Albert Weisbord
Encyclopedia
Albert Weisbord was an American political activist and union organizer
. He is best remembered as one of the primary union organizers of the seminal 1926 Passaic Textile Strike
and as the founder of a small Trotskyist political organization of the 1930s called the Communist League of Struggle
.
. His father was a manufacturer.
Weisbord attended primary, grammar, and high school in Brooklyn, New York. He worked variously as a newsboy
, a clerk in a grocery store, as a worker in a clothing factory, and in a soda shop during his earlier years.
Weisbord entered the City College of New York
in 1917, joining the Brooklyn Branch of the Socialist Party of America
at that same time. He began teaching classes in the English language to immigrants to America at the Rand School of Social Science
, an adult-educational offshoot of the Socialist Party, while he was still himself attending school.
Weisbord graduated with a Bachelor's degree
from City College Phi Beta Kappa in 1921. He was then accepted into Harvard Law School
, graduating with honors in 1924.
(IWW), but he soon moved to the ranks of the Socialist Party of America
(SPA), an organization which believed in the efficacy of electoral politics to implement change.
In the summer of 1921, the party's National Executive Committee asked him to conduct a speaking tour to help reorganize the Young People's Socialist League
, the bulk of which had exited the SPA to join forces with the Communists. After going on tour to reorganize the locals, a national convention was held to relaunch a new YPSL (loyal to the Socialist Party) at Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The convention named Weisbord its National Director, a position which entitled him to a seat on the party's governing NEC. Weisbord remained as National Director of the Socialist Party's youth section until the middle of 1924.
In June 1924, Weisbord was named assistant organizer of the Socialist Party's New England district. Later that year, he attended the meeting of the Conference for Progressive Political Action
at which the Socialist Party joined with a number of unions to nominate Robert La Follette
as an independent for President of the United States
. This experience was disillusioning for Weisbord, as he had wanted the Socialists to form a labor party to guide the workers toward socialist as had been done in England. Instead, he felt that the party was a petty bourgeois organization moving toward liberalism
. Weisbord resigned from the SPA joined the Communist (Workers) Party in November 1924.
While in the Party he gained fame for leading the textile strike in Passaic, New Jersey
in 1926, an event of particular significance as the first attempt by Communists to lead a strike action by American factory workers. The radical Weisbord was seen as an inflammatory figure by the mill owners, and in August 1926 he was removed from leadership of the strikers.
His participation as a leader of the Passaic strike as a leader of the United Textile Workers "made" Weisbord as a public face of the Workers (Communist) Party and upon termination of the strike in the fall of 1926 he was sent on a speaking tour on behalf of the party, telling of his strike experiences to a general audience.
In December 1926, Weisbord was dispatched to Mexico City
on behalf of the Red International of Labor Unions (Profintern). He carried with him $1,000 in gold coin as seed money for the Mexican union movement.
Weisbord was sent to Moscow
in the spring of 1928 as a delegate of the Communist Party's Trade Union Educational League
(TUEL) to the World Congress of the Profintern that opened on March 10, 1928. His selection no doubt was intended in part as a faction-balancing measure, owing to Weisbord's status as one of the top Lovestone loyalists in the Communist Party's labor arm, TUEL being the main center for the opposition faction of William Z. Foster
.
In the fall of 1928, Weisbord was the candidate of the Workers (Communist) Party for U.S. Senate from New Jersey. Weisbord also served as the secretary-treasurer of the National Textile Workers' Union, the Communist Party-sponsored dual union affiliated with the Trade Union Unity League
.
Following the political demise of Jay Lovestone and his associates in 1929, Weisbord grew increasingly disenchanted with the leadership of the Communist Party. He left the organization and briefly joined the Trotskyist Communist League of America
in 1930.
On March 15, 1931, Weisbord and his wife launched an independent Marxist group, the Communist League of Struggle
, which existed until 1937.
This was the first split in the US Trotskyist movement. For the first three years the group asserted agreement with the policies of the Trotskyist International Left Opposition and regularly carried Trotskys articles, but in November 1934 Weisbord and the CLS openly broke with Trotsky. By the time the CLS dissolved in 1937 it had almost no membership left, and Weisbord concentrated on publishing his book, The Conquest of Power: Liberalism, Anarchism, Syndicalism, Socialism, Fascism, and Communism which was published by Covici-Friede that year.
