THE PEOPLE'S FORUM
THE PEOPLE'S FORUM Cancels Dear Sirs: I regret it is impossible for me to support The Progressive any longer, for it is now perfectly obvious that the strength of its convictions is carefully...
...Harvesting the Whirlwind Dear Sirs: With the exception of Milton Mayer, you have ceased to be the guardian of truth...
...Please, therefore, discontinue my subscription...
...The Supreme Court has likewise made restrictive covenants by which property-owners in particular areas agree not to sell to Negroes (or to other minorities) unenforceable at law...
...It may be that what we laughingly call the "primaries" in Florida and North Carolina are more accurate representations of public feeling than the Supreme Court decisions...
...If we win it, we may expect to see totalitarianism spread as fast and as far as it has on the heels of our last two victories...
...Marguerite Eisen Detroit, Mich...
...At the same time, even regarding the matter from a non-paciflst standpoint, I feel that it is always the gravest possible mistake to go to war on a weak and confused issue...
...The American Jewish Congress had to get rid of its Communist wing, the Jewish Peoples Fraternal Order...
...Nothing could have been more destructive of the United Nations and the hope for peace than failure to resist aggression by the North Koreans...
...In this and other countries the free functioning of unions is a good test of democracy...
...For Mr...
...The CIO has found it necessary to get rid of all its Communist-controlled unions...
...Our companion in arms, Soviet Russia, which Mr...
...Mayer's twin remedies for opposing Communism are to tell them the truth, and to go into Communist meetings, conventions, committees and conferences...
...Even more dangerous and objectionable, in my opinion, is the American Government's reversal of policy in regard to Formosa, after recognizing China's right to the island...
...Ruth Edgar Malone Long Beach, Calif...
...Your sincerity shows up when you're a pacifist during wars...
...The "we," incidentally, are the democratic American people who atom-bombed the de' fenseless civilian population of Hiroshima for the same reason that Goering block-busted Coventry: to end the war...
...William Esslinger New York, N. Y. Hurts More Dear Sirs: Most reluctantly I am forced to admit unhappiness over The Progressive's attitude toward the Korean crisis...
...Milton Mayer Chicago, 111...
...The United States has no right to occupy Korea or any part of it...
...If he is, he might do well to ponder the fate of civil rights legislation in the 81st—not the 80th— Congress...
...During the war unions increased in numbers and strength, and they have held these gains since the war...
...Negroes^ are being called for jury service, appointed to the police force, and even elected to office in the South...
...But this is not what makes me maddest...
...But it still applies in Government service, and has been enacted in nine states while we were supposed to have lost our democracy...
...To justify his opposition to fighting Stalin, he states that he did not want this country to destroy its democracy by fighting Hitler...
...THE PEOPLE'S FORUM Cancels Dear Sirs: I regret it is impossible for me to support The Progressive any longer, for it is now perfectly obvious that the strength of its convictions is carefully measured by the number of coins in the treasury...
...You're not the only liberal magazine to do this, of course, but somehow or other it hurts more coming fiom you...
...John L. Metcalfe Chewelah, Wash...
...All these genuine advances in democracy have occurred when, if Mr...
...Carl K. Frost Pacific Grove, Calif...
...Lois Booth Glen Mills, Pa...
...But we won't even win it...
...His first remedy is impossible...
...How Stupid...
...Mayer believes that our current determination to oppose Communism is a crusade against democracy...
...The Consequences of Korea," the articles by Cord Meyer, Jr., and the article by Arnold Rose state beautifully some things that very much need to be said these days with all the effectiveness possible...
...And I doubt that Mr...
...Ralph DiGia Frances Rose Ransom Frieda Langer Lazarus David Dellinger Administrative Committee War Resisters League New York, N. Y. Supporting Murder Dear Sirs: I am not renewing my subscription to The Progressive, as a result of your endorsement of the shocking Korean affair...
...Won't Renew Dear Sirs: I think The Progressive is very good, but I do not want to subscribe for it again...
...and the USSR...
...It expressed a position which takes realistic measure of all the factors involved and presents the only hopeful course consistent with democratic principles...
