The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1935-01-07
Party Life
Political Studies
For Party Members
And Some Problems

beading your appeal for new
II Party members in the Daily
Worker and also that members
write relating their experiences, /
shall try my best to point what I
think are mistakes in our local
units and hoping you will correct
me if I am wrong.
First of all. I want to tell you how
I came to Join the Party. One year
ago I happened to be on a local
strike committee. It was a strike
of about 600 unorganized glass
workers. The local Party was very
weak at the time, in fact the or
ganizer was in reality the only &C
tive member. His incorrect APP
preach made the red scare very
successful for the company. We
got a 1919 per cent raise and went
back to work. Later the company
fired the most militant workers as
they usually do. Of the strike COM
mittee two of us we're fired. I was
included. To make it short, I heard
Earl Browder speak on the Austrian
rebellion in February and in March
was a member Of the Party. The
other member of the strike COM
mittee also joined in the McKees-
port unit. Since that time the Party
has grown and improved many
times its former strength.
We have twenty-seven members
in the Party The Unemployed
Council local is one of the strong
est in our district. We have an I.
w. o. and the beginning Of a good
steel union. myself have taken
the responsibility of building a Y.
c. L. and have eight members now.
Three of them work in the same
glass company that fired me and
we expect to have good Y. G. L.
shop unit functioning very soon.
Now that there is a fair move
ment here, there is a tendency of
i'll feeling between Party members.
For example, we have as secretary
young college graduate who has
been teaching us political economy.
He seems to think that all Party
members and Y. G. L.'ers should
study political economy to be good
Party members. Now, he has been
teaching our very new Y. c. l.. and
I noticed that they we're not very
much interested.
At Party unit meeting, I sug-
gested that we teach them lighter
subjects, and our secretary, because
he was very peeved. stated that the
Y. G, L. would fall apart without
political economy. In plain words
I told him that he was all wet and
hoped to build much stronger Y.
c. L., one that will do some real
work in the shop, one that will put
MarXiSm into practice and not only
study and theorize. I also pro-
posed that We admit into the Party
six women who happen to be wives
of Party members and they are
very active in the women's league.
One of them happens to be my wife.
He was against this, saying that
we should take them in one or two
at a time and teach them political
economy. Now, my wife has not
the mental capacity to study such a
dry subject.
Although I myself study political
economy and realize that it is very
good to study, I hold that political
economy alone will not make good
Communists. think that comrades
like our secretary who seems to
have a political economy complex
should be corrected by the District.
But the District, seeing that we are
doing good work, thinks that we
do not need their attention. Com
rades, this might appear not very
important, but it is. You see there
are a few other Party members who
think he is correct and there Is a
tendency Of ill-feeling in the units.
Another situation that must be
Strengthened out is the unconscious
bureaucratic methods of our organ
izer. Our organizer is one of the
most active in the District and de-
serves lot of credit, but this one
fault minimizes his popularity. We
hope that he will assume a more
good-natured manner, not only with
Party members, but with all work
ers. We have called him down many
times, but it's of no use.
will look for an answer to this
letter in the column Party Life"
of the Daily Workers.
Comradely yours,
S. A., Glassport, Pa.