Saturday, May 24, 1930 THE MILITANT Page The Crisis in the Needle Trades Left Wing Movement (Continue from page 1)
devote their greatest attention to keeping remains a broad foundation for the exist the divided ranks of the workers. It must workers. It dances and leaps to the tunes every post no matter how important ence and development of the Lelt wing work for joint action, joint comittees in changed each year by the Stalinist group tightly in their own hands. The worker. union.
the shops. The Schlesingers and Dubinsky in the movement to suit its narrow faction sympathetic to Communism though he may The difficulty of organizing these will expose themselves sufficiently in their al interests.
be, is made to feel that he can have no say workers. depressed by previous defeatsA Zig Zagging Leadership actions during the strugggle, but oaly it in the work or the directing of the work need not be underestimated. That is true. the Left wing shows its readiness to work The needle trades Left wing leadership unless he is a Party member and some. But it is also true that they form an enor side by side with the Right wing worker.
has Leen, most prominent in executing these times unless he is a member of a partic mous reservoir of strength for the Left wing.
zig zags.
This proposal was rejected at that time At one moment, it seeks united ular Party faction! The methods and sys They will not be organized over night, or by the left wing. it paid for that by furfronts with Sigman or Ninfo; the next tem of Party organization, already nar by sensational, short lived campaigus.
ther losses.
moment, it vents its spite upon Sigman by rowed down out of all legitimate propor. But persistent, steady activity will do it, Long after the fact, Johnstone attempts a similar criticism, but he denouncing the workers whom he still de. tions, are automatically transferred into provided that these workers are approach ludes (or who follow him for any other the union, which the Party rules like an proposes nothing for the future. Our proed on the basis of a concrete strugggle posal then holds good in essence today reason) as social fascists with whom imperialist dependency.
against their sweat shop conditions and not and for the next period.
it will have nothing at all to do. At one Re Establish Workers Democracy on the basis of abstract slogans translated moment, it lets golden opportunities go by The re establishment worker dem literally from the latest Molotov thesis.
The United Front without forming its own left wing union. ocracy in the left wing is an imperative They can be organized if the approach The official Left wing theory of the for fear of making the Right wing bureau preliminary to any forward ster. The Right wing workers as social fascists to them is based. Dot on the sectarian crats angry: the next moment, it seeks to Left wing union must be returned to the policies now dominating the Left wing, not automatically excludes the idea of a united make up for lost time and blunders by control of the membership. The Commun on the virtual demand that every worker front on a minimum platform of struggle.
articially forcing events and creating ists and their Party must become tho The theory is false; it is also good for recognize the leadership of the Communist unions where there is no basis at all guide, the advisor of the union and cease nothing at all except to demonstrate the Party, but on the united front of the orfor them.
to be a taskmaster armed with a pistol and theoretical poverty of Stalinism and must ganized revolutionary workers with the All of these changes, which occur with a lagh. continuation of the present highbe rejected. The tactic of the united increasing frequency, are decided bureau handed, autocratie, brutal Party methods progressive and even backward workers front is not a cen. ent to unite the leaders who want a union that really fights the cratically, behind the scenes, upon arbit in the trade unions must lead inevitably of the left wing and the Right the Purcells boss, as.
rary command from above, without relation to a repetition of the situation in the French and the Tomskys that is the perversion of Organize the light Wing Workers to the realities of the struggle. It is red trade unions) whero a reche united front; the united front can be The policy of organizing (uot talking precisely because of the purely adminis bellion has set in not only against the a knife cutting the masses still following about it on paper, but really organizing)
trative nature of these chauges and the Party. but (so far as some elements are the Right wing loose from their misleaders.
the unorganized workers for struggle (not fact that they do not correspond to the concerned, at least) against Communism Properly utilized, this knile can become needs of the strugggle, that each change putches, not two day strikes for the reas such. The French situation, in which a powerful weapon in the hands of the leaves the workers more bewildered. The the pure syndicalists are profiting by the cord. but real struggle) inseparable from Left wing. Lightly thrown aside, as the workers are not chessiani that can be crude blunders of official communism the job of mobilizing the workers in the official Left wing has done it leaves the Right wing union for the saine purpose moved about unresistingly by master strat should be a warning to the comrades here.
