The Daily Worker Newspaper, November 1, 1929, Page 4

: rage an 71S. yurnsnea py tne Comprodatly Publishing Co., Inc., daily, except Sunday, at 26-28 Uni ail = Square, New York City, N. Y. Telephone Stuyvesant |1696-7-8. Cable: “DAIWORK a orke®” Four ecks to the Daily Worker. 26-28 Union Square, New York, N. Y. Central Organ ofthe Communist Party of the U. BA. —— sae ——— a = <== S — j ® $2.50 three months $2.00 three months SUBSCRIPTION RATES: By Mai! (in New York only): $8.00 a year: $4.50 By Mail (outside of New York): six months: $6.00 a year; $3.50 six months; The Central Executive Committee Plenum and Negro Work By OTTO E. HUISWOUD. | The recent Plenum of the Central Executive Committee of our { marked a significant departure fro mprevious plenums. For once decisions, motions of Caucus number 1 or 2 were not placed ! a. Unlike the past, the atmosphere of the plenum was not charged with the poison of f: onalism. And the discussions on the reports were not based on the “line” laid. down by the caucus, but rather in accordance with the line and decisions of the Sixth World Congress and of the Tenth Plenum of the Executive Committee of the Communist International. The asks before the Party, the struggle against the right danger the mobilization of the masses against the building of the Party and the organizing of the workers in this od creasing radicalization, the struggle against capitalist talist offensive were discussed in the spirit on the ag major of rationalization and the cay ified pa hat the Party has prac y completely eliminated and destroyed ionalism and the two-party system which for many years has sapped vitality, is a fact. Instead of two unprincipled warring groups we are on the road toward building a homogeneous and unified Party that will lead the masses into struggle against capitalism. Even some of us who had certain misgivings about the results of the Adc s of the Comintern and who believed that the Address and ional proposals would do “irreparable damage” to our Party, t will serve only to intensify and perpetuate the most de- m’—and that the chargés of right wi made r was unfounded and had no “political ba: , must by now be convinced of the correctness of the decisions of the Comin And Lovestone has substantiated these charges of right wing and F y-bourgeois politiciandom” made against him. With unprecedented swiftness Lovestone landed in the camp of the enemies of the Com- unist Internationa! and now under the deceptive slogans of “revision f the Sixth Congress by the Tenth Plenum” and “under the rights the present leadership of the Com- tional has been revising the fundamental principles of i distorting and destroying the Leninist line of the Com- he is organizing and fighting against the Comintern. The paralysis of Party during the many years of a vicious and unprincipled factic strife is best exemplified in the almost total neglect of activities among the Negro workers, in the very small number of Negroes in the Party and in the general underestimation of Negro work the Party members. munist Inte Leninism intern”, Heretofore the Negro question was the “political football” at Party Plenums and Conventions. Each fraction charging the other with un- imation, neglect, incorrect political approach and willful sabotage tional blindness and factional corruption aided materially jn the Party shortcomings and neglect of work among the s a deterent to a careful analysis of the Negro n of a correct program and the execution of Sven decisions of the Comintern and the Red International cf Labor Unions were sidetracked on one excuse or another. A remarkable difference in this respect Was the last Central Execu- tive Committee Plenum. Recognizing the importance of the role of the Negro workers jn the class struggle, the Negro question received its due share of attention in the Plenum discussion. For the first time a special report on Negro work was made and discussed at a Party Plenum, and a thesis on Negro work presented end adopted. But the importance and the discussion of the Party’s Negro work was not confined or limited to the special report. It was integral part of the entire Plenum reports and discussions. he tical report, the report on trade union work, the report on the Tenth on, t sions. J Tienum of the E Ixecutive Committtee of the Communist International, all dealt concretely with the various phases of the condition of the Negro masses and the role of the Party as the leader of the Negro worke: ainst capitalist oppression and exploitation. As an indication of the serious effort concretely to understand properly to evaluate the various phases of the Negro question and our program and actjon on a sound perspective was the attempt ot.a thoroughgoing analysis of the conditions facing the Negro in the South. This was the first effort to carefully examine the effects of industrialization of the South on the Negro. The extent of Negro migra- tion from the farms to the southern cities, the induction of Negroes into the basic industries of the South, the effects of rationalization on the Negro workers, the extent to which Negro women have been drawn | into the industries of the South and the miserably low wages paid both Negro men and women for the heaviest and dirtiest tasks, were given considerable attention. Likewise an effort was made to study the prob- | lem confronting the millions of Negro tenant farmers, share croppers and farm laborers who are under the complete domnation of the white landlords and are virtually slaves on the land. On the basis