The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1944-02-18

leadership that is dangerous to the
health and safety of the workers of
America.
Without conscience, without scru-
pie, without the least vestige of prin-
ciple, these so-called union leaders
have betrayed the basic freedoms of
the American labor movement in
major crisis.
This crisis was precipitated by the
proposal for a National Service Act,
an ill-considered measure which, if
enacted, would throw the nations
amazingly successful production pro-
gram into confusion, disrupt the war
effort and deprive American workers
of the freedom and independence
which makes them superior to the en-
shaved workers of the Axis.
President William Green of the
American Federation of Labor and
President Philip Murray of the CIO
did not hesitate to denounce the draft
labor proposal A united front was
the Communist lice of the CIO spoke
up.
The Heroes Speak
| First we heard from the illustrious
Joe Curran of the National Maritime
| Union, who has been hailed far and
wide as one of the great heroes in this
war because of his successful fight to
evade the draft. Mr.. Curran an
nounced that the patriotic thing for
labor to do was consent to enslave
itself under the terms of a National
Service Act
This might have been considered
merely an individual alteration, but
then we heard from Harry Bridges,
the supremely loyal leader of the CIO
Longshoremen's Union who also has
assumed herioc proportions in Ameri-
can life for his long and successful
fight to evade deportation. Mr..
Bridges also endorsed the draft-labor
law.
Then came the leaders of the CIO
Radio and Electrical Workers. Union
and one or two lesser lights of other
CIO unions with similar statements.
There was only one way to account
for the sudden and impressive deser-
tion of these so-called union leaders
from the announced policy of the
leader of their national organization.
That would be the formation of a new
Communist Party line, which is the
supreme law to these gentry. So we
looked up the Daily Worker and, sure
enough, that fearless and indepedent
organ of Moscow opinion had come
out for the National Service Act.
There was the solution Of the mystery
and there was the proof of one of the
most despicable betrayals in the stag
gering record of treachery perpetra-
ted by the Communist Party in
America
There still fingers in our minds the
memory of the Communist Party's
strategy when the Hitler-Stalin pact
was still in force. Then the Joe Cur
rams and the Harry Bridges were de-
nouncing the fight against Hitler as
an "imperialistic war;" They were the
outstanding on-interventionists in
America. When our country was des-
perately striving to step up war pro-
duction in the days before Pearl Har-
Dor, the Communist leaders in the CIO
were fomenting strikes in the ship
yards and the aircraft factories. 1t
was only when Hitler double-crossed
Stain and invaded Russia that the
Communists in America became con-
verted to patriotism.
This sudden conversion has now
reached such lengths that the Com
munists in this country are espousing
capitalism and fraternizing for politi
cal advancement with such outstand-
ing statesmen as Mayor Frank Hague
of Jersey City.
If the Communist Party line can be
stratched that far, we should not be
surprised if it can also embrace
draft-labor proposal. For this idea is
nothing new to the Russian brand of
Communism. Even in normal times.
labor in Russia is subject to conditions
even more stringent than conscription.
We heard during the first Fiye-Year
plan of workers being executed be-
cause they supposedly did not meet
production schedules.
Such conditions may be acceptable
to the people of Russia and the So
called Russian trade union movement
But we can do without them here in
America, thank you. And the CIO can
DO without the counterparts of Rus
sian trade unions. Unless it rids itself
OF the Currans and the Bridges. thew
| will stab the CIO in the back at every
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