Hugo Oehler

Edward Hugo Oehler known as Hugo Oehler (1903 - 1983) was an American communist.

An active trade unionist, Oehler joined the Communist Party USA in its early days, and by 1927 was a district organizer for the party in Kansas. He was also known for his ability to organize workers, both in the southern textile mills and the mines of Colorado.

At the 7th National Convention of the Communist Party USA in 1930, Oehler controversially demanded that the Trotskyists be permitted to rejoin the party, abruptly ending his career with the official party. He then joined James P. Cannon, Max Shachtman and Martin Abern in the Communist League of America, the nation's first Trotskyist group. He was soon elected to the group's governing National Committee.

Oehler remained a prominent member of the League, serving on the committee of the International Labor Defense following the Loray Mill Strike. He organised unemployed workers during the Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934.

In 1934, the Communist League merged with A. J. Muste's American Workers Party, becoming the Workers Party of the United States, and later entered the Socialist Party of America as part of Trotsky's "French Turn." Oehler objected to this entrism as a tactic, believing that it would lead to the group becoming influenced by reformism, although once the group had entered, he argued that it should not leave, as this would be unprincipled. As a result, he exited the Workers Party in November 1935 to form the Revolutionary Workers League (RWL) with Cleveland organizer Tom Stamm and Sidney Lens.

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