Full bibliography

From 1942 to 1951, the British Columbia District Council of the International Woodworkers of America (IWA) was embroiled in a battle for political control. The lines of conflict were drawn between a left-wing "Red Bloc" and an anti-communist "White Bloc." By the early 1950s the left wing had been defeated. Irving Abella has explained the demise of the Left through reference to errors made by communist leaders and reference to the native B.C. lumber workers' disdain for communist trade unionism. This article challenges Abella on both counts. The article situates the anti-communist movement in the political currents extant in Canada at the time and concludes that the secession of the left-led B.C. District from the International in 1948 was less a failure of leadership than it was a last-ditch attempt to preserve the District's autonomy. The article argues that the rank-and-file did not abandon its communist leaders but was forcefully separated from its leaders by the anti-communist movement within the CCL-CIO and by the repressive power of the State.