A chief component of this policy, intended to fan the flames of revolution, provided for an end to the historic strategy of "boring from within" in favor of establishment of dual unions under the direct supervision and control of the communist political movement in each country.
[3] This second session also ran afoul of authorities, with the sheriff of Allegheny County halting proceedings and banning all future gatherings of the delegates — a prohibition later revoked under pressure of civil rights groups.
[1] The union counted local organizations in the states of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia — emphasizing the close connection of the group to the coal mining industry.
[1] Mine owners were quick to capitalize on the newly emphasized presence of Communist Party activists, amping up political rhetoric and physical violence in an attempt to crush the strike.
[1] Quickly pushed onto the ropes despite the support of prominent members of the American literary intelligentsia, the NMU called a general strike on January 1, 1932 — an effort which was easily broken by the mine owners of the region.
[1] Under the leadership of new national secretary Frank Borich,[6] the NMU also organized in the coalfields of eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania, with a strike erupting in the summer of 1931 that ended in the death, injury, and jailing of a number of miners.
[1] Although shattered by the dramatic and violent events of 1931, the NMU remained in existence until 1935, when the Comintern changed its tactics again to the Popular front, embracing once again the notion that communists should participate in established trade unions rather than pursue their aims through parallel organizations.