Minna Naumann on Participation in Elections at the Founding Party Congress of the KPD

We in Dresden are absolutely opposed to participating in the elections for the National Assembly. The speech by Comrade Luxemburg and the other speakers who spoke in favor of it couldn't convince me otherwise today. We are putting ourselves in direct contradiction when we have to tell the masses that the National Assembly is the most pathetic and shameful thing ever created, yet we still want to participate in order to be more effective in agitation. That is not true. This will be even less possible from the rostrum of the National Assembly than Comrades Liebknecht and Rühle were able to in the Reichstag. Our best comrades are far too valuable for that, and it is a needless waste of energy. If the National Assembly is formed, it won't be long before the conditions will be stronger again and work for themselves to disperse the National Assembly. It will be considerably easier for us to explain to the masses that we do not want to be smeared with such filth. I therefore ask all of you to use your strength everywhere to oppose participation and to accept Comrade Rühle's proposal.