Pentagon Slaughters 15 Afghan Children

Dec. 18, 2003 Vol. 45, No. 50 50¢ Las Filipinas Sistema de Salud 12 This is anti-terrorism? Pentagon slaughters 15 Afghan children

By Heather Cottin The massacre followed “stringent rules of engagement,” according to Maj. Christopher West, U.S. military spokesperson. Dean, Gore, U.S. occupation forces in Afghanistan and Iraq are creating a West proudly claimed that the attack “was precisely targeted— nightmare for the population there as they step up military it hit one house without damaging others in the area.” Clinton and repression in the face of growing resistance. Villagers said the man the U.S. was hunting, Mullah Wazir, On Dec. 5, a Pentagon air and ground assault killed six chil- was not in the village. But a U.S. spokesperson claimed that the war dren and two adults after a wall fell on them on a farm compound Abdul Muhammed Wahid, who had been killed, was the man EDITORIAL 10 in eastern Paktia Province in Afghanistan. U.S. military officials they sought. (BBC, Dec. 7) admitted the deaths on Dec. 10. Wahid had recently returned to Afghanistan from Iran to get Another nine children were playing quietly on Dec. 6 near a married. His mother, who also lost two granddaughters, Bibi small house in Hutala, a tiny village in southern Afghanistan. Toara and Bibi Tamama, in the raid, identified his body. Two girls were fetching water from a stream. The boys were play- Two brothers who had lost three children stood near little ing marbles. The girls’ uncle stood nearby. Suddenly the roar of embroidered hats and bloodied galoshes. One said: “Look at The seller a huge armored plane shattered the silence of the country morn- their little shoes and hats. Are they terrorists?” (New York Times, ing. Dec. 8) & the sold The U.S. A-10 Warthog launched 30 to 40 rockets into the vil- Washington justified the attack because Wazir was allegedly By Mumia Abu-Jamal lage, murdering nine children along with the man, who had involved in recent attacks on foreign workers constructing a raced toward the creek to protect his nieces. Continued on page 10

Conference on Reviving Struggle for Socialism Subscribe Labor and socialism to Workers 4 World Supporting supermarket strike Trial: $2 for 8 weeks. 4 One year: $25

NAME The pernicious capitalist state 5 PHONE NUMBER

ADDRESS Internationalism 6-7 CITY/STATE/ZIP WORKERS WORLD NEWSPAPER 55 W.17 St.NY, NY 10011 (212) 627-2994 A red May Day www.workers.org in your future 8 The Soviet Union 9 Latin America rising 11 WW PHOTOS: DEIRDRE GRISWOLD,G. DUNKEL & JOHN CATALINOTTO Page 2 Dec. 18, 2003 www.workers.org

Mumia Abu-Jamal from death row:

They saw themselves as others had seen them. The seller They had been formed by the images made of them by National those who had the deepest necessity to despise them. Mumia on the seller and the sold ...... 2 —JAMES BALDWIN, “Notes of a Native Son” The great Boeing plane robbery ...... 3 California immigrants fight to regain driving rights . . . 3 & the sold ometimes, an honest examination of the institutions of a What’s ahead for U.S. working class? ...... 4 society tells us deep truths about the nature of that Ssociety. Such an examination reveals raw, uncomfortable Anti-war group joins labor struggle ...... 4 and hidden truths about what the unwritten rules are, and The pernicious role of the capitalist state ...... 5 why. Hundreds gather for meeting on socialist struggle . . . 6 When we examine the way that public schools have Laying the basis for a red May Day ...... 8 responded to the challenge of educating African-American children, we must conclude that the education of millions of such children is not the real priority of this society. Millions of International such children emerge from public schools with little notion of Pentagon slaughters Afghan children...... 1 their place in the world, or how to move through the society Iraq war awakens international solidarity ...... 7 with sanity, with life-affirming rewards and some semblance of peace. The Soviet Union and the struggle for socialism. . . . . 9 They leave, far too often, early and ungraduated. Others Bolivar, Marx and the liberation of Latin America . . . 11 may graduate, but their achievements are slighted because Protest Gen. Clark at The Hague tribunal...... 11 of the light and undemanding nature of the studies. Whether one has graduated or not is not the mark of whether one is educated or not. Far too often, young Blacks are taught, if Editorials anything, how to get a menial job; how to work for others; Dean, Gore, Clinton and the war ...... 10 how to “sell” some meager skill. Meanwhile, in schools where the well-to-do live, the young Noticias En Español are taught critical thinking; how to ask the right questions. Indeed, to question! They are taught not how to sell them- Sistema de Salud Comunitario...... 12 selves, but how to produce things to be bought by others, to secure and amass wealth. What the American school system is, is a class-bound structure that reproduces itself in the next generation. WW CALENDAR One generation is being trained to follow; the other generation is being taught how to lead. In such a system, how can LOS ANGELES. PHILADELPHIA. we wonder why things are unchanged, from generation to Every Friday Sat., Dec. 13 generation? Workers World Party weekly 22 years is enough! Free STAND As the late educator Murray Levin suggested in one of his meetings at 7:30 p.m. Dinner Mumia Abu-Jamal!!! Rally at 7. At 422 S. Western. 10 a.m. at 7th & Fairmount last books on the dearth of instruction in Black and Latino Phone (213) 500-0529 for Sts.; march 11 a.m. to with schools in Roxbury, “Oppression is the lesson.” info. Benjamin Franklin High School, Broad and Green Sts., MUMIA Why shouldn’t children, in a nation that claims to love lib- NEW YORK. erty, be taught freedom? Mumia's high school. Indoor conference and rally at 1 p.m. on December13 Instead, they are conditioned to obey, to follow orders, to Every Friday Workers World Party weekly SAN FRANCISCO. not rock the boat, to be ... passive. meeting. 7 p.m. (Dinner at The evidence WILL be heard! True education awakens, it does not darken the windows of 6:30) 55 W. 17th St., 5th fl., Every Sunday Rally, March & Conference perception. True education enlivens, it does not dull the Manhattan. For info (212) Workers World Party weekly spirit. 627-2994. meetings. These educational This is what the elders of every civilization on Earth have meetings cover current events as well as struggles of peo- RALLY AT 10:00 a.m. struggled to do. They tried to build young people who could ples from all over the world. 5 at 7th & Fairmount Streets, take on the tasks of defending, building and expanding the p.m. At 2489 Mission St, community. room 28. For info (415) 826- at the Friends Neighborhood Guild. This is the In this new century, there are too many youngsters who are 4828. neighborhood where Mumia grew up seen as expendable. They are presumed to be ignorant. They MARCH AT 11:00 a.m. are left to rot on the vine of life, untaught and unproductive. In a truly humanistic society, no person is seen as expend- to Benjamin Franklin High School, Broad and Workers World able. Green Streets. This was Abu-Jamal's high school, In a society said to be based on “rugged individualism,” 55 West 17 Street where he was given his name by his teacher each individual is valued, and given the materials necessary New York, N.Y. 10011 Timone Ombina and waged a struggle to have the to make a valuable contribution to the whole. Phone: (212) 627-2994 school's named changed to Malcolm X High School That isn’t happening now, and it is truly a scandal. Fax: (212) 675-7869 At 1:00 p.m. there will be an Young people should be given, “as a social duty,” the E-mail: [email protected] wherewithal to grow in knowledge and understanding of the indoor conference and rally at the high Web: www.workers.org world in which we live. They are to be accorded a history Vol. 45, No. 50 • Dec. 18, 2003 school. The audience will hear the evidence that that reflects their place in the world that is, and the world to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court refused to admit Closing date: Dec. 10, 2003 come. when it recently rejected the motions of Abu- To fail to do so is to commit a kind of social suicide. It is Jamal’s defense attorneys. cruel. It is stupid. It is wrong. Editor: Deirdre Griswold; There will be legal presentations by attorneys If public schools are not functioning in this country, then it Technical Editor: Lal Roohk; Sam Jordan and Michael Coard, and reports from is incumbent upon this country to provide the materials nec- Managing Editors: John Catalinotto, Leslie Feinberg, witnesses in the case, including Terri Maurer- essary to transform the problematic present into a system of Monica Moorehead, Gary Wilson; Carter and Veronica Jones. There will also be a promise. West Coast Editors: Richard Becker, Gloria La Riva; taped presentation from Arnold Beverly confess- Anyone who questions the conditions of urban school dis- Contributing Editors: Greg Butterfield, Pat Chin, ing to the killing of officer Daniel Faulkner—the tricts should only peruse a copy of Jonathan Kozol’s “Savage Fred Goldstein, Teresa Gutierrez; crime for which Abu-Jamal was convicted. Inequalities.” Schools shouldn’t reproduce social and class Technical Staff: John Beacham, Joe Delaplaine, Beverly has passed two lie detector tests regard- inequities, but work to eradicate them. If they fail to do this, Shelley Ettinger, Hank Sambach; ing his testimony—yet the courts refuse to hear then they merely reproduce the errors of the past, and leave Mundo Obrero: Carl Glenn, Berta Joubert-Ceci, his testimony and will not arrest him. serious work undone, for generations yet unborn. Carlos Vargas; Internet: Janet Mayes

