THE YOUNG VANGUARD What is the Situation in the Youth Notes The Young Vanguard, the voice of the Left Opposition youth, is henceforth going to appear as a regular monthly section of the Militant. Through these columns we will endeavor to speak to the youth leaguers, as well as to the general working youth, on the problems and tasks of the young workers and their vanguard, the Communst youth; to rally them around the banner of the Communist League of America (Opposttion. The need for an organ which would be the collective organizer of the working youth, by reflecting their every day life and struggles: by disseminating elementary Marxist education; through articles on fundamental Communist youth tasks and policies, is exceptionally acute today when the potentialities far outstrip the actual.
ities.
To this end, to help the communist youth movement to create such an organ we make our beginning with a section in the Militant.
Readers of these lines should send in contributions. Youth leaguers, young workers, students write!
Kaganovitch Teaches!
gue and relate them to the fundamental questions of the Communist movement in its present crisis. We must force the discusThe convention of the Young Commun rallying around its demands any unemployed ston out of its low, narrow, meaningless re1st League has been long overdue. It is now young workers.
In the party election plat petition of commonplance trivalities and more than half a year since it should have form not single youth demand was raised. Stalinist stupidities on to a higher plane been held. What is the reason for this In the election campaign period the Young which will enable all sincere young Comlong delay? For whom and for what pur. Vanguard pointed this out and proposed a munists to see the movement in its broad pose is the convention continually defer youth platform. One week before the elec and historic perspective.
red? Merely to ask this question is to re tions the Young Worker carried a long list fresh breeze from the Left Opposition veal in a flash that the is in a of youth demands. The Young Worker immust be blown into the stagnant and depresbad crisis. For if any slight but real ad mediately following the elections carried sive inner life of the League. To this purvance out of the retrogression could have leading editorial: ruthless Bolshevik selfpose, to enable the comrades of the Young been detected, we may rest assured that criticism in true Stalinist style of the Communist League to find their way to the the convention would have been hela lateness of the appearance of the demands, road of Leninism, we must intensify our promptly behind a barrage of denunciation the lack of any League election activities, of the renegades and loud cheers for relentless criticism of the opportunist Cenetc. The regular occurrence of such events trist policies in the and pursue a Stalin, as is now the custom. But those these days makes one suspect that errors policy of aggressive united frint with it.
responsible for the present critical condition are committed so that one can get a chance GEORGE RAY.
of the League have preferred periodic post to self criticize. In short, the tendency ponements with the hope that this would is for the League to carry out less and less give them an opportunity to crawl out of its own independent youth activities and the morass into which their stupid policies youth campaigns, and to participate only in had dragged the League. But they have the campaigns of the party.
not succeeded in improving the situation.
The greater proportion of the memberThe Young Communist League was never At the Ninth Congress of the ship in the League is extremely immature of the Soviet Union (which we will treat so impotent as an independent youth fac and inexperienced, having been in the orwith at a later date) the spokesman for tor in the class struggle as it is today. In ganization a comparatively short time. They a period of economie crisis and mass unthe Stalin régime in the party, Kaganovitch, possess no knowledge or previous experiemployment of young workers it has become made some interesting and revealing reence with which to judge critically the pol.
a negligible, insignificant, and utterly inefmarks. Inprecir Vol. 11, No. In icies and the régime of the apparatus. In tectual instrument of the class conscious fact they require an elementary education contrasting the economic situation of the Soviet Union with that of the United States, young workers. This is vividly shown in as to what a young Communist league is, the inability of the League to rally any this learned Marxist. informs us. how it functions, and what makes it difyoung workers and to put up any kind of ferent from the party. Thus they have no We in Soviet Russia are buying new an effective fight against the deprivation of eriterion by which to guide themselves. They machines; we are building works and facBecond class mailing rights of the Young ure taught that the Stalinist lines and poltories in order to set going new and more Worker by the Postoffice. The icies are an ered and infallible. Any critic. rapidly working machines. In America things finds itself isolated not only from the ism of policies that anyone of them venhave come to such a pass that they are broad sections of the young workers but tures to make is condemned forthwith as prepared to place people at slower working even from the more advanced and class Trotskyist. Ideological Kevelopment conmachines, to lay idle hoisting cranes and conscious young workers who in the past sists in convincing oneself that all the Stal other machines in order to employ as great followed its leadership. This is not apinist strategy and tactics are correct. It a number of people as possible. We, on the parent to many members of the there are failures and shortcomings it is other hand, want to erect new works for the who do not understand the functions of the because the unquestionably correct line is construction of cranes and other means of League as a youth organization and who applied incorrectly. In such an atmosphere transport. In America they no longer wish mistake the comparatively greater power which does not permit the right and the to have short hand typists but to have evof the party to mobize masses for their duty to question the formulas presented, erything written by hand. We, however, own strength.
revolutionary thought and growth is crushare building typewriter factories and wish To whatever phase of youth activity ed and hampered.
also to make setting machines.
