July 26, 2018, Vol. 60, No. 30

OTAN • EDITORIAL El futuro es ya 12

Workers and oppressed peoples of the world unite! workers.org Vol. 60, No. 30 July 26, 2018 $1 Migrants in ICE jails launch hunger strikes By Kathy Durkin

Sixty im/migrant prisoners began a hunger strike July 17 at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the Bristol County House of Corrections complex in North Dartmouth, Mass. Another 72 prisoners joined this bold action on July 20. These detainees, some undergoing removal proceedings and others awaiting deportation, are protesting the deplorable conditions of their captivity. Chief among their complaints are “nearly nonexis- tent medical care, inedible food, abuse from facility employees and exorbitant commissary prices,” says a press release issued July 19 by Families for Freedom, a multinational, New York-based immigrant rights organization and mobilizing center for migrants fighting deportation. Detainees called the group’s hotline to ask for help in publicizing their protests over the facility’s terri- ble conditions. They say the food served them is not nutritious and often rotten, and they are ignored if they get food poisoning. It can take up to two weeks to get needed medical care, if it’s provided at all. One prisoner with a broken hand has not seen a doctor for

three weeks. People having seizures get no care, and WW PHOTO: JOE PIETTE those needing medications don’t get them. An 11-person delegation representing FIRE (Fight for Im/migrants and Refugees Hunger strikers report that showers and bath- Everywhere) visited the South Texas Human Rights Center in Falfurrias, Texas, rooms are full of mold. Phone and commissary prices on June 30. are double — or more — the cost outside the prison, but the facility’s food is so bad that detainees must buy food at the canteen. They report being subjected to racist and other verbal abuse by guards, as well as inhumane treatment, including guards laughing at Trump, Putin Challenges facing prisoners who faint from hunger. Families for Freedom reports: “Bristol County and Helsinki 3 the working class 6-7 House of Corrections is a facility with a history of mis- treatment” and high suicide rates. “Sheriff Thomas Hobson, a Trump fan, is known for his exceptional brutality, misconduct, including receiving kickbacks from Prisons are prison telecoms and his proposal to use prison labor WORKERS ON THE MOVE from his county to build Trump’s border wall.” (Press the crime 8 release, tinyurl.com/y9padac4)  Michigan The hunger strikers’ Call to Action succinctly lists their demands for proper medical care, nutritious  AFGE food and essential hygienic equipment and services. Israeli apartheid law 9 They ask supporters to advocate for them by calling the following officials to ask that their demands be  Chicago met: Bristol County Detention Facility at 508-995- 4 Venezuela’s 6400 and Acting ICE Field Office Directors Thomas Brophy and James Rutherford at 781-359-7500. popular militia EDITORIAL 10

Women migrants resist! Across the country, im/migrants are protesting 5 horrendous conditions of their captivity through DISABILITY PRIDE whatever means they can. Women migrants held at Continued on page 9 Subscribe to Workers World 4 weeks trial $4 1 year subscription $30 Sign me up for the WWP Supporter Program: workers.org/donate WWP contingent in New York Disability Pride parade. WW PHOTO: JULIE VARUGHESE Name______

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Street ______City / State / Zip______Workers World Weekly Newspaper______workers.org 10 147 W. 24th St., 2nd Fl, NY, NY 10011______212.627.2994 Puerto Rico Tribunal Page 2 July 26, 2018 workers.org #NoDAPL water protector sentenced to 57 months

By Mahtowin

#NoDAPL water protector Red Fawn Fallis was sen-  In the U.S. tenced July 11 to 57 months in prison by a federal judge Migrants in ICE jails launch hunger strikes ...... 1 in North Dakota. She was given 18 months’ credit for time #NoDAPL water protector sentenced to 57 months . . . 2 served prior to trial, and will have three years of probation supervision after her release. She and her family await Big win for University of Michigan teachers ...... 4 news of where she will serve time, possibly in Arizona. Federal workers mobilize against Trump’s union busting . 4 Red Fawn had previously accepted a plea agreement Skyscraper window washers on strike ...... 4 that included two federal felony convictions — civil dis- NYC Disability Pride parade targets service cuts . . . . 5 order and possession of ammunition by a previously convicted felon — in return for dropping a more serious Crumbling infrastructure spewed deadly asbestos . . . 5 weapons charge that would have carried a minimum Understanding the working class: Red Fawn Fallis being arrested. prison sentence of 10 years. The need for a political and organizational strategy . . 6 Her charges resulted from the Oct. 27, 2016, milita- ginning of settler colonialism, Indigenous women have Aug. 21-Sept. 9: Prisoners call for national strike ...... 8 rized police attack on the 1851 Treaty Camp near Stand- been viewed with utter contempt, and their countless ef- In battle for freedom, women inmates fight blazes . . . 8 ing Rock, directly in the path of the Dakota Access oil forts to defend their land and families have been harshly pipeline (DAPL). Red Fawn was tackled by several cops, repressed and punished. Remember and support Ramsey Orta! ...... 9 who then claimed that she had a gun and fired it during While the #NoDAPL encampments began at Stand- Postal union protests police killing ...... 9 that time. ing Rock more than two years ago, the court cases are As it turned out, the gun belonged to Heath Harmon, continuing to snake through the courts. Indigenous de-  Around the world a paid FBI informant who had weaseled his way into Red fendants are being hit with the most severe charges and Trump, Putin and Helsinki ...... 3 Fawn’s life as her boyfriend and into her family’s good prison terms. Dozens more water protectors still face state Israeli ‘nation state’ legislation parallels Nazi Laws . . . . .9 graces. Many believe this spying was done to try and ob- charges, and several face federal charges that carry the tain information through Red Fawn about actions and potential of spending decades in prison if convicted. Tribunal to expose U.S. colonial crimes in Puerto Rico . . 10 plans at the #NoDAPL camps. Red Fawn, who is from the Michael “Little Feather” Giron was sentenced on May  Editorial Pine Ridge Reservation and also Denver, Colo., comes 30 to a 36-month federal prison term for “civil disorder.” Venezuela: Popular militia advances ...... 10 from a proud line of American Indian Movement activists. Michael “Rattler” Markus awaits sentencing on Sept. Red Fawn understood clearly that there could be no 27. Under his plea agreement, there will be a joint recom-  Noticias en Español justice for an Indigenous woman in any court in North mendation of 36 months in prison for “civil disorder.” Dakota. Her lawyers were told they could not introduce Dion Ortiz is awaiting sentencing on Oct. 22. Under his Breve historia de la OTAN ...... 12 evidence at trial about relevant subjects such as treaty plea agreement reached on July 17, prosecutors will rec- Editorial: El futuro es ya ...... 12 rights and the FBI informant who targeted Red Fawn and ommend up to 36 months in prison for “civil disorder.” likely planted the gun at the time of her arrest. James “Angry Bird” White entered into a noncoopera- The prosecution refused to produce important evi- tive plea agreement in July for a sentence of time served dence that might have cleared Red Fawn. As a result, she plus 12 months of home confinement for “civil disorder.” accepted a plea deal that would eliminate the more serious weapons charge, out of concern that otherwise she would ‘Water Is Life!’ struggle continues be found guilty and sentenced to more than 10 years. The cops and federal government intended all their brutality and arrests to put a damper on water protectors Workers World More ‘civil disorder’ charges during the time of the widespread international effort to 147 W. 24th St., 2nd Fl. As an Indigenous woman, Red Fawn is being severely stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. Water protectors were New York, NY 10011 penalized for daring to defend treaty rights, protect the arrested by the hundreds, attacked by dogs, sprayed with Phone: 212.627.2994 water and stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. Since the be- Continued on the next page E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.workers.org Vol. 60, No. 30 • July 26, 2018 Join us in the fight Closing date: July 24, 2018 Editor: Deirdre Griswold Managing Editors: John Catalinotto, LeiLani Dowell, for socialism! Monica Moorehead, Minnie Bruce Pratt; Workers World Party is a revolutionary Marxist- Wages are lower than ever, and youth are saddled with Web Editor Gary Wilson Leninist party inside the belly of the imperialist beast. seemingly insurmountable student debt, if they even make Production & Design Editors: Coordinator Lal Roohk; We are a multinational, multigenerational and multigen- it to college. Black and Brown youth and trans people are Andy Katz, Cheryl LaBash dered organization that not only aims to abolish capital- gunned down by cops and bigots on a regular basis. ism, but to build a socialist society because it’s the only WWP fights for socialism because the working class Copyediting and Proofreading: Sue Davis, Bob McCubbin, Jeff Sorel way forward! produces all wealth in society, and this wealth should re- Capitalism and imperialism threaten the peoples of main in their hands, not be stolen in the form of capital- Contributing Editors: Greg Butterfield, G. Dunkel, the world and the planet itself in the never-ending quest ist profits. The wealth workers create should be socially K. Durkin, Fred Goldstein, Martha Grevatt, for ever-greater profits. Capitalism means war and aus- owned and its distribution planned to satisfy and guar- Teresa Gutierrez, Berta Joubert-Ceci, Terri Kay, terity, racism and repression, joblessness and lack of antee basic human needs. Cheryl LaBash, John Parker, Betsey Piette, hope for the future. No social problems can be solved Since 1959, Workers World Party has been out in the Gloria Rubac under capitalism. streets defending the workers and oppressed here and Mundo Obero: Redactora Berta Joubert-Ceci; The U.S. is the richest country in the world, yet no one worldwide. If you’re interested in Marxism, socialism Andrea Bañuelos, Alberto García, Teresa Gutierrez, has a guaranteed right to shelter, food, water, health care, and fighting for a socialist future, please contact a WWP Carlos Vargas education or anything else — unless they can pay for it. branch near you. Supporter Program: Coordinator Sue Davis Copyright © 2018 Workers World. Verbatim copying Contact a Workers World Party branch near you: workers.org/wwp and distribution of articles is permitted in any medium without royalty provided this notice is preserved. National Office Boston Denver Los Angeles Rockford, Ill. 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By Fred Goldstein existed, the entire ruling class feared for While beating the anti-Russian drums of war, the paid scribes its property and profits. They feared the The Helsinki summit represents a new spread of socialism. of the ruling class are all rallying behind the FBI and CIA. phase in the attempt by U.S. President Capitalist Russia poses no such threat. These are two of the greatest enemies of the workers Donald Trump to forge a rapproche- Now the U.S. military is driven by the ment with President Vladimir Putin and goal of reconquering territories it lost and oppressed at home and abroad. Russia. This summit, however, comes during the Soviet period. That is what at a time when the U.S. capitalist state the attempted takeover of Ukraine was is moving in the opposite direction — about. This would have moved the Penta- war, these paid scribes of the ruling class Democratic rights in the U.S. are in toward inflaming relations with Russia. gon to Russia’s southern border. It is why are all rallying behind the FBI and CIA. fact being taken away — but not by Rus- The basis for the attempted rapproche- Washington moved NATO into the Bal- And who are they? These agencies are sia. Voter suppression by every means ment is partly a common right-wing po- tics in 2004 and established a northern two of the greatest enemies of the work- possible has reduced the votes of African litical orientation. Trump and Putin are military cordon in Estonia, Latvia and ers and oppressed at home and abroad. Americans, Latinx, Native people, Asians both authoritarian, great-power chau- Lithuania. And the U.S. has made Poland The FBI has infiltrated and framed up and poor whites. vinists. They are both opposed to the Eu- into a forward base in Central Europe. It generations of communists, socialists, This has been done by the imposition ropean Union and NATO, but each for his is the strategy of encirclement. Washing- African-American civil rights organiza- of voter ID laws, closing polling stations, own expansionist reasons. And they are ton also attempted a takeover of Georgia tions and liberation groups. It has hunt- gerrymandering electoral districts to re- both promoting reactionary, racist, an- and has now incorporated Montenegro ed them down on their jobs and in their duce the electoral weight of oppressed ti-immigration forces in Europe as a tool into NATO. homes, imprisoned and even killed them. communities, and just plain illegally to weaken European imperialism. The ultimate goal of U.S. imperialism For decades the CIA has overthrown purging voter rolls. The mass incarcera- Revolutionaries and anti-imperialists is to restore its own pro-U.S. regime in governments, too numerous to list. It has tion of millions of Black, Latinx and poor are also opposed to the EU and to NATO. Moscow. carried out assassinations, set up torture white workers is a shortcut to disenfran- They rightfully want to see these impe- sites and disrupted national liberation chisement, and not just during their term rialist institutions destroyed. But the EU Russia’s contradictory role struggles all over the world. Because of imprisonment. Many states take away and NATO must be destroyed in a pro- Because of its strategic interests, Rus- Trump is attacking it while trying to save the right to vote of so-called felons for gressive way: by the working class and sia plays a contradictory role in its strug- his skin from the Mueller investigation, long periods afterwards. the oppressed. gle with U.S. imperialism. some liberals and progressives somehow And this is to say nothing of the police If Europe is disintegrated by right- Putin partially rebuffed the attempt got hoodwinked into defending these two killing of Black, Latinx and Indigenous wing, anti-immigrant, anti-working class by U.S. and European imperialism to cutthroat organizations. people that goes on day after day across forces, it could bring about nationalist, take over Ukraine. It has supported the Trump, the Pentagon, the CIA and the country. inter-imperialist military conflict. Such resistance in the Donbass region and has FBI all must be equally condemned and And where are the democratic rights of disintegration would unleash the forces protected its strategic naval base in the fought against as enemies of the people. millions of migrants to be free from per- of conquest and war. Crimea. secution by Border Patrol stormtroopers Many on the left in Britain mistakenly It has also backed the Syrian govern- Trying to undermine Trump and from Immigration and Customs En- backed Brexit because they were opposed ment in its drive to stop a U.S. takeover The Democratic Party leadership and forcement agents who roam the country, to the EU. However, they wound up in of that country. Putin is trying to protect many progressives are hoping that the raid workplaces and neighborhoods? an unwanted alliance with the likes of Russia’s only land ally and seaport in the campaign of Russia baiting will under- They kill, brutalize, imprison and deport racist, anti-immigrant figures like Boris Middle East. mine both the Trump administration with impunity. Johnson, Nigel Farage and rabid anti-im- Russia has helped Cuba with export and the Trump Republicans in Congress, The rights of women to control their migrant, chauvinist forces wanting to credits, automobiles, locomotives, oil as well as erode his base. In addition to bodies are denied every time a new an- “make the empire great again.” and other exports on a strictly capitalist Russia baiting, they are hoping that the ti-abortion law is passed; every time a On the other hand, it would be pro- basis. It has forgiven much of Cuba’s $3 Mueller investigation into the Trump women’s health care clinic is shut down. gressive if NATO and the EU were un- billion debt left over from the Soviet era. campaign will end up with the ouster of Every time a batterer is ignored by the au- dermined, not by Trump and Putin, but Russia has also helped Venezuela with Trump. thorities, women’s very lives are at stake. by a united working class, fighting the debt forgiveness, allowing Caracas to re- Both these paths are a dead end for the These are real-life examples of inter- European bankers and bosses and their tain oil that it uses to pay debts. working class and the oppressed. ference with democratic rights that so military interventions in Africa, the Mid- It is perfectly understandable for op- This mentality of getting rid of Trump, many people have been jailed or died in dle East and eastern Europe. It would be pressed countries under U.S. sanctions, no matter how, is very dangerous. Rus- order to realize. progressive if class solidarity prevailed in blockade or military attack to ally with sia baiting plays into the war drive of the the fight against anti-immigrant racism. Russia and take aid from it. And revolu- military. It will only drain the funds that Trump and democracy tionaries and progressives should sup- should be used for social spending and Trump is an authoritarian, right-wing, Pentagon and spy agencies port and defend that aid. But this does reduce the already starved social safety racist, misogynist, militarist bigot. He is need an enemy not change the class character of the net. It runs the increased risk of war, in trampling on institutions and rights that Trump is trying mightily to reorient counterrevolutionary oligarch regime in which the working class of both countries were established for society’s protection. Washington’s foreign policy. But the Moscow. would be the primary victims. The numerous government agencies that Pentagon, the CIA, the FBI and the mili- It will aid the Democratic Party estab- have been created over the years to curb tary-industrial complex are trying to sab- Publicist lackeys and anti-Russia storm lishment in its drive to maintain its polit- corporate abuses are being completely otage these efforts. They need to inflate The ruling-class publicist lackeys of ical dominance over the broad masses of destroyed by Trump. the sense of danger from an “enemy” in all types have rushed to the public mega- progressive forces, as well as reinforcing These agencies and institutions have order to sustain and expand war prepara- phone to do the bidding of the Pentagon bourgeois chauvinist ideology. Using war been regarded as riot insurance by the tions and keep military profits rolling in. and the spy agencies. Bourgeois journal- propaganda to divert Trump’s anti-immi- bosses. They were set up to limit the The Soviet Union used to be the main ists, news anchors, “expert” panelists, grant, pro-cop followers only substitutes damage done by the capitalists in the Cold War enemy of the U.S. and Europe- former and present government officials, one capitalist evil for another. jurisdictions indicated by their names. an ruling classes. Actually, the Cold War retired generals and admirals turned Corporate bribery and corruption have was a genuine class war — a struggle be- “commentators” and “analysts,” think Subverting ‘our democracy’ always allowed the bosses to weaken tween two antagonistic social systems. tank pundits, even late-night show hosts by interfering in elections? and circumvent various regulations. But The USSR was a socialist country that — all have vied with each other to attack One of the most pernicious propagan- Trump has taken it to a new level. was under pressure around the globe Trump for being a tool of Putin and Putin da narratives of the anti-Russian propa- He keeps the loyalty and acquiescence from capitalist Washington’s spy agen- for being a master manipulator who “in- ganda is that the Russians interfered in of big business by destroying all progres- cies, military and diplomatic corps in terfered with our democracy.” “our democracy.” sive limitations on capitalist plunder and over 100 countries. As long as the USSR While beating the anti-Russia drums of First of all, it is not “our democracy.” reducing the funds spent on regulation, This is the democracy of the capitalist such as the trillion-dollar tax cut, the class. The rich control every platform of transformation of the regulatory agen- #NoDAPL water protector sentenced publicity, TV, newspapers, radio, film, cies into permissive enablers of the plun- etc. The bosses own all the major halls, der of the environment, the destruction Continued from page 2 British Columbia to Louisiana, from the arenas, theaters, stadiums. They own the of public education, removing govern- mace and pepper spray over and over, hit nation of Colombia to Minnesota, pipe- newsprint, the presses and other forms of ment oversight of public transportation, with concussion grenades and rubber line fighters and water protectors contin- print media. They control the ideological drugs and pharmaceuticals, Big Oil and bullets, seriously injured, denied medical ue to spring up everywhere. Throughout and political content of every major pub- mining, etc. care, strip-searched and placed in dog Turtle Island, Indigenous people and al- lic propaganda organ. With all the tumult about Trump and cages upon arrest. lies rise together to say, “Water Is Life!” Democratic rights that may exist for Russia, the rights of the masses are un- The militarized attacks against the Part of supporting that resistance is the masses under this constricted, trun- der attack on a daily basis. The move- camps at Standing Rock were part of a to ensure that our political prisoners cated capitalist democracy have been ment must turn its attention to combat- centuries-old history of government re- are never forgotten or left behind. For won through organization and struggle, ing these attacks. The enemy is not only pression directed against Indigenous updates and information about how to at the cost of much blood, whether it’s the Trump administration and the capi- people who defend their lands. contact Red Fawn and other #NoDAPL union rights, civil rights, women’s rights talists who support him, but the capital- Once again, that repression has back- political prisoners, go to tinyurl.com/ or LGBTQ rights. Nothing has been given ist system of plunder and exploitation as fired. Resistance continues to grow. From y8qlcb23/. by the ruling class without a fight. a whole. Page 4 July 26, 2018 workers.org Big win for University of Michigan teachers

