NOVEMBER 29, OAKLAND, CA—Class consciousness and anti-capitalism were on full display during the past weeks of actions to shut down business as usual in the San Francisco Bay Area. Tens of thousands marched in Oakland, San Francisco and outlying areas. Multi-generational, multi-racial\ethnic, international groups took action & power in the streets, in Schools and on the job. The actions focused on stopping the genocide in Gaza, shutting down APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation), and stopping IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity) & End Capitalist Destruction of the Environment. Progressive Labor Party (PLP) members urged all working people and students to follow the examples of the internationalist-minded Palestinians and non-Zionist Jews, who are not united with their ruling elites and who emphasized the commonality of their struggles. We had the opportunity to tie these immediate struggles to the need & goal to destroy capitalism with a world-wide revolution and to build a communist world.
Imperialist rivalry on display
After Presidents Biden & Xi Jinping met, Biden laid out his “calming” assurance that the two imperialists had reached mutual agreement on three items: 1) limiting fentanyl production. 2) Open military communication channels and 3) The impact of AI. Then he made a “gaffe", calling Xi a dictator. As the PLP leaflet pointed out: U.S. and China bosses do play buddy-buddy, but the clash of their empires is inevitable. The Real Agenda: Biden & Xi Jinping seek to exploit & divide workers around the world while they compete for “allies” in their imperialist ventures. The Biden administration launched IPEF in 2021 as a U.S.-led alternative for countries in the Indo-Pacific Area who developed deeper economic ties to China; also, as an alternative to the Belt & Road Initiative. IPEF excludes China and includes some countries, not in APEC, like India. Some U.S. allies in the Americas accept capital investments from China. Some, now, criticize Israel as well as Hamas.
Protests overwhelm police repression and media propaganda
Demonstrators denouncing imperialism and genocide joined up at the SF Civic Center, Market St, Black Rock headquarters, (asset management), Democratic Party Convention in Sacrament. Many called for Free Palestine. At one demonstration, protestors physically surrounded CEOs as they sought to enter APEC Sessions: yelling & booing: “Shame, Shame” “Blood on your hands,” videoing CEOs for further shaming on the internet.
A day after Biden & Xi Jinping met, a coalition against genocide, racism and imperialism shut down the Bay Bridge; stopping traffic from Oakland to SF & disrupting those attending APEC(similar action happened on a bridge between Cambridge & Boston Ma.)
In sharp contrast to anti-imperialist, internationalism actions, groups of pro and anti-China demonstrators waved their national flags. They clashed, on the side-lines of APEC, over which capitalist bosses to support. (Asian Diaspora from Tibet, Hong Kong & Uyghurs vs groups that support Xi Jinping ruling class in China & hoped to meet with him.).
Education workers in OEA (Oakland Education Association), UESF (United educators of San Francisco) & UAW 2865 (adjuncts, grad students and others in the UC System) passed resolutions for ceasefire and no weapons for the Israeli war machine. SEIU 1021 (service workers) & United Service Workers West(many janitors)passed resolutions calling for ceasefire.
The Belgian Transport Union has refused to load arms for Israel.
No war but class war
PLP members’ experience at these actions brought home, in a real way, that thousands have turned fear and cynicism into anger and solidarity; particularity against imperialist genocide in Gaza. We got a great reception to our posters, CHALLENGE and flyers. (see pictures) Many eagerly responded to “No War but Class War”; “Stop the Genocide”, “Read a communist leaflet about what’s happening in Israel and Gaza.” We focused on the interconnected oppression of capitalist rule in the USA to the oppression\genocide that imperialism brings down on workers around the world; especially with their junior partner, the Israel ruling class.
Tax dollars needed for public services like education and transit exported to fund the Israeli military, (i.e. cash for profit in the U.S. armament industry
Export of Israeli military training\intelligence to police departments in the USA which carry out racist attacks on Black, brown and low-income communities. C)$44 million for a new “Cop Campus”, regional training center, in San Pablo Ca. (near SF & Oakland). D) Needing to maximize profit demands that the US capitalists carry out with fascist attacks on immigrant labor with prisons, murder & family separation, similar to Israeli capitalists’ fascist attacks on immigrant labor inside Israel and Gaza. E) the history of US capitalism’s displacement of indigenous peoples from “manifest destiny,” westward expansion to US imperialist actions throughout the “Americas” with wars and support of fascist coups. Some people were not aware of Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s infamous statement about the death of 500,000 Iraqi children from US war\sanctions: "I think that is a very hard choice, but the price, we think, the price is worth it.” Such conversations helped us to get names and several young people invited us to come to the actions they were planning to Shut Down APEC.
Internationalism & nationalism both on display
We, in PLP, learned a lot from the contradictions expressed in these actions. While groups were formed around nationality or national borders, expressed ethnic identity, carried Palestinian flags or focused on particular issues like climate, police terror, or the unhoused, they also contained multi racial\ethnic approaches and called for international unity among working people. In common struggle, there is plenty of room to argue that nationalism is no way out for working people. The worldwide solution is for the international working class to run society, with no borders; that means communism.
During the protests, we explained our communist goals: PLP strives to build the world-wide movement for revolution and for a share and share alike, communism: no capitalist profits, no wage-system, no national borders, no racism, no sexism, working class unity with class siblings around the world. We expressed our confidence that a mighty working class won’t be stopped when armed with commitment to production/distribution for the need and ability for all to contribute to an emerging communist world.
What is APEC?
In APEC’s own words: “Cooperation” means to “ensure that goods, services, investment and people move easily across borders. by promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure growth and by accelerating regional economic integration.” APEC trade deals cover 60 percent of global energy systems and impact some of the most climate-vulnerable areas of the world ( https://www.apec.org/About-Us/About-APEC/)
*1,200 global, corporate CEOs (including: General Motors, Exxon, Chevron, Citibank, Tesla, SpaceX’s Musk, Boeing & big tech like Microsoft), 20+ heads of state (including Biden & Xi Jinping), 30,000 lobbyists, corporate execs, & international media. President Xi Jinping met with American business leaders at a $2,000-per-plate dinner.
Trying to make SF look good on the world stage, the SF city bosses spent thousands to “clean up the City.” Homeless workers were removed from downtown areas. Some businesses were shut down. Bridge and freeway exits/entrances were blocked. There was a huge police\security presence. The media blasted that a great opportunity was coming to San Francisco to capture investments from “domestic and international” Finance Capital and to change its tarnished image as a failing city.