Founding #3
“The German Labour Party, or Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands, APD. A fine name indeed.”
When I told Thälmann what my friends and I had decided the day before, he nodded in approval.
“You think so too, right?”
“Still, wouldn’t it have been better to include something that clearly stated our method and goal? Words like ‘Socialist’ or ‘Communist,’ for instance. That would have made it easier to draw in supporters. Not that I dislike your approach, Heinz.”
“I did consider that. But in the end, this name felt the most right to me.”
Everyone seemed to have the same reaction. My friends yesterday had also asked, Doesn’t it feel too plain with just “Labour” in it? There were several reasons. For one, it overlapped somewhat with existing parties… but more importantly—
“The Labour Party. Rather than some grandiose name or ideology, what ultimately matters most is the action and liberation of the workers. Above all else, this is a party for the workers. That’s why I like ‘Labour Party’ the best.”
The KPD members listening beside Thälmann nodded in understanding.
“That makes sense. It’s a good name, Emilia.”
“See? I told you I had a talent for naming things.”
“And since you yourself stand in the position most able to empathize with the workers, the name will carry twice the weight.”
Just as Thälmann said, my experience of working in a factory as a child until my hands bled was now paying off handsomely. To be precise, it was from right after my transmigration. These days, I could barely even remember what came before that.
“Is the symbol a rose? Why a rose?”
“Ah, you need to see the whole thing—the cogwheel encircling the rose.”
And this was my masterpiece.
“A rose. A rose represents life, doesn’t it? The human life that is the rose has fallen into the oppression of capital, symbolized by the cogwheel. Our Labour Party will shatter that. I wanted to give form to that idea.”
Thälmann listened to my explanation, nodded, and replied, “Honestly, I thought you would insist on including a hammer.”
“I did consider a hammer, but I really wanted to use the rose.”
“Won’t the Social Democrats or the right-wingers laugh at it? It looks a bit too delicate.”
Anna, standing beside me, asked the question.
“Not at all. It’s actually the opposite. It represents humanity born within the tyranny of capital. The vitality that seeks to cast off the machine that tries to imprison us. The workers and the people trapped under oppression, and the future that will break free from it. That’s what I wanted to express.”
“You really do have a way with words.”
At Anna’s remark, Thälmann and the other party members burst into laughter.
“If I didn’t even have that, how could I do party work?”
“Does party work even require any particular talent? It’s just better if you have it. Now then, Heinz?”
Still smiling, Thälmann extended his hand to me.
“Let’s continue working together from now on.”
“Of course. For the future of the Communist Party, the Labour Party, and the German workers.”
I took his hand without hesitation. Even if the day came when I had to walk a different path from Thälmann, we still shared the same vision. Cooperating as much as we could was beneficial for both sides.
And so, the Labour Party—which had begun as my one-person party—officially entered into cooperation with the KPD.
The next day, July 1st, as the chaos from the collapse of the Müller cabinet slowly settled and preparations for a new cabinet began, two months were granted until the new election. Naturally, the KPD dove straight into serious strategic planning, and the Labour Party, having promised official cooperation, joined them. Even though it was still just me in the party.
“The task for the Labour Party is simple,” Thälmann explained the strategy to the gathered members.
“The KPD will focus on consolidating the existing worker vote. The Labour Party needs to come up with measures to attract the votes of workers who have supported the Social Democrats. Moreover, since the Social Democratic cabinet has collapsed this time and public sentiment has turned sharply against them, consolidating those votes should be even easier.”
What Thälmann called a “simple” request was anything but.
“I understand. I’ll do my best.”
“The problem is that we must also guard against the right-wing populists who will try to exploit this opening. The Social Democrats will stop at nothing to recover from this cabinet’s failure.”
Voigt, standing beside Thälmann, added.
“And to solve that problem, we have Heinz—the greatest orator of the German left.”
“Ahaha, I appreciate the compliment.”
Thälmann continued to praise me both in public and in private. It wasn’t that I was exceptionally eloquent, but the rhetorical skills I had brought from my previous life—what you might crudely call “a sharp tongue”—were proving quite helpful.
“But couldn’t my splinter party actually work against us?”
“No. On the contrary, in this situation your splinter party is an even greater boon. Unlike the opportunistic Social Democrats, you clearly advocate for workers’ organization and revolution. Although we differ ideologically, I believe we can still work together.”
He answered my pessimistic question without hesitation. Thälmann could be a bit self-righteous within the party, but he was still quite open-minded.
“The Labour Party, together with the KPD, will be able to target the workers suffering under oppression. Your name is already quite well known, isn’t it? We can aim for those who dislike the lukewarm attitude of the Social Democrats but find the KPD too rigid.”
