The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-06-28
For the Unity of the Party
BY VIM. Z. FOSTER.

Of profond Importance in the
development of the Communist Par
ty of the u. S, A. is the Address of
the Communist International to the
membership of our Party. This docu-
ment, which re-emphasizes the poll
teal line laid down in the Open Let
ter addressed to our Sixth Party
Convention, constitutes devastating
attack against the right danger and
against the canker of factionalism
that has been eating into our Party
for so many years. 1t lays the basis
for the unification of our Party and
gives it a powerful impulse in its
development into mass Communist
Party.
The Address of the Comintern,
which is a concrete application to
the American Party of the line laid
down by the Sixth World Congress,
provides the means for a successful
struggle against the right danger.
The extent of this danger, stressed
so much in the decision, was drama
tically emphasized by the statement
of Comrade Molotov in the American
Commission to the effect that the
right danger is more deeply en-
trenched in the American Party than
in any other Party in the Commu-
mist international. This correct
statement does much to explain the
sharpness and incisiveness of the re-
cent CT. decision on the American
question.
An especially valuable section of
the Address is that dealing with the
theory of exceptionalism. This OPP
portunist theory, a reflection of
bourgeois theology in our Party, is
the cloak behind which the right
deviation almost always hides. Both
former groups in the Party, the
Majority and the Minority, fell vic
tins to this insidious and harmful
theory.
In substance the theory of excep-
tionalism holds that American i'm
perialism, essentially sound and
healthy, is developing pretty much
according to its own economic laws,
and is relatively exempt from the
growing world crisis Of capitalism.
In our Party it manifests itself par
ticularly by an over-estimation of
the power of American imperialism,
and an under-e estimation of its crisis
and of the rehabilitation of the
workers. It's general effect is to
destroy the revolutionary perspec-
tives of the Party and to seriously
hamper it in it's leading role of the
class struggle
This bourgeois theory of excep-
tionalism, which has long afflicted
our Party, has been especially active
since the Ninth Plenum and the
Sixth World Congress of the c. l.
In these meetings the c. l., basing
its conclusions upon its analysis of
the third period of postwar capital
ism, which is characterized by the
leftward swing of the masses and
intensifying class struggles, devel-
oped it's line of sharpened struggle
against the capitalists and their
agents, the social reformists. Where
upon in the American Party the
theory of American execptionalism
came into place to prove that, be-
cause of the greater strength and
special position of American impe-
rialism, this analysis and tactical
line did not apply to the United
States. Elaborate arguments were
developed to minimize the contra
dictions in American Imperialism, to
underestimate the role of social re-
formism, and to play down the rad
realization of the workers, etc. The
substance of all of which being to
develop in the United States a diff
ferent political line than the world
line of the Comintern, line to the
right, a line that would paralyze
the Party. The Comintern, by its ex-
plosion of the theory of American
exceptionalism, the false theory that
fails to understand American impe-
rialism is an integral part of world
capitalism and subject to its laws
does major service to our Party
and greatly fortifies it in it's strug-
gle against the right danger.
The Minority and Exceptionalism.
Although the former Minority &C
lively put forth the slogan of the
fight against the right danger, it al
the same time was guilty of most
serious right errors which, for the
laost, part, cloaked themselves with
the insidious theory of exceptional.
ism. The Comintern Address cor.
rectly says:
"Both factions of the American
Communist Party have been guilty
of right errors. Both factions
show serious deviations to the
right from the general line of the
Comintern, which creates the
danger of an openly opportunist
deviation crystallized within the
Party not only the mistakes
of the Majority but also the most
important mistakes of the Minor
ity were based on the conception
of American exceptionalism."
Thus, the Minority, falling into
the error of not fully realizing the
e