The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-03-01
WIN THE NEW MEMBERS

our units which function very badly, there is
a tendency to drop away from activity. In fact,
during the fractional struggle especially, our
Party lost thousands upon thousands of re-
cruited workers because of this situation. Even
now that our unit meetings and activities are
taking on better aspect since we have elm
mated factionalism from them and have estab-
lished healthy discussions based upon mass ac-
tivity there are still considerable number
of shortcomings which tend to antagonize new
members who join our Party.
AT the very first unit meeting they attend
they hear the use of large number of terms
which are completely foreign to their ears.
These terms are necessary-they arise out Of
the needs of our continually developing theory.
But when the worker does not understand them
they appear, not something which helps him
in the class struggle, but something foreign
to his activity in the class struggle. Similarly,
many of these new members do not understand
certain procedure and decisions and activities
taken up in the units. Many of our members
have an attitude that we must let the new
members "sink or SWIM off they catch on to
the Party very well, but if they drop out then
it is because they are unfit" This is basically
wrong. Each unit must insure that each new
member gets personal attention to help in the
development of his understanding.
Win the New Members to Activity.
We must develop the idea in our Party that
the mere fact that worker signs an applica-
ton card does not yet mean he is Communist;
that the signing of the application card is only
a signal for the fact that the worker is willing
to become a Communist, and that our Party
must then take measures to win him for
tivity; to show him by example and by joint
work how to become active.
Possibly the worst feature of our unit meet
irgs in respect to their effect upon the new
member is the "heresy hunting" which still ex-
lists in many of the units as leftover of the
old factional struggle. In those unfortunate
days the aim of discussion was not to clarity
our Party membership Theoretically, but rather
to he able to plaster devations on the opposite
faction. Everything that member said in the
unit was taken in the spirit in which a police
officer gets information from criminal, name
~ at may be used against you as evidence
This must be radically changed. Our discus
sions must be of such nature as to encour-
age exactly those workers who have never dis
cussed theoretical questions before and who do
not understand these questions fully to partici-
pate in the discussions. This will develop them
Errors made by these workers in the course OF
presenting their views must not be made the
occasion IOE comrades 10 SET themselves up as
heroic discoveries of deviations, but rather as
the occasion for friendly discussion in order to
clarity the situation and win the unclear COM
rades to a correct point of view.
The Life in the Factory.
And finally, must introduce into our
units discussions of the conditions in the fac
tories where the members OF the units work
In this concrete fashion can evolve methods
for building up our Party in the shops and
connecting our units with mass work. Up till
now our approach to the question of factory
work was much too general. But through this
different method of handling the question it
is possible to examine our work in each fac
tory separately and involve the entire unit in
the task of building up our Party there.
On the whole we can say our membership
drive has been a splendid success. With loyalty
and devotion, with understanding and courage,
we can carry forward the task of winning the
majority of the working class.