. GUIDE TO GOOD READING Foster writes brilliant work in Political History of the Americas WILLIAM Z. FOSTER’S new book, Outline Political History of the Americas (International ‘Pub- lishers), is the most important contribution yet made to a scientific understanding of the rich history of the 300 million people of the Western (Hemis- phere. As such, it question the single most import- ant book that has yet come from the pen of an American Marxist. And it is, of course, no accident that its author should be the foremost Marxist theoretical and political leader produced by the working class of the. United States. To fully appreciate the magni- tude, scope and originality of this work, one needs but bear in mind that up to its appearance there was not a single book which even remotely undertook to pre- sent a systematic and integrated history of the peoples who com- prise the 22 nations of the’ Ameri- cas. As for Marxist writings, while there have been many basic contributions dealing with differ- ent periods and phases of U.S. history, there has not been, up to this point, even an authorita- tive political history of the USS., let alone of the hemisphere. ‘ The Outline Political History of the Americas is a scholarly work. But lest some be frightened at this, fearful that the book is written in the dry-as-dust style of an ivory tower professor, let me reassure them. Tht story toid by Foster is that of the people, their life, their struggles, their victories, their defeats, and their - future. It is told with a simplic- ity and with ‘a passion that makes the book both exciting and en- * jeyable to read, and which trans- 2 °° FOR RENTALS forms the reader from a mere ob- server into a militant participant. The ‘book breathes the revolu- tionary spirit of its author; his great understanding and love for the common people; his passion- ate hatred for capitalism and every form of capitalist exploita, tion and oppression. From the pages of this book the reader sees the Indian people of this hemis- phere as they were and as they are. He gets a glimpse of their primitive cemmunal society, of their culture, and of what capital- ist civilization has done to them. Likewise, in respect to the Negro people Foster tells the whole story of slavery, its vile~ brutality, the .grandeur of the Negro peoples’ struggles and re- is without WILLIAM Z. FOSTER His book will aid in uniting the peoples of this hemisphere to fight to peace, independence and social- ism. volts for freedom, the special status ofsthe Negro people in the Black Belt in- the United States as an oppressed nation, and their relationship to the Negro people in the rest of the hemisphere. : Be Sick a ak S, FOSTER CONSTANTLY bears in mind Frederick Engels’ words that “All history must be studied afresh,” and uses his deep un- derstanding of Marxism-Leninism to shed new light on the past, to show classes and individuals in their true historic setting, to res- cue the rich democratic and re- volutionary traditions of the com- mon people from the bourgeois falsifiers and -maligners of his- tory. While consciously avoiding the pitfalls of a narrow schematic approach to the past, which ex- pects: classes and individuals to perform feats for which, objective developments have not yet pre- pared them, Foster just as con- sciously avoids any glorification of the past, and evaluates all the actors on the stages of history “from a working class revolution- ary point of view. This is of extremely great im- portance, for not only does Earl Browder present U.S. monopoly capitalism as a “progressive” force, but during the period of his ~ misleadership in the Communist party there was also the tendency to distort the past history of U.S. capitalism, accepting in large part the evaluation that the bour- PENDER AUDITORIUM (Marine Workers) . 339 West Pender LARGE & SMALL HALLS Phone PA. 9481 * _ FULLY EAST END TAXI UNION DRIVERS | HAstings 0334 eerener 24-HOUR SERVICE: 811 E. HASTINGS ST. geoisie made of its own history. Foster, however, never forgets that capitalism, even in its as- cendant stage, represented a most brutal and barbaric system of inhuman class oppression and ex- ploitation. He shows that “the capitalist _development of the Americas has been one of the greatest tragic dreams in the his- a of the world,” and - proves the’ correctness of Karl Marx’ statement that the growth of capitalism. in the United States has been brought about “more . shamelessly than in any other conntree ‘\ * ¥ * IN THE SECTION of the book which covers the bourgeois revo- ' lutions of the hemisphere, Foster assesses the leaders of these revo- lutions from a Marxist point of view and rates the top three in STANTON & MUNRO Barristers, Solicitors, Notaries. SUITE 515, FORD BUILDING, 198 E. HASTINGS ST. _(Corner Main & Hastings Sts.) MArine 5746 the following order. First-and foremost is Toussaint L/Ouverture, the magnificent leader of the Haitian slaves who led the struggle for independence in conjunction with the struggle to put an end to chattel slavery. Second in stature is Miguel Hidalgo, the Mexican revolution- ary who was the representative of the Indian and Mestizo peons, and who made the struggle for the land a central issue, In third place Foster lists Thomas Jefferson, who while him- self a large planter and slave owner was nonetheless the rep- resentative of the democratic de- sires of the white small farmers. One of the most important con- tributions in the book is the treatment of the national ques- tion as it affects the Indian peo- ple and the Negro people. Here Many misconceptions are dealt with and answered, most typical of which is the false notion that the Indian people have somehow “vanished.” Foster shows that there are well over 40 million Indian people in the West Hemis- phere, far more than there were when Columbus “discovered” the continent in 1492. The status of both the Indian and. the Negro people are dealt with country by country and Fos- ter proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that the national question is one of the most important un- “resolved questions throughout the hemisphere, although its concrete ‘solution will vary from country to country. : * * oe THE Outline Political History of the Americas also studies the struggles of the working class and the rise of both the» labor movement and the Communist movement in each of the 22 na- tions. This is