Liberty Hill site facts for kids

Upton Sinclair spoke at Liberty Hill site on May 15, 1923

The Liberty Hill site in San Pedro, California, is a very important place in history. It was the location of a big workers' strike in 1923. This strike was led by a group called the Marine Transport Workers Industrial Union 510, which was part of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).

Workers went on strike to protest low pay and bad working conditions. They also wanted to bring attention to some union members who had been arrested. These arrests happened because of a law called the California Criminal Syndicalism Act. This law, passed in 1919, made it illegal to support certain worker movements. The strike was so big that it stopped 90 ships from moving in the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. Because of its historical importance, the Liberty Hill site was named a California Historical Landmark (number 1021) on March 3, 1997.

The 1923 Strike and Freedom of Speech

On May 15, 1923, a famous writer named Upton Sinclair came to Liberty Hill. He spoke to about 3,000 striking dockworkers. Sinclair wanted to show how the LAPD was limiting people's freedom of speech.

He started his speech by reading from the Bill of Rights, which protects basic freedoms. But almost immediately, he was arrested! Even though the strike didn't reach all its goals right away, it helped start a bigger movement. This movement later led to successes for workers in the 1930s, with groups like the Congress of Industrial Organizations. The California Criminal Syndicalism Act, the law that caused many arrests, was finally found to be against the U.S. Constitution in 1968.

Remembering Liberty Hill

The Liberty Hill site is remembered for its role in fighting for workers' rights and freedom of speech. A special marker at the site tells its story. It explains how workers protested low wages and unfair conditions. It also mentions Upton Sinclair's arrest for reading the Bill of Rights.

The marker text says:

• NO. 1021 LIBERTY HILL SITE - In 1923 the Marine Transport Workers Industrial Union 510, a branch of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), called a strike that immobilized 90 ships here in San Pedro. The union protested low wages, bad working conditions, and the imprisonment of union activists under California's Criminal Syndicalism Law. Denied access to public property, strikers and their supporters rallied here at this site they called "Liberty Hill." Writer Upton Sinclair was arrested for reading from the Bill of Rights to a large gathering. The strike failed but laid a foundation for success in the 1930s. The Syndicalism Law was ruled unconstitutional in 1968."

The Liberty Hill Foundation, a group that supports social justice, was started in 1976. It was named after this important 1923 event at Liberty Hill.