By Martha Grevatt The union did not win everything it included rallies, electronic petitioning Detroit had asked for and hopes in future bar- and an April 22 sit-in inside the adminis- gaining to address the pay discrepancy tration building. After nine months of tough negotia- between the main Ann Arbor campus The union hired organizers who made tions, nontenured lecturing instructors and the Flint and Dearborn locations. a point of talking to every member, hear- at the University of Michigan’s three Lower-paid teachers at the satellite cam- ing what their primary issues were and campuses have won an agreement that puses were the most active in the contract giving regular updates. Teachers were all provides substantial pay increases, im- struggle. set to go out on a two-day strike, which proved access to health benefits, in- was only called off when the administra- creased pension contributions and stron- PHOTO: LEO Victory for teachers and students tion began agreeing to LEO’s proposals. ger job security guarantees. percentage of their health care premi- “We’ve been working since October 2017 There was mass support from tenured The 1,700 members of Lecturing Em- ums. A lecturer who teaches two or more to create an agreement that will ensure faculty, the Graduate Employees Organi- ployees Organization, American Fed- classes one semester could lose access to quality education for our students and fair zation, other campus workers, students eration of Teachers Local 6244, voting health benefits the next semester if their compensation for our members,” said LEO and members of the Board of Regents. July 11-13, ratified the new contract by course load drops to one class. President Ian Robinson, a lecturer in the Students filled out hundreds of postcards a 98 percent majority. There was strong This deplorable situation is not unique Sociology Department at UM in Ann Ar- giving their reasons for supporting the member participation in the electronic to Michigan. Across the country, fewer bor, in a June 22 LEO news release. union. GEO and LEO have a history of mu- ratification process. professors are being hired for full-time, Kirsten Herold, a lecturer at the UM tual solidarity, which has benefited both Under the old contract, starting pay for tenure-track positions and are being School of Public Health, LEO vice pres- groups of exploited education workers. full-time lecturing instructors was only replaced by lecturers who are paid low- ident and manager of the LEO bargain- There was also strong support from the $27,300 at the Flint campus, $28,300 in er salaries and do not have job securi- ing team, added: “Higher pay will lead to nurses in the UM hospital system, who Dearborn and $34,500 in Ann Arbor. ty or even a predictable income due to less turnover, more lecturers working full have been dealing with the same hostile But many instructors make much less. last-minute scheduling. time — rather than holding multiple part- management in their negotiations. LEO Many are part time, with no control over The new contract at UM will raise pay time jobs — and a more stable learning members are being urged to attend ral- their course load, which is decided each by an average of 50 percent by the third environment for our students to whom lies to back the nurses. semester by the administration. Instruc- year of the contract. Currently employed our membership are so dedicated.” The upsurge of education worker resis- tors working less than 60 percent of lecturers will receive substantial raises. This victory was not achieved through tance, beginning with the powerful strike full time have no health benefits. Those Access to health benefits is now based on skilled negotiations alone. LEO built a in West Virginia, has spread to higher working less than full time pay a large an average annual course load. public “Respect the Lecs” campaign that education. Federal workers mobilize against Trump’s union busting

By Sue Davis take disciplinary action against employ- four times the rate of ees has been reduced from over 120 days private sector unions While the right-wing majority on the to 30 days. J. David Cox, president of the have made the feder-

