Investigation of Communist Activities in Seattle, Wash., Area, Hearings, Part 1United States. Congress. House. Committee on Un-American Activities
History
Investigation of Communist Activities in Seattle, Wash., Area, Hearings, Part 1
United States. Congress. House. Committee on Un-American Activities
Communism -- Washington (State) -- Seattle
There was great apprehension on the part of our district bureau about
the action. We feared that perhaps the Communist Party was going
nationalist on us, and we thought that was a heinous crime, that you
should always be internationalists. And Browder was reassuring us that
the Communist philosophy was still internationalist and would continue
to be internationalist, but that the formal connection and the formal
affiliations would have to be dispensed with.
He felt that the party was strong enough to travel along the road, as
it needed to, without the direct intervention of the Comintern.
And, of course, it was shortly after that the Comintern itself was
dissolved.
Mr. TAVENNER. How long did this organization, the Trade Union
Unity League, remain in effect in this area? And when I say in effect,
I mean in existence.
Mr. DENNETT. Until the organization of the CIO.
As the organization of the CIO approached or became clear that it
was going to come in, the policy of the Red International of Labor
Unions was modified by the international headquarters in Prague. It
was modified because the 12th Plenum of the Executive Committee of the
Communist International had reviewed the developing world situation,
had noted with alarm the rise of fascism in Germany, and resolved that
somewhere their policies were not being too effective and, therefore,
they must make certain modifications and allow for a little more
flexibility than they had before.
You must understand that one of the conditions which existed as a
condition for organizing these Red trade unions was that those workers
so organized were virtually obliged to declare their loyalty to the
cause of the Communist Party. Now that did not mean that they had to
be members of it, but it meant that they had to express their sympathy
with the efforts of the Soviet people and they had to accept the idea
that the objectives of the working class and of the Communist Party
were the same.
Therefore, they didn’t meet with much success in the United States
in organizing these Red trade unions because the average worker who
was confronted with this choice would say, “The devil with you.” He
wouldn’t make a choice of that kind.
Mr. TAVENNER. In other words, they realized they could not
sell communism to the rank and file of American labor if it knew what
they were buying.
Mr. DENNETT. They certainly couldn’t sell it under that label
to the American worker. They rejected it.
Mr. TAVENNER. A label is for the purpose of describing an
item; is it not?
Mr. DENNETT. I can accept your statement; I think you are
right. I think that confirms our experience.
Mr. MOULDER. This was in a period, the conditions and
circumstances of which offered a ripe opportunity for the exploitation
of labor in this country by the Communist organizations.
Mr. DENNETT. That is very true. And you must understand that
we met with an uneven success.
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