The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1932-12-10
Training for Class Struggle Us,
labor Education" in U.S.A.
Rand School, Bookvood and Other Agencies OF Capitalism
Compared With Ten Years of Workers School

defender OF the interests of the
American workers" did not object
to being placed on the same list
with all the labor haters. AS far
as we are concerned we feel that
Music, Shiplacoff, Norman Tho
mas, Morris Hillquit, and the rest
of the crew were actually in their
proper places, for they are carry
ing out the aims of the National
Association of Manufacturers on
ly in a disguised FORM while Mat
thew Vol, Noel Sargent, Walter
Drew, Hamilton Fish, etc, are do
ing the same thing in the Open
This is an example OF the non
biased impartial type of education.
WE must also mention the A. F.
W of l.. Years ago this organize
ton established the Workers, Edu-
cation Bureau of America for the
purpose of organizing educational
work in the unions. The aim OF
this body is expressed in one of
Spencer Millers statements that
the workers should receive an edu-
cation which will prepare them for
a greater participation in/the Gull
ture of the country. Miller. the
secretary of the Workers Educa-
ton Bureau of America, is Of the
opinion that 'present-day capital
ism with its naturalization and
speed-up is a blessing for the work
ers. In an address delivered before
the First World Conference on
Adult Education, held at Cam
bridge University, England, August
1929, 1929, Mr.. Spencer Miller
states that;
"The mechanization of industry
has produced one other notable
result. II has vastly increased
the leisure time OF workers"
And further:
with the development of me-
chanizatiOn and the vast increase
of free time, leisure has ceased
to be the possession of a particu-
lar class and has become the uni
versal opportunity of working
people"
1t is quite evident that Mr..
Spencer Miller never felt the ef-
fects of the 'mechanization"
capitalist acknowledgements the
workers. In the United States
the inhuman speed-up compels the
workers to expend II hours OF
energy in hours of work. A
worker who after days work is
completely exhausted does not pos
sess leisure. At present there
are 1916 million workers in the
United States possessing compul
sary leisure. Mr.. Spencer Miller
does not connect education with
struggle. He does not see or does
not want to see the struggles of
the workers. In the same address
he states the following:
with rising wages ana rela-
lively stable prices, the people of
the United States have become
consumers of what they produce
TO an extent never before rea-
lized. The diffusion of prosper
ity and the increase of economic
well-being have made il possible
for Us for the first time in our
history TO contemplate the elm
nation of poverty within a rela-
lively short period of time"
According to Miller we were all
TO get rich in short time and
consequently what we necd is
general education in the ants and
sciences Ito make expiiclC those
values which are implicit in rap
idly changing civiil2ation.' Inns
is another example OF the social
led impartial education. This type
of education is effective in the
class collaboration policy of the
American Federation of Labor.
The Workers School rejects such
a conception of education. In the
capitalist society the ruling CAPT.
talist class controls education for
its own interests. 1t uses the pub
lie schools, high schools, colleges,
and other institutions TO mould
the Understanding OF the wotne.s
in favor OF the system tney con-
trcl.
Education is biased. Impartial
education III capitalist society can
only benefit the capitalist forces.
A good illustration Of this is found
in Professor John Dewey's THE
School Of Tomorrow
"It Is fatal for a democracy 10
permis the tesMatiDp VI liked