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demonstration in Baltimore was among the most placid in the U.S. Nonetheless,
the Baltimore Communist Party was probably not disappointed. A Baltimore party
spokesperson had previously predicted 500 participants in the demonstration, and
this number may well have been attained. This was Baltimore, the border city, with
a relatively weak labor and socialist tradition, and the party had put itself on the
political map. Additionally, there is evidence that participation in party activities
grew significantly in the aftermath of March 6. What was definitely not
disappointing to the party about the March 6 demonstration, and what came to be
common in the CP's ensuing unemployment efforts, was its interracial character.
Blacks were, it was reported, a "high percentage" of the march, for the party had
made a particular effort to draw African Americans into the demonstration. Before
proceeding to City Hall, the march looped through the predominantly Black blocks
of Northwest Baltimore, where many African Americans spectators looked on.
Among the placards protesting unemployment in general, the demonstrators
carried signs raising special demands against racial oppression. At the final rally,
and Black speakers addressed the crowd. In border-state Baltimore, particular
notice was taken of the demonstration's interracial character.

Baltimore authorities took the Unemployed Day demonstration very
seriously. In fact their strong reaction to the demonstration helped draw attention
to it and gave the party credibility as a force to be reckoned with. Apart from the
incredibly heavy police presence, there were a number of other telling incidents in
this regard. In the absence of the mayor, three high city officials waited in City Hall
to meet with a delegation from the demonstration; one wore a red rose, one wore a
red carnation, and one wore a red handkerchief and tie. Later, when questioned by
the press, the three claimed their red garnishments were a coincidence, a claim
that, given the level of official apprehension, is hard to credit. And with or without
the red garnishments, the demonstrators decided not to send a delegation to meet