Education and Art in Soviet Russia/Document 6
Documents No. 6 and 7 show that the efforts of the Soviet Government to train the population are by no means limited to the children of the country, but extend to able-bodied workers, men and women, as well.
DOCUMENT No. 6
An Appeal by the Section of Independent Proletarian
Cultural-Educational Organizations in the Commissariat
of People's Education
Comrades:—
A section of independent cultural-educational proletarian organizations ("Proletcult") has been established, attached to the Commissariat of People's Education.
The object of this Section is the creation of a mighty All-Russian organization which would unite, support and direct the cultural-educational beginnings of all labor organizations.
Amidst the hard trials and desperate struggles of the past year, the Russian worker has manifested a mighty desire for knowledge and creativeness.
The workmen-peasants' government feels it to be its bounden duty to respond to this desire.
To help the worker in his endeavor to free himself from the humiliating shackles of ignorance and darkness; to surround with care and comfort his few leisure hours and to bring light and clearness to his understanding of Socialism—this is the immediate problem facing the Section. To clear the road towards culture for the worker and help him to become a master in the field in which he heretofore has been only a casual visitor—this is the ultimate goal.
Our Section begins its activity under most trying circumstances.
Universal illiteracy, unemployment and hunger reign throughout the whole country.
We begin the task with small means at our disposal, with lack of workers qualified for such an undertaking.
The problems that are facing us are great, responsible and pressing.
But we believe that the forces which will come to our assistance are also great.
For the purpose of ascertaining the progress of cultural-educational activity of all labor organizations of Russia we are sending out a questionnaire. It will help us to regulate expediently our material means and discover the needs, requirements and immediate problems of labor organizations. In the near future we shall hold at Moscow a Pan-Russian cultural-educational conference, and we are about to start publishing a magazine devoted especially to questions of proletarian culture. We ask the comrades to send us articles, stories, verses and every sort of literary material for this magazine, as well as for an Almanach which we shall also publish. We are producing a standard catalogue for workmen's libraries, and we will exert all our efforts in order that the bookstore (soon to be opened at the Commissariat of People's Education) should have a sufficient number of required books. Upon first request we shall send these books to labor organizations. Courses on workmen's control and trade-union movement have just been opened in Moscow.
We intend to elaborate and publish all lectures to be held there and circulate them through far-distant provincial towns and cities where the organization of such courses is attended with many difficulties. Trained specialist-workers are needed for a wide and serious organization of the cultural-educational undertakings. Undoubtedly there are in the provinces comrades who, with love and interest, will set themselves to this task, after having been trained in this direction.
Therefore we are anxious now to open in Moscow courses for instructors.
This is the programme of our immediate activities. With the greatest attention and gratitude we will listen to all suggestions from comrades. Only through the latter's responsive attitude and active support can we hope to grapple with the tremendous problems facing us.