on 4 february 1938, strikes began. the strikers demanded equal wages with workers on the west coast and closed shop or union shop. strikes continued well into july and august. the ss waialeale, owned by the inter-island steamship company, which in turn was owned by the big five, was due to come into port on 1 august. on that day, protesters from different unions arrived to protest the ship's docking. witnesses estimated the crowd anywhere from 80 to 800, with the newspapers reports saying around 500 to 600. it is likely, however, that there were only around 200 protesters.