We are gosupposed to be conducted by the Despite this, however, there is a vague ing forward to a new technique in Amerone turrs, it is found that it either does dissatisfaction with the Centrist policies. It ica, however, they are seeking to find a way not exist or else has the semblance of life is unclear and timid. It expresses itself out by means of technical retrogression!
which reminds one of a paralytic old man. in disapproval of certain minor features of (Page 108)
The youth sections of the revolutionary un. the unemployment campaign and in criticAnd this theoretician pilemizes against ions do not exist except in name: general ism of the conduct of the dressmakers the Trotskyites. Such is offered as uneconomic trade union work we need not strike. It is unable to see the whole crisis questionable reality to the Comsomol Coneven try to speak of it; opponent youth in the Communist movement, and the logic gress! The latter surely is now able to work there is none; anti militarist activity of the struggle for trying to correct the iso understand the relations between the Soviet If there is any it must be ingeniously lated false policies which are perceptible to Union and the capitalist world, knows how concealed; work among the Negro youth it. Further developments and new Centrist to proceed. For has not Kaganovitch carabortive attempts: pioneer work we hear zig zags are bound to clarify and sharpen ried out the instructions of Stalin, who we no shouts of jubilation from this direction.
the process.
are told by the former, designated interWhat then? Has there been an increase We must attempt to arouse discussion national education of the as one in membership? 1700 members are claimed on all the problems that confront the Leaof the mist important tasks. undoubtedly exaggerated) which is about one half the number at the time of the last convention. The rapid turnover in membership is incontestable. Is there a single substantial achievement to which anyone can point? We are afraid that the champions The economic crisis which is sweeping project of leading the sheep to the slaughter.
of the Stalinist line in the League can only the entire world today has created a dil We saw that in the last World War.
resort to their specious self criticism. emma in the War Department, if we are to The following is a reproduction of the What have been the results of the judge by the letter reproduced below. In letetr sent by military officials famous Shock Plan which was supposed the past it was customary to recruit men all the religious shepherds of the ruling to have culminated its achievements on from tenement neighborhood and cheap class: September 30, 1930? Or has it been ex lodging districts, such as the Bowery. Men HEADQUARTERS. Recruiting District tended ad infinitum? What were the re out of work and facing starvation would February, 1931.
sults of the industrial youth conferences in enlist just to get food and a place to sleep. Dear Reverend. eight industries, the Negro youth confer The present depression has of course In keeping with recent instructions of ences against lynching in seven League dis increased the army of unemployed enor the War Department to make recruiting for tricts, the mass unemployment youth con mously, and widespread starvation and mis the Army more selective, it has been pointed ferences, all prescribed the plan? Hag ery should make it comparatively easy for out that leading clergymen can aid materialmass Negro youth organization been the recruiting service to get all the men ly the Recruiting Service in its effort to formed, and the Labor Sports Union trans they need for the army. But therein lee secure only high class (sic. men for the formed into a mass organization? Has the the dilemma. An army composed of city Army.
League membership been doubled. How proletarians driven by hunger and privation The Recruiting Service is mindful that many of the 48 shop nuclei have been to enlist, would not be made of the right many parents appeal to their pastors for created, and how many of the 85 shop bul material for a staunch defense of capital advice in matters affecting the welfare of letins issued? How many of the 10, 000 ism. Such have too little regard for law their children. It follows therefore, that young workers have been recruited into the and order and our established institutions an assurance from ministers, priests, rabbis and how many of the 500 young generally. Their natural sympathies would and leaders of various faiths to parents Negroes into the What happened lie with the workers.
who seek advice in matters pertaining to to it all? Has It all been relegated to the The American ruling class realizes quite an enlistment, will play a large part in aid.
