Picketing of a United Arab Republic passenger-cargo vessel was continued at the port here today by members of the Seafarers International Union and the International Longshoremen’s Association who indicated that the boycott of the ship, the Cleopatra, might be extended to other Atlantic coast ports at which the vessel might call. The union men refused to unload the Egyptian ship in protest against the UAR’s blacklisting of American ships trading with Israel and the Nasser anti-Israel blockade of the Suez Canal.
Paul Hall, president of the SIU, declared today “We will keep up the steam until this situation is corrected.” Thomas W. Gleason, general organizer of the longshoremen’s union, said his group was backing the protest to help restore full freedom of the seas for the benefit of maritime workers throughout the world.
The Egyptian vessel has 3,000 tons of general cargo aboard, 400 tons of which were to be discharged here. The remainder of the cargo was destined for U.S. ports as far south as Jacksonville, Florida. A spokesman for Lawes, Louring Corporation, general agents here for the ship’s owners–the Khedivial Mail Line–said he did not know what would become of the ship if the boycott continued indefinitely.
Efforts are being made through the New York Shipping Association to secure an injunction against the picketing, the agent’s spokesman disclosed today.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
