| Popis: |
The Popular Front Policy of the Communist International contributed to the unity of the Popular Front coalitions in France and Spain that won the elections in 1936. It also led to progress for the Communist Party. This never happened in Sweden, but there was some anti-fascist unity within the working class movement. Communist and Social Democrats worked together within the Jansson-Mineur-Committee (1935–1938), an organisation working for the release of two Swedish seamen imprisoned in Nazi Germany. This study examines the Popular Front Policy of the Communist Party of Sweden within the Committee. In relation to previous research, this study’s main contribution is a detailed analysis of the Popular Front Policy on a practical organisational level. The Communists had decisive influence on the Committee, which achieved considerable anti-fascist unity. But unlike in France or Spain, this anti-fascist unity did not lead to broader unity and to progress for the Communist Party, because the dominant Social Democratic Party blocked the Communists efforts. Also, the anti-fascism in France and Spain was different from the Swedish anti-fascism which was mainly directed against foreign fascism. These factors constrained the possibilities of transferring the anti-fascist unity into a general unity within the working class movement. |