JOIN US. Workers World Atlanta P.O. Box 424, Chicago P.O. Box 06178, Los Angeles San Francisco Workers World-WW (ISSN-1070-4205) is published Party (WWP) fights on all Atlanta, Ga. 30301 Wacker Drive Station, 269 S. Western Ave., 2489 Mission St. weekly except the first week of January by WW issues that face the (404) 235-5704 Chicago, Ill. 60606 Room 110, Rm. 28, working class and (773) 381-5839; Los Angeles, Calif. 90004 San Francisco, Publishers, 55 W. 17 St., N.Y., N.Y. 10011. Phone: (212) oppressed peoples—Black Baltimore 426 E. 31 St., Fax (773) 761-9330; (213) 500-0529 Calif. 94110 627-2994. Subscriptions: One year: $25; foreign and and white, Latino, Asian, Baltimore, Md. 21218 [email protected] [email protected] (415) 826-4828; institutions: $35. Letters to the editor may be condensed Arab and Native peoples, (410) 235-7040 fax (415) 821-5782; [email protected] Cleveland Philadelphia and edited. Articles can be freely reprinted, with credit to women and men, young P.O. Box 9202, [email protected] and old, lesbian, gay, bi, P.O. Box 5963 Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., New York, NY 10011. Back Boston 31 Germania St., Cleveland, OH 44101 Philadelphia, Pa. 19139 Seattle straight, trans, disabled, (610) 352-3625; 1218 E. Cherry #201, issues and individual articles are available on microfilm working, unemployed Boston, Mass. 02130 phone (216) 531-4004 (Enter at 284 Amory St.) [email protected] Seattle, Wash. 98122 and/or photocopy from University Microfilms and students. [email protected] (206) 325-0085; International, 300 Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Mich. 48106. (617) 983-3835; Detroit Richmond, Va. If you would like to know Fax (617) 983-3836 P.O. Box 14602, [email protected] more about WWP, or to 5920 Second Ave., A searchable archive is available on the Web at [email protected] Detroit, Mich. 48202 Richmond, Va. 23221 State College, Pa. join us in these struggles, [email protected] 100 Grandview Rd., www.workers.org. contact the branch near- Buffalo, N.Y. (313) 831-0750; [email protected] Rochester, N.Y. State College, est you. P.O. Box 1204 Pa. 16801 Selected articles are available via e-mail subscription. Buffalo NY 14213 2117 Buffalo Rd., PMB. Send an e-mail message to [email protected]. Houston 303, Rochester, N.Y. 14624 (814) 237-8695 National Office (716) 566-1115 P.O. Box 130322, [email protected] (716) 436-6458; Washington, D.C. Periodicals postage paid at New York, N.Y. 55 W. 17 St., Houston, Texas P.O. Box 57300, New York, N.Y. 10011 77219 (713) 861-5965 San Diego, Calif. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Workers 3930 Oregon St., Suite 230 Washington, DC 20037, (212) 627-2994; [email protected] [email protected] World-WW, 55 W. 17 St., 5th Floor, New York, N.Y. Fax (212) 675-7869 San Diego, Calif. 92104 [email protected] (619) 692-4496 10011. www.workers.org Dec. 18, 2003 Page 3

SEATTLESEATTLE. The great Boeing plane robbery

By Jim McMahan byist for Boeing, crowed to the Associated president job in return for her favor. On leadership with the 717, a business jet pro- Seattle Press, “You’re looking at adding at least a Nov. 24, Boeing Chief Executive Officer duced with very few workers, and a failure. dozen wide-bodies per year to your books, Phil Condit sacked both Sears and According to the Oct. 28 Washington Despite a big struggle between military almost in perpetuity.” Druyun. Ten days later Condit was pushed Post, the tanker contract is the first in a chiefs and Boeing executives, the Boeing This will cost at least $100 billion, out the door. Harry Stonecipher, former series of big leases the Pentagon is con- Co. seems poised to gain a new $22 bil- meaning Boeing will be on the govern- CEO of McDonnell-Douglas and a Boeing templating at enormous overall cost. The lion contract for 100 tanker planes. ment dole for a generation or two just for executive, replaced Condit. contract was approved by a new Pentagon The planes would be Boeing 767s, used this one project. Stonecipher is more closely associated leasing panel that operates with far less for mid-air refueling of warplanes that This $100 billion could be used to pro- with the Pentagon. He has been a leader oversight and regulatory control than pre- are sent long distances to bomb poorer vide prescription drugs to seniors in the at Boeing in pushing for brutal layoffs and viously, bypassing regulations enacted countries. United States and AIDS drugs to all of replacing Boeing workers by outsourcing over the last three decades to forestall mil- They would replace 540 tanker planes Africa. to lower-paying contractors around the itary contracting abuses. called KC-135s. Initially, 20 of the planes The tanker deal will constitute pillage of world. The Air Force never conducted a formal would be leased by the Pentagon, which the U.S. workers who have to pay for it, It is said that the tanker contract will study of alternatives to leasing the new increases what taxpayers have to pay by now and in the future, just as the United mean steady jobs for the Everett, Wash., tankers, as had been standard. It never about $5 billion. Boeing had pushed hard States super-pillaged Iraq with massive 767 line for years to come. But it is part of conducted a formal competition before all year to get all 100 planes leased. bombing. growing militarization—and Pentagon signing the contract. Nor did it arrange to The contract could easily balloon to 500 Boeing dominated the air war against influence over the company. Some 55 per- test the new tankers before committing to planes. To get congressional approval, Iraq: F-18s, F-15s, B-2 stealth and B-52 cent of Boeing’s $49 billion in current rev- lease all of them. Boeing browbeat, bashed and bribed its bombers, “Apache” and “Black Hawk” enues comes from the federal treasury. It Boeing and Pentagon corporate titans way through various laws and regulations. helicopters, JDAM smart bombs, KC-135 used to be 20 percent. This influence has need to be given a flight out of here. But the main fight is against the workers tankers and much, much more. led to layoffs and the dismantling of some The transportation industry needs to and oppressed, who face getting bombed Earlier this year, Pentagon acquisition of the company’s industrial infrastructure. travel in the direction of providing social or ripped off as a result of this debacle. official Darleen Druyun disclosed to Boeing has laid off 65,000 workers and economic security for workers— Boeing is set on becoming the provider Boeing information on an Airbus bid for since 1999. The 7E7, the next generation the vast majority of the population— of next-generation tankers. Dennis the tankers. Boeing Chief Financial Officer commercial airplane, will be built outside and not be continually hijacked by rich Hastert, Speaker of the House and a lob- Mike Sears gave Druyun a Boeing vice- the country—replicating Stonecipher’s warmongers. CALIFORNIACALIFORNIA. Immigrants fighting to regain driving rights

