The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-09-22
Marx and the Irish Question
Right Self Determination of PeoplesA the Stand
Marxism the National Question.

significance. They give clear explanation of the en-
tire stand of Marxism toward the national question
behooves socialists who vaclating in their posi-
ton on this question: those who cannot find the
rect path, to study these MARKHAM words
The workers of world power remain the slaves of
their bourgeoisie and forge their chains if they
do not fight for the freedom and independence of the
oppressed peoples if they do not fight for the poll
teal independence, e.. for the sefdeterminaon of
those nations which under the yoke of their
bourgeoisie. Mark does not employ the term self
determination but he writes in this sense) Without
the elimination of the differences between the workers
of the expressing and the oppressed country
full struggle for socialism is impossible The bourgeoisie
know very WELL that the best of maintaining CAPT
talst domination is by creating conflicts between the
workers of the different lands particularly between the
workers of the ruling nation and those of the oppressed
nation And the best of melting this conflict
and of bringing it to protracted head is for the work
ers of the oppressed nation to the suspicion that
the workers of the ruling nation denying them and
their people, freedom independence and selfgovern-
men In order to create conditions which will rally
the workers of oppressed nation without hesitation
alongside of the proetarians of the ruling nation it is
necessary that the latter fight ceaselessly against its
own bourgeose for the sefdeterminaon of all nations
Particularly those proletarans which belong the
dominant nation, must battle for this right If they
don't do this they will become blind tools of the bour-
geois chauvinists, and in this manner they help the
bourgeoisie of various countries push social con-
fcts into the background and substitute for them
national conflicts. The bourgeosie is thus placed in
position to declare wars whenever it suits it's purpose
and thus the workers forced fight brother against
brother.
In public speech at a meeting, arranged by the
association of "Fraterna Democrats" on the 10Th of
November, 1847 in memory of the Polish uprising of
1880, Engels said "A nation cannot become free and
freedom OF Germany cannot therefore be realized with
out the freedom of Poland from oppression of Ger
many becoming fact"
The words underlined by us contain very important
MARKHAM principle the nation question. In a few
words we have here displayed the contents of the
tire politics of Marx and Engels in the field of the
national question The working class of ruling nation
which does not recognize the necessity of the struggle
against the privileges of domination and for the right
of self-determinaon of peoples, hope to over
throw its own bourgeosie. 1t must remain the slave
of this bourgeosie.
Only when the working class comes out for self
determination of peoples does take the initiative from
the hand OF the bourgeosie of the expressing well
as the oppressed nation and create the conditions
whereby it brings about the unity of the working class
OF all countries, the oppressed well the mperalst
powers. Now when five six world powers force the
yoke upon hundreds of millions of dependent oppressed
Nationals 1t is the particular duty of the workers
the ruling countries advocate the right of sefdeter
mination This is the only method of carrying on a
struggle against the chauvinism of ones Gown" bour-
geoise Only by this struggle will it be possible for
the workers of the oppressed countries to eliminate the
suspicion toward the workers of the ruling nation and
only this struggle will take from the bourgeose the
possibility of melting the workers against each other
splitting up their forces and thus to hindering the
struggle for socialism.
, The quoted words of Marx have not only sgnifi-
canoe for the solution of the Irish question They carry
far more universal character. 1t behooves not only
the social Chauvnsts to study them but also those
caliss who stand upon the ground international
clalsm, and yet find it unnecessary and harmful
to raise the question of sef-determnaton Of peoples
in the consideration of MARKHAM program-Transated
by Bert Miller from "War and the Crisis of Socialism,
by G.. Zinovev.