When World War II
broke out, Weisbord supported the U.S. entry into the war, albeit in the interest of defeating imperialism.
Union organizer
A union organizer is a specific type of trade union member or an appointed union official. A majority of unions appoint rather than elect their organizers....
. He is best remembered as one of the primary union organizers of the seminal 1926 Passaic Textile Strike
1926 Passaic Textile Strike
The 1926 Passaic Textile Strike was a work stoppage by over 15,000 woolen mill workers in and around Passaic, New Jersey over wage issues in several factories in the vicinity...
and as the founder of a small Trotskyist political organization of the 1930s called the Communist League of Struggle
Communist League of Struggle
The Communist League of Struggle was a small communist organization active in the United States during the 1930s. Founded by Albert Weisbord and his wife, Vera Buch, who were veterans of the Left Socialist movement and the Communist Party USA, the CLS briefly affiliated with Leon Trotsky...
.
Early years
Albert Weisbord was born December 9, 1900 to a Russian-Jewish family in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. His father was a manufacturer.
Weisbord attended primary, grammar, and high school in Brooklyn, New York. He worked variously as a newsboy
Newsboy
-Personal nicknames:* "Newsboy", a horse-racing tipster writing in The Daily Mirror* Jeremy Wells, a television personality-Other uses:* Newsvendor model, a demand forecasting model from operations research,...
, a clerk in a grocery store, as a worker in a clothing factory, and in a soda shop during his earlier years.
Weisbord entered the City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
in 1917, joining the Brooklyn Branch of the Socialist Party of America
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
at that same time. He began teaching classes in the English language to immigrants to America at the Rand School of Social Science
Rand School of Social Science
The Rand School of Social Science was formed in New York City by adherents of the Socialist Party of America in 1906. The school aimed to provide a broad education to workers, imparting a politicizing class-consciousness, and additionally served as a research bureau, a publisher, and the operator...
, an adult-educational offshoot of the Socialist Party, while he was still himself attending school.
Weisbord graduated with a Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from City College Phi Beta Kappa in 1921. He was then accepted into Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
, graduating with honors in 1924.
Political career
Weisbord was initially a member of the syndicalist Industrial Workers of the WorldIndustrial Workers of the World
The Industrial Workers of the World is an international union. At its peak in 1923, the organization claimed some 100,000 members in good standing, and could marshal the support of perhaps 300,000 workers. Its membership declined dramatically after a 1924 split brought on by internal conflict...
(IWW), but he soon moved to the ranks of the Socialist Party of America
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
(SPA), an organization which believed in the efficacy of electoral politics to implement change.
In the summer of 1921, the party's National Executive Committee asked him to conduct a speaking tour to help reorganize the Young People's Socialist League
Young People's Socialist League
The Young People's Socialist League , founded in 1989, is the official youth arm of the Socialist Party USA. The group's membership consists of those democratic socialists under the age of 30, and its political activities tend to concentrate on increasing the voter turnout of young democratic...
, the bulk of which had exited the SPA to join forces with the Communists. After going on tour to reorganize the locals, a national convention was held to relaunch a new YPSL (loyal to the Socialist Party) at Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The convention named Weisbord its National Director, a position which entitled him to a seat on the party's governing NEC. Weisbord remained as National Director of the Socialist Party's youth section until the middle of 1924.
In June 1924, Weisbord was named assistant organizer of the Socialist Party's New England district. Later that year, he attended the meeting of the Conference for Progressive Political Action
Conference for Progressive Political Action
The Conference for Progressive Political Action was officially established by the convention call of the 16 major railway labor unions in the United States, represented by a committee of six: William H. Johnston of the Machinists' Union, Martin F. Ryan of the Railway Carmen, Warren S. Stone of the...
at which the Socialist Party joined with a number of unions to nominate Robert La Follette
Robert M. La Follette, Sr.
Robert Marion "Fighting Bob" La Follette, Sr. , was an American Republican politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, was the Governor of Wisconsin, and was also a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin...
as an independent for President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. This experience was disillusioning for Weisbord, as he had wanted the Socialists to form a labor party to guide the workers toward socialist as had been done in England. Instead, he felt that the party was a petty bourgeois organization moving toward liberalism
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
. Weisbord resigned from the SPA joined the Communist (Workers) Party in November 1924.
