THE COMMUNIST ALL POWER TO THE WORKERS!
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF AMERICA Vol. II. MAY 15, 1920.
PRICE CENTS The Coming Convention of the Communist Party APPEAL TO THE MEMBERSHIP ISSUED BY THE CENTRAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE To all members of the Communist Party of America.
Comrades: The Central Executive Committee recognizes the necessity for a party convention in order to settle finally the difierences that have been seething within the party for a long time and which came to a climax at last in the form of the present secession movement led by the former Executive SecCOMRADES: retary and two members of the The recognizes that the member You all know that the former Executive Secretary, Damon, ship also demands a convention for the same seized all the party funds, entrusted to him by the Central Exreasons. Therefore, this being the earnest and general desire of the party, THE PARecutive Committee, amounting to more than seven thousand dolTY CONVENTION MUST AND WILL lars, leaving the party without money to carry on its work. Full BE CALLED account will be found on the last page of this issue. However, in order to make the conve:In order to carry on the work of agitation, propaganda and tion a success in order that the conventio party administration WE MUST HAVE VONEY. WE WILL shall accomplish the necessary task of BE UNABLE TO ISSUE THE PAPER AND TO CONTINUE clarifying the iundamental issues at stake OUR ACTIVITIES WITHOUT FUNDS.
IN ORDER THAT THE COMMUNIST SURELY THE MEMBERSHIP REALIZES WHAT PARTY SHALL FUNCTION FOR THE CALAMITY THIS WOULD BE IN VIEW OF THE PRESENT PROPAGATION OF COMMUNISM IN. RISIS IN THE PARTY.
HARMONY WITH THE PRINCIPLES Therefore ACT QUICKLY. GATHER FUNDS AND AND POLICIES LAID DOWN BY THE SEND THEM TO US IMMEDIATELY.
THIRD INTERNATIONAL, without inALL DISTRICT ORGANIZATIONS. ALL SUB DISternal dissension paralyzing its activities TRICT. ORGANIZATIONS. ALL BRANCHES. ALL and. what is most important in order GROUPS WHICH STAND WITH THE CENRAL EXECUTGIVE THE MEMBERSHIP. THE RANK AND FILE the opportunity to exIVE COMMITTEE AND REMAIN IN THE COMMUNIST press their opinion on the issues beiore the PARTY ARE HEREBY CALLED UPON TO COLLECT AND party, this convention must be well prepared RUSH ALL FUNDS THROUGH THE REGULAR PARTY and carefully arranged.
CHANNELS TO The time, the place, the method oi electing BUNTE, the delegates, and, above all, instructions to the delegates are essential prerequisites Acting Secretary, in order to make this convention accomplish Communist Party of America.
its purpose.
This means, first of all, that belore the convention is called, the membership must be given the opportunity to discuss all the issuse so that, when the time comes for the which, as we will show, is nothing but a fixed by them implies that they are deliberelection of delegates, they will not elect the trap set ur the rank and file The date ately arranging iheir convention so as to blindly. BUT INTELLIGENTLY AND itseli, as fixed in the call issued by the force the membership to clect their delegates ELECT ONLY THOSE DELEGATES former Executive Secretary implies 110 real blindly. In other words, they are simply WHO ACTUALLY REPRESENT THEIR desire to have any convention at all.
deceiving the inembership.
OPINION ON THE ISSUES IN THE CONTROVERSY.
In the ürst place, the former Executive But it is obvious that it is physically imSecretary had no right or mandate to call possible to have the clections and the conAll this requires time for preparationthis convention. The duty oi the Executive vention on the date set in the call of the preparation for the process oi elections in Secretary, as defined by the Convention, minority. Conventions are not called at the various stages and the technical arrangeis to work only under the supervision and a avecks notice!
ments connected with these and the conventcontrol of, and in conjunction with, the ion itseli, both by the membership and the This is so seli evident, that even the miCentral Executive Committee. He is only Central Executive Committee. If called too 110rity, however ignorant on party questhe executor of the decisions of that body, soon, without the proper time for preparaor where a division exists. of the majority iniliar with. Most asuredly they knew tions they may be, cannot pretend to be tion as stated above, the convention would of that body, and is responsible to the Cononly result in failure and necessitate the it, but still they purposely fixed their imtral Executive Committee, which is, in turn, calling of another convention iew months possible date as a sort of bribe to the responsible to the convention.
after this convention to settle the issues membership in an attempt to swing them Secondly, the date set in the call issued which a hurried convention will inevitably fail to accomplish.
by the former Executive Secretary, May Central Executive Committee, over to their away from the Communist Party and its for elections of intermediary units and May Moreover, this convention should be cnited jor national convention, even were it techside by oiiering them an earlier date. The only hy the Central Executive Committee very fac: that in their letter to the mically pusible, would give 110 chance to of the party, as the only legally elected body requesting joint action on the question of the membership to discuss the issues inwhich, between conventions, can speak with a party convention, the minority express volved.
hority in the name of the Communist a willingness to change the date and other Party and its activities as a whole. This Thus, while pretending that they represent details already fixed by them, indicates clearis the only meaning of revolutionary central the membership and that they want to give ly hat they themselves did not take their ism and discipline upon which a real, strong them the opportunity to express themselves own call and its fixed date for the convention Communist Party can be built.
at the convention, the incity in iact, is seriously.
Therelore we call upon the membership deliberately arranging the convention so as In the meantime, the minority do not to repudiate the so called convention called to prevent the membership iron any possi nesitate to use the party funds in the possesby the former Executive Secretary Damon, bility of expressing themselves. The date Continued on last page.