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THE PEOPLE

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Block the Provocations

ANADIANS, along with other peoples of the United Na-

tions, were this week entering the most eritical period

ef the war. From all reports, the long-awaited invasion of

Europe was getting under way. Already Allied troops are re-

ported to have invaded the island of Pantelleria. That “com-

plex amphibious operation” of which Prime Minister Churchill
spoke seems now to be taking shape.

But Canada finds itself still not fully prepared for this great
offensive against Hitler barbarism. Instead of the will to vic-
tory expressed by a full war effort, certain groups in the
government and among the employers are obstructing in-
creased production. In spite of the extremely eritical military
situation, there are people who insist on going out of their
way to provoke disunity and as a result there is a continued
unrest among big sections of labor that is haying an extremely
bad effect on the whole anti-fascist struggle.

Consider the picture as it now exists.

In Toronto next week an emergency conference of trade
unionists of every affiliation will meet to discuss the “serious
labor situation” arising out of the government's anti-labor
policies. The need for similar conferences looms in other prov-
inces. In Quebec workers at the Marconi plant protest the
company’s refusal to sign a union agreement. In Galt and in
Hamilton the government answers the workers’ requests for
arbitration of their dispute by dispatching police to the scene.
In BC thousands of organized fishermen are ignored and in-

sulted by government officials, who seem to be unconcerned —

by the fact that the opening of the fishing season is thus
imperilled. _

Under other circumstances labor would know how to
answer such provocations. But this is war—a war for the
‘ destruction of the worst enemy mankind has ever faced. And
labor has given its pledge to refrain from strikes, a pledge
that has been held to despite countless cases of provocation
during the past few months.

There remains, however, the problem of overcoming Can-
ada’s serious internal situation. A government labor policy
—a new labor code—such as has been proposed by every
major labor group in Canada before the current National War
Labor Board hearings during recent weeks, would lay the
basis for a solution. Such a labor code would make collec-
tive bargaining compulsory by law, would allow labor its
rightful place as a partner in production.

But the pressure behind such an enactment is not yet suf-
ficient. It is not enough to hope that the mere presentation
of briefs and facts before a government inquiry will bring
the desired results. The unions must also take seriously the
need for increasing their pressure on the government, through
wires, resolutions, special meetings, conferences — every
avenue through which political pressure can be applied.

There is every possibility that through such a campaign,
the government can be made to realize that Canada, the
most backward of all the democracies in its labor- legislation,
must be brought into line with the other Allied nations. Only
then can we throw ourselves completely into the job of sup-
plying the equipment for our armies Row invading Europe.

~

Join the Field Fighters

Bees COLUMBIA needs thousands of volunteers to
help farmers in the province raise and harvest this year’s
crop. Steps have already been taken to raise this volunteer
army through setting up the Emergency Farm Labor Service
and recruiting volunteer Field Fighters who will go out into
the country on weekends and during holidays. But unless
more support is forthcoming, tons of precious food will be
withheld from our people, our armed forces and our Allies
next winter. ‘

The labor movement should rally to this campaign. In
other provinces, notably Ontario, some steps have been taken
by the organized labor movement in this direction, but as
yet labor in BC has ignored the problem.

The work being done by the Emergency Farm Service
has only scratched the surface. Support from organized labor
would put the drive over the top. Inquire now through the
farm service bureau. Join the Field Fighters—time is short !

The Communists
A\nd British Labor

LONDON.

FN delegates to the June 14-18 British Labor
Party conference will be sharply divided on the main is-
sues — the electoral truce and affiliation of the Communist
Party—all will be united in desiring one thing: a strengthen-
ing of the Labor Party’s role in the political life of the nation.
The conference may lay down policies which will permit labor

to become the most powerful poli-~

tical force in Britain, a force de-
voted to the speedy winning of
the war and the consolidation of
labor’s post-war position.
Opinion within the Labor Par-
ty is divided as to how its in-
fluence may be extended. One
section seeks to end the elec-
toral truce and withdraw labor’s
representatives from the govern-
ment; another, composed mostly
of Divisional Labor Party mem-
bers, believes the party will not
grow in effectiveness until it
ceases to be dominated by the
trade unions; the third, placing
the emphasis on the need for la-
por unity, supports the affilia-
tion of the Communist Party.

PPEALS of the Communists
for affiliation have been
turned down by the Labor Party
executive from 1923 onwards. Re-
newing its appeal on January
first of this year, the Communist
Party stated: “The experiences
gained in the course of the united
struggle against fascism have
shown the tremendous part that
a united working-class move-
ment can play, not only in the
winning of the war, but in what
will be needed from the workers
in helping to solve the serious
problems of post-war reconstruc-
tion.”

Pointing to the example of
France, the Communist Party
‘declared:

‘Members of the Labor Party
will recall how Leon Blum,
leader of the French Socialist
Party, delivered at the British
Labor Party Conference in 1940
the most bitter attack against
the Gommunists that any leader
jad delivered in any country.
Yet it is this same Blum who,
after his country had been sur-
rendered to fascism, drew the
lesson and declared in burning
words at Riom trial: ‘That there
were between myself and the
Communists in the past such
difficulties is no longer of im-
portance today, and for my part,
I obliterate them entirely from
my mind.”

