.jpg) Original IWO logo (1930–1939) | |
| Predecessor | The Workers Circle |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1930 |
| Founded at | New York City |
| Dissolved | 1954 |
| Type | fraternal organization, mutual aid society |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Services | insurance, mutual benefit |
Membership | 3,000–5,000 members (1930), 67,000 (1935), 141,000 (1938), 155,000 (1941) |
Secretary General | Max Bedacht |
President | William Weiner |
General Secretary (1930-1935) | Rubin Saltzman |
General Secretary (1935-1954) | Max Bedacht |
| Affiliations | Communist Party USA |
The International Workers Order (IWO) was an insurance, mutual benefit and fraternal organization founded in 1930 and disbanded in 1954 as the result of legal action undertaken by the state of New York in 1951 on the grounds that the organization was too closely linked to the Communist Party. At its height in the years immediately following World War II, the IWO reached nearly 200,000 members and provided low-cost health and life insurance, medical and dental clinics, and supported foreign-language newspapers, cultural and educational activities. The organization also operated a summer camp and cemeteries for its members.[1]
- ^ Zecker, Robert M. (2018). "A Road to Peace and Freedom": The International Workers Order and the Struggle for Economic Justice and Civil Rights, 1930-1954. Temple University Press. pp. 1 (mutual self-insurance society), 8 (1954), 167 (1954). ISBN 9781439915158. Retrieved 29 September 2020.