LETTERS OF APRIL 27

‘No choice but to be in it for the long haul…’

The struggle for communist revolution is a long-term commitment. This current international crisis of capitalism has brought untold misery to workers around the world from Haiti to Afghanistan and Iraq, from Palestine to right here in the U.S. The courage to fight back against the bosses has been shown under conditions of overwhelming intimidation and violence.   

Right now in my workplace the anger and frustration that exists in most workers has been tempered with fear. I have worked in a New York hospital for many years in a busy radiology department. 

There have been many struggles during that time but they have grown far fewer during this crisis as mass unemployment has risen and intimidation has increased.  Three workers have been fired in my department over the past two years mostly from minor infractions and poor managerial organization of the work-place that led to errors by my co-workers. These firings are really disguised layoffs — cost-cutting schemes to replace higher-paid older workers with lower-paid inexperienced workers.

As the department union delegate and a long-time PLP member, it has been my responsibility to both organize the fight-back and show why capitalism can never meet our needs. Joining the PLP to organize a communist revolution is the way to go.

It has been a difficult road to hoe. I haven’t yet recruited a new Party member, but I have built a CHALLENGE readers’ network with 11 papers distributed within Radiology and another four to five in other areas in the hospital. 

I sent a letter to management critical of its refusal to change the work-place procedures to reduce errors leading to disciplinary action and posted it on the union bulletin board. The department administrator called me into the office and screamed at me, threatening to remove me as union delegate.

I told him the workers elected me and only the workers can remove me. A petition backing up the letter was circulated but only 13 signed, about half of the technical staff. Many who agreed with the petition would not sign out of fear. But cowardice in the face of a bosses’ attack only encourages more attacks on us.

When the union VP and I met with management on the issue, the first thing the VP did was apologize to them for my posting the letter on the bulletin board. Of course, with that show of weakness, the managers refused to make any procedural changes to their inane system. Now they are on a path to try to fire a night-shift worker.  

After discussing the situation with a senior comrade, I am struggling with the committed workers to build a regular social group to attract and unify the workers in our department. Building a social-political base outside of the workplace has been a difficult task for me due to some limiting objective circumstances. This initiative will hopefully bring us closer together and overcome the fears of those who are upset but not stepping up.

I will rely more on CHALLENGE readers to help this work. We have an uphill fight ahead of us, but all our families’ futures are at stake.  By collectively building unity and fighting back, we can build an understanding that our class, united with communist ideas, can ultimately wield power. We have no choice but to be in it for the long haul.

Med Red

Capitalism Spreads Racism from France to Israel

In France, there is an extreme right-wing party called Front National. Its ideological leader was Jean Marie Le-Pen. The heir to his throne is his daughter, Anne Marine. Their slogan is “France with no Arabs or Blacks”. And what about the Jews? “They love money too much!”

In Israel there are two self-proclaimed racist, far-right parties: KM Michael Ben-Ari’s “National Union”, and “Yisrael Beytenu” led by the foreign minister Libermann. Their slogan is “Death to Arabs” or “Death to the Arab enemy” or, in other words, the idea of the “transfer.” “Transfer” is part of the political discourse in Israel and is basically a euphemism for ethnic cleansing.

I immigrated to Palestine from France “owing” to a racist law: the Law of Return. This legislation allows only Jews to settle and gain citizenship in Israel.

Supposedly Israel’s “democratic” symbols, such as the flag and anthem, contradict its racist laws:

Law of Return;

Law forbidding the commemoration of the Nakbah;

Demolition of houses;

Non-recognition of villages;

Robbing refugees of their houses;

Unfair blockade on Gaza;

Massacre at the “Dahamash” mosque in Lod in 1948;

Massacre at Qfar Kassem in 1956;

The October Massacre in 2000 and so on.

I’m ashamed of the state of Israel, its laws, its government and most of its parliament (Knesset) members such as Libermann and Ben-Ari – all of these are racists and capitalists.

