The Revolutionary Age being Editor ditions.
is the of OT THE REVOLUTIONARY AGE Saturday, February 15, 1919 tunity, and a new and more vital Socialism come into of industry by the workers with the complete elimination of the boss. The decision lies with the employA Chronicle and Interpretation of International events Great strikes are developing; revolutionary Socialism This analysis of ours is being confirmed by events. ers of Seattle. Do they want to compromise and give in to the shipyard workers demands or would they is measuring to the opportunity as detemined by con rather face expropriation. Louis FRAINA EADMONN MACALPINE It would be nothing short of a crime for the ship. Associate Editor This analysis of our is being confirmed by events. yard workers to allow the shipyards to remain idle Contributing Editors fied. The prosperity of the war is at an enda for more than two weeks when the world needs ships Scott NEARING LUDWIG LORE prosperity which created thousands of new million and the returning soldier must be provided employJOHN REED SEN KATAYAMA aires while millons of men were being slaughtered. ment alongside of the worker. If the shipyard owner HOURWICH does not want to build ships the workers must not WEINSTEIN During the war there were more jobs than workers; now there are more workers than jobs; accordingly, let him prevent them from so doing at wages satisunemployment, reduction in wages, strikes, more factory to themselves.
ISSUED EVERY SATURDAY misery and oppression for the working class. Unemployment stalks through the land; hunger By Local Boston, Socialist Party And so they strike. The American workers are and cold threaten the people; millions of soldiers are Steiner, Business Manager awakening. The war has taught them; that nothing returning and expecting jobs which don exist. What 885 Washington St. Boston, Mass.
teaching them; and the Bolshevik Revolution, in shipyards for a protracted period. Îhe shipyards Bundle orders 2c a copy, Subscription 00 for which the workers themselves are masters of must be reopened the strikers are the only ones to six months (26 issues)
is having its profound influence among the workers do it. Then let do it.
of silent, as yet inarticulate, but determin This was a proposal for revolutionary mass action; ing forms of action and about to burst forth in the and American Capitalism recognized the revolutionReactionary of Officials international struggle for Socialism. And so they ary threat latent in the Seattle strike. The whole strike for shorter hours, for more wages, for better this conditions generally; but circumstances force these of the working class on strike in the textile mills workers to use new forms of action, to develop larger verile st the strike; Mayor Ole Hanson used all the of Lawrence, Mass. They have a hard struggle is imposed on the strikers by the brutality and aggres forces of American Capitalism were directed against Waar Baker sent troops to break the strike; all the ther. In the midst of this hard strongere, the cominst sion of the governing powers.
the strike, the workers elsewhere did not respond; Labor Union of Lawrene issues an attack upon One thing the strikers seem to be learning, and that and the strike ended but only temporarily. Its edustrike: declares that the strike is not at all founded is it is not enough to strike, and fold your arms: cational value has been tremendous. The American upon the reasonable demands strikes must become more active, must have a larger working class will accept revolutionary mass action.
but to stir purpose. They must, in the first place. become more general; not one trade, nor one industry, but a large Mont. Thousands of miners are on strike, including Then came another industrial explosion, in Butte, trouble, that the demands of the strikers are proGerman. and tacitly calls upon organized labor be read hundreds of demobilized soldiers. The strike is being not to support the strikers. This is infamous; it rebe ready to meet the hostility of the state, the use directed by the local Soldiers and Workers Council, minds one of the attempts of the of bureauof armed troops. and they must, in any large strike, 1, 000 demobilized soldiers alone being on the picket cracy to break the great Lawrence strike in 1912 by assume control of keeping the life of a city going line. The Mayor has proclaimed martial law; but the all sorts of desperate and contemptible means. There 1ltemseles while the strike is on and the employers workers are organizing their own military guards, is a real struggle developing between the workers and are being beaten.
reactionary unions and reactionary union officials: in In the great Seattle general strike, of the shipyard prepared to meet, force with force, it necessary Troops of the regular army are being used against England this is a great issue, it is beoming a great workers, car men, and others, the new tactics of the issue here. There must be a struggle against reacindustrial struggle were partly in action. It was a while picketing. The Council has demanded of tionary unionism, against corrupt union officials, strike of many trades; it was managed by a unified retary of War Baker whether these troops are being against betrayals of the working class. On this issue council of the various industrial strikers; and it tried used as strike breakers with the consent of the De the Socialist cannot compromise: it must become a to assume municipal functions so that the strike might partment of War. Major Jones, of the United central issue of our party policy industrial unionism continue while the citizens of Seattle were not pre States Army, informed the soldiers and sailors that and mass action against reactionary unionism and its vented from eating and carrying on their regular he had cleaned up the scum of Panama and that there officials.
functions.