of the analysis of this situation, a concrete program for work in the South was drawn up. and The rapid development o fa Negro industrial proletariat in the | North, the strategic position of the hundreds of thousands of Negroes | in the basic industries of the North who are unorganized and upon whom the capitalists rely as their chief source of cheap labor supply, the role the Negro indusirial proletariat will play in the liberation | ‘ovement under the guidance and leadership of the Communist Party, | was one of the important phases of the Negro question examined by the Plenum. And in connection with this, the Plenum report contained an analysis of the increasing class differentiation taking place in the Negro population. The report showed the development and growth of a Negro petty-bourgeoisie and bourgeoisie closely linked up with the white bourgeoisie through the Federal Reserve System ,inter-racial | committees, etc., and the role of the Negro bourgeoisie an dintellectuals in the Negro race movements. | One of the main points discussed at the Plenum and one that re- | ceived particular attention was white chauvinism. The serious menace of race prejudice which is an expression of the ideological influence of the bourgeoisie among the white workers, and which has penetrated the | ranks of the Communist Party was readily realized. The many cases which have cropped up recently indicate the beginning of real work of the Party among the Negro masses. For in the measure that the Party actively engages in Negro work will we find the latent prejudices of white comrades coming to the fore, expressing itself in open hostility, sabotage, or general indifference to Negro work. That the Plenum realzed the danger of white chauvinism and the disastrous effect it will have in drawing Negro workers into our Party was evident by the considerable discussion of this subject on the part of all the reporters and from the floor. That the Party must immediately launch thorough and persistent ideological campaigns against white chauvinism as a part of its struggle against the right danger, and take drastic organ- izational measures against comrades guilty of such, as has been done in some cases, was the expressed.attitude of the Plenum. A new field for Party activities—the West Indies—was also dis- cussed. While some steps have already been undertaken in this direc- tion work among the masses of the West Indies must seriously be con- sidered and practical steps taken toward organizing these low-paid and terribly exploited workers, the bulk of whom are Negroes. Oppressed, brutally exploited, paid a miserable pittance for their_toil, these colonials will be an important link in the revolutionary chain of Latin-America and the West Indies. And it is the duty of our Party to take the initi- ative in organizing these workers and leading them in the struggle against world imperialism. While recounting the achievements of the Party in Negro work, the serious shortcomings, the deep-seated underestimation, the general apathy on the part of the Party members were frankly and thoroughly discussed. One of the shortcomings of the Plenum in so far as the Negro report was concerned, was the Jimited discussion, and particularly the fact that many of the leading comrades from the districts did not parti- cipate in the discussion, The Plenum was confronted with the task of making the entire Party conscious of the tremendous importance of Negro work. The mobilization of the entire Party behind the Party’s program on Negro work, instead of confining this phase of Party activity to. Negro com- rades only, was determined by t.e Plenum as a prerequisite to reaching the Negro masses wit!. our propaganda and drawing them in the Party. The Party is faced with a number of immediate and concrete tasks in developing its Negro work. The development and training of a strong Party cadre o. Negroes in the districts is essential for the prosecution of the work. Negro comrades must be grawn into all the leading com- mittees of the Party so that they may participate fully in the life and activities of the Party. .A persistent ideological campaign must be carried on throughout the Party against white chauvinism. Energetic steps must be taken to organize the unorganize1 Negro industrial and farm workers. All auxiliary organizations must immediately begin or- { genizational work among the Negro, ee . | tl F p | HIS SPIRIT CANNOT BE BROKEN The October Plenum and the War Danger ‘ By LEON PLATT. The October Plenum of the Central Executive Committee of our | Party gave serious political and organizational consideration of the necessary immediate steps to mobilize the working masses in the strug- gle against imperialist war, and how to connect the every day struggles of the workers with this main task. FIGHTING THE WAR DANGER UNDER THE BANNER OF THE COMINTERN. . It was already proven in every Party of the Comintern, that only by following the political line and directives given to the international proletariat by the Sixth Congress and Tenth Plenum of the Comintern can imperialist war be fought effectively. In its political theses the Plenum of the CEC therefore declared that the struggle against im- perialist war is not an isolated task, it is closely linked up with the growing revolutionary struggle of the international proletariat against capitalism. These struggles of the workers are not fought only on an economic basis, they are also directed against imperialist war prepara- tions. The October Plenum demonstrated that it