By Adrian Garcia by Gov. Schwarzenegger, was instrumen- working in California was eligible to was overturned by California courts as Los Angeles tal in overturning SB 60. receive a driver’s license. unconstitutional. The law would have implemented less “Repeal of Senate Bill 60 with the direct Proposition 187 was meant to deny In yet another reactionary assault stringent requirements for receiving a assistance and collaboration of Gil Cedillo health care and education to the children against undocumented workers in Calif- license to drive. Anyone living in Calif- [the bill’s author] and Fabian Nunez, of undocumented immigrants. According ornia, the Democratic-controlled State ornia could have obtained a driver’s members of the Assembly and represen- to Gutierrez, Republican strategists claim Assembly voted overwhelmingly in early license by presenting a federal individual tatives of immigrant communities in East to have obtained 600,000 signatures to December to overturn a law that would tax identification number and forms of Los Angeles, represents a serious setback put a similar proposition on the ballot in have allowed undocumented workers to identification other than a Social Security for immigrants’ rights,” commented Juan November 2004. obtain driver’s licenses. number, which is currently required. Jose Gutierrez, coordinator of Latino Latino Movement USA and others are Last Oct. 7 Gov. Gray Davis had signed The Social Security requirement was Movement USA. mounting an offensive against the reac- SB 60, the law that was overturned, before instituted in 1993 under the tutelage of Gutierrez stressed that the repeal will tionary forces. A march and rally is he was ousted in the infamous recall elec- Gov. Pete Wilson’s campaign against serve to bolster reactionary forces in planned for Feb. 28, with another to fol- tion that brought in Arnold Schwarzeneg- California’s undocumented workers. The California to continue their exploitation low on March 2. A third demonstration is ger as the new governor of California. Davis tightening of driver’s license requirements of immigrants and workers. Gutierrez being planned for October. The struggle had failed to sign a similar bill in 2002 after was a means of preventing undocumented also warned that Republicans in the state will be taken to the streets. promising to do so, claiming it did not pro- families from receiving government ben- are engineering a campaign to revive the “Immigrants will not accept being the vide “safeguards against terrorism.” efits such as welfare and medical care. For egregious policies targeting immigrants modern-day slaves of the capitalist ruling The same scapegoating tactic, now used decades before 1993, anyone residing and promoted under Proposition 187, which class,” said Gutierrez.

THIS HOLIDAY GIVE SOMEONE A NEW BOOK FROM THE INTERNATIONAL ACTION CENTER HAITI A SLAVE REVOLUTION The Haitian Revolution is a singular event in history. Never before or since has an enslaved people risen up, broken their chains, and established a new state. Haiti was a beacon of hope and inspiration to the enslaved Africans of the United States. Haiti’s history has been turbulent, but not for the rea- sons given by mainstream historians. Racism underlies their charges that the first Black Republic lacks “democratic traditions and is prone to violence.” Drawing from a wide range of authors, experts, and historical tests, this book challenges these stereotypes and counters 200 years of cultural myths. It exposes disinformation about Haiti from the 18th century until today. Above all, it reveals the intertwined relation- ship between the U.S. and Haiti, and the untold sto- ries of the Haitian people’s resistance to the U.S. aggressions and occupations. Includes Ramsey Clark, Edwidge Danicat, Frederick Douglass, Ben Dupuy, Paul Laraque, Mumia Abu-Jamal, Pat Chin, Greg Dunkel, Sara Flounders, Stan Goff, Kim Ives, Fleurimond Kerns, Maude Le Blanc, Sam Marcy, Franz Mendes & Steve Gillis, Felix Morriseau-Leroy and Johnnie Stevens. 225 pages, photos, bibliography and index $19.95 Order online from Leftbooks.com for a discount or write to the IAC, 39 W.14 St., #206, NY, NY10011 and include a dollar for postage Page 4 Dec. 18, 2003 www.workers.org What’s ahead for U.S. working class

The following is based on a talk Milt This past year, 1.7 million people has taken its toll on the union move- The class struggle will determine any Neidenberg prepared for the Dec. 6-7 slipped below the poverty line. That brings ment. Only one out of every 10 new jobs internal restructuring and reorganizing conference in New York. the total to 34.6 million, or one in eight is union. of the unions, not the other way around. people, according to an AFL-CIO report. Recently the Service Employees union It happened with the birth of the CIO The trade unions have reached an his- Here is an army, dispersed and confused, introduced a comprehensive plan to reor- from the craft unions of the AFL. Before toric turning point. The multinational that desperately needs to be organized. ganize and restructure the AFL-CIO. Their that the Knights of Labor died and the work force they represent has become an The quantum leap of the technological solution is to consolidate the smaller AFL took its place to win the eight-hour appendage to the machinery—at the revolution has brought to the surface a unions into bigger unions, based upon the day. mercy of technology that speeds up pro- sector of the workers—multinational, low- sectors of capitalist industry. Today the organized labor movement is duction at an inhuman rate, eliminates paid, women and immigrants, gay and This approach divides the U.S. economy in the grip of a government that has built- skills and displaces millions of workers straight—that is potentially the engine of into 15 sectors, covering over 100 million in anti-labor laws. Breaking out of this onto the unemployment lines. revolutionary change. This is reflected workers. The restructured unions would mold is a huge challenge for the unions. It The process extracts huge profits for the within the service-oriented unions that have the resources and focus to unite the happened in the 1930s with the sit-down capitalist owners of the means of produc- represent these workers. The material con- workers and organize the unorganized. strikes and plant occupations that created tion. Productivity grew 9.2 percent in the ditions to achieve a merger of these forces Instead of the current 66 amalgamated a new set of class relationships and pro- third quarter this year, the biggest for a fighting strategy—such as building international unions with multiple over- gressive labor laws. increase since the second quarter of 1983, unemployed councils—now exists. lapping jurisdiction, there would be fewer Revolutionary Marxists contributed to according to the Labor Department. Equally important, this phase of the unions—larger unions, with more workers that process. This must also be the per- The scientific-technological revolution, technological revolution has brought a in each sector. spective now for a working-class party unlike the one that created the mass-pro- greater level of socialization of the means Is restructuring the union movement to dedicated to abolishing exploitation and duction assembly line and expanded the of production here and abroad. Objec- organize the unorganized a commendable building socialism. work force, has torn workers away from tively, the basis for a socialist perspective step? How serious can they be when these In his book “Left-Wing Communism, the productive forces. It triggered a rate of has surfaced. Monopoly capitalism has same leaders are committing so much of an Infantile Disorder,” Lenin advised: exploitation that is increasing the unem- exported technology, capital, industries their resources to electing Democratic “The development of the proletariat did ployment rate and destroying the social and jobs that connect the working class politicians who they hope will bail them not and could not, anywhere in the world, network of the working class, particularly here with their sisters and brothers out of the crisis? Will reshuffling the proceed otherwise than through the trade the poorest and most oppressed. abroad. Steel workers here can talk to steel unions and their workers elevate the class unions, through their interaction with the Officially, there are more than 9 mil- workers from other lands, not only about struggle? Not likely. Party of the working class. ... The Party lion unemployed workers in this coun- how steel is produced but how their Significantly, this initiative has come must more and more than ever, and in a try. The count is much higher if you add transnational bosses exploit them. The from an all-white, male-dominated lead- new way ... educate and guide the trade teenagers, particularly Black, Latino and same goes for the service sector. ership led by Service Employees President unions; and must not forget that they are Asian, and the poorer sections of the Many immigrant workers have brought Andy Stern and other white leaders from and will long remain a necessary ‘school white population, none of them included their experiences in class struggle to these the other service-oriented coalition of communism.’ ” in the statistics because they have never shores. unions. It is a top-down proposal, lacking Our party has to be in the forefront of had paying jobs. But the explosive rate of exploitation input from the multinational work force. building this revolutionary perspective. Anti-war group joins labor struggle