Was my name that well known? I wasn’t sure yet. It might have spread quietly among the leftist worker circles. The real key would be future publicity.
“What if there are forces that try to use our splintering to sow division among the workers?”
Since the party had not originally been founded with the expectation of cooperating with the KPD again, the question of whether this might hinder our cooperative foundation kept rising in my mind. But Thälmann seemed to see it differently.
“We can use that to our advantage. In any case, while you and I may look in slightly different directions, we are walking the same path. We should strongly emphasize the fact that we are cooperating like this—that we communists are united in action for the liberation of labour, unlike the Social Democrats who only talk.”
“That’s a very you solution, Thälmann.”
As expected from someone with long political experience. Although his time in the KPD was similar to mine, he had over ten years in the pre-war SPD before the division.
“I’ll take that as a compliment. I’d like to leave the rest to your plan. You must have your own strategy prepared for this election, yes?”
“The core idea of gathering the worker vote from the seat left vacant by the Social Democrats remains the same.”
Originally I had planned to exploit the gap between the incompetent Social Democrats and the rigid Communists, but now that we were cooperating, I intended to promote the party with something like “the real workers’ party.” That could change later, of course.
“Then that’s fine. I’ll entrust the details to you. The Labour Party will become an independent party that differs from us but cooperates with us. Our KPD tactics remain unchanged. We will campaign in a way that avoids the police’s surveillance net as much as possible, but when it is necessary to stand firmly on the side of the workers and push aggressively, we will do so without hesitation. Understood?”
“Yes!”
And so we began preparing for the election. We produced propaganda posters and leaflets to be pasted on the streets, copies of the KPD’s party newspaper Die Rote Fahne, banners, flags, and countless other materials. Once everything was ready, we began campaigning.
“If you want liberation, vote Communist Party! If you want a society where no one is oppressed, vote Communist Party!”
“Workers of Germany, unite! Drive out the oppressors and reclaim what is rightfully ours!”
“If you want the action of workers rather than the capitalist party wrapped in red packaging—the Social Democrats—then vote Communist Party!”
For someone who had spent her time studying at university on the party’s dime until now, this was my first time stepping forward into election activities.
“‘Labour Party (APD)’? Never heard of it.”
“Ah, that’s the party of Emilia Heinz, who will soon be cooperating with the Communist Party! She dreams of a country that takes a different path from the KPD, but in the face of capitalist oppression and the flames of revolution, we are all comrades! If you’re interested, please take a look!”
It was especially encouraging to see so many people showing interest in the Labour Party. Putting “worker” in the name had clearly been the right choice.
We spent our time going around to places where workers were getting off work or resting, promoting the party. When police or thugs sent by the German National People’s Party appeared, we would scatter to avoid pursuit, regroup later, and if it got too late, we would end the day’s campaigning and meet again the next morning. It was exhausting and tiring work, but I was finally setting foot in mainstream politics. That alone made me quite happy.
The two months passed quickly. The somewhat relaxed days I had enjoyed after leaving the party in April had turned into grueling days filled with election campaigning. Not that I disliked it—on the contrary, I felt fulfilled. Above all, every time I grew tired, the name written on the Labour Party’s banners, posters, leaflets, and newspapers gave me strength.
Labour Party Leader Emilia Heinz
The Labour Party, which had begun as my one-person party, gradually grew as friends and interested activists joined.
“So you’re the young person Thälmann mentioned?”
“Oh? Who might you be?”
“I’m Pieck. Wilhelm Pieck. You’ve heard the name, I assume?”
“Ah, of course! What brings you here?”
Even Wilhelm Pieck—the veteran politician who had stood on the front lines of the German left during the Spartacist uprising in the Social Democratic Party when I was still very young, and who now served as a member of the Imperial Parliament—had come to see me.
“I heard our party had found a new collaborator and came to take a look. Putting Luxemburg’s face on your propaganda—you must be quite fond of her?”
“Yes. She’s something of a role model for me.”
“Luxemburg was a remarkable person, but she was also someone who always pursued only ideals. That ultimately led to her death, and I nearly died with her. I don’t regret it. Still, my small wish is that you would also consider the Russian approach to revolution.”
“I am well aware of the methods of the Russian Revolution, along with its advantages and disadvantages. But Luxemburg’s vision is the most appealing to me.”
“Haha, I see. I hope the next time we meet, it will be in Frankfurt. Take care, Miss Heinz.”
“It was an honor to meet you, Mr. Pieck.”
Saying we would meet in Frankfurt was the same as saying we would meet in the Reichstag. It seemed Pieck trusted me in many ways.
After spending two months campaigning with soaring expectations, the election results finally came over the radio on September 2nd, the day after the vote. I wasn’t at the KPD headquarters; instead, I had returned home and was listening with friends and workers who supported the Labour Party.