The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-07-21
THE LESSONS OF AUGUST
FIRST, 1929

the necessity for the organization of Defense
Corps. 1t gave the impetus to the organization
of these groups. One of the lessons here was
not to depend on the permits of the police but
to be prepared with defense corps to defend
the demonstration. The police in many cities
where they had granted permits were no less
brutal than where the demonstrations were
held in open defiance of the police orders
Real Successes.
One of the reasons for the success of the
demonstration was the large quantity of agi-
tation and propaganda material distributed
among the workers. Eighty shop papers total
ing 100000 copies were distributed. In New
York City alon 100000 leaflets were distri-
buted. In Cleveland 10000 leaflets were dis
tributed. Chicago in addition to many thous-
ands of leaflets distributed 10000 copies of a
special Chicago edition of the Daily Worker.
Special leaflets addressed to women Negro
and young workers as we'll as to the armed
forces were distributed by the Party.
The outstanding lessons of the demonstra-
ton were ~ The growth of the rehabilitation
of the masses (2) The tagging behind of the
Party. 81 The fact that our Party had en-
erged force in the class struggle in the
United States. az That it helped to annihilate
the opportunist theories and raise the prestige
of the Communist International among the
membership and large masses of workers
These lessons still must be driven home in the
preparation of August 1, 1880. We still suffer
from an underestimation of the rehabilitation
of the masses Our Party is still tagging be-
hind the masses This we can see in the events
that are taking place every day. This we can
in the Flint Auto strike, in the strikes
taking place among the miners, and in other
sectors of the class struggle. Only today these
opportunist theories do not dare appear in the
open and they parade under the cover of left
phrases in many cases, but in the main are to
be found in the opportunism in practice that
still saturates our leading committees in the
districts and sections, and sections of the MEM
bership who remain passive or find many ex-
cuses for their failure to participate actively
in the class struggle. Particularly are these
opportunist practices revealed in the inadequate
factory activity in the failure to build the rev.
dictionary unions.
Mistakes.
The shortcomings and mistakes in the prepa-
rations for August 1,1929 are still in large
measure to be found in the preparations to-
day. Let us cite some of these shortcomings of
last year and check up to what extent we have
overcome them this year. In reviewing the
shortcomings last year we cited:
1. insufficient theological preparation of
the membership.
2. Beginning preparations for August too
late.
8. The Party press failed to act as an or
ganizing force.
d. Failure to concentrate our work in the
large plants and war industries.
5. Failure to connect up sufficiently the
preparations for the anti-war demonstrations
with the everyday struggles of the workers.
6. Little work among the Latin American
workers, the agrarian masses, and the Negro
masses.
z. Practically no work among the armed
forces.
s. Failure to organize anti-war committees
in the factories.
9. Failure to build the United Front on
broad basis.
TO- Failure to carry on work in the A. F.
of L. unions.
IL. Lack of sufficient concreteness in the
struggle against the A. F. of L. and socialists.
r. insufficient preparations to defeat the
attempts of the police to break the demonstra-
tions.
10. insufficient direction from the center.
Now in the remaining days of the prepara-
tons let US honestly check up and see if we
are still guilty of the mistakes mentioned in
the preparations for Red Day last year. To
what extent have we overcome these short
comings? What can we do in the remaining
demonstrations?
Achievements.
One of the reasons for the achievements of
the August demonstrations last year was the
utilization by the Party of the war plans
against the Soviet Union as revealed in the
Chinese Eastern Railway incident. We were
able to arouse the masses to the danger of an
attack against the Soviet Union. This year
we must realize that the danger of an attack
against the Soviet Union is greater than ever
before At the same time the danger of an
imperialist war among the imperiast powers
is more acute than ever. To the extent that
we can connect up the present deepening crisis
and its effects upon the workers with the war
preparations, to that extent will we be able to
rouse the masses to rally under our banner
on August First. But correct policies and slog-
ans alone will not bring out the masses. For
this it is necessary that these policies and
slogans penetrate into the factories, the unions,
the unemployed. This involves the complete
mobilization of the forces of the Party and the
revolutionary unions, the workers in the mass
organizations sympathetic to the Party, for
ceaseless activity in the remaining period of
preparations. In this work the lessons of
August 1, 1922 should prove valuable