Letter to the National Committee, Communist League of America, May 27, 1932

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Our Attitude to Weisbord

To the National Committee,

Communist League of America

Dear Comrades:

I have already sent you my statement on the labor party. Enclosed I am sending you the letter which I wrote to Comrade Weisbord as a result of our discussions. I hope that the letter will give you complete satisfaction and that you will be able to make the necessary use of my letter if the Weisbord group continues to fight against us in the way it has done hitherto.

But I must say that my letter, although it does not make any concessions at all, is nevertheless written in a spirit which leaves the door open for a possibility of rapprochement and later of unification. Personally Weisbord displays a sincere willingness to incorporate his group in our ranks. In all the disputed questions of principled significance he has recognized the correctness of the basic views of the Left Opposition. In this sense he has declared himself in solidarity with my letter as a whole. He has the intention of acting accordingly upon his return to the U.S. and of issuing a number of his periodical in this spirit. So far as I know, he has already counseled his friends in America in this sense. The latest number of The Militant brings very sharp echoes of the disputes, which is in itself quite understandable. But I hope that in case the Weisbord group undertakes genuine steps toward adherence to the Left Opposition and thereby to the American League, The Militant will not impede the rapprochement but rather facilitate it.

In the meantime Weisbord is going to Germany and to Prance, of course on his own initiative, to look up our friends there. I have sent both of my documents on the labor party as well as my letter to W. to all the sections so that the comrades will be familiar with the matter, and I hope therefore that we do not need to fear any misunderstandings.

I hope that you have received in the meantime my circular with regard to the international conference. Some of the Spanish comrades seem to have the desire to transform the international conference into a sort of a field day for “also” and “nevertheless” Left groups. This sentiment is being nurtured by Naville and by the open and concealed Navillists. I am certain that you will have nothing to do with such a conference and that you will give an unequivocal expression to your opinion regarding it. Due to the importance of the question it would perhaps be appropriate to take a vote with regard to this by roll call in your committee and to inform the International Secretariat of the results. It is high time to teach some of the comrades that there are things with which one must not jest. At any rate, we can figure with certainty that the Russian, German, French, Greek, and Belgian sections will take an unequivocal and decisive position. Aside from the Spanish section there are vacillations on this question perhaps only on the part of the Czechoslovak section, which is quite new in our midst and has not yet liberated itself entirely of its Zinovievist past and is not quite firm precisely on the international questions. The Czechoslovak section proposes that its leader, Comrade [Otto] Friedmann, be admitted into the International Secretariat. Comrade Friedmann is very warmly recommended by them because of his theoretical talents. It is quite possible that they are correct. Unfortunately, Comrade Friedmann is very little known among us, as is the case with their group as a whole. Therefore, it would perhaps be careless to add the as yet too little tested Comrade Friedmann to the International Secretariat at the present time.

It is unfortunate that you have no reliable comrade in Europe to represent your organization in the Secretariat. At any rate, it is absolutely necessary that your committee as a whole follow the international questions precisely at the present time with the most complete attentiveness. On my part, I am always prepared to give you the necessary information upon request.

Please inform me how the matter stands with the sale of the Yiddish edition of the second volume of the History. Comrade Shachtman informed me some time ago that a sum of from five to six hundred dollars was due from this transaction. This money is to go to the International Secretariat and especially for the German and Spanish sections — after you deduct ten percent for The Militant. I beg you to settle this matter as quickly as possible.

With best communist greetings,

L. Trotsky