...Their only alternative is either cold war, which has never yet failed to turn hot, or hot...
...What makes me maddest is the fact that my Government and my State Department have so arranged it that I and a lot of people like me find themselves on the same side in this thing as the Communists...
...If Einstein is right—and he ought to be, on this point—we have made the annihilation of the human race possible...
...The Supreme Court has made possible effective voting by Negroes by declaring unconstitutional the "white primary" system by which Negroes were prevented from voting in the primaries of the dominant party...
...The facts show that a war to preserve political democracy against totalitarian dictatorship does not destroy, but in fact advances democracy...
...I call the Korean issue a "weak and confused" one because so much of a provocative nature in the way of war preparations and threats and the ill-treatment of political prisoners appears to have been indulged in by South Korea that the friends of the latter country have not got that strong case of 100% justice on their side which should be regarded by those who use war as an instrument of international policy as an absolute sine qua non for beginning hostilities...
...It takes more guts that way...
...We should double and triple its circulation, and I for one am going to make a greater effort, when the school term is resumed, to see that The Progressive is more widely known and used...
...As a direct result of the war, President Roosevelt opened up greater employment opportunities for Negroes through an Executive Order, and most of these employment gains they have held...
...Big Help Dear Sirs: Boy, that was a wonderful article by Milton Mayer, "Both Your Houses," in the July issue, and it was awfully good to see it featured...
...They know it is a war of intervention and a civil war precipitated by the criminal division of Korea by the United States and the USSR...
...Anybody can be for peace in the absence of wars...
...Mayer's theory were right, our democracy has been destroyed...
...There is literally no way to reach the masses in a Communist-dominated country with any propaganda that their dictators do not want them to hear...
...Celia Ford Syracuse, N. Y. Wisconsin's Redemption Dear Sirs: The first issue I met was like finding a new friend...
...Lewis could not be more enthusiastic than I about the recent race decisions of the Supreme Court, or less enthusiastic than I about the recent decisions of the Court involving certain other elements of democracy, such as trade union freedom, the privacy of political association, and the rights of conscience with reference to military service...
...Negroes have now been admitted to the Air Corps and the Marine Corps, and all naval departments...
...I hate to have to remind Mr...
...Please keep up the good work...
...It could guide these forces into democratic channels instead of damning them up so that they turn into communistic ones...
...But it found it necessary to keep Communists out as members...
...Duke of Bedford Crowholt, Woburn, Bletchley, Bucks, England Not Too Late Dear Sirs: On behalf of the War Resisters League, we wish to commend The Progressive for its strong editorial statements in favor of mediation in Korea...
...Lewis would seriously contend that the genuine, or pre-war, social gains of the New Deal have either been increased or held in the past five years...
...The Supreme Court has also just ruled unanimously that segregation in higher education is unconstitutional...
...Alfred Baker Lewis New York, N. Y. Reply to Lewis Dear Sirs: Mr...
...Ellen Winsor Edgartown, Mass...
...Allegra C. Romine San Diego, Calif...
...They know that if the war becomes world-wide, The Progressive, trapped by its own logic, will support that war, though again they pray otherwise...
...I also feel it is my moral obligation to ask my friends to cancel their subscription, for they subscribed upon my recommendation...
...Consequently, more than a million additional Negroes are now voting...
...Alvin O. Baker Bronxville, N. Y. Social Revolution Dear Sirs: Will our reactionary press ever wake up to the fact that we are in the midst of a social revolution...
...Mayer should know that if he knows the real nature of the one-party' dictatorship which is the Communists' aim...
...Meanwhile, we have a hint: the Taft-Hartley Law...
...Today it seems to be taken for granted that there is no way out of the Korean war except by the military victory of one side over the other...
...Surely we did not destroy our democracy in that war...
...I agree that my "proposed remedy for Communism has been abandoned by literally every truly liberal organization"—and by every truly reactionary organization as well...
...As for the condition of trade unionism, it, like employment, profits, surplus profits, and, above all, monopoly, flourished during the war and the subsequent Cold War...
...What good could come from a state that would elect as Senator—and worse still apparently supports him—such a person as McCarthy...