Supreme Court awarded two major wins American Federation of Government al government a more PHOTO: AFGE in anti-union, anti-worker cases this Employees, which represents the work- welcoming workplace for women and spring — the reactionary Epic Systems ers, told Payday Report: “I have no doubt people of color. Though African Amer- all Title 38 employees at the VA, includ- and Janus decisions — the bullying bil- that the policies and actions of this ad- icans account for only 10 percent of the ing many nurses, physicians and mental lionaire boss in the Oval Office was also ministration disproportionality impact “civilian” workforce, they account for 18 health specialists in the majority female busy, issuing union-busting executive women and minorities. percent of federal workers. workforce, are no longer allowed to have orders on May 25 and July 9. These un- “The agencies that have been attacked “The new executive orders are going shop stewards represent them in disci- publicized orders are designed to strip most severely, agencies like [Housing and to make it even harder for us to recruit plinary hearings on official government 700,000 federal workers, particularly Urban Development, the Environmental and retain people of color,” said Linda time. Now, stewards have to clock out. women and people of color, of their rights Protection Agency, the Social Security Ward-Smith, president of AFGE Local Studies show workers with union rep- on the job. Administration] and the Department of 1224, representing workers in the U.S. resentation are better able to reduce the A crime of such magnitude against Education not only provide the greatest Department of Veterans Affairs. The Af- chances of getting fired. working people has to be exposed and amount of services to women and minori- rican-American union leader asserted, No longer are workers allowed to use fought with a mighty fist. ties, they also have very high percentages “This is just giving management more federal computers or email to communi- The Trump administration’s new rules of women and minorities in their work- power to just get rid of people because of cate across workplaces, making it difficult are designed to dramatically decrease force.” (July 11) whatever reason.” for stewards to meet and talk with work- the threshold needed to fire unionized Traditionally, affirmative action pro- Trump’s rules also weaken the union’s ers on the job. “They are making us all federal workers. The evidence needed to grams and a workforce unionized at ability to represent workers. For example, at-will employees,” notes Ward-Smith. “A lot of times, we take these jobs for protection. This is why we come to the federal government because we have unions, but Skyscraper window now it is just as bad as the private sector.” National fightback needed washers on strike At the Social Security Administration, where 32 percent of the workforce is Afri- By Jeff Sorel hero costumes — and family can-American, the Trump administration Chicago members poured into Chica- has banned unions from holding meetings go’s downtown the morning in federal buildings, though that’s been ac- Suppose you had to earn your living of July 10 to protest. Their cepted practice for decades. Even unions washing skyscraper windows a thousand signs read, “Window washers offering to rent office space at market rate feet in the air? In summer you scald in the are Chicago’s real skyline su- have been refused, despite other business- sun as you dangle from your rope, while perheroes.” They temporarily es having been allowed to do it. blocked the busy intersection AFGE Council 220, representing about in winter your soapy, water-covered skin WW PHOTO: JEFF SOREL 29,000 employees in Social Security Ad- freezes. of Michigan Avenue and Ran- Window washers protest low pay and benefits, July 18. At a minimum, you would expect size- dolph Street before rallying in ministration field offices and service cen- able pay and benefits for engaging in such Millennium Park. majority of the City Council’s 50 mem- ters, has filed four class-action grievanc- risky work. After all, billion-dollar Chi- About 260 union window washers rep- bers to express their support. es against the SSA for using a promotion cago buildings like Trump Tower enjoy resented by Service Employees Local 1 The union seeks an increase in starting system they say is discriminatory. Statis- massive tax breaks. have been on strike since July 2 — right wages to a range of $16 to $25 an hour. It tics over four years show that “twice as Yet many of the workers who scale in the middle of peak washing season. also wants an increase in life insurance many whites as minority people get the these gleaming edifices are paid as lit- When their contract expired on that date, coverage (which makes plenty of sense, highest rating,” said Witold Skwierczyns- tle as $12 an hour, not nearly enough to they traded in their squeegees for pick- given the risks of the job) and removal of ki, president of Council 220. Now, SSA make ends meet and raise a family in this et signs. The six companies that employ the current cap on employer health insur- workers won’t be allowed to file grievanc- expensive city. them handle most of the windows in the ance contributions. es showing the promotion system is dis- Demanding decent pay and afford- city’s downtown buildings. The workers say they won’t go back to criminatory. able health care, hundreds of Chicago On July 18, as the strike continued, work until their employers start bargain- Council 220 officials view such signs window washers — dressed in super- they marched on City Hall, which led a ing in good faith. Continued on page 10 workers.org July 26, 2018 Page 5 Disability Pride parade targets potential service cuts New York City

By New York Disabilities Bureau you’ve got — a toe, a head, an arm,” en- of Workers World Party couraged the emcee.

On a glorious Sunday morning, after a Protest serious cutbacks thunderstorm had cleared the air, thou- At 12:15 p.m., disabled people gath- sands of disabled New Yorkers with their ered in front of the stage to protest Gov. friends and families walked, rode, rolled Andrew Cuomo’s threat to close the In- and scooted down Broadway from Mad- dependent Care System, which provides ison Square Park to Union Square Park essential services that enable disabled in the July 15 Disability Pride Parade. A people to live at home. festival was scheduled at the end of the Wheelchair user Sharifa Abu-Hamda, parade. founder of the Civic League for Disability Spirits were high. Concerns about the Rights, thrilled the excited crowd with a heat had been raised in social media by speech demanding Cuomo end his horrif- many groups, including the NY Peoples ic plan to close ICS. She emphasized that Power Assemblies. The PPA had carried the Civic League has fought to protect out a vigorous “We Want the Shade” cam- Medicaid, to maintain funding for wheel- paign to reverse the route so the parade chairs and equipment, and to make pub- WW PHOTO: JULIE VARUGHESE would end at Madison Square Park and lic transit more accessible. WWP contingent in Disability Pride parade. the three-hour festival could be held She explained: “Today we are fighting in the shade. Many disabled people are to save Independent Care Systems also plied thousands of times. ... for ramps. She sued her school district adversely affected by excessive heat. In known as ICS. ICS exists for one reason: to “We have the right to live independently for the right to teach. In 1970, she found- 2015, three participants had to be hospi- make sure that people like me, people with with dignity instead of being locked up in ed Disabled in Action, a vanguard group talized due to heat exhaustion. physical disabilities, are able to live inde- institutions. Governor Cuomo: Save ICS.” in the disability civil rights movement. As a result of this campaign, the city pendently. No other insurance does that. Some 50 wheelchair users then sur- In 1977, she took part in a 28-day sit-in spent a significant amount on two large “Governor Cuomo is planning to close rounded the stage. Holding up a hand- for disability rights in San Francisco. In tents to provide shade in the paved, tree- ICS. He says we will be able to get the made paper sign reading, “ICS Is the 1981, she helped found the World Insti- less part of the park where the festival same services from any other plan we en- Best,” they chanted, “Save ICS!” for more tute on Disability. was held. roll in. That is not true. The state wants to than 15 minutes. More than 30 signs prepared by The theme of the parade was “Express close ICS to save money, and the only way Workers World Party, Peoples Power Disability rights movement more diverse Yourself” and prizes were awarded to to do that is to cut our services. Because Assemblies, Peoples MTA and Parents than ever the most creative expression of that. The of my condition, I need 24-hour home to Improve School Transportation were feeling was definitely celebratory. Two care, which ICS pays for. No other plan An inspiring list of more than 50 orga- handed out through the crowd; some men sitting on benches played bongo has ICS’s disability expertise. ICS made nizations participated in the event. The were enthusiastically mounted on wheel- drums. Wheelchair dancing took place it possible for me to work and live in my grand marshal of the parade was Judy chairs. Issues included the police killings in a designated area in front of the stage. own home [and] undergo complicated Heumann, a wheelchair user who pio- of disabled people, lack of elevators and At one point, a wheelchair user threw her surgery and emerge in good health when neered the disability rights movement. access to the subway system, and defend- hands up in joy as her partner twirled her my own doctors did not have a clue how As a student at Long Island University, ing Medicaid, the Americans with Dis- around several times. “Move whatever to make that happen. My story is multi- she organized disabled students to fight abilities Act and ICS. Crumbling infrastructure spewed deadly asbestos

By G. Dunkel ical Weapons Response Team to handle visit this neighborhood — or anywhere in The asbestos wrappings around the pipes New York this crisis, even though no government of- New York — where they face unpredict- should be removed, the steam lines rein- ficial or agency has suggested that the ex- able hazards. sulated with safe materials and the pipes Early on the morning of July 19, part plosion was caused by a terrorist attack. It has taken many struggles by work- upgraded. This should be done immedi- of the infrastructure crumbled in New The New York Times of July 19, 2007, ers and impacted Con Edison customers ately — despite Con Ed’s opposition be- York City’s bustling Flatiron district, a reported there had been at least 12 steam to get the utility company to handle as- cause the company considers this under- mixed business and residential area. An pipe explosions since 1989. All of them bestos clean-ups even in a minimal way. taking too expensive. 86-year-old steam pipe broke, spewing spread asbestos. The city’s 100 miles of steam, asphalt, mud and toxic asbestos steam lines consist of asbestos-covered into the air in a jet stream that reached pipes that are at least 50 years old. WW SUPPORTER PROGRAM at least 200 feet high. The explosion left a crater the size of a city bus at 21st Street Con Ed warned 20 years ago and Fifth Avenue. Several utility access It’s ironic that this steam line eruption Continue defense of Cuban Revolution holes in that area also popped open. happened only a block north of a major Since it was relatively early in the water main break followed by a gas line On July 26, 1953, Cuban revolutionaries ban Revolution only grows stronger and morning, stores and offices were closed. explosion in 1998. The water main was stormed the Moncada Barracks in Santiago more respected as it sends life-saving med- Only five people were injured, none seri- over 100 years old. After the water was de Cuba, Cuba. Less than six years later, Fi- ical teams all over the world. As the Trump ously. Forty-nine buildings were evacuat- turned off, a gas line broke, setting off a del and his guerrillas ousted the U.S.-backed administration increases its hostility to the ed. As of July 23, nine buildings have been fire that took hours to put out. Asbestos dictatorship, marching into Havana in early socialist country, Workers World remains cleared for re-entry. Several streets that was spewed everywhere. Hundreds of January 1959. dedicated to defending revolutionary had been blocked have been re-opened. offices and stores were closed, Subways That same year, Workers World newspa- Cuba. Donations from WW supporters have Workers from Con Edison, the city’s were shut down. Traffic was rerouted. per began to publish. After more than a de- helped get our pro-Cuba writings in print, billion-dollar energy supplier, and the Gas, water, electrical, steam heat and cade of anti-communist reaction in the U.S., distributed and posted at workers.org. New York Fire Department are in the pro- telephone services were disrupted. the Cuban Revolution helped revive interest We invite you to join the 41-year-old WW cess of power washing the outside walls The latest catastrophe wasn’t as in- in revolutionary socialism. The more out- Supporter Program to help us continue to of buildings contaminated by asbestos. tense as the one in 1998, but Con Edison rageous the anti-Cuba propaganda in the publish articles in solidarity with workers They are filtering the water, bagging the had been warned about these problems corporate press, the harder Workers World and oppressed peoples worldwide and in asbestos and setting it aside to be buried. 20 years ago and hasn’t done much to has worked to tell the truth about this great opposition to U.S. wars. The newspaper is a Just breathing in one asbestos par- avoid them from recurring. victory over U.S. imperialism. source of anti-racist, anti-sexist, pro-LGBTQ ticle can produce mesothelioma or oth- Underneath Fifth Avenue, as with In 1961, when the U.S. announced that news and working-class truth, while it super types of cancer. According to some many Manhattan streets, are layers of it was breaking diplomatic relations with ports immigrants, opposes Islamophobia health experts, it takes 20 to 30 years to services — water, gas, electricity, tele- Cuba, WW’s first editor, Vince Copeland, and helps build pro-socialist campaigns. develop diseases caused by repeated as- phone, cable, sewerage, subway and other led a protest inside the United Nations, his To join, write checks to Workers World and bestos exposure. train lines, and pedestrian tunnels. City booming voice proclaiming the U.S. “speaks mail them, with your name and ad dress, to 147 Con Edison is the company that dis- officials, who are responsible for coordi- for the bankers, not the people.” W. 24th St., 2nd floor, New York, NY 10011. Or tributes steam — which is produced nating all these services, project the at- In the early 1990s, Cuba endured great donate at workers.org/donate/. Supporters mainly as a byproduct of electricity gen- titude that maintenance is costly and not economic hardships after the Soviet Union who contribute $75 a year receive a year’s eration. It is used for heat, hot water, necessary — and that repairs should only fell and the U.S. tightened its blockade. subscription, a monthly letter and five free air-conditioning and sterilization for be done when the infrastructure breaks Workers World helped build the Peace for subscriptions. Sponsors who contribute $100 1,700 residential or commercial build- down. Cuba International Appeal to end the block- also get a book published by World View Fo- ings. Con Edison gets 5 percent of its $13 The city administration prioritizes ade, the travel ban and all intervention rum. Sustainers who contribute $300 or more billion annual revenue from steam. costs over the quality of lives of the mil- against Cuba. receive five books. Thanks for your help in Con Edison sent its Biological/Chem- lions of people who live, work, shop in or Despite the choking blockade, the Cu- building the revolutionary press in the U.S. Page 6 July 26, 2018 workers.org Meeting the challenges facing the working class, including ‘identity politics’ The need for a political and organizational strategy

