The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-12-13
BY HARRISON GEORGE.

The despicable attack of the
American Federation of Labor on
immigrant Mexican workers should
sharply remind all who fight under
the banner of the Workers (Com-
munist) Party, that the Spanish
speaking population of the United
States is between three and four
millions, almost all workers and in
the most exploited categories. Los
Angeles, for example, is supposed
to have more Mexicans among its
population than any Mexican city
outside the federal capital.
In California, Mexicans do the
hardest work in the melon fields,
hop ranches, cotton fields, ETC., I'M
der blistering sun, long hours, and
vile conditions. In the southwest
generally they are agrarian and
mine workers. In all sections they
work as ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS on
the railroads, in general construc-
ton.
In Heavy Industry.
The packing houses and steel
mills, rubber and chemical plants
are filled with Mexican and other
Spanish speaking workers, some
from the Antilles where native ty-
ranny and Yankee imperialism have
made hell of their beautiful home
lands.
In the sugar beet fields of Cichi-
gan, Colorado, etc., whole families
slave from early dawn to dark, the
little ones bending their backs hour
after hour over the task of wedding
and thinning the beets.
Living in Serfdom.
No medieval serfs ever suffered
more than these immigrant work
ers, lured to this country to improve
their lot, only to find everything
against them, even the labor unions
(save the markL boycotting and
despising them.
The whole situation is challenge
to those who say they oppose Amer
lean imperialism, which Expresses
their native lands and exploits them
in this country.
T. U. L. l.. Must Lead.
1t is the duty first of all of the
Trade Union Educational League, in
it's role as leader of the work, to
organize the unorganized, to give
the most serious attention to these
Spanish-speaking workers, who
come next to the Negro population
in Importance as a single oppressed
racial group.
But the Communists can and must
assist the T. U. E. L. in this strug-
gle and rally to it's own banner the
most advanced, class conscious work
ers among this mass as members
of the party of revolution.
Up to a very recent date, there
was no Communist press in the
Spanish tongue published in the
United States. The Mexican Com
munist paper, GEL Machete," was
read by hundreds whenever a copy
penetrated into darkest Yankeeland
By it was far away and had too
little contact with the work at which
these workers are employed. So the
Spanish-speaking workers were left
almost entirely at the mercy of the
capitalist press printed in Spanish
in this country.
Review of Spanish Press.
There are many such papers, in
Texas and California especially. In
Chicago semi-weekly paper called
Mexico" is published. But it is
poisoned with clerical reaction, al
though it occasionally hits a good
blow, seemingly by accident, as in
a recent attack on Gomez, the Vene-
zuelan tyrant. But it is devoted to
the Catholic church and to it's adj
vertisers and ignores the class
struggle.
In Tampa, Florida, LA Traduc-
cion" is a strange mixture of rev.
olution and reaction. In the recent
election it calmly printed its en-
dorsement for the democratic party
alongside the anti-imperialist pro-
gram of the Communist Party run
as front-page feature. 1t runs
editorials of the Daily Worker with
the same prominence day after day,
but may also have translation
from capitalist press reports attack
ing the Soviet Union on another
page!
La Prensa--Capitalist.
In New York, the regular capital
list press is represented by LA
Prensa," giving special attention to
all Spanish and Spanish-American
news. It takes pacifist "hope for
the best" attitude toward the rapine-
and-slaughter phase of American
Imperialism and says not word
condemning imperialism in its blood