...Mayer's Best Dear Sirs: Every issue of The Progressive is heartening and inspiring in these grim days, but Milton Mayer's July article, "Both Your Houses," is the best that he has ever written, and one of the best your magazine has ever published...
...The inconsistency and hypocrisy of this stand are as obvious as the stand usually taken by Col...
...Lewis, who finds democracy doing so well, that our country went to war 33 years ago, against Prussianism, the root evil of which, according to Woodrow Wilson, was peacetime conscription...
...It was a big help to me (a pacifist) in clearing up an area in which my thinking was uncertain...
...Actually, such a course would be no more successful in bringing about lasting peace now than the policy of unconditional surrender was in World War II, or similar policies in previous wars throughout history...
...C. O. Bennett Lewellen, Nebr...
...But we who are horrified at the forced labor of millions in Russia and her satellites, whose only crime is to disagree with the bosses of the Communist dictatorships, and we who are revolted by the destruction of all rights of free speech, press, and assembly, and who are explaining to our fellow citizens that this is the essence of Communist totalitarianism, are not engaging in an anti-democratic crusade like McCarthy...
...It seems the very people who cry the loudest against Communism also do the most to promote it because of their lack of vision...
...Lewis will get his war—which he doesn't want, but which his course of action guarantees, and always has...
...Here strategic considerations and naked power politics seem to me to be taking precedence over honor and moral considerations...
...I don't like your attitude toward war...
...As for the reduction of Negro segregation in the armed forces and the increase of employment opportunities for Negroes "as a direct result of the war," I can think of many other unavoidable beauties of war, such as the absolute elimination of unemployment...
...Immoral Thumping Dear Sirs: Your editorial, "The Consequences of Korea," in the August issue was not only disappointing but downright misleading in its assertion that what you call "UN action" is not war...
...They know that it is a war led by the United States in charge of the anti-Communist bloc in the UN...
...Hopeful Course Dear Sirs: Your editorial, "The Consequences of Korea," was distinguished for its clarity, courage, and conciseness...
...Appreciation Dear Sirs: This letter is merely a word of appreciation for the August issue, which seems to me to be one of the best ever...
...It is not too late...
...Some anti-democrats such as Senator McCarthy are trying to attack genuine liberals by miscalling them Communists...
...We are harvesting today in Korea the whirlwind of our deeds and omissions, which could never have happened if our "democrats and liberals" had been what they claim to be—guardians of justice and liberty...
...I am afraid I must say quite frankly that I regard the American Government's refusal to recognize the Communist Government of China and assent to the Soviet suggestion for a Chinese representative on the Security Council as a dangerous display of stupid prejudice and short-sighted school-boy diplomacy...
...A peaceful alternative must be found...
...Moreover, they know that it is not even a UN war, since without Russia's vote of approval it can have no such legal dignity...
...They know all about lesser evils and will want no part of them...
...Racial discrimination is undobutedly the weakest link in our democracy...
...Mayer to try to tell liberals to do otherwise and to go into conferences, meetings, committees, organizations, etc., with Communists shows his innocence concerning Communist tactics in liberal organizations...
...What they have said in effect to the Communists is, "You have the right to form your own organization and carry on your own propaganda, and we will defend your rights to do so...
...Personally, I'll take more Milton Mayer...
...Lewis is not so innocent as to suppose that these two boons marked a change in the American heart rather than a requirement of war...
...The war substantially decreased racial discrimination...
...Ernst F. W. Selige Seattle, Wash...
...Without a Parallel Dear Sirs: Beginning with Morris Rubin and all the way down the line, The Progressive is without a parallel in the country...
...This wartime order has not been embodied in Federal peacetime law...
...Now I have come to regard The Progressive as somehow being Wisconsin's redemption for McCarthyism and kindred mental calcification...
...The American Veterans Committee had to kick out the Communists who tried to infiltrate and dominate it...
...The only way to stop war is to let those in Congress who vote for it and all the editors and radio people who favor it, go fight it...
...The people throughout the world should press for mediation of the issues underlying the conflict, either through India, through the agencies of the United Nations or through other channels...
...His second proposed remedy for Communism has been abandoned by literally every truly liberal organization...