An important issue under discussion inside Workers World Party, which resulted in members of the WWP Detroit branch resigning on July 14, is The influence of these central principles of revolutionary over the issue of “identity politics.” The former Detroit members held the Marxism in the broad work- position that the issue of “identity politics” is harming the working class. ing-class movement has dimin- The majority in the Party disagree with their position. The internal party ished over a protracted period. document below, prepared for a recent leadership meeting, and now being Larry Holmes This is especially true for the made public, was written by WWP First Secretary Larry Holmes on May working class in the centers of 14, 2018, to contextualize some of these differences, particularly the section world imperialism, like the U.S. It is less true for the national lib- entitled “We must push aside all barriers to organizing our class.” eration movements, the workers and oppressed in what is some- In the view of Workers World Party, the term “identity gle against conser- times referred to as the Global politics,” used both affirmatively and derisively by differ- vative conceptions of South, which includes most of ing forces in the broad working-class movement and on unionism must be in- the Americas, Africa, Asia and the left, essentially poses this question: Is acknowledg- tensified, ideologically, WW PHOTO: BRENDA RYAN the Middle East. ing and supporting the legitimate struggles of oppressed politically and through concrete action — not only on How did this come to be? The short answer is that his- sections of our class and all of society against racism, the part of the rank and file of the labor movement, but torical developments over the past three-quarters of a sexism and LGBTQ oppression, antithetical to or inte- on the part of revolutionary and radical forces both in century gave capitalism and imperialism a new lease on gral to the class struggle against capitalism? We believe and outside of the organized labor movement. And most life. Consequently, much of the working-class movement it to be integral. More will be said later in this document. importantly, this fight must be joined by more and more bought into the illusion that capitalism was more or less The party must begin to orient itself to the next stage workers no matter what their circumstances are. permanent, as well as more or less stable. It is this illu- of the class struggle. Obviously, we cannot predict the The party, and all who are truly interested in the sion, with the help of the capitalist ruling class, that gave course of future events. But that fact alone is no reason struggle of the working class, must analyze this problem rise to the bourgeois, social-democratic political parties, for the party not to prepare politically and organiza- and plan action on the basis of a fresh perspective. i.e., the Democrats in the U.S. tionally for a new level of global class struggle, howev- The fact that our party is small in comparison to the Capitalism has now entered another epoch, the epoch er quickly or slowly or unevenly this might develop. The scope of this crisis is no excuse to sit on the sidelines. of advanced permanent crisis and decay. Capitalism can new level of struggle is predicated on the extreme char- In a way, the rebellion of education workers that is still no longer afford the price of social democracy. Moreover, acter of the global capitalist crisis, what our class must spreading across the country (a struggle that is being the capitalist class no longer needs social democracy as prepare for, and what the party must do if we truly want joined on college campuses by janitors, cafeteria workers an anti-communist bulwark against the former Soviet to inhabit the vacuum that is waiting for a real revolu- and graduate students) is probably the biggest sign that Union and the other former socialist countries. tionary workers party to step up. workers know that they must embrace a militant, rank- The working class, including the organized, and espe- and-file, community-involved orientation as against the The collapse of social democracy: cially the far larger unorganized, section of it has reached trade union bureaucracy. a major dilemma for the working class a kind of precipice. The collapse of social democracy has left the working Let’s open this discussion at our meeting Either something changes or the setbacks that we have class temporarily disarmed. The next period of the po- at the end of May witnessed over three or more decades will accelerate. litical development of the working class is how, through The Janus case before the Supreme Court, a threat to I am strongly recommending to the party that one of action, organizing, struggle, experience, political devel- the labor movement that I assume comrades are famil- the major points on the agenda for the upcoming lead- opment and solidarity, it rearms itself. iar with, is only symptomatic of the crisis that our class ership meeting should be the beginning of a thorough The magnitude of the crisis remains, for a time, far must confront and transcend. review of the party’s approach to the working class, in- beyond the political level of the working class and its or- Not so long ago, there was a school of thought among cluding a critical assessment of questions such as: ganizations. That will and must change. Simply wishing bourgeois academics that predicted that the working • What is our view of the trade union movement? that the workers were somehow able to catch up overnight class was withering away. Just the opposite is true. The • What must be done to maximize the organization to what the crisis demands of them won’t make it so. working class is growing as more of society is pushed into of the working class? Nonetheless, communists must understand that howev- it by the vicissitudes of capitalist change and decay. The er long it might take, at a certain point significant sections • Who or what is the working class? composition and parameters of our class are constantly of the working class will understand the necessity that the changing and expanding. • What is a real and contemporary Marxist view struggle must be for more than gaining or defending con- Yet, the conventional thinking of most of the trade of the working class? cessions, that it must be for complete emancipation. union leadership remains the same. That thinking main- • What will it take to truly strengthen solidarity As some comrades have pointed out over the years, tains that if a group of workers regardless of where they and internationalism in our class? we have at our disposal transitional demands and oth- work is unable to win union recognition or negotiate • What practical steps can the party take? er strategies to challenge the rule of capital and generate a contract or engage in collective bargaining and pay These are just a few of the questions that need to be confidence and consciousness among the workers that union dues, then these workers cannot gain entrance to taken up. Even if we were able to devote the entire meet- will help them cross the bridge from the struggle for re- the labor movement. This thinking excludes the over- ing to these questions, which we can’t do, it would still form to the struggle for power. whelming majority of workers from the labor movement. only be the beginning of the discussion. The party has a tremendous amount of experience in Both in thinking and in practice this norm must change. the working-class struggle in virtually every industry The term that many, ourselves included, call this think- A brief background to problems facing the working class and in every region of the country. The comrades in the ing is “business unionism.” Business unionism has long Karl Marx did not call for reforming capitalism; he labor fraction have been doing a great job, especially with since exhausted its ability to defend the working class. called for overthrowing it. Marx explained why capital- the limited time and resources they have. Going forward, Business unionism defines a narrow, limited and con- ism could not be reformed. Marx also explained that the the party must begin to transform itself in preparation servative approach to organizing workers that is funda- capitalist system was inherently unstable and subject to for this challenge. mentally based on a nonstruggle, class-collaborationist greater and even greater catastrophic crises. He warned orientation. One of the big problems with this kind of that any improvement in the conditions for workers won We must push aside all barriers to organizing our class unionism is that it tends to prioritize defending the gains in the class struggle with capital was subject to being re- The inability or unwillingness of the business union- of unionized workers over the need to organize more versed so long as the capitalist class held power. ism model to embrace and lift up immigrant workers and workers. Both needs should have equal priority. Until What’s more, in documents he prepared for the con- the abandonment of the campaign to organize fast food that is the case, it will be easier for the ruling class to pit vening of the First International almost 150 years ago, workers, which many considered never serious to begin sections of the working class against each other. Marx explained that the labor movement, as it evolved to with, are examples of the crisis in the labor movement. The problem of business unionism is not new. Militant higher and higher stages, needed to abandon all narrow In spite of this, hundreds of thousands of workers are ei- and progressive trade unionists have been combating it or limited conceptions so that its initial aim, the improve- ther being organized or self-organized — a tremendous for a very long time. ment of the conditions for workers, changed/evolved to sign that workers are waking up and taking matters into However, a tipping point has been reached. The strug- become the overthrow of the capitalist system. their own hands.

The booklet shows women rising up in a wide range of struggles that oppose Capitalism at a Dead End El capitalismo en un the reactionary administration and assert Job destruction, overproduction callejón sin salida our rights: against racism and white supre and crisis in the high-tech era macy; for health care and control of our bodies; for ending the pay gap and Fred Goldstein utiliza las leyes de la acumulación capitalista for union power; and for recognition For more information on these books and other writings by de Marx, y la tasa decreciente de ganancia, para demostrar of transgender people’s rights. the author, Fred Goldstein, go to LowWageCapitalism.com por qué el capitalismo globalha llegado finalmente a un Available at all major online booksellers. punto de inflexión. Learn more. Read pamphlets that are compilations of WW articles online at: www.workers.org/books workers.org July 26, 2018 Page 7 Meeting the challenges facing the working class, including ‘identity politics’ The need for a political and organizational strategy

There have been more workers’ strikes this year than multiplication, not subtraction and at any time since the late 1970s. division. I wholeheartedly agree with Marx and Sam Marcy The communications technolo- that the political movements of the oppressed, be it Black gy that is derived from the incredi- Lives Matter or migrant workers or women or LGBTQ ble growth of the productive forces people, are not separate from the class struggle, but rath- makes real working-class interna- er part of it and integral to it. The same is true for the un- tionalism, which not so long ago was employed, street vendors, cultural workers, people with mostly symbolic, now practical and disabilities, sex workers, prisoners and retirees. available. As important as the economic-based struggles of our class are, the political struggles against war or in solidar- Third worldism, a continuing ity with the Palestinian struggle or the people of Puerto discussion related to our class Rico and against the capitalist system itself are no less The discussion of third worldism important than the economic ones. Ultimately, the polit- might seem separate from a discus- ical struggles are far more important. sion of the problems facing our class.

The youth, who are drawn to the fight against white It is not. A few months ago, I prom- PHOTO: NATIONAL NURSES UNITED supremacy, racism and fascism, in my view, are very ised some comrades that I would en- Outraged nurses march against border detention facilities in much part of the class struggle. In the first decade of our list their ideas in helping the party El Paso, Texas, on June 19. party’s existence, most of the cadre we recruited came deepen its understanding of third southwest from Mexico, are undeniable historical facts. off the campuses. In most instances, the first experience worldism. I apologize for not being able to do so yet, but I It is also true that imperialism has used some of the of comrades back then was in the anti-war and anti-rac- intend to follow through on this as soon as possible. wealth (a mere fraction of it) that it has stolen from the ist movements. Fifty years ago, the chances of someone The term Third World, which was very popular in the land and labor of oppressed peoples to, in a sense, buy off with a college degree, a master’s degree or a doctorate progressive and revolutionary movements, as well as in sections of the working class. degree having a fairly comfortable life were pretty good. the national liberation struggles during the 1950s, 60s and Has this been an obstacle to the political development Today, young people with college degrees are trapped 70s, was used to describe underdeveloped countries, col- of the working class as an independent anti-capitalist so- in the precarious “gig” economy, constantly moving from onies or neocolonies. It was also used to describe a block cial force? Yes, it’s been a problem. Has this affected the job to job, apartment to of countries that wanted to be independent from both the whole of the working class in the imperialist countries? Working in an Amazon warehouse apartment, and sad- big imperialist countries as well as the socialist countries. No. It’s mostly affected the higher-paid workers. Has it dled with tens of thou- Today the term third worldism is used by several over- stopped the day-to-day class struggle? No, as any com- sands of dollars in stu- lapping yet distinct ideologies. The ideology that most of rade and millions upon millions of workers can attest to. dent loan debt. the comrades of my generation associate the term with Has it made the working class or sections of it irrevers- The point being: The is essentially the nationalism of the oppressed in the ibly reactionary? No. young radicals that the struggle for liberation and self-determination. The term As a matter of fact, central to the political crisis of cap- party is recruiting to- is also used by a section of the Maoist left. The grouping italism is the fact that the systemic crises of the capitalist day are more likely to that uses this term to describe themselves that I am the system are depriving it of the extra crumbs it has relied be in the working class least familiar with are those who consider white workers on to pacify sections of the working class. than was the case a half to be settler colonialists and therefore reactionary and The economic crisis is leveling the degree of inequality century ago. There are undeserving of any support. in the working class. However, inequality obviously ex- some comrades who The reason this came up in the party was that during ists, and that will continue to be the case for some time believe that identity the education workers’ strike in West Virginia back in to come. This inequality will be used to divide workers, politics is anti-working March, a few former comrades in West Virginia unfor- especially if it is ignored instead of being addressed by class. I disagree. tunately did not support the strike, at least initially, and progressive and revolutionary workers. Those in the move- even disparaged it on social media, basing their position This discussion is relevant to an understanding of the ment who have min- on the white-settler variant of the term. Some of us had attraction of the many variants of anarchism, particular- imized or disparaged hoped to hold on to and educate these comrades, but they ly those that are the most anti-working class, in which identity politics have chose to leave the party. category I place the ideas that influenced a few of our for- not helped our class gain a deeper understanding of what Mond from Detroit and Mahtowin from Boston wrote mer comrades in West Virginia. is required to forge greater solidarity with the most op- interesting pieces on this question, which I believe have As long as the working-class movement, including the pressed. We need to struggle over whatever differences drawn attention both inside and outside of the party. organized labor movement, is more or less tied to busi- there may exist in our own ranks so that we can more Of course, we understand and support the movements ness unionism, the Democratic Party and class collabo- effectively struggle for this view in the wider movement. of oppressed peoples, especially Indigenous peoples, ration — which endangers every unionized worker and There are aspects of the gender nonconforming, non- who justifiably consider themselves the survivors of puts the rest of the working class in even greater peril binary struggle that have revolutionary implications. white settler colonialism. — some radicals will write off the working class as well Backward ideas tend to thrive where people’s knowledge The charges against imperialism, colonialism and be- as Marxism and gravitate to dead-end, pseudo-radical of the world they live in is limited by the level of the pro- fore it slavery, the genocidal displacement of Indigenous ductive forces. peoples, along with the occupation and theft of the entire Continued on page 11 The material basis for the new confidence that women and LGBTQ people have in asserting their rights is in part because of the incredible development of the productive forces due to technology. This is true, even though the productive forces remain under the owner- ship of the capitalist ruling class. Like every struggle, the gender nonconforming struggle has a potential to be co-opted by the ruling class and, at the other extreme, a potential to be revolutionary. The significance of the revolutionary potential is a full-scale rebellion against patriarchy, which is a key pillar of class society. The time has come for our class to take another look at the struggles of prisoners and sex workers and all other sectors of our class who have been told that they are not part of the working class. Class solidarity is about

