ALV N AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATER JUDITH JAMISON MARCH 3-6 ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Masazumi Chaya '.ne, Detroit Opera House DETROIT Striking shirtwaist makers selling copies of The Call, the New York socialist newspaper Robert Battle Catastrophe Centenn al PBS film recalls sweatshop fire at Triangle Waist Company. Michael Fox Special to the Jewish News T he Lower East Side is synony- mous with the wave of Jewish immigrants that arrived in the U.S. at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. Many Jews, consequently, have come to view the infamous Triangle Waist Company fire, which claimed the lives of 146 New Yorkers on a Saturday after- noon in March 1911, as a Jewish event. Its inclusion in a couple of recent docu- mentaries, The Jewish Americans and Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags, only solidified the tragedy's place in American Jewish history. In fact, a large number of Italian immi- grants perished in the blaze alongside Jews. Of greater significance, the catastro- phe became the catalyst for a host of laws and regulations protecting workers. It is this progressive legacy, played out in the battle between desperate laborers and powerful company own- ers, that is the focus of the gracefully constructed and deeply rousing new PBS doc, Triangle Fire. The one-hour program airs Monday, Feb. 28, at 9 p.m. as part of PBS's American Experience series. The Triangle's owners, Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, were early adopters of new technology such as faster sewing machines. They so dominated the mar- ket for the essential women's garment of the day that they were known as the "shirtwaist kings." But success breeds imitation, and soon there were 500 blouse makers in Manhattan. Faced with increased compe- tition, rising costs and looming changes in women's fashions, Blanck and Harris kept the pedal to the metal to maintain their profit margins. Most of the pressure fell on their employees, who worked six days a week, were continually suspected of stealing fabric and were required to pay for their needles, thread and even electricity. And yet the Triangle, located in Greenwich Village and with its modern machines, was considered one of the most desirable factory jobs in the area, which makes one ponder the conditions at the other sweatshops. It's difficult today to grasp the impor- tance of the young women's meager wages to their families. Any loss of pay — for a piece of fabric ruined by a balky machine, say — meant less food for everyone. Without strength in numbers, how- ever, garment-industry workers were powerless to negotiate better wages and working conditions. Their outrage finally culminated in a general strike in November 1909 that resulted in conces- sions from the numerous small firms. But Blanck and Harris would agree to only minimal compromises. Employing still photos and reenact- ments, augmented by interviews with contemporary historians in an empty space that perhaps once housed a gar- ment factory, the filmmakers construct a concise, vivid history that nonetheless can't possibly prepare us for the horrific cataclysm that occurred at the Triangle factory on March 25. The door to one stairway was routinely locked in a misguided security measure. When fire broke out, the 200 workers on the eighth and ninth floors had limited exit routes — including a slow-moving elevator and a fire escape that, under the weight of people, tore away from the building and collapsed. The fire department responded promptly, but the ladders only reached the sixth floor. Dozens of employees jumped or fell to their deaths. The massive loss of life in broad day- light, while a horrified crowd of bystand- ers and relatives watched helplessly, impelled the New York state Legislature to reform the labor laws. Produced to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the tragedy, Triangle Fire is straightforward (albeit moving) his- tory. LI American Experience: Triangle Fire airs 9 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28, on Detroit Public Television-Channel 56. CELEBRATING THE AMERICAN CLASSIC, REVELATIONS Thursday, March 3. at 7:30 pm Friday, March 4. at 1:30 pm Saturday, March 5, at 2:30 pm Saturday, March 5, at 7:30 pm Suntiay, an1-16, at 2:30 pm FOR TICKETS & PRE-PAID PARKING CALL 313.237.SING M\ kr—uuNDATION or michiganopera.org .FREE! Dance Talk one hour prior to rierformanco Alvin Ailey Educational Sponsors: TICKETS AS LOW AS $29 SHIRLEY K. SCHLAFER FOUNDATION Dance Residency Sponsor JPMorganChase • ( 4— Linda Celeste Sims. Body art by Dante Baylor. Photo by Andrew Eccles. 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