The Daily Worker Newspaper, October 30, 1926, Page 6

canine STRIKE STRATEG fHE DAILY WORKER DAILY WORKER od by the DAILY WORKER PUBLISHING CO. { Chicago, Il. \Phone Monroe 4713 | Washington Bivd., 1113 W. ‘ATES | By mall (outside of Chicago): | $6.00 per year $3.50 six months | $2.00 three months { By mail (In Chicago only): $8.00 per year $ i $2. three “Address all mall end make out checks to THE DAILY WORKER, 1113 W. Washington Blvd., Chicago, fl, J. LOUIS A WILLIAM F, DU MORITZ J, LOEB. Entered as second-class mail September 21, 1923, at the post-office at Chi cago, Iil., under the act of March 3, 1879. Advertising rates on application, Editors ieee Business Manager <= 200 —— ‘The British Miners Can Win What the rulers of Great Britain look upon as the next move against the working class and their organizations if the defeat of the miners can be secured is indicated by proposals contained in a resolu- tion adopted at the Scarborough conference of the tory party. The resolution urges legislation to: Make illegal any strike called without a secret ballot of the mem- bers of the trade union affected. a Make mass picketing and the picketing of a private residence illegal. Make the audit of the national accounts of all tradé unlons com- pulsory under the supervision of a certified accountant, Such measures, if enacted and enforced—and the manner in which the emergency powers act has been administered during the PROBLEMS OF ILLINOIS-LABOR _ LEADERS OF STATE LABOR MOVEMENT CONTINUE TO THE RIGHT AT HIGH SPEED By ARNE SWABECK, ARTICLE ONE, f has what degree has labor shared in the “prosperity” of the last few years and what has its leadership done to take advantage of the favor- able situation presented? These are two very pertinent ques- tions to the workers and as far as the state of Illinois is concerned, presents an interesting picture containing valuable lessons for those willing to learn, While the leadership of organized labor should be the first to sum up the experiences of the movement and draw the proper conclusions, the vari- ous labor gatherings held during these years show an almost persistent eva- sion of labor’s vital problems, The last Mlinois State Federation of Labor convention was no exception. It was not only more reactionary than its predtcessors, but made no attempts whatever to dea] with the actual needs of labor. % The losses suffered in membership, strike leaves no doubt of the intentioys of the government—would yi, working conditions, and in organ- make of the unions semi-official instruments of the government and | izational positions, particularly in/ the place unions under the czar. them in about the same positions as were the Russian trade | basic industries, during this “prosper- ity” period have caused no comment from the labor leadership; not to The British labor movement will not stand for such oppressive speak of the failures to bring forward measures unless its power of resistance has been broken. This is|any aggressive measures to, change the first requirement for the success of the capitalist scheme. With the knowledge that the rulers of Britain are getting ready for this kind of an attack, part of the general offensive against the working class, the struggle of the miners becomes for the labor movement a decisive action—truly a life and death struggle. If the miners can be defeated British capitalism feels sure that ihe morale of the whole working class will be weakened sufficiently to permit it to consolidate its victory by the enactment of laws and the setting up of special suppressive apparatus which will make concerted action by the trade union movement a crime and which can be dealt with as such by the state. : The miners are holding the first line of defense for the whole British labor movement. More than that, a defeat of the miners will strengthen the capitalist class the world over and certainly will not be without its effect on the struggle which the American coal miners face next spring. But the stern resistance of the miners has astounded the world and aroused the admiration of the whote working class. For almost six months, suffering the most bitter privation, they have refused to be driven back to the pits. British industry is at the lowest ebb in its history and the mar- kets of British capitalism are being grabbed by greedy competitors. The miners, alone except for the generous donations of the Russian trade unions and the small contributions from the labor movements in capitalist countries, are beating the British ruling class. Six months have passed since the leaders of the British labor the tide, Survey of Conditions, AT are the conditions of labor in the various industries within the state of Illinofs? A brief survey without giving detailed statistics will give sufficient food for thought. An Upheaval Against KKK Republican Party in the State of Indiana By B. BORISOFF. “Crude, vulgar, clownish and brazen is the manner in which the K, K, K.- republican party is conducting its cam- paign in the state of Indiana, In Gary the K. K. K.