Resolution of the Second National Convention of the Workers (Communist) Party held in December, 1922.

‘Rights of Foreign-Born Workers’ from Voice of Labor (Chicago). Vol. 11 No. 581. January 9, 1923.

1. The separation of the American workers into two divisions–one the English-speaking workers–the other the foreign language speaking workers is the greatest obstacle of the unity of action and class consciousness of the American working class.

2. The majority of the workers in the basic industries are foreign-born, they are one of the important elements of the American working class.

3. The foreign-born working masses are economically exploited and politically oppressed to a greater degree than the English speaking workers. T

hey cannot write or speak English. They are not citizens. They are therefore robbed of the most important weapons of self-protection. They take no part in the political life of the country, to a large extent are not organized industrially, and furthermore, among themselves, they are divided into scores of nations! groups. One of the most important tasks of the W.P. of A. is to draw the foreign-born workers into the broad political life of the country.

4. The offensive of the capitalists and the government against the foreign born is today taking on new impetus and activity. Already many states have denied the right to vote to the foreign-born workers who could not read or write. Already many states have forbidden foreign-born workers to hold meetings in their own languages. Today an unprecedented offensive against the foreign-born workers has been launched. Pres. Harding in his message to Congress has as an important point in his program, recommended legislation for the registration of all foreign-born workers. The Department of Justice has recommended that all aliens be catalogued with photographs and fingerprints. Secretary Davis has recommended that legislation be enacted giving the government the “authority to revoke naturalization certificates because of gross misconduct or disloyalty occurring subsequent to naturalization.” A bill has been introduced by representative Edmonds providing for the deportation of every foreign-born worker who participates in any strike or makes a speech in any strike meeting. The government today would register and catalogue the foreign-born workers as criminals with photographs and fingerprints (Johnson bill).

5. It is the duty of the W.P. of A. to launch an aggressive campaign against this new form of oppression and for the protection of the foreign born workers The W.P. of A. must draw the foreign born workers into the broad political life of the country; into the general labor movement and must convince the foreign born working masses that the most powerful weapon of protection against the ruthless oppression of the government is a LABOR PARTY. The W.P. of A. must convince the foreign-born comrades that they can only protect themselves when they fight side by side with the English-speaking workers. At the same time the W.P. of A. must convince the English-speaking American workers that an attack upon the foreign-born workers is an attack against them, and further, that the division of the working class into these sections enables the capitalists to pit one section of workers against another while exploiting both.

6. The W.P. of A. will organize, on a national basis, committees for the protection of the rights of the foreign-born workers. These committees for the protection of the rights of the foreign-born workers shall consist of delegate unions and all organizations with foreign born membership such as benefit organizations and educational societies. Our members must wage this campaign so that every separate nationalist element shall be abolished. We must never emphasize special protection for any national group but always the protection for all foreign-born workers and the solidarity of the foreign born workers with the American-born workers.

The Voice of Labor was a regional paper published in Chicago by the Workers (Communist) Party as the “The American Labor Educational Society” (with false printing and volume information to get around censorship laws of the time) and was focused on building the nascent Farmer-Labor Party while fighting for leadership with the Chicago Federation of Labor. It was produced mostly as a weekly in 1923-1924 and contains enormous detail on the activity of the Party in the city of those years.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/vol/v11n581-jan-12-1923-VOL.pdf