The Social Democrats and the Communist Movement During and After World War II
The Social Democrats and the Communist Movement during and after World War II The text will give an account of the ideological development of the communists in Sweden during and after World War II. During this time, the peaceful transition to socialism was introduced and the party revised its attitude towards Social Democracy and the bourgeois state, which have had long-term effects on the workers’ movement in Sweden. The role of the Social Democrats will also be analyzed and commented upon, so as to dispel myths and misconceptions concerning them. After the war, the Social Democrats had taken command of Swedish capitalism and strengthened its ties with the Swedish capitalists and imperialists. Unfortunately, it is not possible to paint a complete picture of the developments during this time, as it would require much more work, but we want to highlight certain aspects of the period, so as to draw some conclusions. The economic and political policy of the Social Democrats The real wages of the workers had plummeted during the war – in fact, the government had introduced a freeze to the wages in 1942. Because of the constant attacks on the wages of the workers, the wages had been frozen on an already low level, which left a lot of workers frustrated and fueled demands for increases in wages. At the same time, the level of exploitation of the workers had increased through increases in the intensity of the work. These factors allowed the communists to organize and lead 130 000 metal workers in a strike for wage increases.
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