Based on a talk by John Parker at the How do we get there? How do make this a part of the most fierce and strategic Dec. 6-7 conference in New York. movement appear more relevant in work- domestic battles of our working class ers’ eyes and in the eyes of the oppressed today. And our message of relevance is a Today imperialism is in such a condi- nationalities? Maybe we need to make peo- lot easier to carry since it is the truth. And tion that in order to continue to maximize ple in this country understand that anti- doing all we can to be in solidarity with our profits the bosses must intensify the eat- war means anti-injustice, anti-racism and locked-out sisters and brothers will only ing from within. They can no longer afford pro-worker and this anti-imperialist increase that truth. to allow a certain percentage of workers to movement is willing to stand with the In every city where there are informa- get decent health care and at the same workers here in their life-and-death strug- tional pickets at a Safeway supermarket, time wage imperialist wars and maintain gles. How do we do that? By making every we should be there. Every march should an acceptable level of profits. anti-war action incorporate its anti-injus- include a Vons or Safeway or Ralph’s on If they’re taking the gloves off, so must tice message, its anti-racism message and the route if there is one. we. its pro-worker message. Now lets talk about this grocery The United Food and Commercial The corporate folks call this “branding,” worker strike and lockout. Is this really a Workers (UFCW) is now challenging the sending a consistent message across every life-and-death struggle? Of course it is— right of companies like Vons, Safeway and communication with your target market. they’re trying to take over 50 percent of Ralph’s to bring down working conditions Except their message is to lie about the their health benefits away, set up a two- to the lowest level possible with the excuse value of their product. Ours is to expose tier wage system and steal retirement that companies need to remain competi- the relevance of ours. So every demo, benefits. If this happens, you can bet tive. Wal-Mart is the hope of the ruling every leaflet, banner and anti-war action that a lot of people, especially the elderly class. Imagine how the class struggle should have that branded message of and children, will die. would be advanced with the unionization worker solidarity with the fight against Lenin said that the most important of Wal-Mart. This strike once again pro- imperialism and racism. For example, you lessons about class struggle come from a vides that opportunity. could put out a leaflet calling for bringing strike. This is a strike affecting over The Wal-Mart assault on the workers the troops home and incorporate the con- 71,000 workers in California alone with has drawn lawsuits against the retailing nection to the fight for health care stolen solidarity actions nationally. There are monopoly for outrageous anti-union, by resources used for war. You could men- 859 stores in Southern California alone anti-worker illegal violations going on for tion the heroic battle of the grocery work- affected and that doesn’t include the over four years. That includes under the John Parker WW PHOTO: JOHN CATALINOTTO ers to save health-care rights, thereby informational pickets going on in Clinton administration. Both the Demo- encouraging solidarity. Northern California. Just imagine how crats and the Republicans are complicit in war movement. It’s not a separate thing You could pass it out at a picket line many working-class people are affected this. They are the puppets of Wall Street that can be planned independent of class while you are holding the union’s plac- by what’s going on in the stores they once and that’s whom we must fight: Wall solidarity. ard and supporting their strike. A con- shopped at and the grocers they knew. Street, the banks and monopolies—the One of our historical tasks is to sistent branded message of domestic Imagine how this is affecting their class- ruling class. Bush is just their mouthpiece. strengthen the anti-imperialist, anti-war and international worker solidarity for consciousness. Any candidate who would deserve our movement. What has to be done to bring every communication—that’s how we’ll The empathy for these strikers is partly support would have to say they are uncon- this movement to the next level? Does this change that perception. We have to be due to the makeup of the workforce—they ditionally for the working class and would movement reflect our multinational work- creative and convince ourselves that the look more like and share the same condi- have to show that by immediately sup- ing class yet? Well, thanks to ANSWER, best way to strengthen the anti-war tions as most workers in this country. It’s porting the grocery workers’ fight for it’s beginning to, but it still must improve movement, especially today in view of no accident that the unprecedented health care and against the big three gro- to become more effective. the current struggles, is to make a real Teamsters strike is happening in solidar- cery chains. This candidate would imme- Does this movement reflect enough dynamically linked message to our ity with these workers. diately call for bringing the troops home participation by workers, especially working class and nationally oppressed This struggle is most relevant and that now, and further show solidarity with the those with paychecks reflecting the sisters and brothers. is why we must grab hold of it and all working and poor of Iraq by calling for no majority? Again, because of our influ- Whatever we do, whether we like it or workers’ struggles like it to help bring out new occupying force, UN or otherwise. ence and the work of ANSWER, it’s not, whether it’s deserved or not, whatever the soldiers for justice who will put into It is not enough to say that working- becoming more and more reflective of we say or write defines us in workers’ eyes. motion an unstoppable force against U.S. class struggle is important. The workers’ the working class in this country, but not It sends a strong message saying this anti- imperialism, racism, homophobia and for struggle is intimately linked to the anti- enough to realize our potential. imperialist, anti-war movement is or isn’t socialism. www.workers.org Dec. 18, 2003 Page 5 TheThe perniciouspernicious rolerole ofof thethe capitalistcapitalist statestate Based on a talk by Monica Moorehead The political basis for building at the Dec. 6-7 conference in New York. class unity is being prepared

