The Washington socialist. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1914-1915, 1915-04-29
why DO We HAVE
A RED WEEK !?
BY JOHN NJ. WORK.

BY JOHN nj. WORK,
A short time ago a non-partisan wo-
mans organization In the ward where
live arranged a meeting to be held In
the assembly hall of the high school
building and invited all candidates
for mayor--Republican, Democratic,
Socialist and Prohibitionist come
and speak. All of them accepted the
invitation. The Republican and Demo-
cratic candidates, although they could
not we'll decline the invitation, knew
that it would be political mistake
for them to appear on the same plat
thus permit themselves to be compar-
ed at close range with a candidate
who really stood for something. Ger
tain great capitalist dailies had been
each day announcing the places where
candidates would speak. On the day In
question, these announcements We're
left out Had the announcements been
published as usual. the chances are
that the magnificent hall, seating two
thousand people, would have been full.
AS it was. there were three or four
hundred people in 1t. The Socialist
and Prohibitionist candidates came
and spoke. The Republican candi-
date sent representative to report
that he was sick abed, The Democrat
ic candidate did not come nor send
any explanation.
While we Socialists carried away
the honors of this meeting such as it
was, we were cheated out of reaching
at least fifteen hundred more people
because we had no far-reaching press
of our own.
Furthermore, we would have elected
the mayor of Chicago If we had been
able to hammer Socialism into the
ears of the people in the way in which
the other parties were able to hammer
the names of their candidates into
the ears of the people by means of
the great dailies.
Every day the papers were full OF
news about the campaign which the
Republican apd Democratic candf-
dates were making. OF course the
news was written up as if they were
the only candidates who were worth
mentioning. The puny efforts which
we were able to put forth were utterly
insufficient to offset this constant
hammering of the names of these can
didates into the minds OF the people.
AS result, they got most of the votes
and one of them was elected.
So we have a Red Week because 1t
is an imperative necessity that the
Socialists of America should have a
press that will be as far-reaching and
as powerful as the capitalist press.
Only thus can we get our message
to the people with such incessant re-
iteration as to beat down the oppo-
sition.
What l have said about Chicago
applies also to most of the other por-
tions of the country. We are unable
to carry the elections because we do
not have the press with which to con-
stantly reach the people.
Therefore we must build up such a
press.
We have the nucleus. All we have
to do is to develop it.
Another reason why we have a Red
Week is because we need more party
members We do not want to invite
any half-baked Socialists to join the
party. We are better without them.
But there are thousands of genuine
Socialists who are not in the organiZa-
ton, and they should be invited to
join. Red Week is concerted effort
along these lines. 1t is time for con-
centration-a time to let other things
go, in order to work for the cause.
Let's learn to do team work-to
advance upon the enemy in perfect
order and in battle array. Let's lay
aside our usual way of spending our
spare lluleg anu lOI Olle WSeh ueFOIc
it to the cause.
Get subscriptions for Socialist pa
pers.
Invite genuine Socialists to join the
party.
If all of us will do this, we can add
hundred thousand members to the
party organization and million sub
scriptions to the party papers.
hereby promise to do my share.
Will you do yours?
You.
You who are reading this article.
Stop reading-lay the paper down
ask yourself, "Am / nonentity or am
l live, active force for good in the
world?"
Then, resolve that during Red Week
you will spend every spare moment in
getting subscriptions for the Socialist
papers and inviting genuine Socialists
4