Foreign Language Federations (1890s - 1930) - Latvian

 LATVIAN ("LETTISH") FEDERATIONS

 Lettish Federation of the Socialist Labor Party

There was a Lettish Federation of the Socialist Labor Party in the first decade of the 1900s. The Federation disbanded in 1911, with about 50 of its members individually joining the National Lettish Organization of the Socialist Party.

(fn. C. Karklin, "Report by the Executive Committee, National Lettish Organization, SP" in Proceedings: National Convention of the Socialist Party 1912. (Chicago: Socialist Party, 1912), pp. 244-245.)

National Lettish Organization of the Sociailst Party
The Socialist Party's Latvian ("Lettish") Federation was organized in "clubs" -- each of which paid dues to the regular locals and state organizations of the Socialist Party through 1912. According to the Federation's official report to the Socialist Party national convention, there were 1001 members in good standing in 27 clubs in 1910 and 983 members in good standing in 26 clubs in 1911 -- the decline caused by the disaffiliation of the 170 member Boston Lettish Workers Association from the National Lettish Organization. This important Lettish club remained affiliated with the Socialist Party, however.
The National Lettish Organization of the Socialist Party published a 2-times weekly paper at Fitchburg, MA called Strahdneeks. This four page paper had a circulation which varied between 1200 and 1500 in 1911-12. In January 1911 and again in January 1912, John G. Ohsol was elected editor of this publication. The paper employed two editors, two printers, and a mailing clerk.
The Organization was led by an Executive Committee which served a one year term from April 1 through March 31 of the next calendar year.

(fn. C. Karklin, "Report by the Executive Committee, National Lettish Organization, SP" in Proceedings: National Convention of the Socialist Party 1912. (Chicago: Socialist Party, 1912), pg. 245.)

The Latvien Federation published a newspaper in Boston called Rihts (The Morning).

Lettish [Latvian] Federation of the old Communist Party of America
The Lettish [Latvian] Federation was one of the 6 language organizations which comprised the old Communist Party of America. It was smaller than the Lithuanian and Russian organizations, comparable in size and strength to the Ukrainian and Polish, bigger than the Jewish [Yiddish].
The Latvian Federation was racked by internal dissention. In Sept. 1920 a split erupted, in which most of the Boston-based membership (the stronghold of the federation) declared the CEC of the Federation recalled and elected a new national CEC. This insurgent group was later joined by part of the New York organization. The insurgents sought the election of a CEC by referendum vote of the federation rather than by a vote at convention. They also sought to build the cooperative movement in bourgeois Latvia, in opposition to the previously established line of revolutionary hostility to the Latvian state. Secretary of the Latvian Federation and Boston CPA DO "Dan Collins" opposed this "illegal organization elected by referendum vote" and declared the "referendum-cooperative elements" to "have by their action placed themselves outside the party."

[fn. "Collins," "On the situation in Lettish Branches (of Former CP)," Comintern Archive, RGASPI, f. 515, op. 1, d. 63, l. 3.]

 

1. "Conference of Lettish Communist Internationalists of America" --- [city?] --- Nov. 20-21, 1920.
The Nov. 1920 "Conference of Lettish Communists Internationalists" was attended by delegates purporting to represent 400 of 550 former members of the old CPA. The gathering passed a resolution deciding "to unite immediately with the United Communist Party, which represents the Communist International in America."
An exodus of the Latvian Federationists from the CPA to the United Communist Party followed.
In January of 1921, the Latvian Federation CEC (elected by the convention) was instructed to reorganize itself. A good percentage of disaffected members returned to the CPA (others remaining in the UCP), but factional discord was in no wise lessened. Factional charges were made verbally and in formal party proceedings, voluntary assessments were ignored, and a motion to contribute $1000 to the illegal party from the legal organization's over $7700 coffers was defeated.




Lettish [Latvian] Federation of the United Communist Party of America
In the fall of 1920, controversy erupted in the Latvian Federation, said to be due to an article in the Federation's newspaper pledging support of Latvians in America to the bourgeois government of Latvia. According to the not sympathetic United Communist Party, this article "caused wholesale secessionfs from the Lettish Federation," culminating in a Nov. 20-21, 1920 conference of branches.

In December of 1920 the UCP had 49 of its 673 primary party units ("Groups") which used the Latvian language, more than the Jewish, Finnish, Polish, or Ukrainian languages. Of these, 20 were in the Boston District and another 13 in New York.

[fn: DoJ/BoI Investigative Files, NARA M-1085, reel 940, doc. 501.]

 



Lettish [Latvian] Federation of the unified Communist Party of America
The Secretary of the Lettish Federation of the CPA in mid-June 1921 was "W. Sars." "Sars" sought postponement of the Conference of the Language Federation called for July by the CEC postponed until August, since most of the Federation's members in the west were forest workers and the July date was inconvenient.

[fn: Comintern Archive: f. 515, op. 1, d. 75, l. 106-107.]

In late 1921, during the 5 months between formation of the unified CPA and the split of the Central Caucus faction, the Communist Party's Latvian Federation had an average monthly paid membership of 659, making it the 3rd largest Language group in the party.

[fn: Comintern Archive: f. 515, op. 1, d. 75, l. 12.]

 



Lettish [Latvian] Federation in the 1921-22 Central Caucus split
The Latvian Federation was the most militant of the CPA federations in the Dec. 1921 party split. Even in November 1922, three months after the Bridgman Unity Convention, it remained aloof from the party, its Executive Committee -- alone of all the Federations which affiliated with the Central Caucus -- refusing to rejoin. Some of the branches reaffiliated on their own, "over the heads" of their leadership.

[fn: Comintern Archive: f. 515, op. 1, d. 93, l. 75.]

 

A Latvian Bureau was reconstituted, with Boodman ["R. Robins"] of Boston the Federation Secretary. According to a Nov. 13, 1922, report to the Federation Director of the Communist Party, as of June 23 only 31 Latvian members of the Central Caucus faction had rejoined the party. The Latvian Federation stood a 12 branches with a total of 53 groups and a total membership of 452 as of the date of the report.

[fn: Comintern Archive: f. 515, op. 1, d. 116, l. 9.]

 



Lettish [Latvian] Section of the Workers Party of America

The Secretary of the Latvian Section of the Workers Party of America during the first months of the Workers Party of America was Julius Berson of Roxbury, MA.

[fn: Comintern Archive: f. 515, op. 1, d. 150, l. 5.]