-republican party held two great rallies. One of them in the heart of the Negro settle- mnt, another in the white neighbor- hood. , I went to the first one, and the im- pression I carried away is set forth in the introductory lines, I wish to add that the manner in which the movement brought about the desertion of the miners, but the miners are still fighting. They must be given the financial aid that will enable them to inake the last effort needed for victory. There is at present no other cause which should be allowed to come between the British miners and the financial relief they need. President Green Wants a Big Navy From time to time we receive complaint that we are too in- sistent or emphatic in connecting the leadership of the American Federation of Labor with American, imperialism and some of our critics appear to think that we sometimes draw conclusions in this connection Which the evidence does not warrant, It is not necessary for us to answer such criticism because President William Green has done it for us, On Navy Day, President Green drove a spike in the keel of “the new light cruiser Pensacola in Brooklyn nayy yard and made a} meeting was run and issues presented was an insult to the intelligence of the audience, composed largely of col- ofed people. The “Honorable” Was Doing His Best, The “honorable” Perry W. Howard, special assistant attorney-general, col- ored; was the main speaker of the evening, * Upon him it fell to swing the vote of the Negro masses in favor of the G. 0. P. His was the keynote speech, The “honorable” Howard did his best to deliver the goods, but failed completely. He lacks that oratorical talent and personal attraction which sometimes make up for the lack of convincing arguments. He possesses no originality. His speech is stereo- typed. At first a few jokes to win the good graces of the audience—then to speech, the outstanding point of which was featured by the big cap- italist press services. He said: j The American Federation of Labor is In favor of a strong mavy for | 3 preserving the peace of the world. This is exactly the reason all capitalist war-mongers give for | big armies and navies. The inference is that all peaceful persons go out and buy a gun when they want to begin a hunt for the dove of peace. \ 2 } Navies are particularly the instruments of imperialist nations. | They are expensive instruments and small nations can rarely afford them. They are also particularly imperialist instruments of ag- gression against colonial peoples and the’ “light cruiser” Pensacola will be mentioned one of these days in dispatches relating some act |the main task of eulogizing the re- publican party and its candidates. We did not come to lend advice to the voters of Lake county, he said. “They need none. They are inherent republican, republican-born, republi- can-freed,” . The Republican Party Passed Good Amendments. He said the republican party has done everything for the Negro—ren- dered him public, civic, and every other kind of recognition, “The republican party gave the Negro the famous amendments to the of “pacification” directed against some of ‘the countries of Latin- America. : / Imperialistic labor leaders are no figment of the imagination. By WILLIAM Z. FOSTER ty ROHR M Cor sas i" (ARTICLE |.—Foreword.) “ The DAILY WORKER is presenting to its readers a series of articles by Willlam Z, Foster on one of the most vital sub- jects of the labor movement—Strike Strategy. The following article is the foreword and first of this series, which we believe no militant worker can afford to miss, The scarcity of Mterature on this importagt subject and the experience of Foster in the labor movement are enough to recommend these articles to any worker. Especially should they be placed in the hands of every progressive trade unionist. The ideas they contain must be- come the property of the working class, a weapon in their struggle. The DAILY WORKER hopes its readers will aid this by intensified efforts at getting subscriptions and addl- tional distribution, be ae HE reactionary Officialdom of the trade unions travels constantly to the right. In following out its policy of “co-operation” with the employers, through the B. & O. plan, trade union capitalism, ete., it is rapidly cast- ing aside even the last semblances of struggle against the employers. Consequently, the masses of workers, abandoned and betrayed by their old leadership, are being compelled to turn more and more to the left wing in the unions for leader-) + im, their inevitable i ae against the employers, a, literat i he f Foo canine or . constitution, the 13th, the 14th, and the 15th. - “Every enactment in favor of the of 7, The building trades workers are un- doubtedly those who have been most favored by the’ “prosperity” period and its tremendous building boom. Their unions have gained in member- ship and they have gained wage in- creases in rapid succession, The open- shop forces, as particularly represent- ed by the Chicago “citizens’ commit- tee,” have been temporarily defeated. This may be said, however, to be mainly due ‘to the great demand for skilled building mechanics created by the boom, and algo jdue to the condi- tions of the industry which despite the centralization | of» capital yet leaves room for craft unions to func- tion anti to deliver the goods for their members. Nevertheless, the building corporations and bankers are merely biding their time Waiting for the slack season to renew fhe attack. The building trades -upions, meanwhile, have failed to.exert the necessary ef- fort’ to establish union shop condi- |tlons and to unify their ranks. Un- Jless the necessary. measures _ are taken, they will ba in no stronger position’ organizationally than before the boom. The