Nicolaas Steelink

Nicolaas Steelink (October 5, 1890 – April 21, 1989 ) was a Dutch American labor activist who was a member of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), an international industrial union, and an important figure in the creation of the California Soccer League, which resulted in his induction into the United States Soccer Hall of Fame. During his time as a member of the IWW, due to his involvement with the union and radical ideals, he was convicted of criminal syndicalism and sentenced to prison in 1920.

Early life Steelink was born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, the son of a grocer. Throughout most of his childhood, Steelink enjoyed spending his days playing soccer. In 1908, at the age of 18 he started working at the Dutch Steamship Company, a company formed in 1885 that ran as a steamship service from Amsterdam to London, and also played soccer as a member of the works team. At the age of 22, he immigrated from the Netherlands to the United States. Once he arrived in the United States, he settled down in Seattle, Washington.

Activism and arrest After living in Seattle for two years, Steelink decided to move to Los Angeles in 1914. While in Los Angeles, he began to be exposed to certain political aspects due to the men whom he played soccer with. Through the relationships he garnered from playing, he learned about the different types of political activist that existed in California in the early part of the 20th century. This exposure to the different types of political activism began to mold Steelink into a radical. After learning of the different radical movements that existed, and through many aspects of the United States government which he did not agree with, such as censorship, poor working conditions, war propaganda, and lynchings, Once the law was passed, Steelink, due to his major involvement with the IWW, and 151 other members of the Industrial Workers of the World, In 1965, Steelink retired from his job in accounting, and moved to Tucson, Arizona. Steelink lived in Tucson until his death in 1989 at the age of 98.