Question: What was the extent of North Carolina’s involvement in the Communist Party of the United States following the Russian Revolution?
Answer: North Carolina had limited involvement in the Communist Party of the United States (CPUSA) after the 1917 Russian Revolution, with no organized presence for several years. The key early event was the CPUSA-affiliated National Textile Workers Union’s 1929 Loray Mill strike in Gastonia, a violent but unsuccessful effort to organize textile workers. The party maintained a meager presence afterward, including a brief period when Charlotte served as a district headquarters and later when the state headquarters was located in Greensboro, with little success in growth or influence.
