Along with Martinez’ biography of Mella, included below is the statement of the U.S. Communist Party on his murder in Mexico.

‘The Assassination of Julio A. Mella by Agents of Yankee Imperialism’ by R.A. Martinez from International Press Correspondence. Vol. 9 No. 6. February 1, 1929.

Gerardo Machado, the actual President of Cuba, earned his present position by openly promising the United States, that he was going to put an end to the labour unrest, prevailing during 1924, of the enslaved workers in the sugar cane plantations and other American owned enterprises, which culminated in a strike involving almost 300,000 workers, and bringing about practically a stoppage to the country’s economic life.

No sooner had he reached the presidency that he began to play the role of butcher of the Cuban working class; declaring illegal the strongest revolutionary unions, while supporting the Pan-American Federation of Labour. endeavouring to get control of the others, suppressing all militant workers’ newspapers. The Party and Anti-Imperialist League have been driven underground: deportation of thousands of foreign workers and systematic killing of the most militant of the native workers, throwing into the ocean and filling the jail with any worker who would dare raise his voice in protest. American imperialism has had no vilest, bloodiest tyrant with which to destroy the ever-growing resistance of the Latin American workers.

No other leader earned more his hatred, the hatred of the imperialist-controlled ruling class than Julio Antonio Mella, because no other leader has fought more consistently, more devotedly for the interest of the Cuban and Latin American mass than Mella.

Deported from Cuba, deported from Honduras, deported from Guatemala, after two years of revolutionary activities in Mexico, the criminal hand of Machado, extending across the frontier through some of his police spies, cut short his revolutionary life.

Born in the city of Camaguey, 28 years ago, Comrade Mella began his revolutionary activities in the Students Federation of Havana, of which he was President, leading the movement of “University Reforms” that was spreading throughout Latin America in the years 1919/21. His activities earned him continental recognition.

In January 1923 he organised the Popular University “Jose Marti” an organisation which was widely supported by Cuban workers, and which became very active on anti-imperialist agitation. The persecutions which started due to these activities continued in the most bitter form, culminating in his assassination.

Through the Popular University he connected himself with the widest Cuban masses, becoming one of its most active militants. He was immediately attracted by the Communist Party of Cuba, joining its ranks and taking a leading part in the organization of strikes, public demonstrations, etc., landing frequently in jail.

In 1924/25 he participated in the organisation of the Cuban Section of the All-America Anti-Imperialist League, of which he was Secretary during his presence in Cuba, writing his first pamphlet “Cuba Never Has Been Free”. The activities of the Anti-Imperialist League caused innumerable persecutions and assassinations, amongst them being Jose Varona, one of the outstanding Communist leaders of Cuba. Mella was arrested and held incommunicado; as a sign of protest he declared a hunger-strike which lasted 18 days and served to mobilise large numbers of workers throughout Latin America and the United States. The demonstrations were of such a magnitude that bloody Machado was forced to set him free, but he was constantly spied upon. He left Cuba for Honduras where another of the hirelings of Wall Street, the Government of Pas Bárahona arrested him as suspicious character and forced him to leave the country. He left for Guatemala where he was enthusiastically received by the Popular University and the Students’ Federation. He took active part in the strikes that were being led by the Communist Party of Guatemala; here he was kidnapped by another U.S. agent, dictator Orellana, and deported to Mexico. He was detained by the Mexican immigration authorities but allowed in as a result of the activities of the Mexican Party (Feb. 1926).

In Mexico he has been one of the outstanding leaders of the Party: member of the Central Committee, head of the Agit-Prop Dept., very prominent in the organisation of the All-American Anti-Imperialist League, editor of its organ for some time “El Libertador”: he was a delegate to the World Anti-Imperialist Congress in Brussels from the Mexican Peasant League. From Brussels he went to Moscow as a delegate to the international Labour Defence (M.O.P.R.). Upon his return he dedicated all his time to carry through the decisions of the Congress he has attended, with the organisation of the “Liga Pro Luchadores Perseguidos” (Mexican Section of M.O.P.R.), by strengthening the anti-imperialist activities throughout Latin America.

He took very active part in Sandino’s uprising in Nicaragua and in the formation of the Hands off Nicaragua Committee, for the collection of funds to help Sandino in his struggle against American marines.

