Wednesday, August 15, 1973
THE SUMMER DAILY
Page Three
Chrysler workers occupy,
shut down plant in Detroit
Doy Photo by KEN FINK
WILDCAT CHRYSLER workers confer on tactics as they continue their holdout in the second-floor lunchroom in the com-
pany's huge Mack Avenue plant, which was shut down yesterday by a work stoppage.
By DAN BIDDLE
and DEBRA THAL
Special To The Daily
IITROIT - A band of .nsgry workers
who sht down Chrysler's 8,000 man Mack
Ave. stampiog p1 nt herc early yesterday
tmoroing vOwd late last tight to stay in
the b ilding ountil their deontds were met.
The wildct wnk st page, led by a
radical haor groAp called the Workers
Actitn Moement, hogat after a 5 a.m.
incident in which to tIt 1 i n t securitty
gtards wcre injtred in a ight with dazens
of etrloyes
DURING THE 1: nton te guard was
reportedly cttshhd with t steel pipe. The
fight began whet William Gilbretls ts
had been firedI ast Friday entered thle
plant, sitt down o his tma:hie, sod re-
fused t) 1: e ave
While oer 21t0 people milled around
outside the plant, sit iileaders and Chrys-
ler officials taet throgh the day in a t
effort to negotiate a settlelment. Top
United Auto Workers (UAW) officials
urged the managenentt "to sweat out the
strike" and not gi-e in to the hold-outs.
UAW local 212 president flank Ghant
said the take-over was a wildcat -lction,
entirely withoiut inion support. But "we're
in support of the efforts to solve the
problem" he added,
THE NEGOTIATIONS apparently stall
ed as company officials sealed off the
plant to everyone except security and
management personnel. T it e y searched
those entering the area for weapons which
might be smuggled into the protesters.
Nonetheless sole two dozen sympathiz-
ers climbed the cyclone fence surround-
ing the plant and joined the protestint;
workers.
The Wayne Cointy prosecutor's office
issued warrants for the arrest of both fit
breth and a second worker, Clinton Smith,
sli chtarges itt sssts'lt 'Pslice hasve sisnce
enicrcled the plan ot ut sie niaide nit
effort to enter.
IN ADDITION to "amnesty" the work-
ers, whose number had dwindled to tass
than 50 h midnight, demanded an end to
"unsafe atd inhuman" conditions in the
plant.
Despite the tight security, Daily re-
porters entered the plant with assistancee
from the strikers. The group, led by Gil-
breth, gave the reporters a tour of the
"unsafe" areas of the building.
They were shown huge grease puddles
on the floors and noticed numerous rats
in the area.
"WE GOT the same union as Ford work-
ers but they have an air conditioned lunch
room," one worker said. "All ours has is.
roaches, rats, and maggots."
If the plant, which p r o d u ce s auto
frames, were shut down for any length of
time Chrysler's entire operation would
suffer, a company official said.
Late last night the workers gathered in
a second floor lunch room to map out to-
day's strategy which may include morn-
ing picket lines and a noon rally.
Agnew to give records
to federal prosecutors
New buses
A new round-trip commuter bus service
running from North Campus to the Medi-
cal Center will begin operation Monday
Aug. 20. The buses will leave from Lot
NC-8- the designated North Campus com-
unauter parking area, and will travel to the
Kresge Medical Research Building. Buses
will run from 7:15 a.m. to 6:05 p.m.
Bags 'n be ts
WASHINGTON-A federal law requiring
all 1974 model cars to be equipped with
air bags or devices that keep the engine
from starting unless the seat belts are
fastened goes into effect today, but offi-
cials are concerned the law may catch
consumers unaware.
Happenings
the AAU National Junior Olympics
continue today at several locations around
the Unisersity . . . the Judo Competition
will take place at Crisler Arena between
9:00 a.m. and noon, swimming will be at
Fuller Pool-at 6:00 p.m., track and field
at Ferry Field from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. and
gymnastics at Crisler Arena from 1:00 to
6:00 p.n. . . . free pool instructions will
be given from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the
Union pool gallery . . . Bunnuel's "The
Discreet Charm of The Bourgeoise" will
be shown at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. in Aud.