archives together with Steuben and Har well that the time is not so far off when ing parents to reach a decision, vey? And were we wrong when we con it will have to depend on armed force to comprehensive publicity campaign is demned it as stupid adventurism?
maintain the tottering throne of private Deing prepared with the idea in view of acOne of the most alarming features of property, nor does it require military genius quainting the public at large and parents the whole situation is that the League is on their part to understand that an army in particular with the manifold benefits of ceasing to function as a Communist youth composed chiefly of proletarians would not fered to the youths of this country through league and is being transformed into a sort be a dependable army.
an enlistment in the Army.
of junior section of the Communist Party. No, army recruiting must be more sel An open testimonal from representative significant indication of this process is ective than in former days. Reading clergymen will aid materially in carrying on that for the first time the did not between the lines, one sees that the War this campaign. It is therefore kindly rehold its own Liebknecht Luxemburg memor Department wants men permeated with the quested that you express your opinion in ial meeting (N. and permitted the idea that the established order has been angwer to the following. Would you reparty to combine this memorial, which was ordained by God, men who have been so commend an enlistment in the Regular Army always considered the privilege and duty of chloroformed by the sky pilots that they to a man of good moral character?
the youth to hold, with the Lenin memorial will blindly do the bidding of their pastors For your information there is enclosed of the party. In the unemployment cam and masters.
a pamphlet issued by the Army Recruiting paign the spectal demands of the youth What kind of response may be expected Service.
have gained no prominence or attracted any on the part of the ministers of God thus Your reply will be appreciated.
attention whatsoever, while through its own appealed to? It is to be expected that they Very truly yours efforts the has not succeeded in will obligingly lend a hand in the noble (Signature)
The Dilemma of the War Department On February 5, in Philadelphia, Pa.
two members of the Young Communist Leagrie, Tess Ryder and Anna Lynn were tried and convicted of sedition. The offense consisted in distributing leaflets for a Llebknecht anti war meeting to the Philadelphia National Guardsmen. The indictment however is much more serious. It aims at the illegalization of the Young Communist League and through it of all workers organizations. It reads: Anna Lynn did unlawfully become a member of an assembly, society, or group, called the Young Communist League of Philadelphia, Pa. of which the policies and purposes are seditious.
Why now, more than ever since the 191920 Palmer raids is the offensive of the bosses intensified, especially against the Communists? Why the taking a way of second class mailing privileges from the Young Worker, Vida Obrero, Revolutionary Age and the Young Comrade? Why the attempts to outlaw the Communist movement? The party and league officials answer in unison: Because we are a mass movement; as a war maneuver against the Soviet Union. The first reason has only one weakness it is untrue. The party still has not gotten completely out of its swaddling clothes. The League is insignificant. The second reason given, while containing some truth, does not however hit the basic point. The attack on the workers press, the attempt to illegalize the Communist movement is an organic and inseparable part of the general offensive of the capitalist class against the workers. The bosses, who are trying to get out of the present crises at the expense of the workers which means lowering of wages, worsening of conditions of labor, greater speed up, mass unemployment understand that the workers will make desperate efforts to resist. From this they conclude that a vigorous offensive against the working class, especially the Communist, organizations is on the order of the day. In a word, the possibilities for the growth and expansion of the party and league, due to the deep growing discontent of the workers exist and all means are and will be taken to crush these organizations, that is, so as to be able more ruthlessly, and unchallenged to exploit the workers. This explains the attack on the League, on the Young Worker, etc.
The workers should answer this challenge with a broad united front.
and league can lead such a movement only with correct strategy and tactics. The League, especially, is now accorded an opportunity to get out of its sectarian isolation, to make contact with the mass of youth workers, in a word, to become a mass Communist youth league. At present, the calling of youth united front conferences for the defense of the Young Worker, for the defense of comrades Ryder and Lynn should be taken as a first step.
HEAR! HEAR!
The Young Worker of February 16, informs us. Comrade Minerich, who is now in the Pittsburg district, writes us something which we want to call to the attention of the Leagu notice appeared tine ago in this column about two new units in East Ohio. Comrade Minerich, going thru this section, found that the two new units were merely hopes; they didn exist. We warn the comrades that we will expose every exaggerated report sent into the National Office. Pg. Hear, hear!
comrade. We ll do our bit to enforce this warning. JOSEPH CARTER.
to a The party