The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-06-14
PARTY LIFE
The Wrong and Right Way
To Conduct Canoassing
DOOrbeH Ringing Pleasure When Concrete
Political Issues Brought Up, Says COnrade

My first experience on a Red
Sunday Canvass with the Workers
Press, the Daily Worker, was a
chilling and fruitless affair. It ex-
planned to me the aversion of other
unit members to this particular &C
tivity. No wonder that it chills the
enthusiasm Of many newcomers in
the Party, Especially those, be-
cause of no mass activity, are al
ways harrangued to go out on can
vaSs committees and Red Sundays.
Results. Poor attendance or total
absence.
Here was my experience on the
first Red Sunday. The comrade in
charge handed me a diverse amount
of material-Daily Workers, Young
Workers, a collection list, an as
sortment Of literature. He paired
me up with another comrade, also
with no previous experience, gave
us the number of a house and said
go"
We went.
Door after door, as soon as we
opened our mouth, the actions were
all similar. The remarks of, I'm
sorry, not today" or, Who's there?"
or a curt shutting Of the door in
our faces and with other such re-
marks; this was the sum total of
cur experiences. The exceptions
were few and far between. We did
sell some copies to very close SYM
pathizers. A sale to one worker who
perhaps had never purchased the
paper before.
Good results? Hardly. One worker
answered us this way: Me, a
member of the A. F. of L. for Is
years, but THAT paper? Never!"
And the door was shut flat into
our faces.
Four such houses, all new ones,
never canvassed beforehand the
result? Sold IL "Dailies." Eight to
sympathizers, the rest, possibly to
first buyers. I can already hear
some comrades remark: Comrades,
you've done well. It's good Boil
shevik work. Garry on"
Well, I did. But I applied
method which has changed the
whole outlook to the problem of
canvasSing. The method is not new
but usually ignored by members and
organizations. 1t is never mentioned
or recalled by those who give out
the canvass assignments.
This is how I did it on the fol-
lowing Red Sunday. Given my
quantity of material (this time I
went out alone), I sat down before
I went out and connected up all
the material in a logical order. I
chose as my door opener" the H.
R. 1898 Bill (reprinD and the postal
card already addressed to the local
congressman. For this I selected
from the mass of literature, the
pamphlet by Amter on, why I'm
employment insurance." Been told
it has gone out of print. Should
be reprinted for the coming drive
on the bilD.
Then I looked through the COPY
of the Daily Worker of that day
for articles referring to the Bill.
l blue-penciled these so as to easily
find it and direct attention to it..
In addition to this 1 bought some
penny stamps in readiness for those
who would be ready to send the
Postals to Congress.
Thus, finally armed with NUM-
tons and clear idea of what had
to be done, went to it.
And comrades, the feeling of ap-
proach was now entirely different.
I had, what is so often spoken of
"a perspective" an objective" All
feeling of dread of the coming
ordeal left me. I was politically
conscious of what my approach to
every worker in the family would
be. The experiences that followed
were, not single door was shut
to me. The only refusaIs came from
those who, because of language diff
ficultieS, could not understand me
or make themselves understood.
(This can be easily overcome by
reporting back to the unit and send
ing a comrade who can meet this
situation On all occasions I made
a record of nv eXnerience at earh