THE COMMUNIST igation of the Russian Federation Executive Committee. Such an investigation, obviously, was bound to be an empty formality.
The Hungarian Federation, by vote of its central committee, quit the party because of the raids. The Lithuanian Federation Committee has had the same step under consideration, but has so far been deterred by its revolutionary rank and file. Yet we are told that the existence of Federations with such central committees is the life of the revolutionary move.
ment in this country, The Jewish Federation, by vote of its central body, de.
clares its neutrality in the present party controversy. nout.
rality in a struggle which means life or death of the Communist Party! But its two members on the were among those who went the furthest extreme a few weeks ago to compel a party split.
The real control of the Communist Party has been in the hands of these bureaucratic Federation committeos, committees in which centralization and disciplino are perverted into weapons for making these Federations the political pawns of a handful of schemers. The variation in policy apd fundamental understanding between these many central committees is fully as great as the differences between several parties.
We must have one centralized organization which conducts Communist propaganda in every Inngungo spoken by workers in the United States. Literature and agitation in every tongue, but only one central authority and only one party policy.
The basis of an active Communist Party must be industrial branches, the territorial and language branches to serve mainly as recruiting centres for the whop units. These primary units should be united in district organizations for the different important industrial locations, au is already the tendency in our work of party re organization.
Within the regular party organization, but in no way independent of it, there can be full association between units of the same language, with district and national conferences often as the work of organization and propaganda require.
These langunge conferences can be called by the regular district or national committee upon demand of the members of the langunge units (who can act through delegates to district agitation committees for each langungo. Each nationality should be assigned a special organizor by the national office, though one organizer mny be able to serve for more than one nationality. Likewise, the national organization should appoint Associnte Editors who can serve the needs for propaganda in all languages, taking full account of the recommendations of the language group membership as expressed through their sub district, district and national conferences.
All organizers and editors, regardless of language, must work under the direct supervision of the central body of the party. All publications must be under the one control. It is a silly subterfuge that only a committee of the same language can control a publication; that would be an admission that there is no possible way for the to control the party propaganda in a foreign language, regardless of the method of party organization.
There must be centralization also of the party finances, of technical administration generally, as of legal defense and of prisoners relief, and as of the work of education (as yet not Yeally begun. Dues should be uniform and, together with other receipts, should go into a single central fund to be allotted to the party work as needed. In these respects, it may well be said that the condition within our party has been one of anarchy.
We favor democratic, not bureaucratic, organization of this party. All committees should be elected, either by direct vote or by delegates elected for this purpose. In every respect consistent with the character of the party organization, direct membership action and control of officials and policies should be maintained.
We favor also a smaller central committee to make possible more active functioning by the central body, each member of the committee to have charge, so far as able, of some special department of the party work. We suggest consideration of a committee of nine members, two of whom shall be the Executive Secretary and Party Editor.
Conclusion.
The present party controversy is not a controversy between two groups of the but between the conscious membership of the party and a group of incapable demagogues who have long enough succeeded in keeping the patent for the exclusive representation of Russian Bolshevism in this country, Who are they? What do they represent? What are their deeds?
They make a great pretense about exclusive knowledge of Communist principles. But they have miserably failed to apply these principles in the living class struggle in the United States.
They demanded a Communist Party in their own image and under their special guardianship, even if to achieve this they found it necessary to disorganize the Left Wing and to unite themselves with an equally conceited group, the Detroit Proletarian group, which the majority expelled from the new party as non Communist.
They helped in the creation of the Communist Party program, at least by their votes. But they do not appear even to understand this program, much less to develop it in any respect.
This group has never tolerated the least criticism of their party mismanagement and of their failure to meet the party problems. They have used the party discipline as the Cossacks use the knout, but have never applied this discipline to themselves.
It is now clear, within a month after this controversy was launched by the Chicago District Committee, that true discipline. enforcement of the vital party policies and tactics. is on our side, by approval of our course of action through a repudiation of the by the overwhelming majority of the live elements in our party. It is the majority which stands outlawed, because of its attempts to use membership on the oniy as a means of perpetunting clique control of the Communist Party.
We believe that enough has been indicated to make clear the fundamental character of the revolt against the majority. We are hopeful that this revolt is the real begining of Communist Party history, the last stage of preparation for the beginning of a real party of Communist action in the United States.
Long live the Communist Party!
Long live the Communist International!
Fraternally submitted to all Communist Party members, Chicago (Fifth) District Committee.
Adopted, May 14, 1920.