The Washington Commonwealth Federation (WCF) was a political pressure group established in the

American state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

in 1934 as "Commonwealth Builders, Incorporated" (CBI). The organization changed its name to Washington Commonwealth Federation in 1935. The organization did not run political candidates in its own name but rather functioned as an organized

faction Faction or factionalism may refer to: Politics * Political faction, a group of people with a common political purpose * Free and Independent Faction, a Romanian political party * Faction (''Planescape''), a political faction in the game ''Planes ...

in the

Washington State Democratic Party The Washington State Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Washington, headquartered in Seattle. It is also commonly referred to as the ''Washington State Democrats'' and the ''Washington Democratic Party' ...

. Originating out of an interest to expand the

End Poverty in California movement End Poverty in California (EPIC) was a political campaign started in 1934 by socialist writer Upton Sinclair (best known as author of ''The Jungle''). The movement formed the basis for Sinclair's campaign for Governor of California in 1934. The ...

to Washington state as a means of alleviating the misery of the Great Depression, the WCF came to be dominated by the Communist Party USA beginning in the

popular front A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault". More generally, it is "a coalition ...

years of the late 1930s. Charged by critics to be a

Communist front A communist front is a political organization identified as a front organization under the effective control of a communist party, the Communist International or other communist organizations. They attracted politicized individuals who were not p ...

, the WCF was dissolved in 1948, during the era of the

Second Red Scare McCarthyism is the practice of making false or unfounded accusations of subversion and treason, especially when related to anarchism, communism and socialism, and especially when done in a public and attention-grabbing manner. The term origina ...

Founding

The Washington Commonwealth Federation was launched in August 1934 as "Commonwealth Builders, Inc." (CBI) by a group of middle-class

socialists Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the eco ...

who sought effective

political action In sociology, social action, also known as Weberian social action, is an act which takes into account the actions and reactions of individuals (or ' agents'). According to Max Weber, "Action is 'social' insofar as its subjective meaning takes ...

to achieve a "Cooperative Commonwealth" that included government ownership of banking and large-scale industry, state aid to farmers and small businesses, and the establishment of a network of producer and

consumer cooperative A consumers' co-operative is an enterprise owned by consumers and managed democratically and that aims at fulfilling the needs and aspirations of its members. Such co-operatives operate within the market system, independently of the state, as a f ...

s.John de Graaf, "Washington Commonwealth Federation," in

Mari Jo Buhle Mari Jo Buhle (born 1943) is an American historian and William J. Kenan Jr. University Professor Emerita at Brown University. Early life and education Buhle was born in 1943 as Mari Jo Kupski. She graduated from North Chicago Community High S ...

Paul Buhle Paul Merlyn Buhle (born September 27, 1944) is a (retired) Senior Lecturer at Brown University, author or editor of 35 volumes including histories of radicalism in the United States and the Caribbean, studies of popular culture, and a series ...

, and

Dan Georgakas Dan Georgakas ( el, Νταν Γεωργακάς; 1938–2021) was an American anarchist poet and historian, who specialized in oral history and the American labor movement, best known for the publication ''Detroit: I do mind dying: A study in u ...

(eds.), ''Encyclopedia of the American Left.'' First Edition. New York: Garland Publishing Co., 1990; pg. 820. These individuals were greatly influenced by the efforts of

Upton Sinclair Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878 – November 25, 1968) was an American writer, muckraker, political activist and the 1934 Democratic Party nominee for governor of California who wrote nearly 100 books and other works in sever ...

in his maverick

(EPIC) of 1934, marked by Sinclair's run for Governor of California behind the slogan of "production for use."Jennifer Phipps
"Washington Commonwealth Federation & Washington Pension Union,"
Communism in Washington State: History and Memory, University of Washington, Seattle, 2002, depts.washington.edu/ In the estimation of one student of the movement:

"The CBI believed EPIC offered an excellent model for social and economic reform and struggled to find political candidates to promote its expansion into Washington State. Under this plan, a state industrial commission would be created to launch state-owned farms and industries to employ those who could not secure employment in the
private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...
. Employees would produce goods to be sold in state-owned stores and the employees would in turn purchase these same goods. A separate form of
currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general ...
would be used to pay employees and to purchase goods within the system to ensure the rate of return. Essentially, the people involved would produce goods for use and not for profit."Jessica Dunahoo
"Washington Commonwealth Builder/ Washington Commonwealth (Seattle: 1934-1937),"
Labor Press Project, University of Washington, Seattle, depts.washington.edu/

While the CBI in Washington did not achieve the same sort of explosive growth exhibited by the EPIC movement in California, the group still won the support of some key farm and labor organizations in the state. The group moved to further expand its range of influence in October 1935, when a convention was held that brought together members of the Washington State Grange, the Liberty Party, the Bellamy Clubs, Continental Committee Technocrats, Democratic Party Clubs, and sundry unaffiliated individuals as the Washington Commonwealth Federation.

