The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1932-04-23
By N. BERNICK

DURING the last fall and winter mass move
ment of farmers has developed in northern
Michigan, especially around Mass and Hancock.
This mass movement is an outgrowth Of the mis-
cradle conditions of the small farmers, inability
to pay taxes and interest, foreclosures on mort
cages etc While the same conditions are pres
ept in other places in this part Of Michigan it
found proper leadership in the United Farmers
League and Communist Party and the mass
movement took on the form Of demonstrations
and struggles against foreclosures and for relief
in which thousands of farmers participated. It
therefore was obvious that the local township
and county elections coming in spring should
develop into further steps Of struggle on the
part of the small farmers. That is why the
Communist Party is participating in more local
elections in the Hancock section than in any
other section of northern Michigan.
But these elections have at the same time
revealed serious shortcomings which are not
merely election mistakes" but rather show
wrong trend in the mass movement The role
of the Communist Party as the only political
party under whose leadership the Farmers Com
n1ittees of Actions and the United Farmers
League we're conducting the struggles of the
farmers, was not brought out sufficiently in these
mass struggles. The result is that many farmers,
not knowing what the Communist Party is,
insisted putting up in elections United Farmers
League tickets, workers and Farmers" ticket
(Baraga), Voters League Caucus (Green). This
becomes more serious when we find that members
of the Party surrender to this weakness and do
not fight against it, On the contrary. we find
that in many places it is the Party members who
lead in putting up all kinds of tickets except
Communist Party ticket.*
Such election campaigns create the impression
that we are merely playing politics" and estab-
ish illusions in the minds Of the workers and
farmers that they can win their demands through
elections and not necessarily through struggles.
And since the Communist Party is known as
revolutionary organization since it is the "Red"
Party the conclusion is drawn that it will be
much easier to elect if we run on camoufaged
ticket The result is that it gives impetus for
the building of "cliques" and 'caucuses" without
a definite class struggle program, but with the
major emphasis on fight the grating politicians
and highway commissioners" And instead OF
utilizing the local elections as another method Of
mobilizing masses of farmers for struggles behind
the red candidates of the Communist Party, the
mass movement takes slump down.
OF course such election practices have nothing
in common with revolutionary parlianlentarism
of the Communist International. "a correct
Communist municipal policy can and must be
EDITORS NOTE-Whie Comrade Bernick rs
absolutely correct in poemizing against all ten
denotes to hide the face Of the Party is is also
necessary in each given situation to study out
and apply proper united front tactics to draw in
the widest numbers Of workers and farmers.
These should take the form Of committees Of
workers or farmers (under suitable names) to
support the candidates and election platform Of
the Communist Party