Housekeeping Worker from Tel-Aviv

Workers from Mali Take Aim at Racist Police Brutality

”I’ve been thinking about what’s happening in the Middle East and Wisconsin, and with this war in Libya. We need to make a demonstration about more than just police brutality, it has to be international also,” said Manu, opening our meeting.

On March 19, members of our PLP club met workers at a demonstration against the Senegalese government in Harlem (see page 1), and one of them, Manu, originally from Mali, wanted the Party’s help in organizing a demonstration against police brutality. We then had a follow-up meeting with Manu.

Among the topics discussed was the vital role that multi-racial leadership plays in the Progressive Labor Party, and we shared some articles in the most recent CHALLENGE. We also explained that unlike reformist political parties, the PLP believes in ultimately smashing capitalism through armed communist revolution, and that we seek to unite the international working class around this position.

Manu stated he wished there was a movement powerful enough to confront the wars raging across the planet right now; we told him with his leadership, we could begin to become that movement! We resolved we would contact the PLP members in that area, and schedule a date for a larger meeting where we could bring the Party, Manu and his friends together and decide on a plan.

After eating some French-style cheeseburgers popular at this Harlem spot, the worker invited us to come meet some of his friends and family nearby. We met about eight and distributed CHALLENGEs to each.

Manu addressed his friends, and explained in a language indigenous to Mali, Bambara, that we were from the Progressive Labor Party and want to help them fight against racist police brutality.

A lively discussion followed. A worker who had worked through harsh conditions on a fishing boat told us, “I’ve seen racism. I was the first black man to work on the deck [of the fishing boat]. On shows like Deadliest Catch they don’t show there are blacks working below the deck.”

The other white fishermen “didn’t understand me or my culture. But I never got seasick and this really impressed some of them.” We learned that fishing is dangerous enough, but racism makes it potentially deadly.

Later we explained the Party’s growing work in Haiti, and the CHALLENGE article detailing the strike wave in France. “Citizen,” “documented” or not, workers in France and everywhere must unite on a class basis. We in the PLP are building multi-racial, international unity as the key to revolution. “Unity is the key,” summed up one worker.

When we departed, the workers said they would discuss further what we had said, and thanked us for coming. After exchanging contact information with our new friends, we invited them to participate in the upcoming meeting with Manu and his other friends who were victims of police brutality, and to other upcoming Party events here. There are many struggles and promising opportunities ahead, and we are continuing our work to serve the workers in Harlem through building PLP’s presence here, expanding the fight-back against racism and fighting for internationalism and revolution.

Comrades In Action

From Haiti to Brooklyn and Beyond: Students and Staff Unite!

“We need a whole new system, based on the needs of the working class, not the elites.”

This was the closing comment by a high school student who attended our forum and roundtable on the struggle in Haiti, sponsored by PLP members and friends. Over 50 people — students, teachers and paraprofessionals — came to hear staff members exchange ideas about that struggle and were excited to attend. They were all equal participants in the forum, raising the level of unity among us.

A lively exchange focused on several issues, with students directing questions to staff members. A student from Haiti gave a rousing speech outlining Haiti’s revolutionary history and the impact of that Revolution on Latin America. The student speaker called for solidarity with students and workers in Haiti, noting that the bosses’ media always tells us “Haiti is a poor country” but never tells us why — centuries of imperialist exploitation, especially by U.S. bosses.

The forum touched on the Haitian Revolution, the history of U.S. occupation, the legacy of the U.S.-backed Duvalier dictatorship,  the role of NGO’s, the failures of Aristide, and most importantly, which way forward for the Haiti’s working class. This activity generated a buzz throughout the school; many students and staff were discussing it.

The forum reflected a certain level of planning and preparation and students rose to the occasion. It was a small but an important step forward in deepening our awareness of the struggle of our brothers and sisters in Haiti. It became clear that the struggle there is part of a worldwide struggle by the working class.

Earlier that day our union chapter organized a staff picket line in front of the school, part of a citywide effort to mobilize members to support the struggle in Wisconsin and to fight the racist budget cuts. We need more actions as well as more forums. We need to turn these schools into ones for communist fight-back — from Haiti to Brooklyn…and beyond.

Red Teacher