Laying the tracks for class struggle
I have been involved with a group of bus and rail transit workers for over a year. I am retired but part of this group of organizers. We have had rallies, demonstrations, virtual and now in-person meetings, confronted sellout union leadership, fliers, and participated in a YouTube radio show (twice) that has a growing following. Union members have led and organized these struggles!
At our most recent in-person meeting, we did have a struggle about the vaccine. Everyone there, except one person was vaccinated. A bus driver told us about her co-worker and friend who died of Covid-19 a few days before. She said she would try to win people to get the vaccine. A rail mechanic said we have to respect and care for others and that is one reason he got the vaccine - to protect the more vulnerable people in his life. Someone mentioned that we have to respect the point of view of workers that are hesitant about the vaccine, while at the same time pointing out the racist nature of the police union. We all agreed that the mandate would be used to punish workers. Yet police are being put forward by some members of our class as leaders that the anti-vaxxer union members should respect and follow.
It was hard for me to struggle against these ideas, which strengthen individualism and reject science and history. Workers in our base say they don’t want to be told what to do and or have their personal choice violated. Racism in medical care for Black and Latin workers has clearly contributed to many of workers’ mistrust and fear. Yet, racism has guaranteed that Black and Latin workers are dying at higher rates than white workers. It’s apparent I have not struggled hard enough to win friends and union brothers and sisters to the Party’s line about the growth of fascism.
There is a lot of work to be done! Selling CHALLENGE and discussing the articles, struggling over communist ideas - this is what we need to do!
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‘I’m a communist, too!’
Despite the pandemic, students and workers have not stopped organizing. This fall I participated in two overnight events alone. Progressive Labor Party (PLP) and friends can learn from these struggle opportunities. The first was a protest in Annapolis, Maryland with CASA calling on the Governor to extend the eviction moratorium. After the rally I spent the night with 50 tenants and supporters at a church parking lot. We met from 9 PM to midnight! At one point I said I was there because "I hate capitalism and am a communist!" This was different from people saying they were there because housing is a human right.Several people asked for CHALLENGE after hearing my politics and three of them said "I'm a communist too," , I spent a cold, rainy night outside of the U.S. White House Covid Response Coordinator, Jeffrey Zients’ house with 20 young workers and joined the 6 AM wake up call (see article). Each hour outside, we lit candles and read about workers from other countries who had died of COVID One particularly intense story was about the death of "Dr. Charles,"a revered OB-GYN doctor from Uganda that fought for women's rights and died without ever making it into a hospital. There were a lot of political and social conversations throughout the night and capitalism was discussed much more than at the rally itself. It was great meeting the folks in person who I had been on Zoom with planning the event for weeks. I now plan to send CHALLENGE to several of these folks from as far away as Portland, Oregon. I did raise the Party’s line in these conversations but both events would have been even better with more PLP members in attendance. Be on the lookout for opportunities like these and bring a good sleeping bag.