PAGE FIVE THE COMMUNIST The International and Unionism.
By Louis Fraina.
and Perhaps the discussion of Unioniam theses (only some of which have been ship with the government, the was the most interesting and intense of any discussion at the Second Con met by his accepting several of our amend members were compelled to join the old gress or the Communist International. ments) were, first of all, comprised in unions; and these s by agitating The small syndicalist group was clearly the conception of unionism. Radek ap from within developed very powerful revunable to impress the Congress; but there was another group, of which was proached the problem almost exclusively olutionary movements in the old unions, one, who defended a position combining from the standpoint of the masses in the The American experience, accordingly, unions to be won for Communism. That, Communism with the peculiar experience of the American and British movement of course, is fundamental, But it is also emphasizes the necessity of working with on Unionism. was appointed by the fundamental to consider the unions as in the old unions (in the revolutionary Executive Committee of the Internatioial unions in relation to our task as organs sense. but this experience equally emphaas co referee with Karl Radek to open the discussion in the Congress; and of revolutionary struggle and as factors sized the necessity of constructing new reprint my two addresses in order (1) in the economic reconstruction of society unions (in accord with objective condito inform the Party of my position. 2) after the conquest of political power.
tion) in order to unite revolutionary work to dispose of the slanders of Reed, Flyyn Radek, also, made too narrow and artiwithin the old unions with work from Co, that represented a conception ficial the conditions under which new without not in accord with the requirements of the American movement.
The minority Labor Unions may be organized. And, There is no controversy on the need of theses were formulated by myself and finally, it appeared in Radek theses as working in the old unions. On that we Murphy, of the Shop Stewards of if our task is to capture the trades union England. Among others, our two chief are agreed. For the American Communbureaucracy; there was no understanding ist movement to reject working in the points were included in the final theses adopted extra union organization of and no provision for extra union or old unions and adopt the slogan, Destroy our suggestions on the Labor Union In ganizations (such as Shop Committees, the American Federation of Labor by ternational Another point: Reed, Flynn Shop Stewards, etc. as means of aggres leaving it, would destroy the Communist Co, declared in Moscow (more hysteric.
sive struggle against the bureaucracy and ally than convincingly) that the theses movement and not the reactionary labor would be ruinous for us. This is nonmobilizing the masses for action.
unions.
sense: the theses are ample for our pur.
In the United States, the approach to poses.
The controversy centers on the methods revolutionary conceptions has been through and purposes of working in the old unions.
revolutionary unionism.
These concepWe maintain that the emphasis must not The First Address.
tions were: the necessity of extra parlia be on capturing the bureaucracy, but on mentary action to conquer political power, liberating the masses from the domination FTER discussion in the Trade destruction of the bourgeois state machi of this bureaucracy, and mobilizing the Union Commission we found our nery, and oranizing the proletarian state masses independent of the bureaucracy.
selves much more in agreement than not on geographical but industrial divisions. These conceptions made it eassy for In the old unions the bureaucracy is expected. The differences that still exist are largely differences of emphasis and us to understand the fundamental tactics practically immovable, imposed upon the of the Russian Revolution. But at the masses, and a barrier to action. In the practice, and not of principle.
same time we were compelled to carry United States the trades union bureauThe differences were first developed by on a severe theoretical struggle against cracy in addition to constitutional provithe declaration convening a conference to the conception that only the sions, long term offices and parliamentary organize an International of revolutionary industrial unions are necessary to over tricks, uses gunment to suppress rebel opI mention this Labor Unions. Some of the fundamental throw capitalism, without soviets and pro position in the unions, ſcatures of this declaration were totally letarian dictatorship. The American Com not as an argument against working in the unacceptable; for example, the condemmunist movement has done a very im reactionary unions, but as an argument nation of revolutionists leaving the trades portant work in merging the old revolu against the idea of capturing the bureauunions was put in such a form as to extionary conceptions of industrial unionism cracy; we must fight this bureaucracy in clude constructing a new labor organiza in the new conceptions of Communism. the unions, but it will be impossible to tion, which would cripple the American And a necessary part of our work is to capture or destroy it until the revolution movement, since in our country, where recognize the revolutionary functions of itself or after.
80 per cent of the workers are unorganthe labor unions.
ized and the trades unions dominated by Really revolutionary work in the trades The in the United States has unions has two important aspects.
the aristocracy of labor, the construction oí a new revolutionary labor organization marily because of its agitation for industbeen a real revolutionary force not pri1) The organization of Communist is an imperative revolutionary task. Then, rial unionism nor because it tried to boy groups (necessary in all workers organthe admission of separate industrial unions izations)
to the conference is made conditional upon of Labor; in neither has it been very cott and destroy the American Federation 2) The formation of extra union organthe consent of the Central Labor organ successful. The has been a tre izations (Shop Committees, Shop Stewization of the country. Moreover, no pro mendous revolutionary force in the Ame ards, etc. These are organizations of vision is made for a representative each on the organization committee rican movement because it expressed the the workers in the unions expressing the of the Labor International of the and awakening to consciousness and action of requirements of the immediate economic the Shop Stewards of England two movethe great masses of unorganized unskilled struggle of the workers, and their strugworkers excluded from American gle against the bureaucracy and the limitments of vital importance in the deveFederation of Labor. All movements to ations of trades union forms of organlopment of the revolutionary mass strugbreak the of by leaving the old izations does not mean that the workers gle.
unions have been a failure; during the leave the old unions; on the contrary, the Our objections to Comrade Radek war, when the old unions made a partner workers stay in the unions but definitely the