The Newsies Reflection

    In the late 1800s and the early 1900s, newsboys were used to give out newspapers. These newsboys would purchase newspapers and resell them to make a profit. The newspaper relied very heavily on these boys because they were the main source of distribution for the newspapers. Most of the boys came from poor immigrant backgrounds and selling the newspapers was a lot of help for these families. However, in 1899 the newsboys began to strike against Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph. The newspaper boys began to stop selling the newspapers in a strike against the rising prices that Pulitzer and Randolph implemented. The strikes began to turn violent when newsboys were caught selling, they would be jumped by a mob of striking newsboys. Later, the newsboys joined together for a rally that helped them gain the support of the community. The strikes were no longer violent because the people were also on the side of the newsboys. Kid Blink was a key part of the rally and was one of the lead speakers. Kid Blink was a huge leader for the newsboys, however, he began to go against the strike. Kid Blink was rumored to have been bribed to sell newspapers and the rumors began circulating more when people noticed he was wearing new clothes. Later that night, the newsboys began to fight and Kid Blink was arrested and later released. The strike ended once the newspapers began to compromise with the boys. The companies were not willing to bring the price down. However, the newspapers offered to buy back the newspapers that the newsboys did not end up selling so they would not work late at night and not have a huge loss. 

Hill, Kim. “Newsboys Strike.” Storyworks, vol. 14, no. 2, 2006, pp. 24–28.