To substantiate their argument
that affiliation would stimulate
the Labor Party, the Communists
point to the fact that membership
in their party increased from 12,-
500 in 1937 to 65,000 today, where-
as the number of individual mem-
bers of the Labor Party declined
in the same period from 447,000
to 225,000, and the percentage of
trade unionists paying dues to
the Labor Party fell from 51 to
42.

HE Labor Party executive re-
fused the application by a
vote of 17 to seven, basing it’s
objection on the grounds that
“the Communist Party is a pup-
pet manipulated from abroad by
the Communist International’
(Daily Herald editorial, March 20,
1943). Subsequent dissolution of
the Internatiohal merely caused
the Labor Party to shift the em-
phasis of its arguments.
“Philosophies and methods of
the two parties are incompatible,”
the executive committee stated on
May 28. “Disbandment of the CI
does not imply repudiation of
‘revolutionary dictatorship’.”

The issue will be fought out
at the coming convention. To
date, 13 national unions, 125

trades councils and nearly 2,500
union locals have voted for affila-
tion. Several unions, including
the Boot and Shoe Operatives and
the Railway CGlerks, have voted
against. Major surprise has been
the opposition vote of the Nation—
al Union of Railwaymen’s execu-
tive committee, despite the fact
that the largest NUR district
councils — including the 32,300
strong London council—have vot-
ed in favor. Charles Dukes, sec-
retary of the powerful General
and Municipal Workers, has
threatened that his union will
pull out of the Labor Party if
affiliation goes through.

F considerable importance to

the outcome of the issue is
the fact that several of the large
unions on record for affiliation
have small votes at the annual
Labor Party Convention. Under-
the terms of the Trades Disputes
Acts of 1927, which was the Tory
governments answer to the gen-
eral strike of 1926, trade union-
ists have to “contract-in” to pay
dues to the Labor Party, instead
of, as before, automatically pay-
ing political dues as soon as they
joined a union.

This has meant that hundreds
of thousands of unionists—partic-
ularly those in disagreement with
the policies of the Labor Party—
have abstained from joining the
party. For instance, only 385,000
members of the Amalgamated
Engineering Union, which favors
affiliation, will have a vote at
the forthcoming conference.

The Labor Party has twice held
office in Britain—in 1924 and
1929, both times under the lead-
ership of Ramsay MacDonald. On
neither occasion, however, did the
party have a clearcut majority in
Parliament over the Conservative
and Liberal parties. Although the
1931 election, held during the ec-
onomic crisis, was won by the
Tories in a landslide, Labor polled
nearly 7,000,000 votes, compared
with 8,000,000 in 1929. In 1935,
Labor polled 8,500,000 votes to the
Gonservative’s 10,500,000, but the
Tories won 387 seats to Labor's
154. No general election has been
held since then, under the terms
of the wartime electoral truce.

Rackets
QM E erudite scribe
once: “Anything can =

in Los Angeles.” There j -

one thing wrong with that
tion—the limitation of tej _

It should have been fran”

include all the area rile”

py the nine old men knej

the US Supreme Court fF”
it should have had an add
to it so that it would read:
thing can happen the Uj
does.” . 0

Many good things have
pened in the US. The gery
American people for organ
has taken care of that But
shoddy things also must be
ited to that same genius, ¢
these latter is the develo
of “rackets.” Some of thes*
kets, like those of the @
Zangsters, commend ther
to no one but the facketeg
the more subtle among thi
ceive the commendation 6;
sections of the American
who admire them because
get the money.’ Among fi
the device for parting t
wary from their hard-
wealth known as the Book
Month club, written up |
columns a couple of wee}:
by Cynthia Carter,

Phineas T. Barnum, one
truly great ones” of the re_
left a slogan behind him
will last as long as the ¢2}
system: “There’s one born
minute.” He was referring
great body of citizens kne
“suckers,” lists of whose
are kept in the safety Yai
bond sales. companies, j
brokers, real estate shark
lesser business elements W
satisfied with the nickel
dimes. :

These suckers are typlf
the smart Yankee who
one of the London barraj
loons for $180 from an
Englishman whom he
chance a few days ago, 6
find later that his purcha
of the same kind as the
lyn Bridge sales which hay
made many a time to Middl,
farmers on a visit to New

Half a million of this chk
worked over by the Book
Month club, which sells
books they have no usei
cause they think they a1
ting a bargain.

ARX used to say: “Bot
my weapons. I make
do my bidding.” The Book
Month club may also wi
that principle but their ©
cannot. A recent book
mended by the Club, Tht
Seal, is a slander on the
Union at a time when, 2:
chill says, our Soviet all
bearing the brunt of the N
slaught.

This book is written by
gee white guard, publishe
years ago and dug up ne
is of no literary value. Thi
ever, does not prevent al
viewer alleging that this |
renegade is doing for
what Anatole France ¢
Franece—showing the Rus
they are as France sho}
Frenchmen what they
like.

Nothing could be furth
the truth. Anatole France
eredit to his country |
emigree Russian is not 4!
ing on the slander of a bi
courageous people and ¢
be called a Russian as !
Arnold can be called an
can.

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