Sisters and brothers, to apply effective by capitalism, which is bring- strategies and tactics to achieve worldwide ing millions of workers closer socialism, it is imperative to adhere to an independent Marxist, ideological, political together in the socialization world view. This perspective involves of labor process throughout building class solidarity and what steps are needed to achieve this goal. the developing and Vladimir Lenin raised the slogan, imperialist countries. “Workers and oppressed of the world unite, you have nothing to lose but your chains.” he helped to deepen the Marxist view that Lenin was updating Karl Marx’s origi- the state’s existence reflects irreconcilable nal formulation—workers of the world class differences. Since these class con- unite—based on the rise of worldwide flicts cannot be reconciled, they are imperialist plunder and colonialism decided by the state in favor of the ruling spurred on during the late 1800s. During class, because the state is not a neutral part this period of imperialist expansion, the of society. It stands above society and workers he was referring to were primar- therefore is alienated from society as an ily in the large capitalist centers like the instrument of class domination. United States and Europe. The oppressed The ruling class relies on the police, the were the colonized peoples in Africa, Latin courts, the prisons, the government and America, Asia, the Middle East and else- the media at home, along with the military where. The chains that bind the workers abroad, to try to keep the masses divided and oppressed are rooted in capitalist and diverted in order to maintain capital- slavery. ist exploitation. The state’s existence Some may think that Lenin’s words stands in the way of society’s inevitable should be tossed into the dust bin of his- transformation from one economic sys- tory because they were written so long ago, tem to another. And it puts a break on in 1899. But on the contrary, not only were forging class solidarity under capitalism. Lenin’s words a necessary guide to revo- Other insidious aspects of class society lutionary struggle back then but they have that foster inequality and must be fought retained their relevance more than ever in as a matter of the highest priority are the the age of imperialism today. artificial divisions instilled by reactionary Lenin stressed that you cannot succeed and backward ideas. The media help filter in carrying out a worldwide revolution these ideas down from the ruling class to without concretely forging ties and reach- the working class. These ideas include ing out within the working class recogniz- racism or the ideology of white supremacy ing that inequalities exist within the work- at home and abroad, sexism that promotes ing class. This is especially true regarding the myth that women are nothing more Monica Moorehead WW PHOITO: JOHN CATALINOTTO oppressed nationalities or people of color than the collective property of men, and who have been super-exploited and super- lesbian, gay, bi and transgender oppres- the same corporate conglomerates are oppressed by imperialism. Africa, with a sion that criminalizes same-sex relation- ization of the prognosis that Karl Marx exploiting labor power worldwide to one population of 600 million people, is rich ships. All these reactionary ideas and and Frederick Engels made in “The degree or another. in mineral wealth but considered the behaviors are reinforced by the presence Communist Manifesto,” published in One example of this kind of growing poorest continent economically not only of the state to keep the working class 1848. That is, that capitalism is creating solidarity is what is happening in because of the legacy of slavery and colo- divided and passive. its own grave diggers: the working class. California where better-paid workers like nialism but also because of the current Once you understand what the state is Due to the technological revolution, the the Teamsters are organizing important enslavement by the International and what its function in society is, you can intensity of capitalist production is driven solidarity with lower-paid grocery work- Monetary Fund, World Bank and other see clearly which side you are on. Which as never before by the insatiable quest for ers. This is no act of charity on the imperialist banks. side are the police on during a workers’ profits. This economic trend in turn has Teamsters’ part, but reflects a deepening Some may wonder, with the entire strike? Just ask the Teamsters in Los changed the character of the working class awareness that they have a common cause multitude of problems in society, Angeles who had SWAT teams spy on worldwide while increasing the socializa- with the lower-paid, oppressed service shouldn’t it be easy for millions if not bil- them once they began to honor the grocery tion of labor. It is bringing millions of workers against the bosses. lions of people to come together and workers’ picket lines. workers closer together in the global pro- Sisters and brothers, the deepening seize the reins of state power because the When we talk about police brutality, it’s duction process even though they are Iraqi resistance against the Pentagon’s capitalists have made all of our lives so not just the individual victims who get thousands of miles apart physically. colonial occupation is moving millions of equally miserable? beaten to death as Nathaniel Jones, a This reality is deeply felt in the United people around the world toward an anti- Class oppression has certainly affected Black man, did in Cincinnati over the Nov. States where service workers have for the imperialist position, including those in almost every inch of the globe. For exam- 29 weekend. There are the armed occupa- most part replaced industrial workers as the United States and other imperialist ple, there are officially over 800 million tions of Black and Latino communities, the motor force of the economy. countries. Many young people first hungry people worldwide. There would be which are a microcosm of the U.S. military Corporations have shut down their facto- attracted to the anti-globalization move- more than enough food to feed the world occupation of Iraq. ries and displaced millions of workers in ment’s view of a “kinder, gentler” free- if the workers controlled food production When we talk about the cases of politi- their fierce competition with rivals here enterprise system are now moving in a and food distribution. Every person could cal prisoners like Mumia Abu-Jamal, and worldwide. This economic trend has more anti-capitalist direction. have three square meals a day. Leonard Peltier, the MOVE 9, the Cuban resulted in workers on the whole facing Many of us in this auditorium and mil- What many revolutionaries tend to 5 and many others, we also have to look at lower wages for more hours of work, loss lions worldwide know deep in our bones gloss over is that the tiny minority of those the broader issue. There are more than 2 of benefits and increased poverty. This that only socialism can rid this planet of who control the means of producing million prisoners in the United States, a process has affected poorer developing the scourge of racism, sexism, lesbian, everything in society will commit any disproportionate number of them nation- countries as well as the richer imperialist gay, bi and transgender oppression, crime against humanity in order to safe- ally oppressed and the vast majority poor. centers. poverty and war. But we can’t sit back and guard their profits. It is the avaricious So in the United States, if you want to Millions of workers from the former wait for socialism to happen before orga- expand-or-die nature of capitalism that forge class unity in words and especially colonial countries have been forced to nizing around all of these issues now. If we drives the capitalist to greed, not the other in practice, fighting racism and reaching migrate to the United States and imperi- do nothing, unity and solidarity will be way around. out to people of color has to be a top pri- alist countries to escape grinding poverty just empty words. Only the organized The ruling class uses a repressive appa- ority because you can’t fight class oppres- caused by the super-exploitation of their struggle can be decisive in raising class ratus not just in one country, or two or sion without equally fighting national countries by global capital. These immi- consciousness. three countries, but all over the world. oppression. grants, many imbued with anti-imperial- That in turn can lead to a total trans- This apparatus exists to allow these cut- The political basis for building this type ist consciousness, have subsequently formation of society from one based on throat, greedy capitalists to privately own of unity is being prepared by the capital- energized the union movements. The the private ownership of production to the and control the economies and resources ist system. There is growing evidence to intermingling of once privileged workers socialized ownership of production—and of billions of people. show that broader sectors of society are with poorer workers—especially those that will promote real equality, coopera- Lenin referred to this network as the opening up to the prospect of building sol- from oppressed countries—is making tion and harmony for all humanity. state. In his book “State and Revolution,” idarity that will inevitably lead to the real- clearer the common reality that many of Page 6 Dec. 18, 2003 www.workers.org Hundreds gather for meeting on socialist struggle By John Beacham & John Catalinotto New York