would be no dallying with the disturbing elements The Central Labor Council of Seattle issued the in Butte. The troops are armed to the teeth with Strikes and Mass Action following proclamation: machine gun equipment. On Thursday at 10 there will be many cheer The strike in Butte is still in process of developHEY said that the American workers had no ing and there will be some who fear. Both these ment; it may develop into a general strike; it is tinged cinotions are useful, but not ton much of either. We with revolutionary sentiments, the most important in Europe could they have industrial revolts are undertaking the most treineudous move ever made thing being the unity of soldiers and workers. In that only in monarchial countries was there any rev by labor me nin this country a move which leads no this sign the working class will conquer!
olutionary spirit. They have declared, the corrupt Then there is the Lawrence strike; there was the masters of bonirgeois society, that the American workreell ree the iron march of labor. Labor will feed the silk workers strike in Paterson and a number of ers were satisfied, and that only a few foreign agitstrikes in New York all proof of the great moveators and un American ideas were responsible for fron Twelve great kitchens have been offered and them food be distributed by the unrest. They tried to isolate the American working ment among the working class.
trades at low cost to all. Labor will care for the babies This strike movement is developing new features.
class, assisted by Samuel Gompers, against the interand the sick. The milk wagon drivers and the laundry The Butte, Seattle and Lawrence strikes are largely national development of class action and class cons drivers are arranging for supplying milk to babies, mass movements; the old union officials are being ciousness.
invalids and hospitals and taking care of the cleaning of linen for hospitals.
repudiated; the workers are taking power into their But, instinctively, irresistibly, great strikes are decwn hands, depending upon their own initiative and veloping in our country. The war is over; the world Labor will preserve order. The strike committee mass action as in England and in Russia. The old is safe for lemocracy; the peace conference, is arranging for guards, and it is expected that the union officials are largely conservative; they are through Mr. Wilson, talks beautifully of a new order stopping of the cars will keep people at home. L:nited with the government and with capital; they of civilization. 1, 000, 000, 000 are appropriated by the As a mere shutdown will not affect these Eastern are trying to tie ropes upon the workers the workers American Congress to feed Europeans; the press gentlemen the shipowners) much, they could let the imust repudiate them. Unionism and the working teems with reports of prosperity but unemployment whole Xorthwest go to pieces, as far as money alone class must be revolutionized before they can revolutionize Capitalism.
but the closing down of the capitalisticand all over the country strikes are breaking out, ally is on the increase; demobilized soldiers can get jobs; controlled industries of Seattle, while the workers Strikes are not made to order by agitators they great struggle is developing between the proletariat organize to feed the people. to care for the babies and come because they must, out of the terrible pressure and the capitalist class.
te sick and to preserwepoederthis will move them, upon the workers. That more and larger strikes are In its issue of December 11, 1918, The Revolutioncoming, that they are more radical than in the old by the workers. Labor will not only shut down the ary Age said: days is because of more pressure, more experience, inclustries, but labor will reopen under the manage more understanding With the end of the war and the peculiar indust ment of the appropriate trades such activities as are Bad days are ahead for the American workers. The rial concliticns it created, will come readjustment; and needer! to preserve public health and public peace.
with readjustment will come an era of great industrial If the strike continues labor may feel led to avoid war has strengthened the power of the capitalists, struggles greater than any this country has ever seen. publie suffering by reopening more and more activ but not to the same extent the power of the workers.
The capitalists will use, arc using that power to starve That will be the opporturity of Socialism. The char ities under its own management, and that is why we acteristic of revolutionary Socialism is that it study the workers. to subjugate the workers. The workers say that we are starting on a road that leads no one the alignment of social forces, the characteristics of knows where.
must answer by means of strikes and industrial mass action.
each period in social development, and adapt itse and these characteristics to the task of developing sonist Party of the State of Washington, asked The Seattle International Weekly, organ of the These strikes are here; more will come. The meathe final struggle. The characteristic of the situation sure of their success will depend upon how much the in the United States during the coming two or threc can 10. 000 workers operate industry without bos workers have learned the new tactics, the new revoluyears will be great industrial strikes. This will test ses? and said: tionary spirit. They must use the general strike; they the Socialist Tarty. If we are simply to use these The policy of the foldel arm is a passive one, a must repudiate the old union officials and the old strikes in make political capital. we shall miss a great gative gestire of defiance to Capitalism. The work unionism: industrial unionism is necessary, they must opportunity: but if we absorb ourselves in these ers are not satisfied with merely defying Capitalism; uise mass action, the unity of organized and unorgan ized workers in action; they must take control of strikes, appreciate that in the industry lies the power they are derazanding the overthrow of the whole rotof the proletariat. that it is the function of Socialism ting, decaying system. They are not going to stand their affairs by means of organizations based directly 10 tise strikes to derclor finer industrial organizations asce the industries of Seattle non productive on the workers in the shops.
and goneral industrial action of the workers, out of liceause it is the whim of the American capitalist class These strikes, morcover, must always strive to which emerge class power for the final struggle. to crush out unionism. The class conscious workers cense being strikes and become rezolutionary mass them the Swali arty will measure to the opporof Seattic insist on a positive policy: the management action against Caritalism and the state. While CapiTrening to complain about. They said that only provision