12 THE REVOLUTIONARY AGE Saturday, August 9, 1919 Report of the National Left Wing Conference. mmediate Organization of Communist Party Owing to the fact that it is impossible to fatal error of waiting until August 30th before get out the complete stenographic report of we shall organize our party. The machine in the proceedings of the National Left Wing the Socialist Party is wise. They have always regular order of business and go to the Conference, June 21 25, in booklet form in adopted the policy, whenever the revolutionary discussion of the advisability of forming a the short time at our disposal, it has been movement of the Socialist Party becomes Communist Party.
decided to run extracts from the report deal powerful, of seeming to adopt the program Larkin: In putting the motion, sug ing with the matters now under dispute. of the revolutionists, and once this is adopted gest that you have Comrade Ruthenberg and It is proposed to give such extracts as will the machine will remain in control. Comrades, Comrade Hourwich draft a brief resolution. state the position of both sides and will want you to think back to the historic fight We want the advisability of starting a Com throw all possible clarity on the issues in of 1912 between Hillquit and Hayward, when munist Party here and now, or waiting until volved.
six months later Hayward was kicked out of the 30th August, settled.
the Socialist Party. want you to remember Hourwich and Ruthenberg, thereupon drew how in 1917 in St. Louis, when the rank and up the following resolution.
convention to order, who is going to be in file of the party demanded a revolutionarv Be it resolved that this National Confer control on the floor of that convention? Who program, the reactionaries in the Socialist ence representing the Left Wing within the is going to elect the chairman? Who is going Party adopted a revolutionary program the Socialist Party hereby sever all relations with to be in the majority? Why, the members of it. Louis Program. No sooner was it the Socialist Party, and that we begin immethe Left Wing. And if they adopt some adopted, than it became a mere scrap of paper, diately the organization of the Communist scheme, some parliamentary action to elimin and the machine supported the war. They Party.
ate these outcast delegations, then we, the voted for liberty bonds. Their cortgressmen The Chairman: We will vote on Comrade majority will simply start right there on the voted for appropriations, and the rank and MacAlpine motion to suspend the rules.
floor of that convention and proceed to urganfile were ignored. Comrades, they are going (The motion was made to suspend the rules ize the Communist Party. Great applause. on to adopt a similar St. Louis program and this was unanimously carried. Zucker: Comrade Ruthenberg states that August 30th. They are going to adopt the principles of the Left Wing, and then come Ruthenberg: Comrades, you understand we have carried the fight within the Soof before the members of the Socialist Party and course, that in moving this resolu cialist Party until now, and that we shall protion, did so by instruction of the body, and ceed to carry on the fight in the same manner say, Comrades, why split? We have always been with the Left Wingers in principle. not because of any sympathy with what the as in the past, until August 30th, in spite of resolution proposes. believe personally that the fact that the majority of the organization Party. It says, It is true, comrades, that the will read from an official organ of the Socialist the proposition contained in that resolution committee has reported that in their opinion new conditions require a change in policies.
would be the best way in tile world to hamper the is going to expel nearly seventythe Left Wing movement in the organization five per cent of the membership of the Socialist am sure that am speaking for the majority of the committee in stating that we intend to of a virile Communist Party in the future. We Party, in order to continue their control of the make such changes. But you of the Left Wing have thus far endeavored to carry on our fight organization. Comrade Ruthenberg still labors cannot wait. You adopt your manifesto and within the Socialist Party. We have won the under the delusion that because we have the tell us to swallow it or smash the party. And fight within the Socialist Party, and now some majority of the votes, therefore the control of comrades come here and ask us to scuttle the the machinery of the Socialist Party follows that is what they will do on August 30th. They will seemingly adopt our program and prinship and run away when we have won a vic inevitably, Comrades, let us not make the great ciples, and they will say, we expelled the Left tory. We only need to press that victory mistake of imagining that because we have the Wing not because we are against the prin: in order to take hold of the existing order. votes, therefore the machinery comes our way. ciples, but because they wanted to shove it (Applause. By this conference going on re We have been shown the fallacy of the Right down our throats, and then, comrades, they cord to organize a Communist Party, we are Wingers who claim that when we shall have taken away from the position which we now captured fifty one per cent of the votes on will play the same trick that they did in 1910 hold before the membership of the Socialist election day, we will then get control of the olutionary rank and file tried to assert its and 1912 and every other fight, where the revParty. We carried on a fight through the State. We tell them that is an absurdity. In machinery of the party organization. We have order to control the State, you must destroy power and gain control of the party machinwon in a refendum. And now the other side the capitalist state. And so it is here. In the ery. Comrades, now it the time for action.
adopts extra constitutional means to rob us referendum of the membership we had at least If we wait for August 30th the historic moof our victory, and we are in a position before 75 per cent of the membership voting our ment to organize the party is lost. Now, the rank and file in the Socialist Party is with us.
the membership as the injured party in the way. But a group of seven individuals have struggle. If we now step out of the organizdefeated the will of more than half the memThey feel that we have been unfairly dealt bership ation and remember there is in the heart of the Socialist Party have expelled with by the machine, and, comrades, we know most members of the organization some feel them from the Socialist Party and what is that a great many of those within the Left Wing are not Left Wingers because of coning of loyalty to the organization, some feel inore, they are determined to expel the other ing that this party under the name of the So lialf. At a meeting of the they elected viction. The great mass within the Left Wing are there because of sentiment, because we cialist Party which they have sacrificed for, a Board of Trustees that took over the control for so many years, is something they don of the property of the Socialist Party, which have been wrongly dealt with. Comrades, let want to easily let go of, and if we take this ineans that they the Left Wing, if it shall by us have the courage to start not with the great step and ask them to go outside the organmass, although say without the masses no some miracle, capture the Socialist Party, revolution can succeed. We want the masses, ization, we are not going to carry with us as there will no doubt be a legal fight as to many members of that party those who even whether the present is the legal Sobut we want them on our program, and on are in sympathy with our purpose and our cialist Party. Comrades, say it is absurd. It our principles. Let us have the courage to manifesto and program than if we continue is criminal for the Left Wing to bring its case start with a small number, if possible, but let to fight through the two short months that before the tribunals to decide the justice and us start as real revolutionists, and ask the rank still lie before the National Convention. And legality of our act. Comrades, the Left Wing organize the Communist Party. Great apand file to join with us on all principles to submit to you that at that National Con has not only been spat in the face in Chicago vention will be the appropriate tme for us to they have been kicked down stairs, and now plause. proceed not at the end, but at the very beg it is proposed that the Left Wing shall come MacAlpine: Comrade Chairman and inning of that convention.
crawling back to plead for justice and for Comrades: It is all very well to talk about the What situation will we find? Some of us mercy and for constitutionality. Comrades, name Communist. Any person who is a delehere say that the reactionaries will control more than half of the delegates present are gate to this convention can get on this floor that convention. How? They will control, then now out of the Socialist Party. We have been step out and organize your Communist Party. expelled from the Socialist Party, and it is and make an emotional appeal on the name But if we go there with delegates from the impossible for me as an individual as well as Communist. We all know that the name several expelled organizations, if we go there for other comrades to have their opinions Communist is covered with the blood of with the delegates of all the organizations in voiced at the meeting of the National ConKarl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxenburg. We side of the party, and the secretary calls that vention. Another thing, let us not commit the all know that this name has been adopted in