The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-06-15
Rr GERTRUDE HAEssLER.

nr1R fight for social insurance is not over
u with the presentation of the bill with the
SIGNATURES to Congress. That particular phase
is technically finished, but the campaign ltSeH
must he continued in other forms. To do this,
however. we must have some concrete base TO
work on-mere agitation in general IN the press
does not make social insurance tangible issue
to the workers.
We have such concrete base in the inltla-
tive and referendum laws of certain OF tne
states. counties and municipalities of this coun-
try. Agitating for state social insurance laws
collecting signatures for presenting a proposed
social insurance bill to the legislature under the
initiative and referendum law, is very real
and very practical method of keeping the issue
before the workers, and increasing the momen-
tunl of our social insurance campaign, rather
than allowing it to fritter away
There are initiative and referendum laws In
nineteen of our states, which, between them,
cover mart of the area of the majority of our
districts
The purpose of these signature drives is pri-
r,arilv to place the issue of social insurance
souarely before the workers. Success in OBJ
tanning enough signatures would be great
achievement but the consciousness that sue
cess may be only dim probability, should not
deter us from starting the campaign. The re-
suits of our national campaign are sufficiently
clear to the membership to convince them that
the campaign itself is worth all the energy put
into it.
In connection with state initiative laws there
are sometimes almost insumountable technical
difficulties But we have them, too, IN con-
nection with getting our candidates on the bal
lot in elections. These difficulties should serve
as an added impetus to mobilize the workers Tor
our campaign, firstly in order to involve them
in our efforts to combat these difficulties and
secondly, in order to expose to the workers now
democratic" our government is.
In Ohio, for instance, signatures for pro-
posed law cannot be filed until some time in
1882 The campaign is therefore being organ
lied Immediately with two purposes-firstly to
collect signatures, and secondly to expose to
the workers how futile a law is which cannot
deal with an emergency situation like unem-
pIoynent without the delay of over a year
In Massachusetts, the technicalities of the law
are such that even after the greatest efforts are
made and the required number of signatures
are collected (and here we must get certain
number in each Congressional District, and not
merely a. required number in the state as
whole it is still within the judgment of GER
tain officials whether the bill is in line with
public policy and whether it can even be pre-
scented to the voters. Here the opportunities
for our campaign are enhanced rather than
blocked by these difficulties. Here we must mi
tate action on concrete issue of vital signi-
ficance for the workers in Congressional Dis
tricts that we have probably never penetrated
with our campaigns Here we can, in the course
of this campaign, expose the so-called demo-
cracy of a so-called liberal state.
The initiative and referendum laws in New
Mexico and Utah have never been used be-
cause of difficult requirements for the petitions.
Here is a good chance to be the first to expose
these cumbersome laws which so clearly show