On Dec. 6-7, Workers World Party sponsored a national conference in New York on “Reviving the Worldwide Struggle for Socialism.” Braving a two-day winter snowstorm that severely disrupted travel, especially in the Midwest and New England, almost 300 activists, revolutionaries and fighters for liberation arrived from as far away as the West Coast to join that discussion in the place it is needed most: the imperialist USA. With struggles against occupation, war, racism, sexism, lesbian/gay/bi/trans oppression, capitalist bosses and more heat- ing up all over the world, the conference launched a much-needed discussion about what is needed to win all these battles: the WW PHOTO: DEIRDRE GRISWOLD revolutionary struggle for socialism. Singing “The International.” Larry Holmes set the political tone for the conference with special opening Sara Flounders said: “We knew that they China. Such a counter-revolution would oppression without equally fighting remarks. “Some people may ask, ‘Do you were bent on destroying Iraq. The capi- leave the Chinese people in the staggering national oppression.” have a plan? Do you know something we talist class is ruthless. It is driven to poverty and ruthless exploitation they suf- John Parker added to Moorehead’s call don’t know?’ No, we have no plan. But we expand, to blast open markets. And it is fered under imperialism before the 1949 for increasing class solidarity by inform- have some serious ideas that we think our Marxist analysis that gives us this revolution. ing the conference about the solidarity serious revolutionaries will have to con- edge. We know that only profits matter to Using her talk also as an introduction to work that Los Angeles ANSWER is doing sider if we’re going to take some impor- them. But we also know that socialism and a more in-depth discussion in a workshop with the striking and locked-out members tant steps forward. ... international solidarity are the only alter- on Asia, Griswold placed the internal of the Food and Commercial Workers “Socialism has been put on the defen- native to imperialist war.” struggle in China in the context of the union. He said: “It really shows in our sive by the bourgeoisie for too long. It is Brian Becker explained how the worldwide ebbs and flows of the struggle work on the picket lines, in our talks with time to go on the offensive.” ANSWER coalition—Act Now To Stop for socialism. She pointed out how suc- the workers, the food drive that we’ve AFSCME District Council 1707 Pre- War and End Racism, founded in cessful battles by Marxist revolutionaries been very successful at, the rallies that sident Brenda Stokeley got it right: “The response to the imperialist war frenzy in developed countries like the United we’ve held with the union and all the sol- first thing we have to do is remind our- that followed the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks— States would favorably affect the struggle idarity work that we’ve done. These selves that we are fighting for socialism.” continued to support “the Iraqi struggle within China. diverse workers, mostly women, have Elias Rashmawi of the Free Palestine for self-determination and support the The workshop on the USSR and the one really responded to the anti-war move- Alliance put it this way: “What is needed U.S. troops by demanding that they be on Asia attracted many conference partic- ment in a positive way.” is a vision that brings us together. A vision brought home immediately.” He con- ipants. This reflects people’s great inter- Parker then introduced one of the strik- of sharing. Where we fight together. trasted that with those in the movement est in explaining the course of develop- ers, Ely Orozco, who gave special greet- Where victory is for socialism.” who call for “bringing in the United ment of these two great social revolutions ings to the conference attendees. Sharon Enthusiastic participants—those steeped Nations” to take over the U.S. role, a move and how they influence the struggle for Black spoke about the need to broaden in decades of struggle and many younger that he pointed out would “continue the socialism today. support for this important strike among activists eager to find solutions—heard brutal occupation of Iraq.” Gloria La Riva expressed the great sol- other unions. about a wide range of subjects. There were Berta Joubert-Ceci outlined the enor- idarity of those present with the Cuban Imani Henry addressed the two fronts talks and workshops in solidarity with the mous uprising against privatization and Revolution: “Cuba is our hope. This small of the class struggle: “Though the pro- people of Palestine, Zimbabwe, Korea, imperialist globalization throughout Latin country besieged by the greatest power in gressive movement has had to go on the Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba and every- America and Caribbean, as seen for the history of the world has shown how a defensive in this period ... we are seeing a where else where people are struggling instance in the struggle against the Free leadership guided by Marxist principles resurgence in the working-class move- against U.S. imperialism. A series of work- Trade Area of the Americas and in defense can bring vast changes to the people of the ment in the forms of strikes, the immi- shops over the two days took up the strug- of the Bolivarian circles in Venezuela. world, people who desperately need a bet- grants’ march on Oct. 4, or uprisings gles to end injustice—from the oppression ter world. Cuba has created a country free against police brutality like in Benton of the state to strengthening international The USSR, China, Cuba of landlords, where the rent can be no Harbor, Mich.” solidarity to fighting against imperialist Since the collapse of the USSR, the more than 10 percent of a person’s wages. A workshop titled “The Repressive globalization and war to why Marxism is imperialists have been thumping their Cuba sent 300,000 volunteers to Angola State: Linking the Struggles Against the most effective tool for class struggle. chests and claiming that socialism is in the to help defeat racist South Africa. Cuba Racism, Sexism, and Lesbian/Gay/Bi/ The conference in turn received contri- “dustbin of history.” But the conference has sent doctors all over the world, and so Transgender Oppression” covered affir- butions to the discussion and solidarity had a different message. much more.” mative action, reparations, the prisons, statements from: the Communist Party of Speaking on the historical importance police brutality, the death penalty and Cuba, the Workers Party of Korea, the of the Soviet Union for the global struggle Fighting the state and the bosses much more. Belgian Workers Party, the Corriente Roja against racism and imperialism, Fred Imperialism doesn’t just use divide- Another workshop on GI and anti-mil- tendency of the United Left movement in Goldstein said he could only “propose a and-conquer techniques in the rest of the itary recruitment organizing drew 30 Spain, the Communist Party of the Peoples framework for what must be a thorough- world. It uses these same techniques activists from a dozen U.S. cities. They of Spain, the Party of Liberation of going discussion and analysis. So the first within the United States. In her talk went over experiences like the Nov. 15 trip Argentina, the L’Ernesto tendency of the thing to establish is that there is not one Teresa Gutierrez railed against the racist to Camp Lejeune to visit Marine resister Party of Communist Refoundation in iota of historical evidence that the collapse war on immigrants, the round-ups, the Stephen Funk to review ways of helping Italy, Ben Dupuy representing Haiti’s of the USSR represents the failure of detentions, the deportations. But she also GIs realize their rights to discuss, organize National Popular Party, and the Anti-War socialism as a social system. hailed the increasing solidarity of the and refuse to be turned into war criminals. Joint Action Committees of Japan. “On the contrary,” he asserted, “the working class in the United States, with Part of a message of solidarity from Excerpts of all were read aloud. Cultural extraordinary achievements of the first the AFL-CIO supporting the 100,000- Jesse Heiwa, a leader of Queers for Peace performances were presented by singer victorious workers’ state in history is a liv- strong immigrant-rights march in and Justice, read: “With so much produc- Pam Parker along with hip-hop artists ing demonstration of the potential of October. tive capacity available, there is no reason Movement in Motion and Jamie socialism to lift the world out of the Noting the increase of multinational why hundreds of millions of people go Roundtree from Primeridian. morass and nightmare imposed by private labor struggles in the United States, without enough food, housing, health property once it can be built on a strong Gutierrez asked, “How can we elevate care, education, jobs. But there’s reason International solidarity: the economic foundation and be freed from struggles like the immigrants’ struggle for for hope; millions of people around the answer to militarism and greed the destructive influences of world impe- civil rights to the level of class struggle?” globe are in the streets against war, against Many speakers hit on the need to pro- rialism.” Monica Moorehead spoke on some of corporate exploitation, against all forms of vide direction inside the United States to Deirdre Griswold told of how the social- the divisions that capitalism fosters in the oppression.” the heartwarming and unprecedented ist revolution enabled the People’s working class, emphasizing the police and emergence of a truly global anti-war Republic of China to feed, clothe, educate courts: “So in the United States, if you The role of a revolutionary party movement that has arisen in response to and provide health care to one-fifth of the want to forge class unity in words and Both Leslie Feinberg and Richard U.S. imperialist aggression in Iraq, world’s population—all while holding off especially in practice, fighting racism and Becker argued for a vanguard party Afghanistan and Palestine. the attacks and intrigues of a U.S. imperi- reaching out to people of color has to be a steeled in, disciplined by and committed In her talk saluting the Iraqi resistance, alism bent on a counter-revolution in top priority because you can’t fight class Continued on page 8 www.workers.org Dec. 18, 2003 Page 7 Iraq war awakens international solidarity