Communist control

In the aftermath of the rise of

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in 1933, the

Communist International The Communist International (Comintern), also known as the Third International, was a Soviet-controlled international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism. The Comintern resolved at its Second Congress to "struggle by ...

began to steer the national political parties obedient to it away from the ultra-radical rhetoric of the so-called "

Third Period The Third Period is an ideological concept adopted by the Communist International (Comintern) at its Sixth World Congress, held in Moscow in the summer of 1928. It set policy until reversed when the Nazis took over Germany in 1933. The Comint ...

" and towards a more moderate building of alliances with non-Communist individuals and groups, policies known as Popular Front tactics. In the United States this change in the Comintern line saw members of the Communist Party attempt to join and seek to exert influence within established political organizations, such as the Washington Commonwealth Federation. Although they were initially banned from membership by the CBI, some Communist Party members were elected by labor groups as delegates to the April 1936 convention of the WCF. Following that gathering, Communist participation was formally allowed by the convention's refusal to reinstitute the previous exclusionary rule. A short period of organizational growth and seemingly bright prospects followed communist entry into the organization. The positive outlook soon dissipated, however, as by 1938 factional disputes and

red-baiting Red-baiting, also known as ''reductio ad Stalinum'' () and red-tagging (in the Philippines), is an intention to discredit the validity of a political opponent and the opponent's logical argument by accusing, denouncing, attacking, or persecuting ...

severely weakened the WCF with many non-Communist members ending their participation. The Communist Party came to exert decisive influence in the organization, which began to closely follow the CPUSA's national political line, with its Executive Secretary,

Howard Costigan Howard Gary Costigan (1904–1985) was an American radio commentator, political functionary, and politician. Costigan is best remembered as the Executive Secretary of the Washington Commonwealth Federation during the second half of the 1930 while h ...

, secretly a member of the Communist Party from 1936.Harvey Klehr and John Earl Haynes, ''The American Communist Movement: Storming Heaven Itself.'' New York: Twayne Publishers, 1992; pg. 87. Costigan later estimated that by 1937, 56 of the 72 members of the WCF's governing Executive Board were members of the Communist Party.Klehr, ''The Heyday of American Communism,'' pg. 255. Another reliable insider indicated that 90 percent of those employed by the WCF's newspaper were CPUSA members, including both of the publication's editors. It was a time of substantial influence, with more than a dozen "concealed communists" elected to the statehouse in Olympia between 1936 and 1939, including 11 members of the Washington House of Representatives and 3 State Senators. WCF-backed politicians constituted fully one third of the seats in the 1937 Washington House, a voting bloc that enabled the passage of a bevy of bills addressing longtime progressive concerns, including repeal of the state's

California Criminal Syndicalism Act The California Criminal Syndicalism ActStats. 1919 c. 188, p. 281; it was codified at California Penal Code §§ 11400 et seq.) was a law of California in 1919 under Governor William Stephens criminalizing syndicalism. It was enacted on April 3 ...

, passage of a pure food and drug act, establishment of a minimum wage for state employees, establishment of a

graduated income tax A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases.Sommerfeld, Ray M., Silvia A. Madeo, Kenneth E. Anderson, Betty R. Jackson (1992), ''Concepts of Taxation'', Dryden Press: Fort Worth, TX The term ''progr ...

, and other measures. The Communist Party showed a pattern of impressive growth in Washington state during these last years of the 1930s. From a membership of 1,137 in 1936, total CPUSA membership in the state grew to 5,016 by the end of 1938 and continued to increase in the first months of 1939.Klehr, ''The Heyday of American Communism,'' pg. 256. However, with pervasive CP control of the WCF's organizational apparatus came a desire to use the group's public clout to advance the party line of CPUSA and the Comintern. Following the Nazi-Soviet Pact of August 1939, the WCF began to denounce Roosevelt as a warmonger, further isolating the organization from its base of support within the state Democratic Party. Membership in the organization plummeted. Following the December 1941

Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, ju ...

