1931 Ybor cigar makers' strike | |||
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![]() Lector reading at Cuesta-Rey Cigar Company, Tampa, 1929 | |||
Date | November 26, - December 11, 1931 | ||
Location | Ybor City, Tampa, Fl | ||
Caused by | Elimination of the lector | ||
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The Ybor cigar makers' strike of 1931 took place in Ybor City, Tampa, Florida, starting on November 26[1] and ended in December. Some strikers were jailed, "Lectors" were banned and there was a lockout. Following legal intervention, some workers returned to work at previous wage levels but others were not re-employed. Lectors had by tradition been elected by the workers and, as well as reading aloud newspaper articles, often from left-wing radical publications, they recited and acted more generally, including from classic works – effectively they provided a form of education for illiterate workers. The most significant effect of the strike in the longer term was that the lector culture was brought to an end.