Victory for democracy

D EMOCRACY won a victory last Friday when the U.S.

Court of Appeals, by a 5-3 decision, held that the no-
toriously anti-labor Landrum-Griffin Act was unconstitu-
tional in barring Communist Party members from holding
union office.

The action reversed a 1962 conviction of a San Fran-
cisco longshoreman, Archie Brown, who was sentenced to
six months for holding an executive post in the Longshore-
men’s Union while being an admitted member of the Com-
munist Party.

The court ruled that the Landrum-Grfiffin provision
violated the Constitution by punishing a man for what he is
rather than for what he does or intends to do. To be con-
stitutional, said the ruling, the provision would have to re-
quire proof that a Communist was using or planning to use
his union office to overthrow the federal government.

Of course, nothing of this kind can be proven against
a Communist because the “force and violence” gimmick
is merely an invention of the red-baiter and has nothing to
do with the true stand of the Communists, either in the
U.S. or Canada.

The decision of the U.S. court will be welcomed by all
true democrats. It will also cause widespread consterna-
tion among the red-baiters in and outside the labor move-
ment. It’s a known fact that many U.S. international unions
wrote this notorious Landrum-Griffin provision into their
constitutions, and even tried to foist that provision on their
affiliates in Canada.

It’s not so long ago that a well-known B.C. trade union
leader was removed from his position under this provision
in his international union constitution. When appealed, a
B.C. judge held that his removal was legal since it came
within the interpretation of the international constitution’s
provision, which was based on the Landrum-Griffin Act
now declared illegal.

Many right-wing trade union leaders in Canada, anxi
ious to intimidate left-thinking workers, used the Land-
rum-Griffin Act to attack Communist trade unionists. The
decision of the U.S. court has now knocked the feet from
under them.

It’s time that the full democratic rights of Communists
in Canadian unions were fully restored and that those who
have been the victims of such attacks should have their full
rights restored in their respective unions;

was not the guest of Adolph Hitler

or Benito Mussolini in their hey-
day, . ..” A-later edition of The

rom numerous of the editor-
_ial blurps in our local mon-
opoly press it is obvious that the

South Africa today :
Sh indi ion!
show indignation!
HE answer of South Africa’s racist government to

T world-wide protests against the vicious life sentences
handed out to the leaders of the anti-apartheid movement
has been to extend the death penalty against those oppos-
ing the police state regime.

Flying in the face of growing opposition in the country
and the United Nations vote last week, which virtually de-
clared the Verwoerd regime as an outlaw government, the

South African racists have moved to crush ruthlessly all
criticism.

Leaders of the South African people have called for
world pressure and for strengthening of the boycott to bring
the facist regime to its senses. The least every right-think-
ing person can do to express indignation is to boycott all
South African goods on sale in B.C. stores.

It may be added here that aside
from being one of British Co-
lumbia’s outstanding socialist
women, in, and outside the Legis-
lature of this province, Mrs,
Dorothy Steeves is also one of
the countless thousands of Cana-*
dian mothers whose sons gave
their lives -in order that the
“heyday” of fascism would be
ended; a stern and harsh truth,

own Liberal chieftain, the late
Mackenzie King, also made atrip
to the Third Reich, andcame back
to Canada all “spooked” up with
the Nazi maniac of Brechtes-
gaden, Tory “Gorgeous” George
Drew was another “guest” who
trumpeted his “favorable
prssions” far and wide, especial-
ly on how Hitler “solved” unem-
ployment, We alsohad innumber-

im-

-~coldwar can still stand a lot of
“defrosting”, Seems it will need
a real big “thaw” to penetrate

Citizen (North Vancouver) ran the
same coldwar cannard, almost
word for word,

the editorial sanctums of not a -

few of our coldwar trained seals,

Just to illustrate, Some weeks
ago Mrs, Dorothy Steeves, oneof
B,C,’s vetean members of the
CCF-NDP movement, paid a visit
to Cuba, Upon her return Mrs,
Steeves related her impressions
to sundry interested groups and
individuals, Without any attempt
to gloss over the things she didn’t
like about Cuba or the Fidel Cas-
tro government, Mrs. Steeves ex-
pressed the opinion that Fidel
Castro “has done a wonderful job
in Cuba,” or words to that effect,

That was the cue for the trained
seals of coldwar journalism to
inject their editorial two-bits
worth, An editorial in The Van-
couver Sun (June 3) got off the
insulting observation that, “it is
well Dolly (Mrs, Steeves, Ed,)

