The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-02-11
PARTY LIFE
Improving the Work of the
Units
BY TOM JOHNSON.

Tt BY TOM JOhNSON.
ONE of our most important tasks in the further
Bolshevization of the Party is the activiza-
ton Of the basic Party units and their develop
raent into political bodies leading the workers
In their territories in all Of their daily struggles,
and through this leadership winning over more
Of them for our Party. Under conditions APP
preaching illegality the proper fmctioning of
the units becomes Of even greater importance.
Under such conditions all Party work must be
carried on through the units or through frac-
tons in mass organizations. There can be no
general membership meetings in the section or
special section meetings for mobilization for
campaigns Therefore this question has occu-
pied good deal Of our attention in District II.
First we recognized that the political level of
the units and their initiative, particularly IN
units made up largely Of new members, cannot
be developed by q circular letter leadership.
Therefore today we send out no circular letters
Of any description in the district or sections.
Weekly or bi-weekly political letters are sent to
the sections in the district dealing with their
individual problems and relating them to the
general campaigns. In the sections (the two
where we have a considerable membership with
6 to units each) we hold weekly organizers
conferences attended by the organizers of every
unit Here the work for the next week is taken
up in detail, instructions given, and quite fire.
quently plans altered in some respect as result
of the discussion. Further to insure the closest
contact between membership and leadership
members Of the small Section Committee (con-
sisting OF members) visit each unit at least
once every two weeks.
Following the completion Of business at the
organizers meeting short class is given on
the fundamentals of Communist theory and
practice This class is then repeated in each
xriti ,1i1 ipctr
Through the organizers meetings we have
also developed an atmosphere of revolutionary
competition between the units EACH organizer
hears the reports of the others He knows and
brings the news back to his unit, how many new
members the other units have recruited inside
what shops they distributed leaflets, what the
unit attendance is In relation to its total mem
bership etc. At the same time the organizers
and then the units profit from the experiences
In other units and are able to see the weak
points in their own work and hence remove
them To these meetings the organizers bring
the problems that confront them in the work
certain that from the collective experience of
the other unit organizers they will find solu-
ton
Units are kept small-12 or Is members at a
maximum and even this is too large This gives
all members Of the unit an opportunity to de-
ve1op and participate In the active life Of the
unit. It makes for more units covering smaller
territory each in the case of street units and
therefore more alive to what is going on in their
territory and better able to lead the workers
therein. At the same time Of course small meet
inGsjin private homes are a necessity under con-
dittdnsfof virtual illegality. The meeting place
is changed to a new place Invariably each week
as an elementary precaution. Unit members
therefore must attend their unit meeting to know
where the next one will be held. No letters are
sent.out calling members to meetings under any
circumstances-they are personally notified by
the unit organizer or a comrade selected to aid
him II changes in plans are made or a special
meeting Is called for any reason.
In every phase OF Party activity and in all
Party campaigns the emphasis is placed on the
unit carrying on that activity In Its own terri
tory; on the unit winning the workers Of its
own particular shop or field Of work for support
Of the}campaign.
For instance leaflets are not passed out to be
distributed 4 haphazard, nor is distribution
planned SO that comrade in unit ON one side
Of town distributes in front of shop on the
other side. Today we are regularly having leaf
let's distributed In at least IS shops, including all
OF the very biggest steel and pipe shops These
leaflets are all distributed inside. Each unit
character an sinner-Party organ is available,to-
Psrrs members only and is distributed solely