printing trades,, the clothing workers, and various other organized miscellaneous trades have been able to hold their own and in some degree strengthen their positions. Transportation Workers, HE workers in the transportation industry, a very important section of the labor movement in Illinois, haye gained some almost invisible-| wage increases, but, of course, become subject to the provisions of the Wat- son-Parker bill with its abolishment of strikes and the established anti- Every enactment against—by the dem- ocratic party, a “Filibugtering against the anti- lynching bill, maintaining disfranchise- ment, segregation, oppression of the Negro—such is the record of the dem- ocratic party. > “There is no difference between a southern and a northern democrat. They will all abide by the caucus of the party, and the decisions are al- ways against the Negro. “Therefore—vote republican.” The K. K, K. Helps the Negro, Claims the “Hofios Then came the delicate question of the K. K. K. “Honorable” Mr, How- ard did not for a moment deny the connection of the republican party with the K. K. K, He did not say a bad word about the K, K. K. In fact, he tried to produce the impres- sion that the existence of the K. K. K. was beneficial to the colored people. “For what was the K. K. K, after all, It was a result of rivalry between two groups of white people. Let them quarrel among themselves, and let us take advantage of the quarrel in order to better our conditions.” And the “honorable” related how nicely the K. K, K. Mississippi was “standing behind him.” Conclusion— “Forget about the K. K.! Quit talking about the KR) K. K.! It isa division among white people and an opportunity for us to take advantage,” he concluded. Doesn’t Care Whether Watson Is a Klansman. Then came this peerless statement: “I do not care whether Watson is a klansman, I do not care whether Robinson is a klansman. I do not care whether either of them is a klansman. If Watson is a member of the K. K. K., it Robinson is a member of the K. K. K., then that is no more than you would do, if you were candidate fer election, in order to be elected.” The “honorable” Mr. Howard then attained the climax 6f his speech when in a loud voice he proclaimed: Long May Wail Street Reign! “It will be mighty cold in Gary Negro was by the republican party. |during the winter time and without a A whole series of strikes (Passaic, Furriers, I. L. G: W. U., ete.,) and of opposition movements in the unions, (Machinists, Miners, etc.) indicates this tendency. result, theleft wing has an urgent need to acquaint itself with the principles and practices of strike strategy, of the’ science of effective struggle by the trade unions. ; The general question of strike strategy has received but little concentrated attention until within the last few years, that is, since the formation of the Red International 0} Labor Unions. Prior to that time thé reformist trade union | three elements of the subject are covered under. the general leaders, whose attention was fastened, not on making ane effective fight against the employers, but on coming to agree- prehensive, dealing with various aspects of the left wing ment with them, gave very little thought to the development of a scientific strike strategy. enssion ever held on the matter in an international labor gathering took place in the 1924 congress of the R. 1. L. Uys The question is highly complex. There is very little t literature upon it in this or any other country, phiet, which is a companion volume to my booklet entitled, “Organize the Unorganized,” is a modest beginning of such It should be followed by more elaborate and detailed studies. At the R. 1, L, U. 1924 congress, Losovsky defined the three elements of policy, strategy and tactics as follows: “Policy lays down within the limits of ‘the pro- ure in this country. « eee In fact, the first real dis- As aq class. Ae United States. = labor board of mediation, The shop crafts on the other hand have been almost completely shot to pieces since the 1922 strike, They have suffered wage decreases and the remnants of their unions more or less become sub- ject to the B. & O. plan making the workers more effective objects of ex- ploitation, The workers in the food industry, taking in the big packing house plants at Chicago and East St. Louis, haye lost practically, every vestige of organ- ization, The union once existing, em- bracing all the workers, has collapsed, The company unions now rule su- preme in Chicago plants, These com- pany unions were installed to engineer wage. cuts and have done so sucéess- fully. The company union in the Ar- mour plant recently suggested the restoration of the 12- and 14-hour workday. At present the plant oper- ates on the 10-hour basis, the average wage being $27 a week for male workers, During the last few weeks, a new method has been inaugurated of eliminating all older workers who may have any claims on the so-called compensation institutions of the com- pany, while a new schedule of further wage cutting is starting. In the Metal Industry. ‘'N the metal industry, a few of the more skilled crafts have been able | to maintain a degree of organization, however, with loss of many members. Some of them have gained small wage increases; but for the big bulk of thegworkers in the many great manu- facturing plants, organization does not exist save for the company unions operating