tied up with an exposition of the hemisphere problems of today and with the future perspectives. : In these sections, Foster anal- yzes the present international situations and the drive of USS. imperialism, which expresses it- self in a renewed drive on the part of Wall Street to bring about the complete subjugation of Latin America and Canada and the _ transformation of the Latin Am- erican countries into a colonial hinterland of Wall Street imperi- alism. In fact, the book itself was conceived by its author as a weapon which would aid in unit- ing the peoples of the hemisphere in the fight for peace, indepen- dence and socialism. As Foster states in his preface: “If the imperialist menace is to be combatted effectively, it is imperative that the many peoples of the Western Hemisphere should become better acquainted with one . another. They must learn to know each other’s history, to un- derstand the complex economic, political, cultural and social forces now at work in and among all the respective countries, and how to build up a strong spirit of de- mocratic cooperation among themselves and with the other peoples of the world.” It is in this spirit that this’ new major and profound contribution of Foster must be read and stud- ied. It is impossible within the limits of a short review to do full justice to the scope and signifi- cance of this book. Suffice it to say that the working class of the United States and its Communist , movement can well be proud of " this important additions to the arsenal of Marxism-Leninism. —GILBERT GREEN. . * Where _ from the opera for an exhibition- ist Hollywood-style finale, . KOREAN PEOPLE'S ART Korean war. are three of the best. Fighters,” Korean People’s Army. Writers, artists at war front KOREAN WRITERS are playing their full part in the At present 130 teams of literary and art workers are assisting in the frontlines and in the rear, lost their lives on the battlefield, among them actress Hwang Sin Cha, dancer Li Hi Cho and film actor Lyu Hyun. Korean yetters have produced many brilliant literary works since the outbreak: of the Korean war. books, For Fatherland, Stories of Combat Heroes, and The-Oath Composers Chung Ryul Sung and Li Myun Sang have com- pleted a number of militant songs, such as “We are Tank “Songs of the People’s Guerillas” Boat,’ which are very popuiar among the soldiers of the Film workers have also made war newsreels and several documentary films including Appeal to the People of the World, a picture exposing American atrocities in Korea. Many have Among recently-published and “Torpedo ON: THE « SCREEN ~ Good screen version of Faust marred by finole NOW CONCLUDING its run at the Studio Theatre in Vancouver is another made-in-Italy, Ameri- can-produced adaptation of grand opera, this time Gounod’s Faust, with a competent cast headed by Italo Tajo as Mephistopheles, Nelly Corradi as Marguerite and Gino Mattera as Dr. Faustus. Faust embodies the struggle be- tween “good and evil’, the philo- sophical refiection of the contra- aictions within dying feudalism, wherein the aged Dr. Faustus sells his soul to the .devil in re- turn for BeuED and pleasure. The film eon (with English titles) ‘digresses’ little from ‘the opera, and Gounod’s music, in particular, survives abridgement surprisingly: well. The somber photograph enhances the mood of a picture which generally is cap- ably directed. “the picture deviates how- ever, it deserves the , sharpest criticism. | Opera purists notwithstanding, popularized opera, of which Faust and the Devil is an’ example, serves a valuable function and should be encouraged. Certainly this film provides an enjoyable hour anda half of entertainment. ( _N. E. STORY. Capsule Reviews HARVEY This picture (currently showing at the Vogue in Vancouver) is good for almost as many chuckles as it drew when its six-foot three and a half-inch rabbit, Harvey, became the first invisible star of the New York stage. Harvey, an alcoholic hallucination of whimsi- cal dipsomaniac Elwood P .Dowd, played by James Stewart, is en- ® joyable but slightly less likeable than on the stage, partly because Henry Koster’s direction never clearly projects him. Dowd’s even battier sister, Veta, is delightfully played by Josephine Hull, who originated the role on Broadway. Altogether Harvey’s mature hu- mor make this one of the most enjoyable pictures of the past year. * enemies STEEL HELMET _ Released with the blessings of Wall Street, this racist and brutal version of the war in Korea be- trays its makers. A “key” scene shows the cold-blooded murder of a North Korean prisoner of war. Mainly, a bad brew of propa- ganda and chauvinism, Public protest has forced its withdrawal in Vancouver and similar protest should be directed against it wherever it is shown. CALL ME MISTER A once-gay Broadway musical becomes just another piece of fluff in the film version, which retains very little of the sprightly revue it got its title from. MR. \MUSIC Nothing but Bing Crosby to re- commend this musical remake of “Accent on Youth.” Even the songs don’t séem as sprightly as usual. SEVEN DAYS TO NOON British travesty on -the world situation created by U.S. threat to drop the atom bomb. Suggests those who want to ban bomb are of peace and freedom, even dangerous lunatics. BORN YESTERDAY A hysterically funny comedy delivering sharp political punches. While it’s all pretty much on the light side—thanks almost entire- ly to the talents of Judy Holli- day—the pungent dialogue does a devastating job on the corruption of congressmen and big business. Two shortcomings—the, lame ex- Rlanation that not all congress- men are corrupt, ‘and the fact that audience laughter drowns out some of the lines—can be for- given this Hollywood rarity. Bro- derick Crawford and William Holden help knit it together. THE MUDLARK A little boy decides to visit Queen Victoria. Plenty of senti- mentality ensues, but little com- ment on the realities of the time. GLASS MENAGERIE Gertrude Lawrence, Jane Wy- _ man, Kirk Douglas and Arthur Kennedy in a vague, symbolic but frequently moving gstory of an unhappy group living in a dismal tenement apartment in St. Louis during the Hungry Thirties. Grandview Market 3726 Grandview Highway FREE DELIVERY—DE. 1494-M Fresh Fruit and Vegetables : Our Specialty » UNION HOUSE ZENITH CAFE = 105 E. Hastings Street VANCOUVER, B.C. PACIFIC TRIBUNE — MARCH 9, 1951 — PAGE 10 ve \ ’