In pandemic, workers must give leadership
The Covid-19 pandemic  is raging again. Cases have gone up sevenfold in the U.S. in the last week. In other places in Europe and Africa, the cases from the new Omicron variant are already in the hundreds of thousands. This is a time for us to give leadership to our class.
The ruling-class response to this has been to do nothing that would disrupt shopping and dining. The bosses’ leadership plans continue to “return to normal,” meaning keep the economy going and the money flowing—even as we are living in the midst of a capitalist medical holocaust that has killed over 5 million people and counting.
Before Covid-19, what the bosses describe as “normal” was horrible. In any case there is no going back there. This is a time for our Progressive Labor Party to provide leadership. We need to maintain relationships and be with the people we know and meet new friends.
At the same time, the forms that capitalism has created for doing that are a deadly risk for our class. Being unmasked indoors in a public place has become a dangerous activity. The only reason it continues is because the ruling class rakes in so much money from restaurants, bars, parties, sporting events.
This is a time to develop new ways of keeping our class united, of building relationships, and giving leadership to the class struggle.
None of us, or the ruling class, have any idea about the longterm consequences of the new Omicron variant or any other Covid-19 variants. Capitalists do not care how many workers die. But, we in PLP do!
At this moment, we can give leadership on minimizing the risks while maintaining ties with the working class. We have to develop the best protocols we can based on the available information and lead on carrying them out.
We must not give in to the desire to throw out minimizing risks where we can. That is playing into the bosses’ hands. Bosses don’t keep us safe—workers keep each other safe. With my friends, I keep gatherings small and ask people to get tested on the day of and stay masked in public indoor spaces for a week before coming over. We got home testing kits, which are a necessary tool in defense against Covid-19. The kits are obscenely expensive and hence not accessible to many working-class families.
Many of us are forced into dangerous situations by our jobs. We can try to struggle against those where possible, as our best longterm defense against capitalist-spawned disasters like Covid-19 is building a) a culture of fightback and b) the Party for communism.
The bosses are killing us by the millions right now! We must give leadership to our class that shows another path.
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Solidarity with miners as strike wages into winter
Thanks to Progressive Labor Party’s (PLP) campaign to support the striking Alabama miners, thousands of workers and union members have gained awareness about the strike and what its stakes mean for the international working class.
No matter the outcome of the strike we are also making progress on our priority of building a mass revolutionary communist PLP that will one day be capable of overthrowing capitalism. For even if the terrific victory of winning every demand is won, the capitalists still hold state power, and their kkkops will still protect their property from future strikes. What the bosses give today they take away tomorrow. These attacks on the Alabama miners, the nearby Bessemer Amazon workers, CSX railroad workers and workers everywhere will not stop until capitalism is smashed with a multiracial communist revolution.
That’s why the Black and white miners who have been reading and distributing CHALLENGE, in modest but growing hand-to-hand networks, to the miners interested in forming a study group all represent another kind of victory— for the international working class. Should communism finally return to the working class of the South, especially to the superexploited Black women workers, it would have an incalculable impact on class struggle around the U.S. aAnd potentially, the world.
After eight months of a bitter strike, the largest in Alabama’s history, winter is bringing with it new challenges. There’s no sign of movement from the capitalists of BlackRock and Vanguard and their dogs running the mine, the Warrior Met Coal bosses. The miners and their families have taken lower paid, part-time work and endure incredible sacrifices to keep their children and the strike alive. Miners and their families are succumbing to illnesses ranging from the seasonal to the terminal, and more than ever support is needed. We call on CHALLENGE readers to reach out to their base for even more support. If our CHALLENGE readership hasn’t already done so, we ask readers to make this a local campaign at their workplace and mass organization. Every letter of support has an impact on the miners, and they are read and shared, as well as support videos posted on social media.
The miners and their families explained the importance of these forms of solidarity to PL’ers personally during a recent PLP visit to Alabama. Following up with our new friends and CHALLENGE readers since our August trip, PL’ers were warmly greeted and welcomed back even despite the incredible burdens of their daily lives. The miners and families related that despite the weariness and toll of the ongoing strike, they are holding on! With no plans of caving to Warrior Met bosses, some of the most important factors in sustaining the strike include the support coming in from around the U.S. and the world. Despite the capitalist news blackout, workers, especially rank-and-file union workers, have resonated with the strike and built vitally important support networks including numerous virtual events to raise awareness and money.
Everyone who can is encouraged to donate to the UMWA’s Strike Pantry and encourage your coworkers, fellow students, and mass organizations to send letters of support. Running the day-to-day operations of a strike for months on end is a Herculean logistical task led by the seemingly tireless Women’s Auxiliary, and donations to this PayPal Strike Pantry go directly to the miners and are essential for ensuring that the miners can continue to hold the strike.
Donations to the Strike Pantry can be made at: https://www.paypal.me/UMWAStrikePantry
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