September 27, 1919 THE COMMUNIST Page Nine The Program of the Party The Communist Party is the conscious ex All ar? Issued by the Convention of the the party shall have actual contact with the pression of the class struggle of the workers Communist Party workers and mobilize them for action against against capitalism. Its aim is to direct this capitalism.
struggle to the conquest of political power, concentrated capitalism there is latent the III.
the overthrow of capitalism and the destruc tendency toward the general mass strike The Communist Party must engage action of the bourgeois state.
which takes on a political character and tively in the struggle to revolutionize the The Communist Party prepares itself for manifests the impulse toward toward prothe revolution in the measure that it develletarian dictatorship.
trade unions. As against the unionism of the American Federation of Labor, the Communops a program of immediate action, express In these general mass strikes the Communist Party propagandizes industrial unionism ing the mass struggles of the proletariat. ist Party shall emphasize the necessity of and industrial union organization, emphasizThese struggles must be inspired with re maintaining industry and the taking over of ing their revolutionary implications. Indusvolutionary spirit and purposes.
social functions sually discharged by the trial Unionism is not simply a means for the The Communist Party is fundamentally a capitalists and the institutions of capitalism. everyday struggle against capitalism: its party of action. It brings to the workers a The strike must cease being isolated and pasultimate purpose is revolutionary, implying consciousness of their oppression, of the im ive; it must become positive, general and agthe necessity of ending the capitalist parliapossibility of improving their conditions gressive, preparing the workers for the commentary state. Industrial Unionism is a under capitalism. The Communist Party di plete assumption of industrial and social factor in the final mass action for the conrects the workers struggle against capitalcontrol quest of power, as it will constitute the basis ism, developing fuller forms and purposes (a) Every local and district organiza for the industrial administration of the Com.
in this struggle, culminating in the mass action of the Party shall establish contact with munist Commonwealth.
tion of the revolution.
industrial units in its territory the shops. a) The Communist Party recognizes mills and mines and direct its agitation acthat the of is reactionary and a bulThe Communist Party maintains that the cordingly.
wark of capitalism.
class struggle is essentially a political strug(e) Shop Committees shall be organized gle, that is, a struggle to conquer the power wherever possible for the purpose of Com(b) Councils of workers shall be organof the state.
munist agitation in a particular shop or inized in the shops as circumstances allow, for (a) The Communist Party shall keep in dustry by the workers employed there. the purpose of carrying on the industrial the foreground its consistent appeal for proThese committees shall be united with each union struggle in the old unions, uniting and letarian revolution, the overthrow of capital other and with the Communist Party, so that mobilizing the militant elements; these councils to be unified in a Central Council wherIsm and the establishment of a dictatorship ever possible.
of the proletariat. As the opposition of the The Communist Convention bourgeoisie is broken, as it is expropriated (0) It shall be a major task of the Comand gradually absorbed into the working (Continued from Page munist Party to agitate for the construction groups, the proletarian dictatorship disap seph Stilson, the Lithuanian Secretary, Geo. of a general industrial union organization, pears until finally the state dies and there Selakovich, South Slavic Federation, and embracing the indeare no more class distinctions.
Joseph Kowalsky, Polish Translator Secre pendent and secession unions, militant tary.
unions of the of and the unorgan(b) Participation in parliamentary campaigns, which in the general struggle of the One resolution of special interest was ad ized workers, on the basis of the revolutionproletariat is of secondary importance, is opted by the Convention: that the propaganary class struggle.
IV.
for the purpose of revolutionary propaganda da attitude of the Communis Pary shall be, only.
when necessary, to explain religion as a social The Communist Party shall encourage (d) Parliamentary representatives of the phenomenon and to explain the church as an movements of the workers in the shop seekCommunist Party shall not introduce or supinstitution in the light of the materialistic ing to realize workers control of industry, while indicating their limitations under caport reform measures. Parliaments and conception of history. It is evident from the political democracy shall be utilized to assist refusal to consider religious affiliations as pitalism; concretely, any movement analogin organizing the working class against ca a bar to membership that the Convention ous to the shop Stewards of England. These pitalism and the state. Parliamentary re meant to draw a sharp distinction between movements (equally directed against the presentatives shall consistently expose the the propaganda attitude of the party and union bureaucracy) should be related to the Communist Party.
oppressive class character of the capitalist censorship of individual religious opinion.
state, using the legislative forum to inter This resolution, taken out of the Michigan The unorganized unskilled workers inpret and emphasize the class struggle; they minority program, puts the Communist shall make clear how parliamentarism and cluding the agricultural proletariat) constitParty on record against the evasion of the ute the bulk of the working class. The Comparliamentary clemocracy deceive the work important subject of religion and the church munist Party shall directly and systematicalers; and they shall analyze capitalist legisla which has heretofore been the policy of the tive proposals and reform palliatives as ly agitate among these workers, awakening organized socialist movement in this counevasions of the issue and as of no fundathem to industrial union organization and try. But it does not go to the other extreme action.
mental significance to the working class. of putting an affirmative burden upon the VI. d) Nominations for public office and party to carry on a rationalistic campaign, In close connection with the unskilled participation in elections are limited to le as would be the case with a membership workers is the problem of the Negro worker.
gislative bodies only, such as municipal coun qualification against religious affiliation; The Negro problem is a political and ecocils, state legislature and national congress. it places our attitude squarely upon the nomic problem. The racial oppression of (e) The uncompromising character of social and political aspects of religion.
the Negro is simply the expression of his the class struggle must be maintained under There are many features of the other economic bondage and oppression, each inall circumstances. The Communist Party ac committee reports which call for particular cordingly, in campaigns and elections, and in notice. There are many others respects in tensifying the other. This complicates the Negro problem, hut does not alter its proall its other activity, shall not co operate which this Convention stands out from all letarian character. The Communist Party with groups or parties not committed to the prior Socialist gatherings in America. For will carry on agitation among the Negro revolutionary class struggle, such as the one thing, the fact that the Federation deleworkers to unite them with all class conSocialist Party, Labor Party, Non Partisan gates were largely Slavic emphasized the scious workers.
League, Peoples Council, Municipal Owner close union between the organization of the VII.
ship Leagues, etc.
Communist Party here and the parent or The United States is developing an aggresII ganization which came into being at Moscow sire militarism. The Communist Party will The Communist Party shall make the in March of this year the Communist Inwage the struggle against militarism as a great industrial struggles of the working ternational. It was the Russian expression phase of the class struggle to hasten the class its major campaigns, in order to de of Marxism which predominated this con downfall of Capitalism.
velop an understanding of the strike in rela vention, the Marxism of Lenin, and the VIII.
tion to the overthrow of capitalism.
party traditions of the Bolsheviki.
The struggle against Imperialism, neces(a) The Communist Party shall particip One delegate after another expressed sarily an international struggle, is the basis ate in mass strikes, not only to achieve the amazement at the lessons thus brought be of proletarian revolutionary action in this the immediate purposes of the strike, but to fore him. Many years of most valuable ex epoch.
develop the revolutionary implications of perience were compacted into one week; and (a) There must be close unity with the the mass strike.
there is no question but that the students Communist International for common action (b) Mass strikes are vital factors in the ran the teachers a merry pace.
ageinst Imperialism.
process out of which develops the workers The Communist Convention and the Com. b) The Communist Party emphasizes understanding and action for the conquest munist Party mean the beginning of a disthe common character of the struggle of the of power.
ciplined revolutionary working class move workers of all nations, making necessary the (c) In mass strikes under conditions of ment in America.
solidarity of the workers of the world.