THE MILITANT Weekly Organ of the Communist League of America (Opposition Vol. III, No. 17, Telephone: DRYdock 1656 NEW YORK, Saturday, April 26, 1930 PRICE CENTS International Labor MAY DAY IN NEW YORK Day With the Militant Workers. Against Whalen and the Legionariesl ALL WORKERS OUT TO RUTGERS SQUARE ON THE FIRST OF MAY May Day, 1930 is before us. The mobAlization of the working class to show the solidarity of labor before the ruling class 18 an elemental task for all class conscious and revolutionary workers. It is the duty of every worker to participate in the moet The pure democracy of Walker and showed its power by the savage, unpreceings and demonstrations of the workers Whalen has spoken and the right to the dently brutal, manner in which it Lroke on that day. All forces must unite to pre streets on May Day has been granted up the demonstration, As pious lovers of sent a common, broad, militant front be equally to all citizens of good conduct! Here democracy, it did not refuse the Communfore the common enemy. the capitalist the American Legion, the Russian White 1st Party a permit for Union Square on class of this country, Guards and the thousands of police armed May Day. No! It merely organized its Outstanding on May Day, 1930, is the to the teeth to protect and assist the re band of toughs in the American Legion, al18th year of the existence of the Soviet actionary forces all on Union Square. lotted 10, 000 well armed police to help Republic, the first Workers Republic of the There the militant workers of New York, them, and installed them in Union Square.
world, the fortress of the international pro with the Communists in the van at Rut It calculated on the weakness of the letarian revolution. The defense of its gers Square, with permission to march revolutionary movement to contest the holdhentage, its victories, the fight for its along a democratically prescribed route to ing of the Square with the armed Legionpreservation, is the first major task of the Union Square after it had been cleared aries, White Cuards and police.
They workers of all lands.
of the Legion and its Russian thugs in law. would have reckoned in vain had the leadIn the United States, mass unmploy Elsewhere the respectable socialists. who ers of the official Communist Party suc.
ment is the gaunt spectre haunting the gather in the dark in quiet halls to con ceeded in mobilizing such a mass movelives of million of workingmen and women. demn the un democratic Communists and ment of workers as would enable them to Labor on May Day needs to demonstrate demand the removal of Whalen so that he challenge the usurpers of our May Day and demand from the ruling capitalist lass may be replaced by another good democrat meeting place. But the irresponsible, false either work or compensation for the unem who will club only Communists not in policie of this leadership have comproployed. Immediate fighting tasks for the nocent citizens and bystanders as well. mised the chances for such a success in American working masses are the struggle No more democratic arrangement could advance.
for the seven bour day and the five day be expected from the guardians of Amer The Communist Party has decided to week; for social insurance at the expense ican capitalist liberty. The socialists are retreat from its original plan to start its given full rights to spew their mean venom of the bosses and government; for the fight demonstration in Union Square and conagainst the deadly speed up system. upon the revolutionary movement. The test for place with the Legion. It will, inThe masses of American workers lack hundreds of American Legion stead, hold its demonstration in Rutgers unorganized into any labor organization. and their Russian co blackguards are gen Square. The step is a correct one. It was Before the militants, the Left wing, the erously handed the Square which is tra indicated by us previously in the Mbitant Communists, is the common responsibility ditionally the meeting place of the militant and under the circumstances was not to to engage actively for the organizattion workers. The police are given the liberal be avoided. The isolation to which the right to use their clubs and tear gas of the unorganized into fighting labor leaders of the Party have doomed the memunions. The capitalist class in the United bombs against workers who demonstrate bership made the Union Square contest dit.
States is still on the offensve, endeavor. their solidarity on May Day. The militant ficult. But the fact that it has been a ing to smash all organizations of the work workers are glven the right to be threatretreat has not been acknowledged: and ing class. The united resistance of the pro ened by police club and machine gun it that is necessary. The workers must learn gressive and Left wing of the labor move they don behave on the streets like Sun to distinguish a retreat from an advance.
ment is needed to resist the capitalist often day school boys. The Communist leaders Those who tell the workers that a retreat alve and to prepare the forces of the work Foster, Minor, Amter, Raymond and Les is not really retreat but victory, are ers in due time themselves to take the tor are given the right to rest in democrat criminally misleading them and preventing offensive against the bosses and the capit ic prison for demonstrating on the free them from Judging their own future. Upon allst government.
streets.
the Party leaders and the Dally Worker duty of the American masses is to Capitalists on the Offensive fall the guilt of this light minded mis eddemand the recognition of the Soviet Union the capitalist class in New York, the ucation.
by the United States government and espec wisest in the country, has shown its pow The alleged majority group (the Loveially to demand that the United States er. It is not on the defensive! It is on stone Right wing) is overjoyed at the reshall extend long term credits to the Sothe offensive! It knows the possibilities treat. They speculated upon it and the viet Union, which, at one and the same time given the revolutionary movement in the hopes that the blunders of the Stalinist ald partially to relieve the unemployed unemployment situation, and it is curbing leaders would lead to a crushing defeat in situation in the United States and the ecit from the outset. It granted Union Square Union Square for the Party and a justificonomic development of the Soviet Union. to the Communists on March 6th, and then ation for the cowardly policy of permanThe common struggle for the abolition of capitalist society and the establishment of workers rule, for a society without exploitation of one class over another remains as before. On May Day, 1930, let the workers join in solidarity against the capThe situation remains dismal for Itallet system and resolve to carry on a the cotton workers.