Class War in W.Va.: Education Workers Strike, Win In West Virginia, famous for battles between union miners and the coal barons, class war raged with teachers and school workers on one side and right-wing capitalist politicians on the other.

WWPHOTO: BRENDA RYAN Learn more. Read pamphlets that are compilations of WW articles online at: www.workers.org/books June 24, New York City. Reclaim Pride contingent sparks resistance. Page 8 July 26, 2018 workers.org

Aug. 21-Sept. 9 Prisoners call for national strike

By Terri Kay com. Supporters can connect to local Oakland, Calif. prisoner rights organizations through [email protected]. A deadly atrocity took place at Lee Cor- They ask that financial boycotts of ser- rectional Institution, a South Carolina vices to prisoners be based only on the maximum security prison, on April 15. stated wishes of those inside. The jailers intentionally set up what was essentially a gladiator fight, housing rival WWP supports the prison strike groups of prisoners together in dense- Workers World Party is one among a ly overcrowded cell blocks, locking the large number of organizations nation- gates with no means of escape and turn- wide that have endorsed this call for a ing their backs for hours. It was a setup national prison strike. In addition to that led to the deaths of seven prisoners. helping publicize it, many of our branch- In response to this, a core group of or- es across the country are supporting sol- ganized inmates, including prisoners in idarity actions and have also reached out the collective, Jailhouse Lawyers Speak, to our comrades inside the walls to make have issued a call for a national prison their voices heard. strike from Aug. 21 to Sept. 9. Workers World newspaper recently August 21 is the anniversary of the 1. Immediate improvements to the 7. No imprisoned human shall be denied published interviews with individuals in- assassination of Black Panther Party conditions of prisons and prison pol- access to rehabilitation programs at side Lee Correctional, including a member Field Marshal and prison activist George icies that recognize the humanity of their place of detention because of of Jailhouse Lawyers Speak. (workers.org/ Jackson in 1971. September 9 is the an- imprisoned men and women. their label as a violent offender. author/jared-ware) niversary of the Attica Prison Rebellion, 2. An immediate end to prison slavery. 8. State prisons must be funded In California, the Bay Area National which erupted two weeks after Jackson’s All persons imprisoned in any place specifically to offer more rehabilita- Prison Strike Solidarity Committee has assassination. of detention under U.S. jurisdiction tion services. been formed and is organizing a mobi- In an April 24 press release, Jailhouse must be paid the prevailing wage in 9. Pell grants must be reinstated in all lization and call to action on Aug. 25 at Lawyers Speak stated that the Lee up- their state or territory for their labor. U.S. states and territories. San Quentin State Prison. Its objective is rising “could have been avoided had the 3. The Prison Litigation Reform Act 10. The voting rights of all confined citi- “raising awareness of the inhumane con- prison not been so overcrowded from the must be rescinded, allowing impris- zens serving prison sentences, pre-tri- ditions, treatment and policies that af- greed wrought by mass incarceration, oned humans a proper channel to al detainees, and so-called “ex-felons” flict those held in these gulags through- and a lack of respect for human life that is address grievances and violations of must be counted. Representation is out amerikkka.” embedded in our nation’s penal ideology. their rights. demanded. All voices count! Prisoners are part of the working class, These men and women are demanding 4. The Truth in Sentencing Act and Jailhouse Lawyers Speak also an- being forced to work as slave laborers humane living conditions, access to reha- the Sentencing Reform Act must be nounced that the strike will have mul- under the most inhumane conditions. bilitation, sentencing reform and the end rescinded so that imprisoned humans tiple strategies, including work strikes, Workers World Party not only supports of modern day slavery.” (sawarimi.org/ have a possibility of rehabilitation and sit-ins, boycotts and hunger strikes. They their right to organize and strike, but is national-prison-strike) parole. No human shall be sentenced emphasized that some work strikes may for the complete abolition of prisons and Incarcerated people from at least 17 to Death by Incarceration or serve also generate “a local list of demands de- mass incarceration, which are tools of states have already confirmed their par- any sentence without the possibility signed to improve conditions and reduce capitalist rule and white supremacy. We ticipation in the upcoming strike. They of parole. harm within the prison.” are for the abolition of all exploitation, have asked for solidarity and support 5. An immediate end to the racial over- Inmates ask for solidarity through wage slavery and capitalism itself. from people outside the walls in a num- charging, over-sentencing, and parole various actions, such as contacting rel- Note from the editors of Workers ber of ways. Hashtags for solidarity mes- denials of Black and Brown humans. evant “local, state and federal political World: Prisoners denied their right sages and actions are #prisonstrike and Black humans shall no longer be de- representatives” about their demands, to receive any issue of Workers World #August21. nied parole because the victim of the especially that prisoner votes be count- newspaper should file a grievance. Prison strike demands and support crime was white, which is a particular ed. They ask supporters to spread Workers World Party has demanded in problem in Southern states. up-to-date news of the strike to other our complaints to prisons that $100 be Jailhouse Lawyers Speak lists these 10 6. An immediate end to racist gang en- places of detention and community or- given to every prisoner denied an issue demands from “men and women in feder- hancement laws targeting Black and ganizations. For the media, inquiries can of our paper. If prisoners agree, that deal, immigration and state prisons”: Brown humans. be made to prisonstrikemedia@gmail. mand should be part of their grievance. In battle for freedom, women inmates fight blazes

By Dolores Cox About 4,000 inmates each week fight Depression, they were moved into tem- against shrinking the number of inmates wildfires alongside civilian firefighters. porary camps in a public relief program. because prisoners were needed to fight Wildfires have been raging ferociously That number includes approximately 250 They also harvested crops and repaired fires. In 2015, Gov. Jerry Brown agreed. in California this year. According to me- women. There are 43 inmate firefighting infrastructure. During World War II, Other states use prisoner firefighters, but teorologist Craig Clements at San Jose camps. The three camps for women were prisons became factories for the military. not nearly on the scale that California University, wildfires have also been much opened in 1983. In 1946, the Conservation Camp Pro- does. larger than usual. Fire seasons typically In the fires, women wear either yel- gram began using prison labor to fight Most California inmates volunteer to run from May to November in north- low or orange fire-retardant suits, hel- deadly fires, under the joint supervision of fight fires. They must pass a fitness test, ern California, Napa Valley and Sonoma mets and handkerchiefs to cover their the Division of Forestry and the Depart- and then they receive as little as three counties. In the summer, 100-degree mouths and necks. Each one carries 50 ment of Correction, and later under the weeks’ training, compared to a three- temperatures dry out the grass, and to 60 pounds of gear and equipment in supervision of the California Department year apprenticeship for full-time civilian droughts add to the problem. her backpack, and some also carry chain- of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). firefighters. In 2017, fires in California were the saws. Crews of 14 people each fight on the Nowadays, California’s institutional- Prisoners fighting fires are serving deadliest since the beginning of record front lines. ized inmates make license plates, prison terms for nonviolent, low-level crimes, keeping, with 100,000 people forced to Firefighting is dangerous, grinding uniforms, office furniture for state em- such as drug or alcohol-related offenses. evacuate and around 75,000 displaced work requiring endurance and includes ployees and anything else the prison may Volunteers have to earn the right to be when their homes and businesses were injuries and some deaths. Prison crews need. They usually earn between 8 cents chosen for “rehabilitation work.” High destroyed. It took more than 11,000 fire- in California firefighting bring to mind and 95 cents per hour. risks are involved, but they earn more fighters to battle those blazes. chain gangs without the chains. But inmates in the forestry program are money than in other prison jobs — in a Officially, at least 35 to 40 percent of paid more to fight fires. They can make up less violent atmosphere, in more physical Cal Fire, the state’s firefighting force, are Prison labor and fires to $2.56 a day in camp, plus $1 an hour space than a prison cell offers. The risks prison inmate crews, and the number may Inmates have been doing work as pris- when fighting fires, though during train- are weighed against the same amount of be even higher. ‘‘Any fire you go on state- oners in California since the mid-1800s. ing they may be paid nothing at all. time served inside a correctional facility. wide, whether it be small or large, the in- The earliest state prison was on a ship. In comparison, full-time civilian fire- mate hand crews make up anywhere from Prisoners slept on deck at night and fighter salaries start around $40,000 At-risk women prisoners 50 to 80 percent of the total fire person- during the day built San Quentin, the yearly or $17 per hour minimum. Women prisoners interviewed have nel,’’ says Lt. Keith Radey, a commander state’s first prominent prison. In 2014, when California courts took given a range of feelings about being in in charge of one of the inmate fire camps. In the early 1900s, inmates were paid up the issue of overcrowded prisons, the forestry program. At firefighters’ (Daily Beast, Oct. 14, 2017) to build roads and highways. During the the state attorney general’s office argued Continued on page 11 workers.org July 26, 2018 Page 9 Israeli ‘nation state’ legislation parallels Nazi Nuremberg Laws

