the sa ...

with an

industrial union Industrial unionism is a trade union organising method through which all workers in the same industry are organized into the same union, regardless of skill or trade, thus giving workers in one industry, or in all industries, more leverage in ba ...

known as the One Big Union. During the Winnipeg General Strike, he was prominent figure on the Strike Committee which managed most of the city's affairs. Winnipeg General Strike 1919 Leaders

After the strike was suppressed, Russell and the other strike leaders were charged with seditious conspiracy. The star witness for the Crown was the undercover Mountie Frank Zaneth. The first of the strikers to go on trial, he was sentenced to a two-year term at Stony Mountain Penitentiary. Many observers at the time, and many since, have regarded the trials as unjust and politically motivated. The strike and the resulting arrests created a temporary climate of labour unity in the city. The SPC had previously opposed "popular front" campaigns with centrist labour parties, and Russell himself had argued in 1918 that it was pointless to elect labour representatives to capitalist legislatures. Nevertheless, the SPC agreed to field a United Labour slate for the 1920 provincial election. Russell, still serving his sentence, ran as an SPC candidate in the constituency of

, which elected ten members by a

single transferable ballot The single transferable vote (STV) or proportional-ranked choice voting (P-RCV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which each voter casts a single vote in the form of a ranked ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vo ...

. He came close to being elected, finishing ninth on the first count and missing the tenth seat by only sixty-two votes on the final tally. Russell's fellow prisoner George Armstrong was elected, making him the only SPC member ever to serve in the Manitoba legislature. Russell also ran for the Socialist Party of Canada in the 1921 federal election, contesting the single-member riding of

Winnipeg North Winnipeg North () is a federal electoral district in Canada that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1917. It covers the northern portion of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Geography The riding includes the neighbourhoods of Jeff ...

. He finished a close second, losing to

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

Edward James McMurray Edward James McMurray (June 4, 1878 – April 20, 1969) was a Canadian politician. Born in Thorndale, Ontario, he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the Manitoba riding of Winnipeg North in the 1921 federal election. A Lib ...

by 715 votes. Russell returned to labour activism following his release from prison in 1922. He was selected as the leader of the Winnipeg's One Big Union, and held this position into the 1950s. He campaigned again for the Manitoba legislature in the 1927 provincial election in the constituency of

Assiniboia Assiniboia District refers to two historical districts of Canada's Northwest Territories. The name is taken from the Assiniboine First Nation. Historical usage ''For more information on the history of the provisional districts, see also Distric ...

with the support of Manitoba's

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberal Party (UK), Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse work ...

, falling by a narrow margin to

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

candidate Joseph Cotter. Russell died in Winnipeg on September 25, 1964.

R.B. Russell Vocational High School R. B. Russell Vocational High School is a grade 9 to 12 public high school in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the North End neighborhood, and is part of the Winnipeg School Division. On April 20, 2017, the school celebrated its 50th a ...

was named after him in 1966.

References

External links

Unbreakable: The Spirit of the Strike.
University of Manitoba Libraries
Winnipeg's 1919 Strike Leaders.
CBC, 2019. 1888 births 1964 deaths Socialist Party of Canada candidates in Manitoba provincial elections Canadian politicians convicted of crimes Canadian prisoners and detainees British emigrants to Canada Politicians from Glasgow One Big Union (Canada) members Trade unionists from Manitoba {{Manitoba-politician-stub People of the Winnipeg general strike Prisoners and detainees of Canada

Biography

References

Further reading

External links