...Yet that is what Mr...
...Segregation has been truly abolished in the Navy and the Air Corps...
...Before the war there were no Negroes in the Air Corps nor in the Marine Corps, and no Negroes in the Navy, except the Mess Department, and segregation was the strict rule in the armed forces...
...Mayer clearly implies...
...Masterpiece Dear Sirs: Your editorial on Korea in the August issue was a masterpiece...
...The American Civil Liberties Union works as it should for the rights of Communists as well as others...
...Ralph F. Fuchs Bloomington, Ind...
...Prison Bars Dear Sirs: I am only sending in a half year's subscription, for I expect that Morris Rubin will be behind prison bars by that time...
...Joseph A. Prachar Berwyn, 111...
...Dear Sirs: Well, once again the false prophets have smooth-talked the people of the U. S. into a gun whipping adventure on a foreign soil...
...How stupid can we get...
...We shall know more about the national temper in this matter when the depression, which cold and hot war alone prevents, hits the country...
...You have done an about-face and are now supporting the inevitable result of an armaments race you opposed...
...I must listen to the dictates of my conscience and refuse to support any organization or journal of opinion which publicly supports any war...
...Mayer's 'Wrong Attitude' Dear Sirs: Milton Mayer's article in your July issue, "Both Your Houses," illustrates a wrong attitude among pacifists and many liberals...
...Rarity Dear Sirs: I do not remember reading in a long time so sound an article as "The Consequences of Korea," in your August issue...
...Weak & Confused Dear Sirs: Although I myself am a pacifist, I can appreciate why you feel that the invasion of South Korea could not be tolerated by the United Nations...
...Lewis would argue the spread of democracy on the basis of our victory over Hitler...
...Americans for Democratic Action was started right by keeping Communists out from the beginning...
...They know this as surely as they knew— but prayed otherwise—the The Progressive would start its immoral thumping on the lesser evil of two intrinsically evil war drums —namely, the U.S...
...Just recently the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has directed its National Board to lift the charter of branches run by Communists...
...I hope that Mr...
...Yet all these organizations are opposing such attempts to outlaw the Communists as the Smith Act and the Mundt-Nixon bill...
...More power to Milton...
...But you have no right to try to worm and wriggle your way into other organizations in order to infiltrate and dominate...
...Of course, liberals must pursue and continue to pursue their liberal objectives, even though Communists echo the same tunes...
...Now, I don't like Communists, but right now I am having to elbow Commies and fellow-travelers and bewildered pseudo-intellectuals away from the peace platform so that I can hear what men of genuine good-will have to say, and I don't like it...
...R. B. Cooke Berkeley, Calif...
...What is left to Mr...
...And Negroes are now used in the Army wherever their special skills can best be applied, without keeping them segregated...
...Mc-Cormick—"My country, right or wrong...
...You have earned the gratitude of countless Americans who are committed to seeking world peace through the collective action and conscience of free peoples...
...Surely this is a reasonable distinction...
...How long, oh Lord, how long will it be before we arise from our stupor and stupidity and throw off these evil forces...
...And finally, they know they will cease to support The Progressive with dollars, even though Milton Mayer, by some diminution of his good sense, should continue to write for it...
...Here are the essential facts, not piecemeal but in due order, and the political conclusion is arrived at by applying to these facts that sense of moderation and justice which has become so rare in this time of nervous excitement...
...H. T. Jeffries Cambridge, Mass...
...Ella Meyers San Jose, Calif...
...I cannot believe that Mr...
...Lewis seems to think is anti-democratic, has enjoyed more of a spread than we have...
...This lines The Progressive up with the forces endorsing and encouraging war, i.e., legalized mass murder...
...True blue pacifists and others know that meeting force with force in Korea is nothing but war...
...Lewis and to the truly liberal and truly reactionary organizations...
...Leaves Us Dear Sirs: You can stop sending me The Progressive...
...E. R. Karr Saline, Mich...
...Its statement of the issues was excellent in every way...
...Maybe victory is wonderful for both democracy and anti-democracy, but somewhat more wonderful for anti-democracy...
Vol. 14 • September 1950 • No. 9
