Comrade M,. (Liverpool) in issue 31, (July 27) of the International Bulletin made a well-meaning, but in my opinion, wrong-headed comment upon the domand of cortain "apparent socialists", who domanded the dismissal of the Fascist Jordam from his job as school teacher in Coventry, following the smashing of Jordan's attempts to hold a meoting in Trafalgar Square. Comrade M. correctly advises, "Tho way to combat Fascism is by agitation and oxtra~-Parliamontary action" This, is as far as it goes, is correct, but unfortunatoly ho flios off at a tangont end denics his own theses, for these wore procisoly the methods the Coventry workers omployed. It is difficult to undorstand why ho goes on to criticise the logical conclusion of ticso efforts, that is the dismissal of Jordan, and why he admonishes cortain "apparent socialists" not to combat Fascism by "supporting 'logal' coercion. by the administrative apparatus". Aro wo to understand that when comrade Il. talks of democratic rights, ho undertakes to oxtend and protect the rights of those oponly dedicated to crush and extirpate the democratic rights of other people, especially those of the working class?
The facts are theses- the “administrative apparatus" happons to be the Education Committee of the Coventry City Council run by one of the nost left wing Labour Partics in Groat Britain. The "logal coeorcion" was applicd by the working class parents of the pupils at Jordan's school, who ably supported their mums and dads by giving Jordan the "bird" when he turned up at tho school aftor tho Trafalga Square incident, the whole campaign boing rounded off by firm support from the 70,000 odd trade unionists through their various branches and final pressure boing appliod (if any was necessary) by the Constituoncy Labour Parties ropresenting more than 6,000 individual members, through rosolutions to the City Council. Tho outcome was that this admirer of the maniac Hitlor was sackod and the conclusions that we militant socialists (along with our frionds "tho apparent socialists") cutomatically reach aro that this was a necessary job woll done, in working class socialist fashion.
Whether the means employed by those involved fits strictly into comrade lie's formula of fighting Fascism, by "agitation", and "extraparliamentary action" (whatever that may mean, if you don't talk about concrote things, like mothors, fathers, children, T.U.'s L.P.'s, etc.) tho ond rosult was a working class victory. In my opinion, a model picce of socialist activity on a local scale - an oxampls of how to pull the Fascists up short by mass action. In difforont circumstances, different means would be employed, but when we march around with placards domanding the banning of Fascism, this is precisoly the form of action wo aro demanding bourgecis governments to tokes; if we do not moan this thon the slogan is meaning~ less. By thoso moans wo intond cithor to force boss-class politicians to take action against thoir own potontial allics or smoke these politicians out as dofendors of Fascist thugs.
The burden of Comrade M.'s commonts is that he fears that "..this typo of action is doublo edged and could be applied to the whole of the Left". This motnod of reasoning has a long ancestry. I+t is an old Liboral-bourgeois and social democratic red herring. Tho classical ficld of its operntion was Social—Democratic Germeny, and it was trotted out not only to oppose mass action against the Hitlerites, but also on occasions whsn specific action was called for against particular thugs. Over and over agnin in tho Veimar Republic of Gormany in the post first world wor poriod (during the rise of Fascism) Fascists committed atrocities against Scoialists, Commnists, Jows, and other opponents. Government officials, Army Officers, and Police Chicfs aided the Brownshirts to brutally assault and assissinate working class opponents. “hon tho storms of protest arose from tho left, calling for thoir ‘dismissal, the inevitable free advice was handed out from nowsp2pers, Parliamentary benches and public platforms by Liberal and Social—Domocratic master-ninds - "Don't kick the Fascists and thoir frionds out of thoir job, or the same thing may happon to the Left". Most of these pampered thugs and thoir protectors survived these protests and in Hitler's time, waded through the blood of millions of people, amongst whom were ircnically onough those solf same "domoc— ratic" liberal and socialist "hdvisors". The facts aro that all Fascists aro deadly cnomics of working class libertics and intond to bo tho executioners of its socialist vanguard. Ve must accept the lessons cf Gormany, Italy, spain, °tc., and do all in our power to politically injure and crush the Fascists both as individuals and as groups; this includes the use of all logal cans provided by the bourgeois stato machino.
But comrade li. foars that to uso this stato machine or "administrative apparatus" will boomorang against the left. ‘surely it is obvious that the 70,000 trade unionists ond the 6,000 labour workors who supported the paronts,in one city clone,in securing Jordan's dismissal, is a domonstration that the workors are powerful onough and class conscious cnough to handle any Tory burouacrats or would
Jordan's dismissal continued/ be De Gaulle who has totalitarian aspirations, A working class which is strong onough to enforce its will to the oxtont that cithor local or national governments aro forcod to take action against the Fascists, is sufficiontly poworful to rosist attacks upon tho socialist loft wing.
No woaknoss on our part on this quostion of Fascism is pormissable. Tho rosurgonce of Fascist activity should be a warning to the whole Labour movomont, The fact that working class resistance to the Fascist cliques has forced them to split and oponly compote for support amongst their tattorod ranks by rival public meetings, should not lull socialists into complacency or any weakling cries for “domocratic rights", "froo speoch", etc., to bo accorded to these potontial Sichnons.