Based on a talk by Sara Flounders at tion. The U.S. Empire is driven to expand. In Iraq, the Pentagon tried to control all the Dec. 6-7 conference in New York. Expansion is the only way out of capital- information and news. It desperately ist stagnation. wanted to control every press report. Today U.S. imperialism is in an Today we are seeing the most violent, Remember the embedded journalists in Sara Flounders absolute crisis of historic proportions in destructive stage of imperialism. The mil- every military unit. They were all arrayed Iraq. Resistance in Iraq is unfolding on a itary machine is now an indispensable to give only the messages: “Shock and hard question: “Can the struggle for scale that the Pentagon never dreamed part of the capitalist economy. It absorbs awe.” “Fear us.” “You are helpless.” “U.S. socialism be revived?” We feel that it can, possible. enormous resources in society. More than imperialism is all-powerful.” because of this new climate of growing We in Workers World Party salute that $400 billion a year guarantee super prof- That is not the message today. Today internationalism and anti-imperialist resistance, as we salute the Palestinian its to the biggest corporations. This under- the whole world sees that U.S. imperialism resistance. resistance and the resistance of all mines and bankrupts every social pro- is not all-powerful. Why? Because resistance changes con- oppressed people facing colonial domina- gram that poor and working people need. Consider the Dec. 1 battle in Samarra. sciousness. It changes the understanding tion and subjugation—from Iraq to War is a high-stakes gamble. Even for Two separate U.S. columns on opposite of what is possible and necessary. A spirit Palestine, from Colombia to Zimbabwe. the imperialists, it is a big risk. Because sides of the city were simultaneously of internationalism and resistance to The rulers of the U.S. Empire staked war shakes up, awakens and draws in mil- ambushed by Iraqi resistance fighters. The imperialism is a prerequisite to reviving everything on the military conquest of lions, who are able to see that this brutal Iraqis knew the locations of a big U.S. mil- socialism. That is why we are so pro- Iraq. They were willing to defy their impe- system puts them at risk. itary maneuver that had been set only two foundly optimistic. rialist rivals, international law, the U.S. In today’s world, military solutions hours before. This is a stunning accom- After 1991 and the collapse of Soviet Constitution and worldwide opposition. are inherently more dangerous, more plishment for a guerrilla army. Union after 74 years of encirclement, sab- They were determined to reverse all the perilous than ever before. The working It confirms that this is a broad people’s otage, blockade and Cold War, socialists efforts by the people of the region to con- class today is billions strong and increas- opposition with many, many sources of everywhere were on the defensive. It was trol their own resources and destiny. With ingly class-conscious. Now a war pulls information and instant communication. a catastrophic setback for our whole class their vast military superiority, who could the whole world in, due to instant mass The Pentagon declared Samarra to be a internationally. Corporate globalization challenge them? communication. great victory. Pentagon spokespeople could and did proceed unchecked. But they are being challenged, daily, claimed they had killed 48, then 56, Iraqi But today it is capitalism that is reviled hourly. The attacks now average an Communications resistance fighters. But within hours and hated as never before—from Bolivia to ambush every hour. and internationalism countless journalists from the Arab world, Zimbabwe to Nepal. Hunger, poverty, Everyone at today’s Conference on Karl Marx explained that history moves from Europe, Asia and Latin America dis- massive unemployment, escalating Reviving Socialism is justifiably proud of with the speed of communication. In the puted the Pentagon’s description. racism and environmental devastation the role that revolutionary socialists have age of instant communication that is very The problem with controlling the media have reached epidemic global propor- been able to play in the movement against fast indeed—and very dangerous for the is much bigger than it was in the Vietnam tions. Capitalism has proved unable to imperialist war in this country. Just think handful of billionaires who own every- war. Everyone in Iraq. including the guer- solve any social problem. of the past year. thing. Today workers—the producers— rillas themselves, could hear news of the Yet the struggle for socialism does not Numerically we are not a large force. A can talk to each other. battle within hours. arise spontaneously. Karl Marx explained lot of red-baiters have used a lot of ink in This past year we saw a phenomenon Imperialism’s problems in Iraq are that workers and the working-class many publications, claiming that our never seen before. Millions of working compounded a thousand times from what movement won’t by itself reach beyond influence is a strange conspiracy. But it is people in a thousand cities demanded of they were even a year ago. The invaders trade-union consciousness. Scientific no conspiracy. the U.S. war machine: “No, no war.” Such can’t get the oil—that enormous source of socialism must be consciously planted The tools of revolutionary Marxism mobilized power actually held the war off profit that for the imperialists justified all and developed. imbued with a spirit of internationalism for six months. crimes—pumping. They can’t reorganize Today, the seeds fall increasingly on fer- have given us a decided edge. We under- During this time millions of Iraqis were and reshape the entire region, as they tile soil. This is an age, a time, when rev- stood that the U.S. drive to war on Iraq also marching, mobilizing and training. planned. Instead the entire region is olutionary socialists, who are also anti- was relentless and it was essential to Iraqi people knew they were not alone. changing in ways that they dread. Their imperialist to their bones, can play a great mobilize millions to oppose it because this Objectively this helped the resistance in nightmare has just begun. and historic role. war was not in their interest. Iraq today. They felt that the people of the War in Iraq has created a powerful We can provide an alternative, at a time Marxism is a social science that whole world stood with them against a international movement of opposition. A when millions are desperately seeking an enables us to understand global class criminal assault. movement that feels empowered, angry alternative. We are unique, even among forces and to mobilize our class to inter- They also knew from the experience of and outraged. It is a movement that is socialists and communists. Because we vene, so that the workers are not just Palestinian people that it is possible to increasingly radicalized by the war and by exist right here in the center of the empire, spectators of history. build a popular resistance, even to an the problems and dislocations the war cre- yet we stand with our class sisters and As Marxists, we knew the war on Iraq overwhelming military occupation. These ates right here at home. brothers resisting racism and resisting the was a war for control of oil, for markets, are things the whole population knew empire around the globe. resources. We knew that capitalism is before the war started. Resistance changes consciousness We really need to absorb this new real- utterly ruthless—that profit, only profit, The global demonstrations had enor- This new movement needs a socialist ity. During the past two years we have matters. mous affect. They reawakened a spirit of perspective or it won’t be able to under- made a real contribution to the world We knew it was one more effort to turn internationalism. stand the war that it so hates. This move- movement. Of this we are proud. But by back the Iraq Revolution of 1958 that U.S. imperialism knows from the ment can’t sustain itself without knowing explaining and projecting a socialist alter- nationalized the oil. This war was part of Vietnam War the danger of people in this that there is an alternative to endless native to imperialist war, we can make an countless coups, assassinations, war and country and the rest of world seeing the imperialist war. even greater contribution to the advance sanctions adding up to almost 50 years of ugly face of imperialist conquest. For this conference today, we asked a of our class, the world working class. attempts to regain imperialism’s hold on Iraq’s vast wealth. We understood that Washington’s determination to wage war on Iraq had nothing to do with “weapons of mass destruction” or “inspections” or “terrorism.” It had nothing to do with a desire to “liberate” Iraq, “bring democracy,” or “ensure human rights” or any of the other fraudulent arguments.

Imperialism and militarism It was Lenin who best explained this, on the eve of World War I, in a small booklet called “Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism.” Imperialism is the most advanced, brutal, ruthless stage of capitalism. The biggest, most aggressive corporations and giant bank merge into giant monopolies. They destroy all competition. Militarism is essential to imperialist expansion. It is a system that is driven to war. Markets are blasted open. This is the “Big Stick” behind corporate globaliza- Workshop on GI resistance. WW PHOTO: JOHN CATALINOTO Page 8 Dec. 18, 2003 www.workers.org Laying the basis for a red May Day

