The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-01-18
BY BILL dunno.

wheel and bring them into motion,
the trade unions in turn set in
motion the greater masses-Lenin.
In the five years that have
elapsed since the death of Lenin, the
international trade union movement
has undergone mighty changes. But
these changes have served only to
bring into sharper relief before the
struggling masses of the imperial
list and colonial countries the I'M
surpassable service rendered them
by the teachings of the greatest
leader of the working class.
The trade unions were regarded
by Lenin as the natural mass or
CARNATIONS of the workers. They
are the instruments of struggle for
daily demands, against the tyranny
of the capitalist in the industries.
instruments with which the workers
carry on the fight for higher living
Standardization wages, shorter
hours, better working conditions,
etc.
The trade unions in a revolution
airy period, serve as the rallying
centers and the combat organs of
the masses. After the victory of the
working class, led by the party of
the proletariat-the Communist
Party-and the setting up of the
dictatorship of the working class,
the unions become the base of the
proletarian power and administra-
tive organs, guiding and training
the masses in the transition period
between the victory over capitalism
and Communist society.
Lenin said: "The trade unions be-
come the principal builders of the
new society, because the builders of
this society can be only the great
masses, just as the builders of So
ciety during serfdom were made up
of hundreds, just as the state, I'M
der capitalism was built up by the
thousands and tens of thousands,
just so can the present socialist
revolution be accomplished only with
the direct and active participation
of tens of millions in the governing
of the state"
"The trade unions" said Lenin,
"are mass organizations and the
revolution is primarily the creation
of the masses themselves"
! But the trade union movement by
itself is unable either to carry on an
effective daily struggle in the in
terests of the workers or to con-
quer and hold government power.
Especially in the United States to-
i day, when large sections of the
working class are recovering from
the poison of the permanent pros
perity" propaganda of the capital
list class and it's agents in our
ranks, when the speed-up and mass
unemployment and new efforts to
suppress the rising wave of strug-
gle generated by unbearable bur-
dens on our class are disillusioning
hundreds of thousands of workers,
and when the confusion caused by
the systeatic betrayals of the So
cial reformists still retards and
: hampers developing counter ffens-
ives of sections of our class, Lenin's
view of the relations between the
Communist Party and the unions
is an infallible guide.
The reformist conception of the
role of the trade unions was that
they should secure enough conces-
sions for the working masses to en-
able them to tolerate capitalism and
prevent them from organizing for
its overthrow. Today social reform
ism becomes social facism and unites
with the governments of capital
ism to beat down the standard of
living of the masses, aid it in plac-
ing the entire burden of maintain
ing capitalism ON the backs of the
working class. Today, strikes for
the most elementary demands be-
come struggles in which the workers
and their trade unions face the cap
italist class, it's troops, police and
courts, and it's allies-the social
fascists Of the trade union bureau
cracy and the leaders of the $50
cialist" parties. Strikes in the
United States, as in the older cap
italist countries become political
struggles from the beginning.
Imperialism can live only by fore
ing the masses deeper into slavery.
"Cheaper production" is the battle
cry with which the imperialist
rulers proceed against their rivals
for the world market, new sources
of raw materials and strategic naval
and military bases. Cheaper pro-
duction" is the slogan with which
the imperialists sentence millions Of
workers and colonial peoples to
death--either on the battlefields Of
an imperialist war or by starva-
ton.
Said Lenin: "That the unions are
made up Of workers is not enough.
They represent an organization of
their class only if they pursue a
class line, class policy"
Trade unions pursue a class line"
only to the extent that the Com
munist Party can Influence the
masses and organize them to carry
out "class policy"
We can organize and lead the de-
cisive sections of our class success
fully against the ramparts Of Amer