By Susan Abulhawa Ethnoreligious purity country in the world without declared Simply stated, Israel will continue to This brings us to the second Nurem- borders. This is not surprising, as Isra- work in earnest to build Jewish-only col- Roughly 80 years after Nazi Germa- berg Law: “Law for the Protection of Ger- el is a still-expanding settler-colonial onies on seized Palestinian land, osten- ny enacted what became known as the man Blood and German Honor,” which state, even though their admission to sibly where a Palestinian state was to be Nuremberg Laws in September 1935, sought to prevent mixing of Aryan blood, the United Nations in 1948 was based formed as per the Oslo Accords. Israeli lawmakers in July codified a new dubbed “race defilement.” on their claim to only the 1948 armistice We can expect that more settlements Jewish supremacy law, which effective- In Israel, anti-miscegenation laws are line, which does not include Jerusalem will simply accelerate Israel’s ongoing ly mirrors the Nazi-era legislation of already in place, masquerading as tradi- or any other part of the West Bank. displacement of Palestinians to replace ethnoreligious stratification of German tional values where marriage can only be them with imported Jews. We know from Erasing Arabic citizenry. performed by religious officials. The Or- the past 51 years of settlement construc- thodox rabbinate has exclusive purview This new law also marks the beginning tion that this process is accomplished by Rights exclusive to Jewish citizens over Jewish marriages, where Jewishness of the erasure of Arabic from the land, as systematic dispossession, marginaliza- Dubbed the “nation state” law, its first is a narrowly defined bloodline and inter- it decrees Hebrew to be the only official tion, ghettoization and robbing of Indig- clause stipulates that “actualization of religious marriage is strictly forbidden. language of the state, while Arabic has enous Palestinian inhabitants. This pro- the right of national self-determination “special status.” The fourth clause fur- cess more closely resembles the Manifest in the state of Israel is unique to the Jew- Exclusivity of Jewish symbols ther explains that use of “the Arab lan- Destiny removal and marginalization of ish people.” In other words, the 1.7 mil- The Reich Flag Law, part of the guage [sic]” institutionally “will be regu- First Nations in North America. lion Palestinian citizens of Israel, the na- Nuremberg Laws, established that black, lated by law.” Western media should stop mincing tive inhabitants who managed to remain red and white were the national colors, words by calling the nation-state law Colonizing the whole of Palestine, ghet- in their homes when European Jews con- and the swastika flag was the new na- “controversial” when in fact it is encod- toizing and robbing Palestinians quered Palestine in 1948, shall be with- tional flag. The second clause of Israel’s ing the worst human impulses into law, out sovereignty or agency, forever living nation-state law regarding national sym- As for the 4.5 million Indigenous Pal- the likes of which were found in Nazi at the mercy of Israeli Jews. bols indicates that “the flag of the state estinians in Gaza and the West Bank who Germany, Jim Crow America, the Indian One of the early anti-Semitic laws in is white, two blue stripes near the edges, do not have Israeli citizenship, the na- Removal Act and other abominable mo- Germany, the first of the Nuremberg and a blue Star of David in the center.” tion-state law alludes to their fate in the ments in human history. Laws, was the Reich Citizenship Law, Two days after it was passed, Israeli po- seventh clause, which states: “The state Abulhawa is a Palestinian author. which likewise deemed citizenship priv- lice and military soldiers arrested a Pal- views Jewish settlement as a national val- Her latest book is “The Blue Between ilege exclusive to people of “German or estinian boy for holding a Palestinian flag ue and will labor to encourage and pro- Sky and Water.” kindred blood.” Since there was no scien- outside Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. mote its establishment and development.” tifically sound way to distinguish Jewish Germans from the rest of German soci- Judaizing Jerusalem ety, as they were racially white Europe- The third clause of the nation-state ans and ethnically German, lawmakers law reiterates Israel’s illegitimate claim Remember and looked to genealogy for Jewish grand- to the whole of Jerusalem as its capital, parents. That will not be necessary for an illegal and internationally unrecog- Indigenous Palestinian citizens of Israel nized claim that has been emboldened support Ramsey Orta! because, since its creation in 1948, Israel by Donald Trump’s move of the U.S. put protocols in place to ensure that non- Embassy to Jerusalem. Interestingly, By Henry Hagins Jews do not assimilate into mainstream however, this new law does not define New York Jewish society. state borders and Israel remains the only Courageous Ramsey Orta must not be forgotten! As witness to a grave injustice being committed on Staten Island on July 17, Postal union protests 2014, this fearless young man, using his cellphone, recorded the infamous and deadly chokehold assault on Eric Garner. police killing That unwarranted action by police offi- cer Daniel Pantaleo resulted in Garner’s demise, even as he was desperately pro- By Lyn Neeley pus cops to carry firearms. They want claiming, “I can’t breathe.” lice. His recording went viral and helped Portland, Ore. the university to train its officers to deal Fellow officers stood by, offering no as- to spark widespread indignation. It also with conflict without using weapons. sistance to the obviously stricken neigh- contributed to the Black Lives Matter Some 6,000 members of the Nation- In spite of vocal objections by the stu- borhood resident, who had been wrestled campaign to expose once again the out- al Association of Letter Carriers at their dents, PSU cops have been allowed to to the ground from behind. rages of police brutality in communities annual convention in Detroit during the carry guns since 2016. Garner had been stopped by members of color. third week of July protested the brutal Andre Washington, Jason’s brother, of the New York Police Department on Write him a letter killing of Jason Washington by Port- said, “Split-second decisions made by the pretext that he was selling individual land State University campus police. poorly trained, inadequate and overzeal- cigarettes on the down low. After Gar- Having stood up for a member of his The union is also addressing the recent ous campus police caused our family and ner verbally denied the charges raised community, Brother Ramsey Orta needs increase in the number of racist murders our community to lose a wonderful hu- against him, Pantaleo subdued him with to know that he has not been forgotten of letter carriers by cops. man being.” He said the death of Jason the fatal chokehold from behind. and is appreciated for this noble deed. Washington, a married father of three, Washington won’t go unnoticed and that Ramsey Orta’s crime? He had the hero- A campaign is underway to encourage worked for Portland’s U.S. Postal Ser- Black men being gunned down by white ic temerity to record these actions in the sending letters of support to Brother vice. He was a 45-year-old Black Navy police officers is an affliction in the -Unit face of police objections and share it with Orta. veteran who had a concealed-carry fire- ed States. (The Oregonian, July 6) the public, making him a target of the po- Letters should be addressed to: arm permit to carry a gun. Ramsey Orta, 16A4200, Altona Washington had been at a PSU campus Correctional Facility, P.O. Box 3000, bar on June 29 when a fight that started Altona, NY 12910-2090. over a racist slur moved outside. Wash- Immigrant hunger strikes It’s very important that the sender ington followed and attempted to break put their full name and return address it up. When his gun slipped out of his Continued from page 1 lowed a few calls. The Intercept blog re- on both the letter and the envelope in holster, falling to the ground, he reached ported that as of July 18, about 15 women order for it to be delivered. The number to pick it up. That’s when he was fatally the Port Isabel Detention Center, a pris- had been alternating fasting days for two 16A4200 is also critical, in case Orta is shot by campus cops Shawn McKenzie on-like ICE facility in Los Fresnos, Texas, weeks — not eating for two days, after moved to another prison, in which case and James Dewey at least six times, ac- have intense feelings of isolation, grief which another group fasts for two days. mail is supposed to be forwarded to him. cording to cell phone footage. and anxiety, exacerbated by separation Debbie Nathan, Intercept’s report- The only information on the outside Washington’s friends and family say from relatives, especially their children. er, spoke with 24 women detainees, in- of the envelope should be the sender’s he was a well-respected member of the The women are even cruelly prohibited cluding one who had not been allowed full name and address, Orta’s address, community. Along with university stu- from hugging each other for comfort. Yet to call her child for several weeks. After including his number, and postage. Only dents, they staged a vigil and a march they have found ways to resist. her two-day hunger strike, this woman the letter can go inside the envelope, through campus protesting Washing- Some women at Port Isabel are ob- was permitted three calls. Despite being which should contain no cash, checks or ton’s killing. They are calling for the im- jecting to the lack of telephone calls with threatened with placement in solitary other gifts. mediate firing of the two cops and for their children by staging rolling hunger confinement if they fast, a number are Keep in mind that the letter will be PSU to change its policy of allowing cam- strikes. Most women have only been al- courageously doing it anyway. opened and read by prison authorities. Page 10 July 26, 2018 workers.org

Tribunal to expose U.S. colonial crimes in Venezuela: Popular By Berta Joubert This was the reason that Rafael Can- cel Miranda, Lolita Lebrón, Irvin Flores This year marks the 120th anniversa- and Andrés Figueroa Cordero went to militia advances ry of the U.S. invasion and occupation the halls of the U.S. Congress in 1954 of Puerto Rico during the Spanish-U.S. and fired at the ceiling to call attention In the face of economic sabotage, sub- armed forces to defend Venezuela’s sov- war, which ended with the U.S. capturing to this farce. version, an abortive military coup and ereignty from imperialist aggression. In Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Philippines and Another crucial July 25 was the Mas- threats of open military intervention addition, they connect the armed forces Guam. sacre of Cerro Maravilla. In 1978, two from U.S. imperialism and its puppet to the desires and needs of the most po- July 25, 1898, was the day when U.S. young independentistas, Arnaldo Darío gangster regime in Colombia, the Boli- litically active sector of the population. ships, commanded by General Nelson Rosado and Carlos Soto Arriví, were varian government of Venezuela has tak- U.S. imperialism, under both Demo- A. Miles under orders of President Wil- ready to call attention to the country’s en steps to strengthen its armed forces cratic and Republican administrations, liam McKinley, landed in Guánica on the colonial status on its 80th anniversary. and to reinforce ties among the soldiers, has been attempting to undermine and southwestern coast of Puerto Rico. How- But they were deceived by an undercover workers and peasants of the country. overthrow the Bolivarian government ever, little is said about May 12 of that police agent, part of the repressive appa- In May, the government arrested since the late Hugo Chávez first took of- year, when 11 U.S. military ships bombed ratus involving the FBI against the inde- 40 officers of the armed forces after it fice in 1999. San Juan on the northern coast. This fact pendence movement. When they arrived discovered a plot to kidnap President A coup in 2002 failed and left Chávez is important to remember, since the apol- at Cerro Maravilla, they were killed in Nicolás Maduro and put him on trial. For stronger than before. Violent street ogists for colonization want to dismiss cold blood. a more long-term plan to eliminate the demonstrations the last few years have the violent nature of the U.S. invasion. Now, on this July 25, 2018, Puerto threat of a coup and to strengthen pop- also failed. Despite the daily hardship It was clear from the start what the U.S. Rico is facing the most important legal ular defense of the country, the Bolivari- faced by the workers and farmers in ob- had in store for Puerto Rico. This was challenge to its political status. What is an government announced steps in early taining necessities of life, including food, exposed in a speech Gen. Miles gave in happening now is the culmination of the July to integrate popular organizations the right-wing opposition parties have Ponce, just three days after the invasion. process of destruction of a people that with the armed forces. been completely discredited and Maduro “To the Inhabitants of Puerto Rico: In began on the day of the U.S. invasion in The most important step is to acti- easily won last May’s election. the prosecution of the war against the 1898. vate local defense committees, officially With the failure of disruption and “re- kingdom of Spain by the people of the In 2016, the U.S. Congress, under Pres- called “Committees for Security and In- gime change” comes the possibility that United States, in the cause of liberty, ident Obama, imposed the PROMESA Act tegral Defense,” and to select one person U.S. imperialism and its West Europe- justice, and humanity, its military forces to make Puerto Rico pay an illegitimate from each of the 50,000 local commit- an allies will rely on direct military in- have come to occupy the island of Puer- public debt of $74 billion. Since then, tees to train with the country’s Bolivari- tervention. U.S. media outlets recently to Rico. They come bearing the banner the Fiscal Control Board — whose seven an Militia units. broke the news that the U.S. president of freedom, inspired by a noble purpose unelected members were nominated by According to an article published July raised — both to his inner circle and to to seek the enemies of our country the same Congress — has been dictating 11 in venezuelanalysis.com, “Those se- a group of Latin American presidents — and yours, and to destroy or capture severe austerity measures aimed at dis- lected representatives will then form a the possibility of a direct U.S. military all who are in armed resistance.” mantling the economic and social base of link between the Venezuelan state’s mi- intervention. (Author’s emphasis) (enciclopediapr.org) Puerto Rico. The imposition of this board litias and the communal councils, which The Caracas government is taking This ongoing destruction, in the form is like wolves guarding the sheep, since since 2006 have organized groups of 20 this threat seriously. Its latest steps to of persecution, torture, long imprison- board members represent the economic to 400 families across the national ter- strengthen both the military and popu- ment, repression and assassination of forces that caused this debacle. ritory.” lar resistance and to defend the oppor- independence movement representatives, This July 25, the federal court assigned To the extent that these plans succeed tunity for the workers and farmers of has been well documented throughout the to cases involving PROMESA, under U.S. in training additional fighters and es- Venezuela to struggle for a socialist fu- history of the occupation of Puerto Rico. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain, will tablishing links to the population, they ture can only be applauded by those who begin to hear several cases relating to multiply significantly the ability of the support a sovereign Venezuela. Anniversaries of invasion the constitutionality of PROMESA and Since that July 25, several events have its Fiscal Control Board. In effect, it will occurred on this disastrous anniversary, deal with the island’s colonial status. beginning with the July 25, 1952, procla- Whatever happens, one thing is indis- Federal workers mobilize mation of a “new” constitution by the first putable: The colonial situation has now elected Puerto Rican governor under co- been exposed and is no longer simply an Continued from page 4 ers are public servants who deserve the lonial rule, Luis Muñoz Marín. What had issue of the “independentistas.” In fact, as Trump’s preparation for an all-out workplace rights and protections that been an official holiday commemorating the outcome of the hearing might just war against the agency. “They wanna last month’s Executive Orders would take the U.S. invasion was then called “Con- reaffirm the U.S. Supreme Court deci- short-circuit the bargaining we already away. Those Orders are unfair and will stitution Day.” sion in the 2016 Puerto Rico v. Sanchez agreed to by making changes to 21 ar- make it harder to attract and retain a qual- But this farce, called the “Free Associat- Valle case. The court ruled then that “the ticles we already agreed to,” stated Sk- ified federal workforce.” (afge.org, July 16) ed State” (Estado Libre Asociado) or Com- sovereignty of Puerto Rico resides in wierczynski. Workers fear agency man- A hearing on the AFGE lawsuits monwealth, was another U.S. strategy. the U.S. Congress” or, more clearly, that agement will impose a contract on them, against the executive orders is set for The U.S. was in the middle of the Cold Puerto Rico is not a Free Associated State instead of bargaining when the current July 25, which AFGE calls #RedforFed War and had to appear as a democratic with any sovereign power, but an actual contract expires this summer. Day of Action. nation. When it explicitly had a colony, it colony of the United States. In March, the administration imposed had to give yearly reports to the U.N. and Not only is a protest planned on the A People’s Tribunal a union contract on Department of Ed- Mall adjacent to the Capitol in Washing- was seen as an imperialist nation. There- ucation workers that stripped them of ton, D.C., but, as of this writing, 15 other fore, the ELA was established to give Under these circumstances, Puerto many civil rights gains the federal work- demonstrations are planned around the the illusion of a certain “sovereignty” in Rican activists, together with the Inter- force had won over decades. country. Puerto Rico. national Action Center, began to conceive A major focus of AFGE’s fightback strat- “We gotta get the word out,” says West- egy so far has been on Congress. AFGE Smith. “We gotta fight back.” has been supported through a series of letters from lawmakers calling for Trump to rescind his union-busting orders that undermine workplace rights. The latest, sent July 9 and signed by 132 members of Congress, noted: “Federal work-