millions of unemployed workers in fight for its overthrow.
the The cotton textile industry remained United States, who are occupied with the unchanged, with a large volume of texdiscouraging task of seeking non existent tile mili laborers working part time and jobs. Neither Spring nor Hoover have many unemployed.
brought the awaited acceleration of employment. The report on industrial activPittsburg reports for the steel trades, The Birmingham conference of the ity for the month of March, issued by expressed both publicly and privately, are has just passed by under the leadFrancis Jones, director general of the gloomy. As per New York Times report, ership of the Left wing. led by Maxton, What United States Employment Service of the they bave a strongly conservative tinge.
is of the greatest significance is the formal Department of Labor, Washington, has to As we have stated before, the economic decision not only to endorse the opposition reaction is world wide and is taking its admit continued wide spread unemployment to the MacDnald contrlled Parliamentary and depression in the outstanding trades, immense toll evey where through added Labr Party, but to instruct the 30 members manufactures and industries, The report Joblessness and misery for the workers.
following Maxton to establish themselves in part, states: The reports from Germany are that the as a separate group in the House of Comsteel market has grown more inactive, mong with the purpose of organized oppo. There was no great improve both in ingot steel and in the rolling sition to the MacDonald regime. This ment in industrial activity during March mills. The steel trust is about to disitselt will not, of course, load to the fall. The Iron and steel industry has not charge 5, 000 workmen and the Siemens of the Labor government, since the 59 lb reached normal operations and unemHalske company, 2, 000, according to Ber.
erals will make up for the logs. But the ployment continued among the workers. in dispatches Birmingham decisions are of immense sig. Curtalled schedules continued in nificance as indicative of the trend devel the boot and shoe Industry, particularly in the New England States, where a LOWELL, Mass. All ualon bricklayers oping in the ranns of the which in Lowell are on strike for the 40 hour week include many revolutionary, it temporarily large number of workers were employed confised militants. An article plving on part time basis, with quite num.
with a compensatory wage increase from more detailed analysis of the sigalioence ber idlo. 50 to 66 an hour. Employers would of the conference appears noxt week. Nor is the picture prettier one for not grant the increase.
ent retreat which is the present line of Lovestone and Company. In the past, Lovestone went along with, and initiated, every criminal adventure for which his whole regime in the Party was noted. Today he has developed under the tutelage of that mas.
ter of falling backward, Brandler, to the policy of criminal and permanent retreat.
The Militant, on the contrary, declared in its last issue: The Party cannot fight this battle alone. It must appeal to the masses. Upon the volume of support which the masses give to this cppal, clearly manifested beforehand, depends the question whether the Communists should accept the challenge to fight for the Square on May Day, or make a temporary retreat before stronger forces of the enemy. All efforts in the next days must be concentrated in going to the masses with this issue.
The Party leaders falled to do this.
They made the retreat inevitable with their narrow policy. But for Lovestone, retreat 18 a constant Inevitability. May Day will show: Upon the strength of the Rutgers Square demonstration, upon the numbers which have responded to the call, upon the tempoof workers assembled, still depends the question of whether Mr. Whalen and his Legionaries shall be allowed to usurp the workers center in Union Square un.
challenged.
Organize Labor Resistance The New York May Day demonstration is the most important one in the country.
It is confronted with a growing offensive of the capitalist class and it must strengthen the resistance of the workers. It is the enemy that is on the offensive; the workers are on the offensive only in the fantastic proclamations of the Dally Worker. It 18 the enemy that dared to carry through the scandalous trial of the five Communists, with a denial of Jury trial, of ball, of defense witnesses, in Star Chamber, and with the imposition of brutal, maximum sentences. It is the enemy that dared to the first time in years to take over Unton Square with its Legionaries. Fo: the first time in history the White Guard rats are out of their holes and offering to join the Legionaries to light Communism in America.
The workers must answer at the May Day meeting. But th Party leaders make a well organized and concerted angwer difcult. Their slogan of the general political strike under present circumstances is unrefined stupidity, guaranteed only to discredit this valuable slogan. The workers must rally to Rutgers Square, around the demands for work or compensation, for the hour day and five day week, for social Insurance, for extensive credits to the soviet Union as a measure of alleviating unemployment misery, for the defense of the arrested Communist leaders.
The workers must give voice to their solidarity and demand a fighting united front against unemployment, the main problem of the American working class today. The Party members must press upon the bureaucrate layer that stilles Party democracy and initiative, and compel a united front of all revolutionary elements.
The Communist Opposition is in solidarity with the May Day demonstration and will be found in its ranks. solid mass of workers, capable of acting intelligently and militantly will be our reply to the provocative, Cossack attacks of Whalen and his paymasters.
ON MAY DAY ALL NEW YORK MIL ITANTS TO RUTGERS SQUARE.
UNEMPLOYMENT UNRELIEVED Turns Left