He wrote a pamphlet called “What is A.R.P.A.”, exposing all the fakers which under the guise of anti-imperialist phraseology are hampering the creation of a real continental organisation; another one exposing all the crimes committed by butcher Machado in his four years of tyranny and persecutions. His assassination on Mexican territory by agents of the Cuban dictator will serve once more, to show to the Latin American masses that American Imperialism will not stop at frontiers once it has made up its mind to annihilate those who struggle against it, also to demonstrate that the only road to victory is the road on which he has fallen, regardless of frontiers: the road of the class struggle, the road of unity of the Latin American workers and peasants.

Declaration of the C.E.C. of the Workers’ (Communist) Party of America on the Murder of Julio Antonio Mella.

Down With the Yankee Imperialist Murderers!

Our valiant comrade and revolutionary fighter, Julio Mella, has just been murdered by agents of United States Imperialism in Mexico City. Mella was assassinated by hired gunmen of the Cuban Machado government, which is only a puppet of Wall Street.

Mella, one of the best known Communists of Latin America, was formerly secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba. He was a sworn enemy of Yankee imperialism and its tools and agents in Latin America. Because of his anti-imperialist activities against Wall Street’s domination in Cuba, the Machado government of Cuba sentenced him to prison and death. Upon his escape to Mexico, he became a member of the Central Committee of the Mexican Communist Party and Secretary of the League for the Protection of Persecuted Workers.

The blood of our brave comrade is on the heads of the imperialist Coolidge-Hoover government. This is the fruit of the Hoover good-will tour. Yankee imperialist “good will” means super profits for the American millionaires and degradation, poverty, tyranny, oppression and death for the toiling masses in the countries of Latin America and everywhere else. Let the death of Mella be a warning to the workers of the United States and Latin America. The death of our comrade rips off the mask from the fake Pan-American peace conferences and Washington arbitration schemes. All these devices are only deadly poison–weapons in the hands of the oppressors and exploiters of the Latin American and United States working masses.

The Murder of Mella follows close upon the cold-blooded assassination of numerous striking workers in Colombia by uniformed mercenaries of the United Fruit Company in the armed forces of the servile Colombian government. This foul attack on one of the most courageous fighters in our ranks symbolises the brutal, the aggressive drive launched by the Yankee imperialists to subjugate completely the Latin-American masses, to drive beneath the yoke of Wall Street the toiling masses of Central and South America.

The assassination of Mella is only part of the United States imperialist drive to crush the growing forces of resistance to its aggression. But the working masses of Latin America and the United States will not be over-awed by this campaign of terror organised by the United States imperialist plunder gang. The murdering of Mella will only forewarn and fore-arm us, will only inspire and steel us to a determined, united struggle of the working masses of both continents against our common enemies, the United States imperialists and their bloody puppet governments and their tools in Latin America, their labour lieutenants in the ranks of the American working class the American Federation of Labour bureaucracy and their socialist parties.

Working in the closest co-operation, the United States toiling masses and the Latin American working masses, under the leadership of the Communist Parties, will avenge the murder of Mella and the many other victims of American imperialist domination by overthrowing the exploiting and oppressing classes of these countries and setting up in their stead workers and farmers’ republics.

The murderers of Mella draw their inspiration from the same source that the lynchers of the Negroes in the United States do!

The assassins of Mella and the Colombian strikers, the oppressors and exploiters of the Latin-American masses, draw their inspiration and comfort from the same forces that exploit and oppress the workers and poor farmers in the United States, that give us injunction democracy, that break our strikes, smash our unions, cut our wages, force upon us intolerable living conditions, jail our best fighters, and are feverishly preparing the next imperialist war.

We pledge ourselves to the Communist Parties of Mexico and Cuba and the Communist Parties of the other Latin American countries, to work with all our might and main hand in hand with them, for the overthrow and destruction of our common enemy, U.S. imperialism.

Down with the fake, the poisonous Pan-Americanism! Down with United States imperialism!

Down with the bloody Machado puppet government of Cuba! Cut with Wall Street’s imperialist agents now terrorising Latin America as native governments!

Away with the social reformist labour bureaucrats and reactionaries, paralysing the labour movements of the United States and Latin America!

Smash the United States imperialist plot against the safety, against the lives of our best Communist fighters!

Hands off Latin-America!

Under the leadership of the Communist International, let us rally our forces for a common victorious struggle against United States imperialism and its allies and puppets!

Central Executive Committee Workers (Communist) Party of America.

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/1929/v09n06-feb-01-1929-inprecor.pdf