The daily worker., 1928-06-22
RELIGIOUS DOPE
is BOSSES FOOD
FOR UNEMPLOYED
Used ReVivals Against
Dakota Farmers
(By a Worker Correspondent

CHICAGO, III. (By maiD When
ever there is industrial depression in
the country, the great tribe of preach
ers and peddlers of every kind of re-
ligious bunk are always to be found
working Overtime.
This iskho accident but is part of a
settled policy of the ruling class to
confuse the minds of the workers, to
draw their attention to "god" and
thereby help them to forget the real
cause of their hard times.
In Chicago, at the present time, we
witness no end of revivals, visits of
nationally known evangelists and the
radio programs loaded to the limit
with every kind Of religious propa-
ganda, even to the extent Of broad
casting it with loudspeakers near the
parks where people are compelled to
listen to it.
Having personally witnessed
lot of the bunk I want to describe
what I saw happen in North Dakota
at the time of the industrial depres-
sion of 1920-21 and when the Non
Partisan League was at the height of
its power and was proving a real
worry to the financial bosses domi-
mating that state and the country.
/ was at Wimbledon, N. D., during
the winter of 1920-21 and a presbyte-
rian revivalist came with company
of singers and started series of
,.ayyiyyo1 1,aoo+;Y1o.e c1o,,,,J fNL,,,so+...-.
1t was well advertised and altho the
feeling between the farmers and busi-
ness men was not very good then,
they floeked from far and near to
hear the great man"
He had a magnetic personality and
put the call to Jesus over so we'll that
a great many people of various denom-
nations were converted" He never
failed to emphasize the need of money
for his great work and, when he left,
lit was found out that the drought
stricken, hail-struck, Debated farmers
had contributed over $500 for this
preacher.
He was careful in his sermons to
lremain neutral on political subjects
but he was no sooner gone than the
converts began attending churches of
! their own choice where the big bust
ness-minded preachers without excep-
ton preached every Sunday the rank
est capitalist propaganda. "Harmo-
| N.Y. was the watchword of the hour.
When | travelled and studied condi-
ttions in the rest of the state in the
spring l found that such revivals had
been held in many other places.
Harmony"
| At Wimbledon a mems club was
formed "for the purpose Of bringing
Into harmony the businessmen and
the farmers. 1t helped lot in max
ing the farmers forget for while
and play into the hands of the old
gang.
| Not long after the Merchants and
Farmers Bank in Wimbledon, the
1 farmer controlled bank, was compelled
to close its doors thru pressure from
! the Twin City interests. The chris
tian big boys came from the big
towns and forced tne now christian
farmer stockholders to give them 81
percent of the stock before they would
consent to have the bank re-opened.
4 Farmers who had never known a
mortgage were compelled in some
cases to mortgage even their furniture
lin order to save their interest in the
bank. As the farmers were for the
ftime very much under the spell of
religion there was not such an outcry
las there surely would have been a
lyears earlier.
The Triumph of Religion.
/ The way things turned out in North
Dakota the farmers were finally
/ "harmonized" so completely and with
SO much assistance from goods"
lchurches that they gave up their
/ splendid struggle for better, condi-
ltions and became once more reconciled
Ito let big business dominate the life
fof the state.
| Today they have a mon partisan
governor who announced when he
started serving his term that he de-
sSQss