While in the Party he gained fame for leading the textile strike in Passaic, New Jersey
Passaic, New Jersey
Passaic is a city in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 69,781, maintaining its status as the 15th largest municipality in New Jersey with an increase of 1,920 residents from the 2000 Census population of 67,861...
in 1926, an event of particular significance as the first attempt by Communists to lead a strike action by American factory workers. The radical Weisbord was seen as an inflammatory figure by the mill owners, and in August 1926 he was removed from leadership of the strikers.
His participation as a leader of the Passaic strike as a leader of the United Textile Workers "made" Weisbord as a public face of the Workers (Communist) Party and upon termination of the strike in the fall of 1926 he was sent on a speaking tour on behalf of the party, telling of his strike experiences to a general audience.
In December 1926, Weisbord was dispatched to Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
on behalf of the Red International of Labor Unions (Profintern). He carried with him $1,000 in gold coin as seed money for the Mexican union movement.
Weisbord was sent to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
in the spring of 1928 as a delegate of the Communist Party's Trade Union Educational League
Trade Union Educational League
The Trade Union Educational League was established by William Z. Foster in 1920 as a means of uniting radicals within various trade unions for a common plan of action. The group was subsidized by the Communist International via the Communist Party of America from 1922...
(TUEL) to the World Congress of the Profintern that opened on March 10, 1928. His selection no doubt was intended in part as a faction-balancing measure, owing to Weisbord's status as one of the top Lovestone loyalists in the Communist Party's labor arm, TUEL being the main center for the opposition faction of William Z. Foster
William Z. Foster
William Foster was a radical American labor organizer and Marxist politician, whose career included a lengthy stint as General Secretary of the Communist Party USA...
.
In the fall of 1928, Weisbord was the candidate of the Workers (Communist) Party for U.S. Senate from New Jersey. Weisbord also served as the secretary-treasurer of the National Textile Workers' Union, the Communist Party-sponsored dual union affiliated with the Trade Union Unity League
Trade Union Unity League
The Trade Union Unity League was an industrial union umbrella organization of the Communist Party of the United States between 1929 and 1935...
.
Following the political demise of Jay Lovestone and his associates in 1929, Weisbord grew increasingly disenchanted with the leadership of the Communist Party. He left the organization and briefly joined the Trotskyist Communist League of America
Communist League of America
The Communist League of America was founded by James P. Cannon, Max Shachtman and Martin Abern late in 1928 after their expulsion from the Communist Party USA for Trotskyism. The CLA was the United States section of Leon Trotsky's International Left Opposition and initially positioned itself as...
in 1930.
On March 15, 1931, Weisbord and his wife launched an independent Marxist group, the Communist League of Struggle
Communist League of Struggle
The Communist League of Struggle was a small communist organization active in the United States during the 1930s. Founded by Albert Weisbord and his wife, Vera Buch, who were veterans of the Left Socialist movement and the Communist Party USA, the CLS briefly affiliated with Leon Trotsky...
, which existed until 1937.
This was the first split in the US Trotskyist movement. For the first three years the group asserted agreement with the policies of the Trotskyist International Left Opposition and regularly carried Trotskys articles, but in November 1934 Weisbord and the CLS openly broke with Trotsky. By the time the CLS dissolved in 1937 it had almost no membership left, and Weisbord concentrated on publishing his book, The Conquest of Power: Liberalism, Anarchism, Syndicalism, Socialism, Fascism, and Communism which was published by Covici-Friede that year.
When World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
broke out, Weisbord supported the U.S. entry into the war, albeit in the interest of defeating imperialism.
Books and pamphlets
- Passaic: The Story of a Struggle against Starvation Wages and for the Right to Organize. Chicago: Daily World Publishing Co., November 1926.
- For a New Communist International. New York: Communist League of Struggle, 1933.
- Communism and the Social Order. New York : Communist League of Struggle, 1934.
- The Conquest of Power: Liberalism, Anarchism, Syndicalism, Socialism, Fascism, and Communism. New York: Covici-Friede, 1937.
- Latin American actuality New York: Citadel Press, 1964.
- Critique of the New Draft Program of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Chicago: E. Clemente & Sons, 1962.
Articles
- "Support the Central Executive Committee; Criticize Its Too Many Right Errors," The Daily Worker, vol. 5, no. 331 (January 24, 1929), pg. 3.
External links
- The Albert and Vera Weisbord Archive, Weisbord.org. Retrieved February 25, 2010.