The intent of such low-grade
editorializing and its implica-

tions are self evident, First to.

discredit anything of a praise-
worthy nature Mrs, Steeves may
have to say about Cuba, its people
or its government, And secondly,
that Mrs, Steeves isnot a qualified
person to discern between the
benefits of socialism and the vile
evils of fascism, and hence would
probably be as fulsome in her
praise of the latter, had she been
a “guest” of either of these mur-
derous brigands in their “hey-
day,” 4

One would be hard put to it to
find anything more insulting, ig-
norant and cruel than such edit-
orial comment, but there it is in
cold print, the end product of
coldwar prejudice and bigotry,
Who says we have no “John
Birchers” in Canada?

unworthy of such editorial able leading bankers, industrial
calumn, tycoons, financial and monopoly
calumny, wizards who made safaris to visit.

But, as The Sun says, “Some
Canadians went over there, and
Englishmen and Americans, and
came back to say that in spite of
their (Hitler and Mussolini) being
dictators, they were doing a won-
derful job, .. .”

The Sun should know, since it
was, and still is the spokesman
for many of these “some Cana-
dians’’ who were greatly ‘‘im-
pressed’’ with the achievements
of Der Feuhrer,

While Mrs, Dorothy Steeves
was not one of these we might
mention just a jew, since The
Sun failed to identify any in its
effort to smear her, Lord Home,

the present Prime Minister of —

Great Britain, and Chamberlain’s
chief aide at Munich was one of
those “most deeply impressed”
with the political and economic
“successes” of Herr Hitler, Our

“Der Feuhrer,” and returned all
“hopped up” with what he was
doing — and wishing they could
“emulate his example” in Canada,

As is customary with the mon-
opoly press, which exists pri-
marily to give ample coverage to
their views and opinions, (without
snide insult or inuendo), their

Mr, Hinnissey, “is freedo™

1

“defeat in November, a ma

~ They recall with horror

jews
-Steeves, because of her view st

Every responsible leader in ul bit! q
i s
(Republican) knows that, ecb
e

coating of moderation must be au
lacked over the views that have .
uttered by the present front-t
Goldwater. :

13
—GOVERNOR SCRANTON, June

*

The U.S. has misread a
to misread the (Cuban) revolut
Cuban people are not likely to we! toke
as liberators the exiles who WOU eoplé
back the farms given to 20,000 ea
and the millions of acres once ®
by United Fruit.

nd continues
jon.

the old ie
(still being eliminated) in thell ie

and the unemployment rate ok ve
cent under Batista. They! farship

pride at the thousands of scho ji
students who before the rev? high
would never have had a chance a tion
er education. This is their roe
and they are not going to perm din
be consumed by worms wraPP
stars and stripes.

—Editorial in the Naniony
GUARDIAN, progressive U.5-

*«

, ror
Shocking is the word for ihe ;
posed B.C. Hydro fransit fare Fa: ers
It looks as if fearful municip? gov”
may be right and that the Benne the
ernment is manoeuvering to ¥" ment
transit system upon local 9 Oye aa 3
Public opinion is bound to ques” the
need for such large increases “yp be
welfare of the public should be P
fore politics. yF

Ih
— VANCOUVER SUN, June —

*

What would happen to the econo
of this country if all workers in”
try had such a notoriously bad ie in
record as our elected representa’
Ottawa? What is only 30 out ofe
265 railroad, factory or office W°"

showed up for work every day?

a
—THE COMMONWEALTH, Res!

“favorable impressions” gote
coverage during the “heyday a
their gangster hosts at Brechte?”
gaden and Rome,

The editorial insult and 6
bage thrown at Mrs, Dor

almo

Cuba, used to be reserved” 5
unis

exclusively for the Comm ry
But the disease of coldwar bié fe
widens the range—and non€ "|
entirely immune from its in¥®
tive—except those who conlor
to its destructive influenc®

* * *

» MI
“Freedom av th’ pres%: ong
Dooley explained to his

call yez all th’ names th’
himself couldn’t invint,
thumb their nose at yeZ Wied
object, A foine freedom me pho

meal Iie
oof AG Gi
SANE

a
A)

wie

Editor

Vancouver 4,B.C. .

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Associate Editor — MAURICE RUSH
Circulation Manager — JERRY SHACK
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4
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June 26, 1964—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—P99