A, Angell Hall. "You Can't Cheat An
Honest Man" will be shown at the Arch.
And. at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m.
A2's weather
Cloudy skies should dominate the area
today with afternoon highs reaching the
80 degree mark, Chance of rain is only
20 per cent.
WASIINGTON w) - Vice President
Spiro Agnew said yesterday he would
make his personal records available to
federal prosecutors probing political cor-
ruption in Maryland and added he was
agreeable to a personal interview.
In a letter to U.S. Atty. George Beall in
Baltimore, the Vice President said he
would have the records available imme-
diately for inspection and copying at his
office in the Executive Office Building.
HOWEVER, Agnew made clear that he
was granting access only to his personal
financial and income tax records sought
by the prosecutor's office and not the
official records of the vice president.
"You understand that, by making these
records available to you, I do not acknowl-
edge that you or any grand jury have any
right to records of the vice president,"
Agnew declared.
"Nor do I acknowledge the propriety of
any grand jury investigation of possible
wrongdoing oi the part of the vice
president so long as he occupies that
office," he said. "These are difficult con-
stitutiional questions which need not at
this moment be confronted."
AGNEW ALSO SAID he would cooperate
fully with the prosecutors and would be
happy to meet with them "for a personal
interview so that I may answer any ques-
tions you may have."
Copies of Agnew's letter were given to
newsmen by his office as the Vice Presi-
dent's attorneys reportedly met in Balti-
more with the prosecutor's staff.
Beall had asked Agnew to voluntarily
turn over his financial and tax records
dating back to 1967 for examination in
connection with a federal grand jury in-
vestigation of possible violations of tax,
See AGNEW, Page 1#
QUAALUDE PROBLEM?
Booze on tap for blues festival
By DAVID STOLL
Despite serious problems at last year's
Blues and Jazz Festival from the com-
bined use of alcohol and downers, par-
ticularly quaaludes, promoters say beer
and wine will be sold inside the gates at
the upcoming concert.
Alcohol sales, under a temporary State
Liquor Control Commission permit, may
also bring more Ann Arbor police inside
the gates of the festival than last year,
when only two officers were on hand in
order to guard cashboxes.
THE FESTIVAL'S chief sponsor is the
non-profit Rainbow Multi-Media Corpora-
tion. According to Rainbow Multi-Media
director of information Frank Bach, sale
of beer and wine at the festival will "help
control" the alcohol and downers situa-
tion and keep the profits "within the Ann
Arbor rainbow community."
Festival - goers will not be allowed to
bring their own alcohol through the gates,
he said, and none will be sold to minors or
to anyone who is "drunk, quaaluded, or
otherwise in danger."
There never was any thought of ban-
ning alcohol from the festival entirely,
Batch said, because "if some people are
going to take downers and alcohol, they
shouldn't be allowed to deprive other peo-
pie of their right to enjoy themselves."
TO BE HELD at the Otis Spann Me-
morial Field September 7-9, the Blues and
Jazz Festival last year attracted 15,000
people, and every retail beer and wine
outlet within a ten-mile radius reportedly
sold out its stock.
The second night of the festival numer-
ous people suffered overdoses of downers
and downers mixed with alcohol.
Facilities to handle crisis situations re-
peatedly overflowed and three people were
sent to St. Joseph's lhospital. Alcohol com-
plicates withdrawal problems from down-
ers and the combination can produce a
comatose state and even death.
SPOKESPERSONS for Ann Arbor's Drug
Help, which u-as contracted by the fes-
tivvl's sponsors to handle crisis situations
last year and again this year, said they
were "not strongly opposed" to the deci-
sion to sell alcohol at the festival because
See ALCOHOL, Page 10