The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1944-01-07
.WOLL ANSWERS
SOVIET ATTACK

New York City.-In sharp reply
to a Soviet attack upon leaders of the
AFL as "reactionaries," Matthew
Woll accused Communist spokesmen
in Moscow of striking "blow at Al
lied unity" and of unwarrantedly in
terfering in the internal affairs of the
United States and the American labor
movement.
The Soviet attack was contained in
an article printed in "War And The
Working Glass;" official organ of the
Soviet government dominated trade
unions. AFL leaders singled out for
criticism in the article included Will
liam Green, David Dubinsky and Isl
dore Nagler, president and vice presi-
dent of the ILGWU, and William l..
Hutcheson, president of the Interna-
tional Brotherhood of Carpenters.
These leaders, according to the Soviet
organ, have opposed national and in
ternational unity" have prevented
united action of AFL and CIO, and
have waged war against the Soviet
trade unions.
The partial text of Mr.. Woll's Wig
orous reply follows:
"This attack is a blow at allied
unity. 1t constitutes, moreover, an un-
warranted interference in the internal
affairs of the United States and of the
American labor movement Its pur-
pose is the old Communist purpose of
sowing confusion and dissension in
the ranks of American labor, and at
time when, it would seem. Soviet
Russias own interests demand the
cloest solidarity in this country.
"The American Federation of Labor
and its spokesmen have never made a
secret of their opposition to commun-
ism, its practices and policies. But we
have not permitted this to stand in
the way of the fullest possible support
of Russia and the Russian people in
their heroic resistance to Nazi aggres-
sion 1t is matter of record that i'm
mediately after Hitler's invasion of
Russia, the American Federation of
Labor expressed itself unequivocally
in favor of lend-lease to Russia. No
attacks against US from Soviet
sources will move us to change this
attitude. We have also refrained
scrupulously from interfering in Rus
sia's internal affairs. We wish we
could say the same of Moscow.
''The millions of American workers
affiliated with the American Fedora
tion of Labor have wrought miracles
of production without which, as Stain
| himself admitted at the Teheran Con.
ference, victory for the Allies, includ
ing Russia, would be impossible At 9
time when the Communist Party il
this country was sabotaging Russian
as we'll as American interests, BY
staging defense strikes and fighting
our defense program, the American
Federation of Labor was supporting
without reservation the job of prepar
ing for war against the Axis powers
That was the period of the Stain
Hitler pact, when the Soviet govern
ment was pursuing policy inimica
to the interests of Russia and of the
anti-Axis cause.
eve made it clear last year, wher
we declined to affiliate with the Anglo
Soviet Trade Union Committee, tina
we did so because we felt that tn,
theological and practical differenc,
that divide the American and Sovie
Trade Unions should not be STRESSED
at this time as they would inevitabl,
have to be stressed if we were to ente
into formal relationship with tn
Soviet trade unions which are no
trade unions at all but instruments O
totalitarian state.
Military collaboration with Sovie
Russia does not require the American
Federation of Labor to collaborate il
Soviet policy as it affects problems O
domestic trade union organization O.
practice. 1t does not require that w
abandon our trade union principle
and jeopardize the security and integ
rity of our labor movement to hell
promote the communist conception 0
social and labor organization.
"We had hoped that this matte
would not be permitted to become tn
subject of disruptive controversy a
this critical time. 1t is a pity tina
Moscow insists upon pursuing the dis
cussion and slandering, in the tradi
: tional communist manner, the leader