against the workers, For them “prosperity” has meant wage cuts in various forms, particularly in PLAN WORK FOR piecg work rates, While these are some of the most exploited workers: t makes the situation no better to ts Many Organizations to note that in the steel mills of Madison and Granite City, Ill, laborers be- Take Part longing to the steel workers’ ution aa receive only $7 cents an hour. (Speclal to The Dally Worker) Many Illinois coal mines have sus-|_ WASHINGTON, D. C., Oct. 28 pended operation for long intervals, some permanently, due to the advance of the open-shop coal mining with no efforts to organize the unorganized territory. As for the union itself, its leadership has become so infested with graft and corruption that there: is great danger of its complete para-, lysis. The sell-out of Farfington to the Peabody Coal Company is by no means accidental. The coal operators | are as actively as possible pushing | open-shop conditions. If a coal miner leaves his underground job a few |, minutes ahead of time, an investiga- tion is made and if it is found he could do other work, he is fired. It has become an almost established sysr tem, that coal miners are always ; cheated on weight with the union do- {ing little or nothing to redress. the grievances of the miners, The conference for Filipino Indepen- dence which will meet here December 17-19 will have represented eleven kinds of social, labor, racial and’ na- tional organizations as follows: 1. Organizations of Filipinos thru- out the United States. 2; Political parties. 3. Labor unions, 4. Pacifist organizations, 5.) Student and other anti-military organizations. 6. Negro organizations, 7. Workmen’s benefit societies, and other labor organizations. 8. Legislative committees, liberties organizations, etc. 9. Labor, liberal and pacifist jour- nals, 10. Prominent individuals who have taken an active part in the struggle Lately, however, a. revival of the for Filipino independence, | progressive movement is taking place f 11. Filipino Independence | within the union, starting thruout the |8ion at Washington, state and bringing some real rays of Order. of Business. hope for more militancy in the future.} The order of business of the con- There aré, of course, signs of similar |ference_as now arranged by the com- activities within the unions in other | mittee in charge is as follows: industries. * Some having already | ONE—Philippines and American Im- brought results in a measure by i-| perialism, creasing the ranks of the individual a) Why is America in the Philip- unions and bringing a new and better | pines (trade benefits, rubber, ete.)? spirit to’ the rank and file-workers,; ) History of Ameriéan rule, but that is entirely due to the activi- c) Place of Philippites in develop- ties of progressive elements. ing American Empire. ‘ (Continued tomorrow.) d) Philippines as a source of future civil Commis- job, For many mills will close if dem- ocrats take control. “They talk about plutocrats—I hope that plutocrats, the rich, will always control this country. Let capital con- trol the land, for we were raised by capital, educated by capital, and kept alive by capital. Long let capital reign over this country!” The rest of the “honorable’s” talk was in the same vein, closing with an appeal to vote republican and thus honor the “mother and the father who were so loyal to the G, O. P.” - Enter Clowns. The next speaker, a Negro woman: politician, made an appeal to-elect 100 per cent American citizens who will look out for the interests of the Negro. ‘ She was followed by another “hon- orable,” Mr, W, C. Tueston, a candi-* date for a judicial position, and J. Finley, the grand exalted ruler of the Elks. These two acted as clowns and occupied the remaining time of the meeting. None of the white candi- dates spoke, altho they were all seated on the stage—a, beautiful array of klansmen, and near-klansmen, includ- ing a Jewish politician to complete the picture of “harmony.” What Was the Sentiment of the Audience? Every time the speaker would de- nounce lynchings, segregation, dis- franchisement and other forms of op- pression to which the Negro is sub- jected, and when the speakers would demand equality, justice and full rights for the race the audience would respond with loud applause, But the response to the praises of the republican party was luke warm. The Negro of today is not satisfied with the fact that the republican party passes good-sounding amendments to the constitution. He. wants the, en- forcement of these amendments. They are not satisfied with the de- nouncing of the democratic party for lynchings, segregation, etc. They want the ruling republican party to stop segregation of the Negro and discrimi- nation against him {n Indiana and / gram the basic direction which the class must follow in order that its fighting capacity may be enhanced and in order to prepare it for the overthrow of the other Strategy determines the direction of the opera- tion and the choice of the point to be attacked as :part of the achievement of the chosen aim, Tacti¢s provide the answer as to how to direct the battle at definite sec- tions of the front.” — f : ‘In, the present work this distinction is not made. The yhead of strike strategy. The pamphlet is somewhat com- ade union program, but all linked up with the central ition of how to wage strikes successfully, Strike strategy varies widely from