The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1932-01-21
The Mensheyiks Fight against the Unemployed
Organizations E.'zl

Inc mensheYlkS right against the Unemployed
Organizations 1.'J
But at this point we found ourselves up against
unexpected enemies of this proetarian work in
the persons Of the Mensheviks AS soon as
they saw that we had attained considerable
influence among the masses and had created
a competent body to lead the masses, the Men
sheviks on the st. Petersburg Party Committee
Bolsheviks and Mensheviks belonged to the same
party at that time-began to oppose us and,
particularly, the Unemployed Council
They carried on campaign against us in all
the districts and tried to disrupt our unemployed
organization, or at least to arrest its develop
ment. But the Mensheyks' efforts were COM
plete failure in the workers districts since we
had already created a strong organization there,
leanings supported them
The Menshevik speakers were howled down at
all meetings of the workers in the factories and
in the districts whenever they attacked the
Unemployed Council. Then they transferred
their Menshevik tricks to the leading organ of
the party, to the st. Petersburg Committee in
which they then had accidentally an insignificant
majority.
In the discussions of this question in the COM
mittee the Mensheviks expressed the opinion
that the Unemployed Council led by the Boil
Sheyils, was provoking the workers to premature
action, that the organization of the unemployed
was Bolshevik stunt. Our petition which had
already been circulated through all the districts
and factories and had received thousands Of
signatures, was much discussed at this meeting
Of the st. Petersburg Committee
The MensheViks demanded the deletion Of the
concluding words of the petition: IF you do not
accede to demands, we will report your
refusal TO the unemployed and then you will not
have us to deal with, but those who sent us, the
masses of unemployed They then demanded
categorically that the unemployed delegation be
restrained from going to the City Duma They
also opposed the demand for the organization Of
public work because they said. the City Duma
could not give the unemployed work--thst had
to be done by the state.
The Mens,eyks Oppose the Participation Of
Employed Workers in Unemployed Councils
The Mensheviks also strongly opposed tn.
election Of representatives from the factories
and mills to the Unemployed Council because
they saw in this revival of the Soviet of Work
ers' Deputies In conclusion. the MenShevik
leaders insisted that the ST. Petersburg Commit
tee forbid us. the Bolsheviks, to work among the
unemployed and to develop and strengthen this
organization, and in the event of our persisting
in this, that we be expelled from the party
The leaders of the unemployed told the Com
mittee that such decision would be harmful to
the proletarian and not binding ON them and
therefore they would not submit to, such de-
cision The Committee decided to meet the next
day to take up this question at an enlarged
meeting. The enlarged meeting it is true, was
called on the DESIGNATED dav bIt II uas after
April IL. after we had already won all our de-
mands from the City Duma This caused
split in the Mensheyik ranks and those opposed
to us were left in the minority 9
No decision against LIS could be arrived at