Written on occasion of Zetkin’s 70th birthday.

‘Reminiscences of Joint Work in the Movement with Klara Zetkin’ by N. Krupskaya from International Press Correspondence. Vol. 7 No. 37. June 30, 1927.

To be frank, I can write very little about this theme. It is easier for me to speak of the influence which Klara Zetkin exercised upon me.

At the beginning of the ‘nineties when our Party was slowly beginning to collect its forces, when there were only individual small groups of Marxists and when our organisation was not built up even in the chief centres, the influence of the German Social Democracy upon our growing Social Democratic movement was very great.

When in 1890 the Anti-Socialist Law was abolished, a period of quick growth commenced for the German Social Democracy, a growth which was both broad and deep and applied not only to the political organisations, but also to the trade unions, cooperatives and educational organisations. The Russian Social Democracy learned from the German how to connect the Marxist theory with practice, with the daily questions of interest to the workers. The name of Klara Zetkin was indissolubly bound up for us with the German Social Democracy, and it was dear to us.

The necessity of extending the work amongst the women in Russia, of carrying on the work in Russia which Klara Zetkin carried on in Germany, was obvious for us women members of the Social Democracy. My first illegal pamphlet was entitled: “The Woman as a Worker”. The influence of Klara Zetkin showed itself clearly in this pamphlet.

Later on, when we were fighting the opportunist deviations in our working class movement, under the leadership of Lenin, we always supported ourselves upon the left wing of the German Social Democracy. Klara Zetkin belonged to this left wing. In his pamphlet “One Step Forwards and Two Steps Back”, Comrade Lenin, who was describing the struggle at our Second Party Congress against the Mensheviki, quotes Klara Zetkin’s reproach to Bebel for not drawing a sufficiently clear line of demarcation between him and the opportunist Vollmar: “I am sorry to see you (Bebel) in such company”.

I learned very much from Klara Zetkin’s newspaper “Gleichheit” (“Equality”). Zetkin’s articles always contained a broad Marxist treatment of educational and artistic questions etc.

I saw Klara Zetkin for the first time in Munich in 1902 at a great workers’ meeting somewhere in the workers’ quarter. I can no longer remember what she said; I only know that she spoke very passionately. I can remember the strained attention with which the assembled workers listened to her speech. I remember that she spoke not only of the economic struggle of the working class, not only of the political struggle, but also of the advance of culture and the emancipation of the individual through the struggle for Socialism.

At that time our Party had to conduct a struggle against the so-called “economists” who limited the class struggle and confined it to a struggle for economic demands. And although Klara Zetkin said nothing about our “economists” and indeed, could say nothing, yet her speech was a justification of the policy of the “Iskra” (The “Iskra” was the illegal Social Democratic political newspaper which appeared in Munich at that time and was smuggled into Russia).

Later I met Klara Zetkin in the international women’s movement. An international congress was planned to take place in Vienna in 1914 and parallel with it an international conference of women. Upon our part we proposed Inessa Armand, who was in regular correspondence with Klara Zetkin, as reporter. I collected the material referring to Russia.

The war prevented the carrying out of the Vienna conference. In the Autumn of 1915 I met Klara Zetkin in Berne at the International Women’s Conference. During the war Klara Zetkin worked together with Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. The calling of an international conference in a period when the war was developing into a world war, was very difficult. Klara Zetkin was heartily supported by the Russian women Bolshevists, above all by Inessa Armand. The conference was well-visited. And although the resolutions which were adopted, were not sufficiently decided, the fact alone that it was called at all, was of great importance, It was a demonstration against imperialist war.

Later I met Klara Zetkin in Russia. I have never had to work directly with Klara Zetkin. Her work was chiefly connected with the international movement whilst I worked chiefly for the enlightenment of the people, but we often met at all sorts of meeting. To-day Klara Zetkin is one of the most popular leaders and is known not only amongst the working women in Russia, but also amongst the peasant women in the farthest villages. Our work amongst the women developed along the path traversed by Klara Zetkin. Our working class movement owes her very much.

Those who know Klara Zetkin value her not only as a leader and zealous fighter in the casue of the proletariat, but also as the agreeable and attentive comrade in whose society one can win new courage and energy.

On Klara Zetkin’s 70th birthday we shall all remember what she has done for our struggle. We send her our warmest good wishes.

International Press Correspondence, widely known as”Inprecorr” was published by the Executive Committee of the Communist International (ECCI) regularly in German and English, occasionally in many other languages, beginning in 1921 and lasting in English until 1938. Inprecorr’s role was to supply translated articles to the English-speaking press of the International from the Comintern’s different sections, as well as news and statements from the ECCI. Many ‘Daily Worker’ and ‘Communist’ articles originated in Inprecorr, and it also published articles by American comrades for use in other countries. It was published at least weekly, and often thrice weekly.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/international/comintern/inprecor/1927/v07n37-jun-30-1927-inprecor-op.pdf