country to country period to period. Its specific character depends upon ; degree of economic development an This pam- | the class struggle in a given situatior The strike necessary in a cpuntry in a revolutionary crisis differs very materially from that required in one with a flourishing and expanding capitalism. The strike strategy herein sketched is that best calculated to defend and advance the interests of the working class unler present-day conditions in the e Today, capitalism in the United “eo is : ie and! Chicago, October 20, 1926 : & iy of the sharpness of conflicts. TWO—Do the Philippines Want In- dependence? a) Official acts of Filipino Tegisla- ture, results of popular election, b) Sweep of the organized Filipino independence movement, THREE—Civil Liberties $ regime -of General Wood. other northern states, and to give him ema oF. the (Thome protection and full rights in the south. "4 Negroes Are Segregated in Gary and | *!VE—What is to be done? Thruout Indiana, ‘ . And when the rule of capital, of Wets Spend Lots of Wall Street, and of plutocrats is eulo- Dough to Restore old Barleycorn to Throne and the gized, the Negro workers of the Steel City can’t become enthusiastic, ‘for they face the brutal exploitation of the, steel trust every day of their lives, funds of the wets and drys became A Big Political Upheaval. » the subject of controversy today witlt ; the filing of the pre-election expense Pe seis que db erlang nes statement of the Association Against ing both workers and farmers in In- the Prohibition Amendment, diana, and especially the Negroes... It| The wets’ report was denounced by will lose thousands of votes. Thou- Wayne B. Wheeler, general counsel sands will cast their. votes for the |? the Anti-Saloon League, as “a democratic party as a protest against |°@™euflage” to cover up widespread the. disgusting K. K. K-republican |°Perations. G. C, Hinckey, secretary rule, Thousands will not vote at all. of the wet organization, retorted that But neither action is a right solution | Wheeler's organization had failed to of. the political problem facing the ;°°™Ply with the Corrupt Practices workers and. poor farmers. The right Act in accounting for its funds. solution is the building of a labor Contributions which totalled $275, party. We have two years. to do it in. 445.55 on October 16 were reported Let’s do it! _|by the anti-Volstead act body, with $ expenditures of $215,870.29. Scheme to Sell Dawes Plan Bonds Given Up; | British Opposed Plan WASHINGTON, Oct...28.—The plan of Buropean statesmen to market $100,000,000 of Dawes plan bonds in the United States, and to pay France the major shate of the proceeds as advance reparations payments to aid her to stabilize’ the franc, has been dropped, it is reported here. Opposition from Great Britain was WASHINGTON, Oct, 28.—Campaign -Dinner Pail Epic By BILL LLOYD, F. P. The open season now is open when candidates is all a-hopin, that printed ballots by the yard will help ’em find a fat piecard. Joe Doe and Richard Roe will stage a phoney battle with fake rage, and each will be the pee pul’s friend and peddle pledges with- out end. Now if your principles is dry, you'll get a good Volsteady lie; and if your polar peek dept god He bare gullet you would wet, they’l! promise to pay France to withdraw her occu: |¥U the booze, you bet. : prea tote Then Doe and Roe will tell the rich ee Se ee 4 they'll be their friends through every last ditch; and tell the working-class Body Found in Illinois Creek, they stand to help to unionize the ELDORADO, I1l., Oct. 27.—The un-.| land. 6 identified body of a man about 36] One old line party puts up Doe; the years old, who, police believe, may be jother ballyhoos for Roe. another victim of the Shelon-Berger} If you can vote no better way, you gang warefare, was found in a creek |may as well, election day, just eat the one mile northeast of Equality on|ballot in the booth and with the pen- State Highway No, 13, eil pick your tooth, growing. It is able to furnish work for the masses; it can concede such conditions to the upper layers of the working class, the skilled workers, as to keep them pretty well con- tented with the present capitalistic order of society. But this is a passing phase. Just as British capitalism, which was also once powerful and able to still the demands of the skilled workers with concessions, is now on the decline, so will American capitalism, however strong it may be now, go the same way downward because of the contradictions inherent in capitalist production and distribution. The industries will shut down, great masses of workers will become chronically unemployed, their statidards of liy- ing will be reduced; the concessions won from or given by the employers in the present period will then prove illusory and be swept away. The workers will be compelled to turn against capitalism, to organize their forces to put an end order of society. In the bitter struggles of that inevitable era the strike strategy will have to be quite different from and will be based upon a far more militant offensive than that possible in the workers’ fight today. It is not within the province of this booklet to detail the strategy of those critical times, but to lay out: practical lineg for the conduct of our strike struggles now. rt" strategy “LING MEET HERE DEC. 17-19 to the capitalist system and to establish the new proletarian ~ |