Political reaction, mass deportations, terrorism against the foreign-born, and by extension the whole working class, under the Hoover administration.

‘Support the Fight Against the Persecution of the Foreign-Born’ by S. Horwatt from The Daily Worker. Vol. 8 No. 303. December 18, 1931.

N.Y. Secretary of the Committee for the Protection of the Foreign Born.

THE industrial history of America is a history full of superhuman suffering and exploitation of the working masses in general and the Negro and foreign-born in particular. There is not one basic industry in which thousands of foreign-born workers have not only lost their health, but have even lost their lives. The hardest and the most dangerous work in this country has been done by Negroes and foreign-born workers. Of the industrial history of the United States, can justly be said, that a great part of it has been written with the sweat and blood of the foreign-born workers.

But now, Mr. William’ Doak dares to report to the 72nd Congress that “immigration, however, is no longer a substantial economic menace to our progress ” And continues: “To register the foreign-born, to make naturalization more difficult, to finger-print those who are about to become citizens and to deport all those that the government considers undesirables.”

Is the corporation lawyer, Mr. Doak, ignorant of the fact that “Progress’’ (read—capitalistic wealth) has been squeezed out of the brain and brawn of these very same foreign-born, whom the government is now trying to persecute? Are these capitalistic lackeys and enemies of the working masses ignorant of the fact that in such basic industries as iron, steel, oil, leather, meat, etc., from 61 to 67 per cent of the workers are foreign-born? Don’t they know this? Of course they do. But their approach to the foreign-born is the same as to the working man in general. As long as he is needed in the machine of exploitation, he is taken advantage of. But as soon as he ceases to be a source of profits, he is thrown out of the industry, which he has built, without any means of sustenance.

To prove this, it is sufficient to mention the fact that millions of unemployed go about hungry and the government does nothing whatever of any substantial value to relieve them. But these hungry masses refuse to be silent about it. The hungry are organizing a mighty struggle for unemployment insurance and immediate relief.

And it is because of this that the government began its intensive campaign to discriminate, terrorize and deport foreign-born workers in order to destroy the solidarity front of the working class. This is why President Hoover in his message to the 72nd Congress states: “I recommend that…deportation laws should be strengthened. Aliens lawfully residing in this country, should be protected by the issuance of certificates of residence.”

But if President Hoover did not dare to name the reason for his statement openly, then Secretary of Labor Doak did it for him. In the previously mentioned report to Congress. Doak shamelessly and openly stated that all discriminations and persecutions which Hr. Hoover and himself. Doak, proposed are in order to “Protect the social and political structure of American civilization.” As to just what sort of “civilization” Doak means, the bayonets and machine guns illustrated quite clearly at the opening of the 72nd Congress.

It is interesting to note that Doak’s statement is fully in accord with the black “Michigan Bill No. 520.” It is important to point out to the masses that despite the fact that the Committee for the Defense of the Foreign Born were victorious in forcing the federal court to reject its bill, yet it is quite clear that the contents of this same bill will be proposed to Congress as a federal bill. No one need to be misled that because the federal court of Michigan state declared the bill unconstitutional, therefore we have passed the danger mark. On the contrary, our struggle must now assume a nation-wide character. The contents of the “Michigan Bill” has practically been proposed directly by President Hoover in his yearly message.

But Doak is not satisfied by just persecuting the foreign-born. He goes a step further. He thinks that the activities of the organizations fighting for the protection of the foreign-born should be limited (read—forbidden). “Because,” Doak continues, “the organizations, by persistent propaganda, are hampering the deportation of alien enemies of the country.” This Ku-Klux Klanist has the audacity to say further on: “Even in cases where guilt was clearly shown, the efforts of this department were being handicapped.” Poor soul! Had this been so, perhaps It would be possible for the corporation lawyer, Mr. Doak, to prove on what legal grounds the laborer, Yokinen, whom he calls “an enemy of the country,” was arrested and is being held for deportation? But it is of no avail. We know very well that this is not a question of constitutional rights. We know that the attack on the foreign-born serves the same purpose as that which the Tzar Nickolai persecuted Jews in Russia.

