What was the "red referendum"?

[Louis N Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Louis:

In 1931 the Nazis utilized a clause in the Weimar constitution to oust
a coalition government in the state legislature of Prussia. Prussia was a
Social Democratic stronghold.

The Communists at first opposed the referendum, but their opposition
took a peculiar form. They demanded that the Social Democrats form
a bloc with them at once. When the Social Democratic leaders refused,
the Communists put their support behind the Nazi referendum, giving it a
left cover by calling it a "red referendum." They instructed the
workering class to vote for a Nazi referendum.

The referendum was defeated, but it was demoralizing to the German
working-class to see Communists lining up with Nazis to drive the
Social Democrats out of office. I wll have much more to say about this,
but I invite Olaechea's comments at this point.



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