Right wing bureaucrats just that trich egists. The result of these zig 2284 Werkers democracy a job that can be accomplished only in in the needle greater predominance of weapons.
battle against Schlesinger and Co. and therefore, is that the workers are alienated trades Left wing is no abstract question The superficial argument that the that can be postponed for some other time: their class collaboration.
from the movemeat, becoming a prey to the is a company union is Right wing deniagogues or falling into in it is an urgent, un postponable issue invol.
There are thousands of militaat worknot worth a penny. That is the attitude ving the life and death of the organization.
ers today registered with the Right wing difference and passivity. That is what has of Mr. William Green towards out and out happened particularly in the ueedle trades But its achievement let this not be lost who were with the Left wing yesterday. company unions: We will have nothing to They are working in many instances under do with them! That is, we will not fight Left wing movement.
sight for a moment is conditioned upon virtual check of conditions, e. no dues the bosses for the workers they dominate.
Another factor of enormous import a relentless strugggle against that very to Schlesinger? no job in the shop! The The felt wing, by its argument, says: We ance is the cancer of corruption (we do bureaucracy which came into existence by Right wing est contro OYOY thern abolishing workers democracy. There can not refer here, necessarily to financial will not light Schlesinger for the workers he dominates.
be no half measures in by its connivance with the employers and corrution) and bureaucratism. For shal.
this necessary Let them come lo u or with the all of the Left wing blockhead be damned eternally in hell is social fitlow minded observers and similar Johnstrugggle.
To make a machine function properly cd blunders.
stones, these are accidental and personal scists.
phenomena which can be wiped out by and a trade union is one of the workers It goes without saying that the Right wing has not improved tbeir conditions, simply denouncing them. Unfortunately, machines in the class struggle one must The philosophical idealist believes the know how and where to direct it. It is that there is great dissatisfaction among the matter is not so simple. They are the world of reality to be a mere reflectiou of these workers, that it is possible to organ man ideas. The third period chiefs oi natural twin products of that very regime necessary to make all the parts of this ize then for a fight against the joint forces the needle trades eft wing (ant, for which the Johnstones personify and defend. machine work smoothly and in proper reof thọ bosses and their labor agents. in lation to each other. the party and the Because to carry out a zig zag that matter, the whole Party controlled the majority of cases these workers have Left wing) seem to believe that the world policy which the workers would not ac union, the leadership and the masses. The not ceased to be militants and Left wing of reality can be made to act in conform cept of their own accord, it is necessary problem in the needle trades Left wingto have bureaucrats who will execute or after the attainment of this proper coorers; many of them were simply compelled ity with their abstract, pre conceived bluedination we spoke of above (fight against to register with the Right. The policy of ders from above even against the interprints, drawn up without any relation to life and struggle and facts. The Left wing ests and wishes of the ranks. Not the the Left wing union makes it impossible bureaucracy, corruption, for workers demto win them back.
ocracy, etc. etc. is to know how and Its slogan is simply: must learn to look at facts, disconcerting deviations from Stalinist policy produce where to direct this machine, that is, what Stop paying dues to Schlesinger and join bureaucracy, but the policy itself. And and inconvenient as they may be, and to bureaucracy goes hand in hand with cor proceed from that which is.
policies the Left wing must pursue in the Naturally, this slogan Bureaucracy ruption and degeneration.
order to win the workers to its side. bas not yet registered a single success. No program, irrespective of its excelOut of some stupd fetich, the official lence, can settle the difficulties over night: is a synonym for mutual factional proThe essence of the problem to be solLeft wing has till now refused to organ the Jeft wing cannot so easily pay off the tection, ved by the Left wing in this respect is, ize the militant elements in the Right wing debts it has accumulated through a series Could there be a crasser expression of first, to win back the workers over whom the union for a struggle. This policy or ra of past blunders and defeats. Still, the this than Johnstone article, in which (by Right wing has established its control, and ther lack of policy must be dumped over serious crisis in the which silence) he condones in the Party leaders secondly, to organize those workers who board.
are outside of both the Right and left wing It is good for nothing at all. The threatens the whole future of the Left of the Left wing union the same deeds for unions.