For more information, go to puertoricotribunal.org, to the Puerto Rico Tribunal on Facebook or to [email protected]. workers.org July 26, 2018 Page 11

Meeting the challenges facing the working class, Tribunal to expose including ‘identity politics’

U.S. colonial crimes in Puerto Rico Continued from page 7 ing class to emancipate itself. But before need make no apologies for making soli- that, it widens divisions in our class. As darity central to our party’s culture. of an International Tribunal on U.S. Co- ideologies. I believe that this has exac- life for our class becomes more difficult Solidarity should be first in all things lonial Crimes in Puerto Rico. (puertori- erbated the general tension in the work- and oppressive, insecure, alienating and big and small. Even when comrades are cotribunal.org) ing-class movement on a world scale. ultimately unbearable, the seduction of angry and frustrated, we must treat each The call reads: “The Puerto Rico Tribu- The fact that some radicals are influ- division becomes more and more power- other with respect. I consider this to be nal Ad Hoc Committee is convening this enced by anti-working class ideas is only ful. a principle. Absent this principle, we will important war crimes tribunal in order symptomatic of much larger problems, This process will begin to rapidly re- be weaker. Comrades have made a com- to expose the true nature of the U.S. war which are the weaknesses of the working verse when the rising struggle of the mitment to devote their lives to the party against Puerto Rico. This call for action is class and its organizations. workers becomes a counterforce with and to our class. Comrades must fight to not made solely for the sake of posterity, This is all the more reason for us to rise more gravity than division. The struggle get respect on their jobs and in all their but also seeks to strengthen the world- to the occasion. between class solidarity and class divi- interactions with people and institutions wide struggle for self-determination to- sion in a period of unprecedented capi- outside of the party. They should not have day. What is happening in Puerto Rico is Solidarity must come first! talist crisis is not only applicable to the to fight for respect inside the party. different only in scale and duration from The ideas, norms and the institutions working class in the general sense. It is The best of our culture is an extrapola- U.S.-perpetrated destruction elsewhere. that have been put in place by the ruling a contradictory force, whether visible or tion of what has distinguished the party’s Only a people’s campaign in solidarity class to maintain its power are fraying not, in every union, every progressive world view, its history and priorities. Our with the Puerto Rican struggle for decol- and crumbling. Whatever else Trump’s movement or organization — and in our culture reflects the political essence of our onization, self-determination and justice rise signifies, the decay of the capitalist own party. very existence. It is a culture that has tried can begin to end the continued U.S. pres- system is high on the list. Clearly, many to assimilate into its thinking and its ini- ence and domination, not only of Puerto young people are turning against capital- Our Party’s culture and internal tensions tiatives that almost every major historical Rico, but in the Caribbean, Latin Ameri- ism and are attracted to socialism. On top I’m not going to comment at any signif- mistake and innumerable smaller day-to- ca and elsewhere.” of growing economic deprivation and in- icant length here on the tensions in our day mistakes made by the working-class The Tribunal will be held Oct. 27 at the security, there is a sense that everything party associated with the opening days of movement have been associated with a the Holyrood Church/Iglesia Santa Cruz that the masses have come to expect or the Interim Central Committee (ICC). In failing or retreat on the question of forg- in New York City. rely on is no longer certain. Underneath my view, to say more would be premature. ing solidarity between the workers and Many criminal actions have been per- all of this, the next cataclysmic capitalist It is my hope that the ICC will resume the oppressed. petrated against the Puerto Rican people crisis is in the making. and that it will get over its rocky begin- In truth, our culture is about the by the U.S., both in Puerto Rico and in The most astute among the capital- nings. In hindsight, everyone involved, lengths we are prepared to go to support the U.S. ist economists expect the onset of a big regardless of differences, should have the most oppressed sections of our class. The main charge before the Tribunal is economic crisis. They do not know exact- agreed that the very first priority of the More importantly, our culture is a ma- the invasion and colonization of the ar- ly when it will hit. They differ on which ICC should be to win the confidence of jor reason why our party has been able chipelago. The criminal manifestations event or series of events will trigger the the entire party and demonstrate that it to survive for almost 60 years through of this occupation make up the rest of crisis. It could be a war against Iran or an will strengthen solidarity in the party in- periods where other communist and so- a very long list that includes: the high- escalation of U.S. imperialism’s trade war stead of testing it. Going forward, I hope cialist organizations, which once held the est percentage of forced sterilization of with China or Canada and Europe or the comrades will take heed. loyalty of many brave and devoted cadre, women in the world, the use of Puerto Ri- political crisis regarding Trump in the I know that there are comrades who sadly no longer exist. cans as guinea pigs for the pharmaceuti- ruling class that could morph into some- view the culture of the party as being too I urge comrades to take this proposal cal industry, and the use of young people thing destabilizing. It could be the break- liberal or too petty bourgeois or not com- seriously: to open a major review of our as cannon fodder in U.S. wars of invasion down of long-lasting imperialist allianc- munist or Leninist enough. understanding and approach to our class, and imperialism. es. It might just be an increase in interest There is much about our party that can including to each other, and to prepare U.S. destruction of the Puerto Ri- rates or the bursting of some of the many be improved. Some areas of our work, for it. can economy comes not just from the bubbles in the grotesquely inflated finan- our organization and our practices are in Comradely, PROMESA Act but from earlier laws, cial markets. It could be a combination of desperate need of improvement. But our Larry Holmes such as the 1920 Jones Act, which re- all the above. essential culture is not one of them. We quires that only U.S. ships be used to Whatever the trigger is, the crisis is transport goods between U.S. ports. (For virtually searching for an excuse to ex- a more extensive list, visit tinyurl.com/ plode. In fact, the capitalist economists yc7 72x my/.) mostly agree on two points: the scope of Women inmates fight blazes Among the conveners are well-known the crisis will be frightening, and there is figures like Puerto Rican ex-political very little that central banks and govern- Continued from page 8 they are considered a “resource” for the prisoner Rafael Cancel Miranda; Isma- ments can do to prevent it. state. California’s firefighting program el Guadalupe, leader of protests against All of this will propel our class forward. camp, they have woodworking areas, saves taxpayers close to $100 million the U.S. military occupation of Vieques; But before that, it may cause tremendous softball fields and libraries. They enjoy each year, according to the CDCR. The peace and human rights educator and fear. Understanding this is to understand being outdoors and having barbecues cost for housing each inmate in a prison artist Esperanza Martell; labor lawyer the importance of solidarity. Solidarity in with family visits. Children see their par- facility is $76,000 a year, as opposed to Alejandro Torres, president of the Puerto our class and in our own ranks is likely to ents in a camp environment rather than using them to fight blazes. Rican Bar Association 2016-18; interna- be more important than understanding inside a restricted prison. But the ACLU’s director of the Nation- tionalist Father Luis Barrios; Déborah all that is happening around us, at least And women may get to see their chil- al Prison Project, David Fathi, points out Berman Santana, professor emerita of for a while. dren on the outside sooner because their that such dangerous work outside prison Ethnic Studies, Mills College; and orga- sentences are reduced due to firefighting walls certainly runs the risk of govern- Class division or class solidarity? nizations like Colectivo Se Acabaron las credit. For every day they are in a camp, mental abuse and that inmate firefighters Promesas (Puerto Rican Collective No The most active dialectical contra- their sentence is reduced by one day. may not also be aware of the long-term More Promises), Call to Action on Puer- diction facing the working class is that Some women provide this labor for years. health risks. (The Daily Beast) to Rico, Philadelphia-Camden Boricua capitalism throws workers into violent They resent the hardship and intense Prisoner firefighters put their lives on Committee and the International Action competition with each other for their physical labor, but say it is worth the risk. the line for very little money. Fire camp Center. very survival. This contradiction does Since women in the firefighting camps may be a “nicer way” for them to be in The charges will be brought by Au- not diminish as the crises deepen; it is in- are available 24 hours a day for work, prison — but they’re still prisoners. gusto Zamora, professor of International tensified. This is part of the process that’s Law, who represented Nicaragua in its responsible for Trump. Perhaps the clear- case against the U.S. in the International est mission of Trumpism is to smash our Court of Justice, judicial arm of the Unit- class into a thousand pieces. ed Nations. Capitalism in its end stage presents a revolutionary opportunity to the work- Goals of the Tribunal Breve historia de la OTAN The goals of the Tribunal are to expose in the U.S., and at the international level, Turn the Guns Around Continua de pagina 12 the facts regarding Puerto Rico for which eron a la alianza en 2009. Ahora hay 29 la existencia de la Unión Soviética. the U.S. bears enormous responsibility. Mutinies, miembros, además de otros países como Para enfrentar la embestida del im- For that the Tribunal aims to hear testi- Suecia que tienen una relación especial perialismo estadounidense, es necesario monies of individuals, organizations and Soldier Revolts con la OTAN, y Colombia que es el prim- decir “¡Abajo Trump!”, e igualmente “¡No experts in their field who will reveal the and Revolutions er socio global en América Latina. a la OTAN!” truth of the charges. Los apologistas de la OTAN afirman Catalinotto, editor auxiliar del John Catalinotto Volunteers and funds are urgently que la alianza defiende la libertad y los periódico Workers World-Mundo Obre- needed. For more information, go to derechos humanos. Por el contrario, el ro, co-editó el libro “Hidden Agenda: puertoricotribunal.org, to the Puerto papel de la OTAN ahora es reconquistar U.S./NATO Takeover of Yugoslavia”, Rico Tribunal on Facebook or to Available at aquellas áreas del mundo que se habían Nueva York: International Action [email protected]. online booksellers independizado del imperialismo durante Center, 2001. Correspondencia sobre artículos en Workers World/Mundo Obrero pueden ser enviadas a: [email protected]