We know that the recommendation of Mr. Doak to preserve the right of the government to cancel citizenship only aims to frighten the millions of naturalized citizens and detract their attention from the struggle for unemployment insurance. According to the Bureau of Statistics in Washington, there were 13,386,407 foreign-born in the year 1930 in the United States. Of this number there are about 9,000,000 workers.

Does Mr. Doak really believe that he will succeed in terrorizing all these millions of foreign-born without any resistance on their part?

Does he really believe that he can check this struggle of the Committee for the Protection of Foreign-Born and he will be left unhampered in his deportation plans? We can assure every Doak and the like that not only will we not limit ourselves to our activities, but we will advance such a mighty struggle against persecution of the foreign-born that they will first realize what “hampering” really means.

The American working masses are very apt pupils in this crisis. They are rapidly realizing that this reactionary wave against the foreign-born goes parallel with the increased lynching campaigns of the Negro workers. The American workers are realizing that with this terror warn against the foreign-born and Negro workers, strides the wage-cut, unemployment, hunger and homelessness, persecution and jail for the entire working class. The American worker is rapidly learning that all the dark powers in this country that are fighting tooth and nail against unemployment relief, are the important leaders in the attack on the living standard of the American working class in general and persecute the foreign-born in particular.

President Hoover and Secretary of Labor Doak have shown in their report to Congress that all recommendations and bills against the foreign-born, proposed by the different personages and patriotic fascist organizations, has now become a general government issue. Hoover’s and Doak’s recommendations were formulated by the “Coalition of Patriotic Societies” only two weeks ago and have been accepted on the 25th of November in Washington, D.C. This is what the resolution formulated:

(1) To strengthen the deportation laws.

(2) To exclude foreign-born workers from employment.

(3) To register foreign-born workers.

(4) To lengthen the time and make it more difficult for one to become a citizen of the United States.

(5) That the President of the United States gets the fullest authority to deport anyone who will not be considered in accord with “100 per cent Americanism.”

Similar resolutions were adopted before the opening of Congress by the “United Patriotic” organizations and other organizations hostile to the working class.

Can anyone find one single word in the above mentioned facts that were lacking in Doak’s recommendations and in Hoover’s few masqued words in his message to Congress? Doak is practically repeating every word of the resolutions adopted by the “Coalition” and even elaborated upon Hoover’s speech.

It is quite clear that we have a united front of all reactionary and working hostile forces to deal with now. It is quite evident that Fish, Doak, Hoover and the whole paraphernalia was in back of the resolutions of the patriotic organizations. But against this united front of the working people in general, and the foreign-born in particular, the Committee for the Protection of the Foreign-Born will unite all the working citizens and non-citizens, Americans and foreign-born, white and colored, and united we will shatter the chains of slavery that the government is forging for the foreign-born.

It is the duty of every radical and progressive organization that is in any way at all connected with this righteous struggle which the foreign-born worker is conducting, should join the Committee for the Defense of the Foreign Born.

Every organization in every city of the United States should put this issue of the defense of the foreign-born to the forefront. The slogan of every organization, regardless of its political or social views, should be:

Down with the persecuting discriminations and deportation of the foreign-born!

Long live the solidarity of the American working class, white and Negro, native and foreign-born!

The Daily Worker began in 1924 and was published in New York City by the Communist Party US and its predecessor organizations. Among the most long-lasting and important left publications in US history, it had a circulation of 35,000 at its peak. The Daily Worker came from The Ohio Socialist, published by the Left Wing-dominated Socialist Party of Ohio in Cleveland from 1917 to November 1919, when it became became The Toiler, paper of the Communist Labor Party. In December 1921 the above-ground Workers Party of America merged the Toiler with the paper Workers Council to found The Worker, which became The Daily Worker beginning January 13, 1924. National and City (New York and environs) editions exist.

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