will follow the line of the Comintern and it will carry on a merciless struggle against all those who deviate from this line. Here it will be necessary to state the position of the right wing group of Lovestone. To Lovestone our international leadership—the Cominteyn is “disintegrating,” is “revising Leninism” and is “breaking up the Parties,” therefor to them the struggle against war means first and foremost struggle against the Communist International, and strug- gle against the Communist International and the Communist Party of the U. S. A. is part of their anti-war struggle. These counter-revolu- tionary views were also expressed by Trotsky at the time of his expul- sion from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. These are also the views of all the enemies of the working class, who recognize that so long as the working class follows the Comintern, they will success- fully struggle against war, and in order to defeat this struggle of the workers they must first discredit the Comintern and carry on their struggle against it. STRUGGLE AGAINST WAR ON A CORRECT POLITICAL LINE. The political directives of the Comintern are based on a political analysis of the world position of capitalism, concretely applied to the specific conditions existing in each country. The October Plenum gav. a clear Marxian analysis of the position of American capitalism, basec on the general political line of the C. I, The Plenum did not see < second industrial revolution in the South, it did not consider America to be in its “victorian age.” On the contrary, the Plenum saw that world capitalism in spite of its highly developed forces of production is undergoing a crisis which is shattering its present stabilization. In this general crisis of capitalism the United States is no exception. It is not only effected by the contradictions of capitalism in other coun- tries, but in the United States itself capitalism is facing unsolvable con- tradictions and is clearly exhibiting signs of an approaching economic crisis. The CEC Plenum declared: “All the main features of the third period of the post war crisis of capitalism as revealed in the analysis of the Sixth Con- gress of the Communist International, are manifesting themselves —some even more sharply than elsewhere—in the present situation in the United States.” In analysing the present sharpening contradictions of capitalism which lead to an inevitable imperialist war and the effect of these con- tradictions on the American working class the Plenym devoted special attention to capitalist rationalization, The create] permanent unem- ployment, the elimination of older workers from production, the ter- rifie speed-up system, etc., which are part of the imperialist war prep- arations are today the driving factors setting the most exploited and unorganized masses of American workers in the struggle against capi- talism. The struggle against capitalist rationalization as part of our strug- gle against war is another question on which Lovestone and his group take an opportunist and right wing position. The CEC Plenum and the Comintern defined that the main task of capitalist rationalization is not only the highest development of the technical forces of capitalist, pro- duction, but the greatest intensification of human labor, the greatest accumulation of profits which capitalist rationalization squeezes out from the workers. The Plenum said: “, , . rationalization is not a historically progressive but a reactionary method of intensifying exploitation, of the working masses, a hopeless attempt of the bourgeoisie to extricate them- selves from the contradictions of the capitalist method of produc- tion.” The right wing Lovestone group to have theoretical justifications to deny the radicalization of the American workers, to deny the grow- ing contradictions of American capitalism that shatters the present capitalist stabilization, is viewing capitalist rationalization solely from _ Communist Party. the viewpoiat of the high development of the technical forces of pro- duction. Naturally if all what capitalist rationalization, the speed-up system, etc., means to the American workers, is the introduction of highly developed machinery then no Marxist can struggle &gainst it, because it would then mean to struggle against technical progress. Therefore, according to ths Lovestone analysis, it is wrong to speak of the growing radicalization of the American working class, of the de- cline of capitalist stabilization brought about by the contradictions of capitalist rationalization. To struggle against these opportunist right wing conceptions is the | task of every Party member. The success of our struggle against im- perialst war will greatly depend on how effectively the Party member- ship will utilize the effects of capitalist rationalization on the working masses and mobilize them in the struggle against capitalism. METHODS OF STRUGGLE AGAINST THE WAR DANGER. The anti-war work as the main work of the Party must dominate all our activities; it particularly must be connected with our shop work | | and all our every-day work generally. The Plenum decided: “The struggle against the danger of imperialist war and espe- cially the imperialist attack on the Soviet Union must be the center of the every-day activity of the Party.” In order to mobilize the broad masses of American workers, the Party must first be put on a war footing to be able to cope with the developing situation. The present concentrated attempts of the govern- ment to drive the Party