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EDITORIAL WW-MUNDO OBRERO 16 de julio Breve historia de la OTAN El futuro es ya Por John Catalinotto pugnaron por mercados, colonias y Pero desde 1991, lejos de disolver materias primas. En su rivalidad, la OTAN, Washington ha insistido en No hace mucho tiempo, los expertos políticos 16 de julio — Solo porque el pres- lanzaron dos guerras mundiales que que el pacto militar se expanda, mien- y gurús económicos cuyos análisis tienen mucho idente estadounidense, un misógino, juntas mataron de 100 a 200 millones tras permanece bajo el mando de los espacio en los medios corporativos, predecían xenófobo y enemigo de la humani- de personas, en su mayoría trabajado- EUA. que la revolución de alta tecnología que entonces dad abiertamente racista, criticara a ras/es, campesinas/os y otras/os jor- La política de los EUA convirtió a comenzaba a acelerarse elevaría a las/os tra- la OTAN (Organización del Tratado naleros. la OTAN en un tipo de fuerza policial bajadores industriales en este país a la “clase del Atlántico Norte) en la Cumbre de Después de que terminó la Se- imperialista. Ya no confinada a Euro- media”, capaz de ganar más dinero al dejar atrás Bruselas del 11 al 12 de julio, alguien gunda Guerra Mundial, la clase de pa, la OTAN se ha convertido en una los trabajos sucios y peligrosos reemplazados por podría tener la falsa impresión de que saqueadores y ladrones que gobernaba fuerza de intervención mundial al la automatización. se debe defender a esta organización. a esos países vio que, mientras luch- servicio de los monopolios transna- Esta visión optimista del futuro para la clase tra- Pero no es así. aban entre sí, un tercio de la humani- cionales que explotan el trabajo y los bajadora fue desacreditada por Sam Marcy, el en- Cualquiera que sea el objetivo a dad se había liberado de su control. recursos mundiales. tonces presidente del Partido Workers World-Mun- largo plazo de Donald Trump con re- La Revolución Rusa, que puso fin a Polonia, Hungría y la República do Obrero, en su libro, “High Tech, Low Pay: Un specto a la OTAN, suponiendo que lo la Primera Guerra Mundial, también Checa se unieron a la OTAN en abril análisis marxista del carácter cambiante de la tenga, esta alianza es enemiga de los sobrevivió la embestida de la Alemania de 1999. Esta expansión coincidió con clase trabajadora”, en 1986. El análisis de Marcy pueblos del mundo como siempre lo nazi. La Segunda Guerra Mundial ter- la guerra aérea de EUA-OTAN en los luego fue actualizado por Fred Goldstein en dos ha sido. minó en Europa con las revoluciones Balcanes que destruyó el país sobera- libros más, “Capitalismo de bajos salarios” (2009) y Un vistazo a sus miembros y su his- yugoslava y albanesa y la marcha del no y multinacional de Yugoslavia. “Capitalismo en un callejón sin salida” (2012). (Para toria muestra el por qué. Ejército Rojo Soviético a Berlín. En Los imperialistas aún mienten obtener más información sobre estos libros, visite 1949, toda China fue liberada y la mit- sobre las razones de la guerra en workers.org y lowwagecapitalism.com). La OTAN consiste de ... ad de Corea. El pueblo vietnamita esta- Yugoslavia, alegando que era para Los hechos y las cifras económicas que ahora Durante la mayor parte de su his- ba ganando contra los franceses. defender a Kosovo, un área de may- tienen a los economistas burgueses rascándose la toria, la OTAN ha incluido a todas Había una guerra civil revoluciona- oría musulmana. En su libro “Wag- cabeza confirman por completo lo que estos revo- las principales potencias imperialis- ria en Grecia. Los regímenes colonia- ing Modern Warfare” (Librando una lucionarios marxistas explicaron desde hace más tas excepto a Japón y Australia. Los les comenzaban a desmoronarse alre- guerra moderna), el comandante de de tres décadas. La revolución de la alta tecnología miembros han sido Estados Unidos, dedor del mundo. La clase trabajadora la OTAN en 1999, el general Wes- eleva la promesa de un mundo futuro de abundan- Francia, Bretaña, Italia y Canadá en Francia e Italia parecía estar a pun- ley Clark, admitió que la guerra de cia y facilidad, pero esa vida puede ser alcanzada desde 1949 en adelante, y Alemania to de tomar el poder en estos países Kosovo era “diplomacia coercitiva ... por las masas solo si el capitalismo es abolido. desde 1955, cuando era Alemania Oc- donde los partidos comunistas habían mucho más como las intervenciones Hay que ver lo que realmente sucedió. Sí, cidental. Estos seis, más Japón con- organizado la resistencia armada de de una época anterior”, es decir, antes muchos de los trabajos que solían existir en forman los países del G7 que actual- las/os trabajadores contra el fascismo. de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, en un la manufactura, minería, ventas minoristas, mente establecen reglas económicas Así que en 1949, Washington, la momento en que las potencias impe- comunicaciones, trabajos de oficina, transporte, para el mundo. potencia imperialista dominante más rialistas ocuparon abiertamente colo- agricultura y otros, son ahora obsoletos. Los La OTAN también incluye a países fuerte, fundó entonces la OTAN para nias y protectorados. (p.418) dueños de los medios de producción se han de- más pequeños que son antiguos miem- evitar las revoluciones obreras en la La ex Yugoslavia, que una vez fue sprendido de la mano de obra humana a un ritmo bros del mundo imperialista, como Europa occidental que estaba devasta- un estado que representaba a unos prodigioso en la búsqueda de ganancias cada vez España, Portugal, Bélgica, los Países da por la guerra y para enfrentarse a la 20 millones de habitantes de los Bal- mayores. Los millonarios se han convertido en Bajos, Luxemburgo, Noruega, Dina- Unión Soviética y sus aliados en Euro- canes, fue dividida en siete mini es- multimillonarios en el proceso. Pero, ¿y las/os marca y la pequeña Islandia. Grecia y pa del Este. Fue en 1955 que la Unión tados que son presa fácil para el im- trabajadores? Turquía también están en la OTAN. Soviética estableció el Pacto de Varso- perialismo de Europa Occidental y Como sugiere el título del libro de Marcy, la alta Los principales poderes de la via con sus aliados en Europa del Este. Estados Unidos. tecnología ha descalificado o eliminado por com- OTAN son los países imperialistas El papel reaccionario de la OTAN Otras intervenciones militares pleto millones de empleos. El resultado es salarios porque sus clases gobernantes corpo- incluyó la planificación de un golpe de la OTAN siguieron, lideradas por más bajos y una existencia precaria para más y rativas y financieras, principalmente militar en Grecia en 1967 que duró EUA. Los EUA invadieron Afganistán más trabajadoras/es. a través de sus bancos, controlan la hasta 1974. Se sospecha que partic- en Asia Central a partir de 2001, utili- Junto con la idea de que todas/os se estaban mayor parte de la riqueza mundial. ipó en una “estrategia de tensión” de zando el pretexto del ataque del 11 de convirtiendo en clase media, surgió la idea de El capital bajo su control se usa para 1968-82 en Italia, cuando agrupa- septiembre e invocando el Artículo 5 que las/os trabajadores y los patronos se necesi- explotar la mano de obra y extraer re- ciones derechistas clandestinas en la de la carta de la OTAN que llama a la tan mutuamente y deberían colaborar para un cursos en todo el mundo. clase dominante y el estado italiano defensa colectiva. La ocupación con- futuro mejor. Los patronos ciertamente necesi- Hasta la Segunda Guerra Mundial, llevaron a cabo ataques terroristas. tinúa con la ayuda de la OTAN. tan trabajadoras/es - hasta que estén listos para Bretaña y Francia gobernaron directa- En 1975, la OTAN envió buques de En 2011, con el más frágil de los pre- reemplazarlos con una nueva máquina o un mejor mente vastas partes de África y Asia en guerra para intervenir en Portugal textos, la OTAN atacó y destruyó Libia. programa de computadora. No habría ganancias forma de colonias. Alemania también y evitar que la clase obrera de allí Ese mismo año, los países de la OTAN sin las/os trabajadores, porque las ganancias tenía colonias, pero menos que esos abriera una lucha por el socialismo, también sabotearon y derrocaron al provienen del valor que las/os trabajadores pro- dos poderes. Los Países Bajos, Bélgica después de que una revolución derro- gobierno de Damasco en Siria. ducen por encima de lo que reciben en compen- e incluso la pequeña Dinamarca tenían cara al régimen fascista. La destrucción que provocaron es- sación por su trabajo (Otro concepto marxista que colonias más grandes que ellos. El presidente de los EUA siempre tas intervenciones ha exacerbado hor- los patronos niegan). Los principales países de la OTAN elige al comandante de la OTAN, y el riblemente la crisis de refugiadas/os Pero, ¿las/os trabajadores necesitan jefes? ahora poseen tecnologías de vanguar- general a cargo siempre es del Pentágo- que continúa en la actualidad. Cada vez más las/os trabajadores jóvenes dia, controlan los medios de comuni- no. Por lo tanto, la OTAN siempre ha Francia y Alemania rehusaron dicen que no. Están comenzando a vislumbrar un cación, fabrican armas poderosas y son sido una herramienta de la política im- unirse a la invasión EUA-Bretaña a mundo socialista donde los patronos, no las/os los más fuertemente armados. Venden perialista de los EUA. Y sigue siendo Irak en 2003 porque sus gobiernos lo trabajadores, quedarán obsoletos. armas al mundo, pero guardan las ar- así, a pesar de las quejas de Trump. consideraban un esfuerzo peligroso e Mientras tanto, las condiciones para las/os mas más avanzadas para ellos. imprudente. Por esa razón, la OTAN trabajadores se vuelven cada vez más desespera- A través de su control del mercado Nueva función de la OTAN: policía no comenzó ese desastre. Más tarde, das ya que los trabajos a tiempo parcial, de bajos mundial, los intercambios de divisas y capitalista mundial sin embargo, muchos estados de la salarios y sin beneficios reemplazan a los empleos la banca, y con sus ventajas tecnológi- En 1990, durante las negocia- OTAN ayudaron a la ocupación de permanentes de tiempo completo con sueldos cas, estos siete países ahora oprimen ciones entre los líderes soviéticos y Iraq, a pesar de que era un secreto a defendidos por los sindicatos. directa e indirectamente a la mayor estadounidenses para poner fin a la voces que el pretexto de EUA para la Los patronos son nuestros enemigos, no nues- parte del mundo. Guerra Fría, Washington prometió guerra - la existencia de las “armas tros socios. Trump es el epítome del multimil- De los países del G7, el imperialis- no mover la OTAN hacia el este. El de destrucción masiva” iraquíes - era lonario “benévolo” que promete la luna mientras ta Estados Unidos, con la economía propósito declarado de la OTAN hasta una mentira. nos despoja de todo. nacional más grande y con la mayor ese momento era “defender a las na- Solo hay una respuesta a esto, y no es la colab- potencia militar, es el más peligroso ciones miembros, de las amenazas de La última expansión de la OTAN oración de clases. Es la lucha de clases. No es una para la humanidad. los países comunistas”. Este propósi- Bulgaria, Estonia, Letonia, Litua- idea nueva, sino una que ha resistido la prueba del to aparentemente terminaba con la nia, Rumania, Eslovaquia y Eslove- tiempo y es lo que se necesita ahora. Deje que las El papel de la OTAN 1949-89 inminente desintegración de la Unión nia fueron admitidas en la OTAN en conmovedoras huelgas de las/os maestros de esta Durante la primera mitad del si- Soviética en 1991 y la disolución del 2004. Albania y Croacia se adhiri- primavera den el ejemplo de lo que es necesario y posible. glo 20, estos estados depredadores Pacto de Varsovia. Continua a pagina 11