CHICAGO VETERANS
RAP CONG. LUCAS
The Chicago Post has unanimously adopted the following statement
in answer to the misleading attack Congressman Scott Lucas delivered
over the Columbia Broadcasting System recently against the American
boys who took up arms in defense of the Spanish Republic.
In this attack Congressman Lucas stated that he had protested on the
floor of Congress the use of the
name Abraham Lincoln by the
American fighters. He branded
the 3,000 Americans who are
fighting fascism in Spain as
courageous but misguided
Communists. He claimed that
Americans who defended Madrid
against the ruthless invasion of
international fascism "misused the
name and traditions of our
martyred President." He stated
that General Franco is a
"Christian General" and a
"Patriot" who does not seek to be
a dictator but who is striving to
establish order in Spain.
The Chicago Veterans of the
Abraham Lincoln Brigade feel it
our duty to bring the truth before
the people of Illinois and America
The 3,000 Americans who are
fighting will continue to light with
the Spanish people against the
murderous onslaught of Hitler and
Mussolini, and are not misguided
youths nor Moscow agents. We
know that the struggle in Spain
cannot be isolated from the
worldwide struggle against fascist
barbarism. We know that this is a
struggle carried on at great odds
by the heroic Spanish people so
that "government of the people,
by the people and for the people
shall not perish from the earth."
That is why we chose the name
of Abraham Lincoln for the
American Brigade of the Loyalist
Army.
We know that this was not an
"un-American" act inspired by
Moscow. The defense of the
Spanish Republic by the Abraham
Lincoln Brigade was carrying out
the finest traditions of our
country: the traditions of
Lafayette, Von Steuben and the
hundreds of other democratic
Europeans who crossed the seas
to help George Washington in the
critical hours of our War for
Independence.
Congressman Lucas praises the
"patriot" Franco at the very moment
that the press throughout the world
carries the tragic news that the streets
of Barcelona are red with the blood of
women and children.
We who have come back from
TWO MEN GO
TO WAR . . . .
He who cannot smell powder should
not go to war. ,But when one learns the
causes of war and understands them,
he becomes indifferent to the odor of
powder.
In the movies you have seen pictures
of men in war. We see men go into the
attack and catch a glimpse of them
coming hand-to-hand in the combat,
but the film is cut short. It is bad policy
to actually show the thrust of a bayonet
into a soldier's body. It might upset the
public. It is perfectly correct to show
scenes of soldiers in the attack-you see
them fall. We hear the bursting of
shells and exploding bombs, planes
flying overhead-dropping bombs -
bodies hurled into the air. Maybe you
wince when you see such things. It is
all right to show such things, we all see
war pictures. We cry when our hero is
in danger, we hate to see him die. Of
course, he must wind up kissing our
beautiful heroine and live happily ever
after.
However, let's dispense with such
pictures. Let's see what happens in a
real war situation. The actors in a real
war need no director to tell them how
to emote. The situation that you see is
such that you re-act for better or worse,
depending upon your mental attitude.
Here is a true story about two men who
went to Spain to fight to preserve and
extend world democracy and to aid the
Spanish people in their fight against
Italian and German fascism, which has
invaded Spain.
Our first soldier was in search of
adventure. He was not prepared W
expect the worst. His mental attitude
was such that he thought only of
wearing a snappy uniform and having
all the girls give him the eye. He
accepted the movie version of war.
What disappointment to him when he
went to the front! He was terrified. It
never dawned on him that war was so
cruel. Living in trenches, little to eat,
going into the attack, men dying from
sheer exhaustion. If he could only
understand that the things he saw at the
front and in the rear were the reasons
he went to war!
Movies never showed such scenes.
War is a terrible "adventure," entirely
too much for our soldier. He begins to
react. He thinks of deserting. If he had
the correct mental attitude, and
analyzed what he saw, he would have
come to the conclusion that it takes
hard fighting to defeat the fascist
monster.
He would under the
circumstances generate greater
courage and stand his ground. He
sees with his eyes his buddies
thinking as one -fighting hard,
refusing to be budged in spite of
all the terror they witness. Their
slogan is that fascism must be
crushed at all costs. Progress,
liberty, democracy -these must
not be just words, but a living
material force. Some of our
soldiers may be mangled by
bombs, terribly wounded by
explosive bullets, many killed,
yet the mental attitude of our
soldiers is to fight, fight, and
fight. The consequences of war-
our soldiers suffer no illusions.
Fascism must be defeated.
Oh yes, our soldier weakens,
we stand by him, we try to
correct his outlook. He is sent to
the rear. Maybe he will get over
his fright, under calmer
conditions. But the war goes on
in the rear as well. The Fascists
love to bomb cities and kill
women and children. This is a
special sport of Fascism. This is
too much for our soldier.
He manages to flee the
country. On the other side of the
border, there are agents of the
enemy who seek to utilize these
weaker elements, the deserters
and traitors. They offer them
money to distort the truth and
manufacture lies. Their excuses
for desertion are well utilized by
the gotten press. The newspaper
reports are ingenious stories,
making the deserter seem
justified for his actions and the
true fighters appear as dupes and
victims. Of course, our deserter
must be whitewashed. What do
you mean by subjecting our
honest deserter to such terror?
Don't you -know he just wanted
a little adventure? Yes, to go to
Spain, wear a uniform, look neat
and natty, and a little adventure
like the heroes enjoy in the
movies.
Now the deserter has earned
the contempt of our real soldiers
by his actions and all honest
people recognize this. He
rationalizes his weakness. One
lie leads to another. This will
have to be the policy of this
deserter for the rest of his days.
He is disowned forever by the
real anti-fascist fight-
Spain will never forget the
mangled bodies of children that
we saw in the streets of Madrid,
that blood -soaked but
unconquerable city which for
nearly two years has been under
the fire of the German and
Italian guns in the service of the
"Christian patriot" Franco.
Congressman Lucas states that
America will avoid world
conflict only by being
"scrupulously careful."
We Americans who saw the
ruthlessness of Fascist
aggression in Spain know that
Hitler, Mussolini and the
Mikado can only be stopped by
the policy that President
Roosevelt laid down when he
said "Quarantine the
Aggressor." This is the policy
that Congressman Lucas is
attacking.
The Chicago Veterans call
upon the people of Chicago and
of America to rally to the
support of the Abraham Lincoln
Brigade, to the support of
Spanish democracy and to
defeat reactionaries at home
such as Congressman Lucas,
who is now candidate for U. S.
Senator.
We ask that the press give us a
chance to reply in its columns,
and we ask the Colombia
Broadcasting System for a
chance to answer Lucas over the
air.
Chicago Post, Veterans of the
Abraham Lincoln Brigade.
Morris Teitelbaum,
Commander.
James Robinson, Adjutant.
----------
Doug Roach III
------
Adjutant Commander Douglas
Roach has been laid up in the
hospital with an attack of
pneumonia for several weeks.
All those who remember the
neat machine-gunning he did at
Jarama and Brunete will be
pleased to learn that Doug
successfully counterattacked his
illness and is on the road to
recovery.
May,
1938
THE
VOLUNTEER
FOR
LIBERTY
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Q U A R A N T I N E
T H E
A G G R E S S O R S !