into illegality, to imprison its national and district leading forces, must find the Party prepared to withstand this attack and to maintain its connections with the workers in the factories, | mines and mills. The best guaranty for our ability to lead the struggle against capitalist exploitation and imperialist war is to more firmly entrench ourselves in the factories, particularly in the most important and basic industries. The Plenum therefore demanded that the Party turn its face to the factories, to establish new and strengthen our old shop nuclei, to increase the number of our shop papers, to develop the movement for the organization of the unorganized and strengthen our | trade union work generally. In leading the economic struggles of the workers, we as the poli- tical party of the working class must strive to link up these struggles with our general political struggles, particularly with the struggle against imperialist war and for the defense of the Soviet Union. In connection with the above the Gastonia verdict, the attempts of the bourgeoisie to drive our Party into illegality must serve as a stimu- lating factor in our campaign to mobilize the American workers to fight for the right to organize, for the right of the workers to defend them- selves from bosses’ police and thugs end for the legal existence of the On the basis of concrete issues the Party must learn to mobilize the workers for our revolutionary struggle against capitalism, CONTINUE THE ANTI-WAR STRUGGLE OF AUGUST 1. For the first time in its history the Communist Party of America mobilize? 100,000. workers in a political struggle against imperialist war and for the defense of the Soviet Union. On August 1, the Party succeeded to penetrate into the most industrial territories, traditionally under the control of American fascism and hold street demonstrations against war. Through our anti-war activity on August, the Party in practically every district established good connection with masses of workers which must be utilized to further develop our anti-war ac- tivity, to develop the idea of mass political action against war. In this connection the Plenum reaffirmed the previous position of the Party and stated: “The results of the International Red Day demonsttate the readiness of large sections of American workers, to struggle against imperialist war and for the defense of the Soviet Union.” At the same time we must also correct the mistakes committed on’ August 1. The lack of preparation, hesitation to demonstrate on the streets and remnants of. legalism, hindered greatly our anti-war work in many districts. We must particularly strengthen our ‘anti-war mob- ilization in’ the factories and in this work develop the initiative of the units and involve the entire membership following the general political direction of the higher bodies. ° In this connection the approaching 12th anniversary of the Russian Revolution offers a splendid opportunity and demands from the Party to utilize the great achievements of the Soviet Union in its successful construction of socialism for the purpose of mobilizing the masses of American workers for the defense of the Soviet Union from imperialist attacks, STRUGGLE AGAINST SOCIAL DEMOCRACY AND THE RIGHT WING, Social democracy is being utilized by capitalism as agents for their imperialist war prevarations. The endorsement of the socialist party by large sections of the capitalist press, the support given to Norman t By Fred Ellis THE CITY -<-- OF BREAD Reprinted, by permission, from “The City of Bread” by Alexander Neweroff, published and copyrighted by Doubleday—Doran, New York. TRANSLATED FROM THE RUSSIAN (Continued.) 15. They were taking him before the terrible court of judgment— every nerve was tense with terror. He remembered his dead father, and his uncle Nikanor, champion in fist fights—and his heart burned with a great warmth against Serioshka. “It’s because of him I’m in trouble now.” But when they got to the Tcheka, it wasn’t terrible at all—just like the Ispolkom at home. A big table, at the table the chief in a leather jacket. At his side hung a revolver, on his cap was the Bolshevik star. The chief stroked his mustache with one finger, and looked Mishka over with tired, quizzical eyes. “What's the matter?” “We arrested this boy, comrade Dunayev,” explained the militia- man. “Riding without a ticket?” “Who knows! They say he has stolen a sack.” “Come here.” Mishka was pretty badly freightened. He put his hands behind his back, the left one was tremblnig, and his knees shook. The ceiling over his head was falling down; the whole Tcheka rocked. And Comrade Dunayev kept silence deliberately, sitting there quiet and unhurried. Only his quizzical eyes moved—a glance at the papers before him, then a glance at Mishka. “What’s your name?” Every hair on Mishka’s head stood up, and his nose felt hot in- side; he couldn’t catch his breath. “How old?” “Eleven, going on twelve.” “Fine lad! “No, never!” “Don’t hide anything, Michael Dodonov, everything is known a” Do you smoke? to ieee & “Mishka saw the smile on the chief’s lips and thought: “He’s fooling, he doesn’t know anything, he’s laughing .. - Again the chief smiled down at him: “Why did you steal the sack?” Mishka’s heart grew lighter, he thought: “Yl try to bluff them a little, maybe they'll believe me.” He began to tell a tale: for a long time his father had planned to go to Tashkent with him, they bought a ticket and a pass, but on the way his father died. He should have gotten a ticket and a pass for