Voice of action. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1933-1936, 1934-09-28
Election Campaign and
Unemployment Insurance

Sho VI tho AoouoAo III tno otAAkos
mobilizing to clean the scabs
off the waterfront, participat-
ing in the picket lines, obtain
ing relief for the strikers, TAX
ing the initiative in calling a
general strike, teaching the
longshoremen and seamen how
to defeat the takers in the lila
and ISU, based on their own
experiences. In many cases the
misleaders of the lila and the
ISU were forced to retreat.
During the recent fascist at.
tack, led by the government
against the militant strikers and
our Party, we found that our
Party was able to function the
best precisely where we had our
roots amongst the asse $.
Wherever We had no contact
with the masses we suffered the
most.
In the fall election of 1894 a
greater barrage of demagogy Is
being peddled from Roosevelt
down. All politicians in the state
OF Washington are promising
Unemployment Insurance to the
workers lin 1882 they promised
to build socialism within the
shell of capitalism, Old Age Pen
sion, and Social Security. At the
same time they are feeding the
workers tear gas, machine guns,
smashing strikes. deprivlng the
workers of their elementary
rights more than ever before.
In the light of this experience
our Party decided to place the
Workers Unemployment Insur.
ance Bill before the state legis-
lature which cOnvenes January
Is, 1895. 1t requires $4,000 signat-
ures, to be collected by January
6. 1895. Thus we shall force the
state legislature to act at once
and If they say mo-" the Bill
must go on the ballot in the
next general election.
The collection of signatures
gives our Party a wedge to come
to hundreds of thousands of peo-
pie who are looking Tor a way
out.
However, We must be careful
not to let the collection Of sig
natures supplant other activi-
ties. On the contrary the col
lection of signatures must be-
come a rallying point in the
election campaign, to struggle
for more relief, against forced
labor, concretely to expose the
MIRA, and must be used as a
means Of building our Party
and press. Every action taken,
such as demonstrations, street
meetings, visiting homes,
strikes, other activities, must
center around Unemployment
Insurance.
Already some Instructors and
many politicians are raising the
question:: Whats the use? You
tried it last fall, and you only
collected 10000 signatures. Why
mot support us, and you will get
Unemployment Insurance" We
must remind them of the promis-
es they made in 1882. After they
were elected, workers were club
bed and jailed for raising their
demands.
The failure to get $4,000 sigma
lures last fall was due to the op-
portunist leadership which still
had some foothold in the UCL
(Dobbins) who carried on a dou.
BILE bookkeeping, who deliber-
ately failed to carry through the
plans of our Party, who stifled
the initiative of the locals, and
supported capitalist politicians
in the last city election.
We have learned that in order
to become leaders of the masses,
our units must meet regularly,
our unit buros must function,
our fractions, which are the
connecting link between our Par
ty and the mass organizations,
must meet regularly and plan
the work.
Therefore, the collection of
signatures must reach the broad
est masses. During the election
campaign every rally organized
by all candidates must be can
vassed for the collection of sig
natures. We must call for mass
endorsements at every meeting,
demanding from the politicians,
their position on the Workers
Bill.
, Unemployment Insurance
Clubs must be organized in the
neighborhoods. Every local of
the ALL must be visited, broad
collection of signatures in the
shops and in the mills, the bus
lest corners in the city to be
covered; demonstrations in the
city councils, before county
commissioners, forcing them to
endorse our Bill.
All this must lead to prepare
ton for the mass mobilization
of workers to collect signatures
at the polls November 6.
County Hunger Marches are
to be prepared from the week of
November 10 to II.
Immediately we must begin