Left wing must immediately proceed to wing movement, demands a profound and which he condemns Lovestoneite leaders?
organize its minorities in the Right wing free discussion not the contemptiblc, bur.
The knowledge that loyalty to the line Organize the Unorganized eaucratie revelations of the Johnstones.
means a grant of automatic inmunity from One of the most powerful slogans, one union, and on the basis of the daily needs The Johnstones, Golds and the rest, cannot above, is the greatest incentive to corrup with which the Left wing grew strong in of the workers which the Schlesingers so lead such a discussion, for it means their tion. That is the theory and practice of the eyes of the workers, was the organiza cynically disregard, mobilize a force for the own downfall. Therefore they prohibit it.
Stalinism, and the Left wing, which gained tion of the unorganized.
disruption of the boss controlled union and In New York Therefore, it must be held in spite of its strength in the fight agains: the bur. which is typical. the MAJORITY of the the recruitment of the workers now in them. And that not only in the needle eaucrcy of the Right wing must immed needle trades workers (with the possible for the Left wing. An intelligent program, fitted to the needle trades workers needs, trades, but in every other industrial union iately purge itself of the same malady exceptions of the men clothing workers controlled and undermined by the Stalinare UNORGANIZED.
before it is rendered impotent.
They are among the can succeed in mobilizing them for a fight ists. That 19 the need of the moment. That There is no absolute preventive for most exploited in the industry; they work. and a fight against the bosses meang is the jol of the rank and file of the Left bureaucratism; but there are some ex under conditions most closely approximat fight against Schlesinger.
wing. The future of the moveniant is at Workers cellent guarantees against it.
ing the old sweat shops. It is primarily The workers want unity. They want to stake fight when there is a possibility of success.
democracy is one of them. But it does the task of the Left wing to organize these not exist in the Needle Trades Industrial workers.
They can see none in the narrow, academic The Militant invites Left wing needle policy of the Left wing. The piank to Union any more than it does in the other The fact of the existence of these tens trades workers to write for its columns unions controlled by the Stalinists, because of thousands of unorganized workers who bridge the gap between the small organon the situation in the union and to its existence is incompatible with theft do not follow the Right wing and will not ized Left wing union and the thousands in give their views on the problems of domination.
be organized by it, 18 already sufficient the Right wing union is the united front.
their movement Articles written in The absence of worke democracy is answer to any tendencies in the Left wing More than six months ago, before Johnany language will be translated into The notorious in the and there are such tendencies) to liquid stone was awakened by Lozovsky prodEnglish and printed. The Daily Worker rank and file worker does not feel at home ato the left wing union and filter back dings and the need to find a scapegoat, we is the closed organ of the cynical bur.
in the union meetings. Au atmosphere of into the Schlestager union function wrote in the militant (November 1, 1929)
eagerats the Militant aims to become terror has been created so that when a there solely as a minority group. These in connection with the Right wing cloak the voice of the militant rank and file.
workerg rises to make tbe slightest crit tendencies to casy surrender, which are strike: Icist he is forthwith deluged with cries nourished by the paralysis of the present The Left wing can make headway, NEW YORK The growing drive against of Trotskyite, Lovestonoite, Sigmanite, leadership and the feeling of hopelessness and regain the strength and influence it Communist propaganda reached a climax scah, renegade disrupter, and the dozens it creates, cannot be successfully combatted enjoyed in 1926 and 1927, it it knows how in February and March when nearly 800 of others in the choice collection of the by administrative decree, or theses. They to approach the Right wing worker, how were alrested in unprecedented police at.
modern Left wing bureaucrats.
must be revealed as wrong by demonstrat to work for a united front. It must chals tacks, reports the American Civil Taberties The Party bureaucrats in the unions Ing IN WORK AND STRUGGLE that there lenge Schlesinger and Co. openly to un Union Whs: