The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-01-13
Unity of Illinois
Miners Urgent Need
Continued from Page A.

revolutionary phrases. Their program
has nothing to do with the program
Of the miners and their problems
and tasks The definite rejection OF
the program proposed by Music for
the coal miners in Illinois will be
another step toward the victory Of
the miners.
ANY concession to that program
will weaken the fighting front Of the
miners. While having this objective
before them very clearly, the miners
and particularly the miners who are
Communists, must seek to unite the
broadest possible number Of miners
sround the issues and problems con
fronting the miners in the fleld-in
every mine and every local, and unite
with the miners and with individual
leading elements regardless OF their
political beliefs, If they are willing to
accept and carry into practice the
program Of struggle-the program
based on the Cleveland Resolution
Demands on U.M.W.A.
The Illinois miners, members OF
the U.M.WA., through their resolu-
tions and delegation to the Interna-
tional Convention of the UM.WA,
will raise the demands which shall
be the rallyfng point for the miners
Of Illinois and unite with the miners
throughout the country.
John L. Lewis, in his report TO the
U.M.WA. Convention in 1882, very
definitely proclaimed against strikes:
The 1919 strike clearly demonstrated
once and for all that American pub
lie opinion, no matter how sympa-
thetic, with the ideals Of labor, with
the woe and misery Of the trampled
and oppressed worker, will not toler-
ate open economic warfare in the
form Of prolonged strikes nationwide
in scope, which affect such q vital
necessity as q continued fuel supply
and which would SO seriously cripple
our transportation and utilities. stop
manufacture and force the populace
at large to submit to the rigors o.
bitter winter weather, when the gov
eminent itself declares to be unlaw-
ful the exercise of such economic
force"
And in line with this, John /.
Lewis and the whole International
Board Of the UMW.A. carried on
its strikebreaking policy in every coal
field Of the country. In the Illinois
coal fields, it forced upon the miners
the acceptance OF IS basic day wage
scale after the miners in their refer
endum rejected it. Now, even this S.
is no longer enforced.
In many mines, conditions have
been worsened. The N.R.A. code for
Illinois did not raise wages or i'm
prove conditions. On the contrary.
Communist Party Position
The Communist Party gives full
support to the rank and file opposi
ton movement in both unions of the
PIMA. and UMW.A. Its members
are very active and they are in the
very forefront Of any struggle for the
purpose Of establishing a fighting
unity Of the miners, for the improve
ment OF their conditions. To more
effectively carry the campaign for
unity OF the miners, to Clarity the
issues, to mobilize the miners 10
struggle for the immediate needs. the
communist Party mine nuclei in
Superior Mine in Gillespie and in
Sangamon Mine in Springfield have
begun to issue mine papers.
II IS necessary that in other mines
similar mine papers should be issued
edited by the miners themselves
raising the problems confronting the
miners and mobilizing them for ac-
ton
The Daily Worker plays an I'M
portant role in clarifying the issues
ana the miners Of Illinois have ii
as their duty to popularize the Daily
Worker among the miners. The en-
tire activity in the Illinois coal fields
must DC conferred around the snme-
dlate demands and struggles Ieading
to the preparation of strike struggles
which will develop around April Isl.