The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-07-28
Fight Against Terror
Main Task of Workers
In Building Party
By NAT ROSS

On May 8, Chief of Police Hol-
Iums of Birmingham declared, Il
have ordered that Communism be
wiped out before it gets better
foot hold here" On the same day
the press stated that "A three-way
offensive d.e., police, sheriffs, offce,
grand jury against Communism
was under way.
This was the signal for a wild
campaign of terror. Strikers we're
murdered on the picket lines.
Dozens of strikers were arrested.
Communist leaders were rounded up.
Homes of Communists were raided
and a large number arrested. A
printer was sentenced to six months
and given 500 fine for printing a
Communist leaf1et. A warrant was
issued for Alexander Racolin, I. L.
D. attorney, who had already been
arrested and finger printed on two
previous occasions.
The police arrested and finger
printed the noted playwright, John
Howard Lawson, merely for walk
ing down the street with the l. L.
D. attorney.
On July 20. ten weeks later, Chief
Hollums issued another statement
to the press, saying, "Saventy-five
per cent of the labor violence has
been fomented by Communist agit-
tors Although we have con-
Quoted a vigorous drive the last few
months against the Communist
element We have been hampered by
lack of authority. BECAUSE WE
BELIEVE THE TROUBLE HAS
JUST STARTED (nly emphasis =
N. r. we will seek legislation at
the 1885 session of the state legis-
lature to combat future agitation.
We need laws to prohibit agitation
Of strike violence; to prohibit meet
ings which would end in riots; to
prohibit spread Of propaganda ad-
vocating intermarriage and melting
race hatred"
One thing is obvious from this
statement. The Police Chief had
not succeeded in his threat of May
9th.
The important question is-what's
behind these fascist plans? To an
swer this we must for a moment
examine the foundation of South
ern society and the present situa-
ton in Birmingham in particular.
The basis of southern economy is
the backward, seni-slave share
cropping syst e m of agriculture
found in the Black Belt.
1t is here that the stink of the old
slave market is still loud. But this
stink is carried from the Black Belt
agrarian sections into the Southern
industrial cities in the form of JIM
Crowism, lynching, convict labor,
starvation wages, etc. In other
words, Southern industry was built
up and profits made on the basis
of the most unheard of exploitation
of the Negroes and also to large
extent of the main mass of white
workers.
The recent years of crisis and the
struggles of the workers especially
those in which the Communist
Party played a significant role, have
exposed the whole rottenness Of
Southern capitalism and the crumb-
ling foundation on which it was
built. In order to maintain its rule,
the Southern capitalist class must
intensity its fascist terror and
lynching as part of the process Of
further starving the workers.
The Wave of Strikes
II we look further we see the fol-
lowing. The N. R. A. codes legalized
the principle of lower wages for
Southern workers through the wage
differential. This is what Wall
Street and the Southern capitalists
wanted. In the meantime the Bir-
mingham workers had organized by
the tens of thousands into the A.
F. of L. unions. Under the guidance
of the Communist Party the workers
raised high the slogan for union
recognition and against the wage
differential. This was the essence
of whole series of strikes in the
Birmingham area involving in the
past six months, close to $1,000
workers.
Not only that, but the workers in
each industry were sticking to-
getller. In February, 1000 laundry
workers closed every plant in the
Birmingham area. In March, all
the commercial mines in Alabama
were on strike, involving $4,000
workers. In April, these 10000
struck again end now they were
Joined BY 5000 captive coal miners.