, which pushed America into

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

as an ally of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

, the political ground upon which the WCF stood shifted again. The organization made a dramatic comeback, however, electing a number of its members to the Washington State Legislature and electing leading WCF activist Hugh DeLacy to the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washin ...

Last days

To some extent, the Washington Commonwealth Federation was effectively killed by its wartime success. By the end of World War II, the WCF stood as the single most important political influence in the politics of the Democratic Party of Washington. From the perspective of the group's leadership, its mission had been fulfilled, and the federation was dissolved as an unnecessary component of state Democratic politics. The WCF also faced determined opposition from an unlikely alliance, however. The 1938 elections were marked by centrist "Regular" Democrats attacking WCF-backed candidates in the primaries, followed by conservative

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

opponents of the New Deal in the fall, both of which groups derided the WCF as a "

Trojan Horse The Trojan Horse was a wooden horse said to have been used by the Greeks during the Trojan War to enter the city of Troy and win the war. The Trojan Horse is not mentioned in Homer's ''Iliad'', with the poem ending before the war is concluded, ...

for the Communist Party." In the conservative political climate of the late 1950s, many of the programs backed by the WCF would be ultimately reversed. The anti-WCF offensive would achieve full flower in the 1948 Canwell Joint Legislative Fact-Finding Committee on Un-American Activities of the Washington Legislature, which would dedicate itself to the exposure of the WCF as a surreptitious Communist front.See
"The 1948 Canwell UnAmerican Activities Hearings,"
Communism in Washington State, University of Washington, Seattle, depts.washington.edu/

Legacy

In the view of historian

Harvey Klehr Harvey Elliott Klehr (born December 25, 1945) is a professor of politics and history at Emory University. Klehr is known for his books on the subject of the American Communist movement, and on Soviet espionage in America (many written jointly wit ...

, the Washington Commonwealth Federation marked perhaps the most effective alliance between Communists and non-Communists of anywhere in the US in the Depression.Klehr, ''The Heyday of American Communism,'' pg. 257.

Publications

Throughout its existence, the WCF published a regular newspaper, beginning in August 1934 as ''The Washington Commonwealth Builder'' in 1934. The name of the paper was shorted in October 1935 to ''The Washington Commonwealth.'' In August 1936, the name of the paper was changed again, now to ''Commonwealth News,'' which was changed again just three months later, with the paper re-emerging as ''The Sunday News.'' In September 1938 the organization marked its growing affection for the social program of Roosevelt, changing its name again to the ''Washington New Dealer.'' That name was retained until the middle of

. In January 1943, the WCF changed the name of its official organ to its sixth and final incarnation, ''The New World.'' That name was retained by the newspaper until its termination, in November 1948.

Important members

* A. C. Armstrong * Carl Brooks *

* Hugh De Lacy * Bill Dobbins * Mary U. Farquharson (co-founder) * E. Harold Eby * William "Bill" Pennock * Terry Pettus *

Louis Sass Louis A. Sass is a professor of Clinical Psychology at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology at Rutgers University who specializes in severe psychopathology, philosophy and psychology, and psychology and the arts. Sass has serv ...

Publications

* ''Platform and Constitution: With Resolutions and Statement on Political Policy: Adopted by the Seventh Convention, February 3–4, 1940.'' Seattle: Washington Commonwealth Federation, 1940. (WorldCat lists one copy, University of Michigan.)

References

External links

* Skyler Cuthill
"Building the People' Republic in Washington State: The Washington Commonwealth Federation, Comintern Foreign Policy, and the Second World War,"
The Great Depression in Washington State, University of Washington, Seattle, 2010. depts.washington.edu/ * Drew May
"'To Vote Democratic, Vote Commonwealth': The Washington Commonwealth Federation's 1936 Electoral Victory,"
The Great Depression in Washington State, University of Washington, Seattle, 2009. depts.washington.edu/ * Catherine Roth
"'Fascism and Its Ally, Racism': The Complexities of the Washington Commonwealth Federation's Stance on Civil Rights,"
The Great Depression in Washington State, University of Washington, Seattle, 2009. depts.washington.edu/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Washington Commonwealth Federation 1934 establishments in Washington (state) Political parties established in 1934 1948 disestablishments in Washington (state) Political parties disestablished in 1948 Politics of Washington (state) Factions in the Democratic Party (United States) Washington State Democratic Party Communist Party USA mass organizations

Founding

Communist control

Last days

Legacy

Publications

Important members

Publications

See also

References

Further reading

Archives

External links