The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-06-06
LABOR PARTY IN
PENNSYLVANIA
BASED ON UNIONS
Excludes Communists
from Officials
Continued from page ~

Continued from page ~
ization Of labor party. This over
whelming vote was not to be put of
lightly.
Had Hard Struggle.
Ever since the organization of the
party it had hard sleding. All obstruc-
ton known was put in the way Of the
labor party by the fakirs. Whenever
the tools of the capitalist parties
ceased trying to stun its growth, the
small business interests together with
the labor bureaucracy got busy drag
ging it into the LaoFllette movement.
Although for a time the party was
thus led away from its working class
basis it still exists today enjoying
the support Of a number Of unions
| of the state.
After the defeat of LaFollette the
enemies of the labor party thought
the time had come to give it death
blow, which they prepared to deliver
at the recent convention. No sooner
1 had Maurer, president Of the State
Federation Of Labor, finished telling
the delegates that they gathered for
a wake or to build, then the verbal
barrage on the party was opened by
the reactionaries.
Left Wing Battles For Party.
Led by the left wing the rank and
file delegates shattered all Of the at
tacks and called for the recognition
of the party's mistakes and the re-
pudiation of the c. P. p. A and the
middle class LaFollette movement.
Delegates from sections of the state
where the labor party to some extent
is a political power warned the con-
vention they would continue with the
organization no matter what action
the convention took. The supporters
of the capitalist parties Immediately
withdrew, which everyone felt was
good radiance to bad rubbish. And
despite the great shortcomings Of the
Pennsylvania labor party it has taken
one step toward the organization of
the workers into political party Of
their own.
The convention was made up Of
about so delegates from unions all
over the state representing mainly the
miners, steel workers, textile workers
and machinists. While the preamble
adopted corresponds closely to that Of
the machinists' and bakers unions,
the party made it obligatory upon all
its candidates at future elections to
accept the platform in its entirety.
Basis of AffIIiatIon.
The convention decided that afilia-
ton to the party should be sought
from local trade unions, farmers or
CARNATIONS, women's organizations
and the socialist party, but failed to
mention workers political parties in
general On this point quite a debate
occurred, the left wing pointing out
that the enemies Of the labor party
last year went so far as to destroy
the then existing and much larger
farmer-labor party Of the state, the
name by which II was then known,
to prevent Communists from function
ing on the executive committee altho
they had been unanimously elected
at the 1924 convention.
The left wing pointed out that no
part Of the labor movement could
live and grow If it attempted to ex-
clude its most militant section-the
Workers (Communist) Party. How
ever, by a small margin and with the
help Of the socialist party elements
the former point Of view won out.
working class political parties were
denied admission, except such that
the executive committee may decide
in favor Of.
In the election for executive COM
mittee Of the Pennsylvania labor par
ty one Communist delegate was de-
feated by only one vote, another by
only three votes. Yet after adjourn
ment and during the convention of
the State Federation of Labor several
delegates stated that they had made
mistake in accepting proposal
which would exclude the Workers
Party from afiliation to the labor
party.