The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-12-16
BY c. E. RurHENHERe.


set forth by the majority of the cen
trail executive committee, which it is
not only proposing to the party but
applying in practice at the present
time. has already done great harm to
our party and threatens the party
with even greater injury.
In order to make clear the injury
which has already been done the
Workers Party thru the application Of
the majority policy and the danger
which threatens the party thru the
continued application Of this policy, it
is necessary to restate few funda-
mentals. 1t is the error OF the ma
jority that it is basing its policy upon
temporary surface conditions in rela-
ton to the movement toward class
political action and not upon the
stronger, underlying forces which
have produced and are developing this
movement.
The movement for independent
political action by the workers as
class has been slow in developing in
the United States. While practically
every developed capitalist country of
Europe has had class political parties
Of labor supported by masses for de-
cades, in the United States no such
party has developed. The historical
reasons why no such party has devel-
oped in the United States have often
been stated and l need not go into
them here. The fact which we have
to deal with is, that since the end Of
the war, thru the intensifcation of the
class struggle which has grown out
Of the war, a movement by the work
ers and at the same time movement
by the exploited farmers, toward in
dependent political action and for the
formation of a party representing the
class interests of these two groups,
has arisen.
The fact which we must bear in
mind in discussing the question of our
party policy is, that this movement is
not a chance thing growing out of
temporary conditions which may
quickly disappear. AS Marxians we
recognize that the development of
movement among the working masses
toward a political class struggle is
logical and inevitable outcome of
class relations under the capitalist
system.
1t was upon the basis Of the fact
that this movement had begun and
was developing that our party, two
and a half years ago, formulated its
united front labor party policy. What
was the problem which we as Com
munists, organized in the revolution
airy Workers Party, faced at that
time?
We had organized the vanguard of
the working class, the revolutionists,
the Communists. in our party, but
the masses of the American workers
we're still supporting the parties of
their class enemies-the capitalists.
Our aim was to build our party of
the vanguard, of the revolutionary
workers into a mass Communist
Party. We rejected the theory that
our party could be built into a mass
Communist Party thru abstract propa-
ganda of our principles. We accepted
the Communist concept that revolu-
tionary mass party of Communists can
only be created thru the revolution
ization of the working masses. We
saw the beginning Of the process of
the revolutionization of the working
masses in the movement for indie
pendent political action.
We argued: In this movement to.
ward Independent political action by
the workers and exploited farmers
there is our point of contact with
these masses. We will enter into this
movement. We will endeavor to
hasten the development of this move
ment. We will seek to become the
leaders Of this movement and thru our
leadership we will make it more con.
scious and drive it forward. We will
crystalline this movement by organic
ing delegated bodies consisting of
delegates from the organizations of
workers and exploited farmers who
become politically conscious Of their
class interests. We will enter into
common struggles, not merely election
campaigns but struggles upon all is.
sues arising in the class struggle, with
these workers and exploited farmers,
struggles in which we will play the
part Of the initiators and driving
force. Thru this policy we will fulfill
our duty as a Communist Party-we
Will be carrying on the work Of revo-
Information of the masses and in the
process we will build our party into
a mass party of revolutionary workers.
The slogan which we raised TO ex-
press the capitalization Of the move
ment for Independent political action
was, "For a farmer-labor party" and
later. when the LaFollette movement
took form, in order TO sharply distin.
guish our aim from the petty bour-
geoisie character of the latter, For a
-aass farmer-labor party" This slogan
and thru the content we
have given II has come to stand for
the first step in the revolutionization