himself, but he had not thought of that, nad had gone two stations without a ticket. And then a boy from his village had tagged after him: take me along, take me along. He was afraid to go alone. And now he has been taken sick. Let them ask any one. He wasright here in the hospital. He, Mishka, had run to take a look at him, and just then the engine whistled. He was scared and ran and ran, and bumped right into the woman. He couldn’t see anything. He struck his leg against her pail, and she began to scream. The mujiks heard her and thought he’d stolen something. But this sack was his own. Inside this sack was another sack, and in that one a tin cup, a little salt for the road, and his grandmother's skirt. He had never stolen, They opened up the sack—true: cup, salt, skirt. Comrade Dunayev looked at Mishka, then stroked his mustache with his finger again. “But don’t you know that it’s forbidden to ride on the railway without a ticket?” “Certainly I know, but what could I do? “And what will you do in Tashkent?” “Work for a little while.” “What kind of work can you do?” “Whatever comes along. I can cart manure, and plow. . . Dunayev, the chief, shook his head and smiled. “Now listen, Michael Dodonov;-you’re a clever boy. I really ought to punish you so that you should grow still more clever. Tomorrow you can haul wood for the railroad, together with some women who also rode without tickets. You'll work for a while, and then you can | go farther. But we can’t allow people to ride on the trains for nothing. Understand?” Mishka had expected worse than this. As he left the Tcheka with the miliatiaman he confided to him cheerfully: “T’'m not afraid of work. Give me any kind of job, nad see how Til do it... .” A long, long day! You kept oh hauling wood and there was always more to haul. First the sun climbed the hills, then it began descending the hills again, and still it was a long, long time till evening. And still | whole mountains of wood were lying there; when yould you ever be finished, if, you took only one log at a time? Mishka squared his sturdy peasant shoulders, and began carrying three at a time. His eyes bulged from the strain, his short legs in their bark sandals treem- | bled, refusing to carry him any longer. He thought the women would praise him for his diligence, but they scolded: “Don’t break your back, boy. This isn’t home.” “What do you mean?” “Save your strength.” The first to give up was a girl from Kudryavsk, with bare, scratch- ed legs. Her head began to swim and nausea choked her. She gazed about her with dull eyes, grew very white, clutched at her bare, seratch- ed legs. Everything grew confused. Were those women about her or weren’t they women? She fell face downward on the earth and began to suck her finger. “What is it, Nastenka, are you finished?” Monel sa Oye, Death stretched Nastenka out with her head on a birch log and bent her legs so that her knees touched her chin. The others would have liked to feed the dying girl—it would make things a little eosier for her—but bread was nowhere to be bought. And you couldn’t give your own: you would harm yourself, and still there wouldn't be enough to satisfy her hunger. “Well, that’s life.” The women were troubled and silent. Each one was thinking of herself. “Will I come through alive . . .2” (To Be Continued.) ” ” I was starving .. - Thomas by powerful business interests, proves that the capitalist class is seeing,a crisis approaching with developing class struggles. The bourgeoisie also sees that the Communist Party is the only force lead- ing the growing economic class battles of the workers as well as the struggle against imperialist war. It is therefore preparing the so- cialist party for the same purposes the British labor party and the Second International as a whole is being utilized by the international bourgeoisie. The socialist party endorsement’ of the League of Nations, its ap- proval of the Young Plan, its role in the Anglo American imperialist rivalry, the campaign of the A. F. of L. in militarizing the American working class, its strikebreaking activity, its vicious attack on the Soviet Union, all this makes it necessary for us to intensify our strug- gle against’ the social imperialist role of the socialist party and the A. F. of L. At the same time the Party membership must intensify their strug- gle against Lovestoncism. The role of Lovestone in the present war situation, we have already seen on August 1. Just like.the Menshevik Plechanov who in 1905, when the Russian workers took up arms against czarism said: “They shou.d not have taken up arms,” ’so did Lovestone on August 1 when the Party callei partial strikes in certain sec- tions of the country: “Don’t strike. At the present time the strike on August 1 in the United States has no basis.” With the approach of war the strikebreaking role of Lovestone will further develop. Particu- larly in connection with our struggle for the defense of the Soviet Union, it must be clearly pointed out to the Party members and to the revolutionary workers of America, that all those who fight the Comin- tern, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Communist Parties in the capitalist countries are enemies of the Soviet Union. In the present period of sharpening war danger the Party must carry ona ruthless struggle against all enemies of the Comintern, The struggle for the line of the Comintern and the Central Committee and- the struggle against Lovestone is part of our struggle against war and for the defense of the Sovit Union, i t “ \ V