Based on a talk by Teresa Gutierrez to A book's excellent title, Class everything it can to end the occupation of the Dec. 6-7 conference in New York. Iraq and also provide support and assis- is Primary, Racism tance to the burgeoning class struggle here If we were to count how many times at home? Workers World newspaper has written, is Not Secondary, states That is the question of the day. “The upsurge is around the corner,” it in a profound way how What can be done to move the immi- would probably be a million times. grant-rights struggle, which is often lim- If we also counted how many times that intertwined the class struggle ited to a civil-rights movement, to one with sentiment was expressed in our talks or lit- a fire for class warfare? erature, year after year, it could be the is with fighting racism. How can meager resources be stretched same as the amount of money the Bush to do it all? How can we provide leader- administration stole for the war in Iraq. ship so we can help advance the struggle? Whether the math is accurate or not, we prepared us ahead of time for the collapse By understanding and being prepared have said that “the upsurge is inevitable” and was able to explain it in a way to and knowing that the immigrants’ move- a hell of a lot of times. defend, not denounce, our class camp. ment may take the form of fighting for civil Now a cynical or tired person might say, Preparation and anticipation of what is rights today, but that tomorrow the class “Hmm ... you said the upsurge was around to come is exactly what is in order Monday and anti-imperialist lessons learned from the corner 20 or 40 years ago.” And it has- morning—and every day after. their homelands can lead this movement n’t happened, they’d smugly point out. The anti-war struggle is primary, the in another direction. But our party is not cynical. And though working class struggle is not secondary. Don’t we think that the struggle of some of us may be tired, we have not aban- One has risen, and thanks to the work of immigrants at the turn of the last century doned the class struggle. the anti-war coalition ANSWER, millions can also be repeated today? Of course we If we were to say what the main tenet of Teresa Gutierrez WWPHOTO: JOHN CATALINOTTO have been brought out to protest the war do. It is part of working-class history that our party is, it would be this basic Marxist in Iraq. Jewish and Italian and other workers concept: The dictatorship of the prole- “Class is Primary, Racism is Not It was the vision of ANSWER that fought pitched battles against every form tariat is not only still viable, it is necessary Secondary.” turned the tide in building a movement of capitalist rule back then, often bringing in order to emancipate the workers and This states in a simple but profound against the war. The tragedy of 9/11 the bosses to their knees. oppressed from capitalist oppression. way how intertwined the class struggle is never derailed the political will to fight For those outside the party who dismiss More important, we haughtily believe with fighting racism. They go hand in Bush at every turn. And that political the U.S. working class, let us remind them that this fundamental change from a bour- hand. One cannot be elevated over the will meant that millions could come out that it was the struggle of workers in this geois to a proletarian dictatorship can and other. against the war. country that led to May Day and will occur right here in the United States It is the same with the role of the work- Maybe that movement was not that rad- International Women’s Day. of America. ers in relation to every single struggle we ical, or that anti-imperialist. But it was in Twenty years ago, workers, especially We dedicate ourselves to that struggle. take on. The mass struggle is primary, the the streets and that was what counted at the more privileged workers, expected Does this mean that we will call a workers’ struggle is not secondary. the moment. Those who rail against the that the scientific-technological revolu- demonstration next May Day and expect What distinguishes us is that we place movement on an ultra-left basis miss this tion would bring advances to their lives, workers to come en masse with red flags a great deal of importance on the mass fundamental lesson. more leisure time and security. Instead, it ready to take over the White House? struggle. We understand how crucial it is The fact that the anti-war movement has brought incredible insecurity, less Of course not. to any fight to build the biggest actions we took to the streets in such large numbers health care and more layoffs. But it does mean that we are confident can. This is the way to fight here and now. changed the political climate in the United It has brought more sweatshops, more that one day workers will descend on the Any communist worth her or his salt States. What more could communists ask homelessness and slave labor from the White House en masse with red flags knows this. for in this period? farms to the factories. ready to take it over. Because it is a Our party yearns to reach the working The anti-war movement was on the rise. Our productivity has risen, but our haunted house, built on slavery and geno- class. We wait eagerly for the moment Of course it must ascend even higher in wages have fallen. cide, and people will one day be more than when the workers and oppressed struggle order to end the occupation of Iraq and to This is why we know that the workers— willing to paint it deep red. on another level. get imperialism the hell out of the Middle from the most oppressed to the most priv- We know the problems. The limitations We are heartened by the rise of strug- East. ileged—will soon wake up and realize: The of the labor leadership, for example. But gles in the United States such as the Oct. But the other struggle—the workers’ capitalist system is out of date and must we are not counting on them to lead us to 4 march in defense of immigrants, the Los struggle—is barely getting its legs. A mili- be brought down. socialism. Unfortunately, they along with Angeles grocery workers’ strike and other tant class-conscious movement fighting When that day comes, our party will many in the communist movement are signs of revival. for its interests and not class collaboration be ready. We will do everything to make leading the workers straight to the But at the same time, the workers have is only in embryonic form. sure that the dictatorship of the prole- Democratic Party. been slow to oppose the war in Iraq in a But Los Angeles shows what is on the tariat occurs right here in the heart of But this conference is about reviving major way. They are receptive to fighting horizon. imperialism. socialism. And we cannot talk about that Bush on the $87 billion stolen from them, How can the movement in this country, The heroic people of Iraq and the entire without recognizing the role of the U.S. but have shied away from a wholesale fight still reeling from a reactionary period, do world should expect no less from us. working class. against the war. It is the working class that is the agent Much as we wish and desire for the of change. Only they can fundamentally workers to come forward ready to wage alter class relations. militant class struggle, our views are based This is the only class that can end not on science, not wishful thinking. Meeting on socialist struggle only the war in Iraq but all imperialist We know an upsurge in the working- Continued from page 6 attended a discussion called “Learning class struggle is on the horizon, because wars. Not only the wars abroad, but the to leading the struggle for socialism. More about Workers World Party” to hear the scientific-technological revolution war at home as well. Becker commented: “As revolutionaries about the Party’s rich history in the revo- that has devastated the working class in In the meantime—in what could per- we can’t control everything. What we do lutionary struggle for socialism. the last 20 years lays the basis for it. haps be a long meantime—what do we as have control over is building a revolution- During this workshop, Larry Holmes The shift from high-paid, high-skilled communists say and what do we do? What ary party. Revolutionary Marxism remarked: “We need revolutionary sol- jobs to lower-paid service jobs has taken era are we in and how can we advance the requires a party that can polemicize diers. It’s never too early to build a party its toll. Plant closings have meant hun- class struggle? against all other ideologies.” of revolutionaries. If you’re ready, really dreds of thousands of layoffs. And more It is a period where a whole generation Preston Wood spoke on the need for the ready, join us. Let’s—all of us—Black, are expected as factories flee to oppressed has grown up under the shadow of the col- anti-war movement to stay independent Latino and Latina, Asian, bi, gay, women, nations where wages are lower. lapse of the Soviet Union. Young people of the elections and the pro-imperialist trans, lesbian, straight, white, whatever— There are irreconcilable differences did not witness a live Che, the Che who Democratic Party. Wood said, “We need let’s struggle together.” between the workers and oppressed and came to New York representing the first grassroots resistance, more participation In closing remarks, Feinberg said: “No, the capitalist class. The only thing the cor- socialist revolution in this hemisphere. from organized labor, work stoppages, capitalism is not the end of history. porate vultures want from the workers is They’ve only known a pop Che. students shutting down schools, more Socialism is the dawn of human history. their labor. Profits and more and more The last two decades have been marked resistance from GIs and so on class-wide.” Everything that has gone before will be profits are their sole aim. by reaction, dominated by Reaganism and Assessing the anti-war movement’s recalled as human prehistory. As long as the capitalist system exists, Bushonomics. Bourgeois pundits declared development over the last four years, “Together, when the workers and the class struggle will emerge. It can some- Marxism dead. Sarah Sloan argued that the time is right oppressed peoples of the world unite, then times be hidden, sometimes ebb, but it The struggles in Latin America show for directly appealing to workers to join we will be the plow that turns up fresh never goes away. This is why we are con- this is not true. the anti-war movement with the call to earth. We will unleash the storm of our fident that upsurge is inevitable. But it is here in the United States that “bring the troops home now!” Sloan said: righteous fury—our thunder and our But what do we do on Monday morning? the movement must be the most revolu- “People agree with our message. Our lightning. And those who exploit and When the Soviet Union collapsed, our tionary, the most class-conscious. experience in Washington, D.C., is that oppress us will be swept away in the awe- tendency did not veer from Marxism. Our So what can we expect from the work- somewhere between 80 and 95 percent some roar of our many waters. To quote ranks were not disoriented or demoralized. ers’ struggle in this period? are for it.” Che Guevara: ‘The present is struggle. The Our party chairperson, Sam Marcy, had There is a book with an excellent title: A significant number of attendees future is ours.’” www.workers.org Dec. 18, 2003 Page 9 A framework for discussion The Soviet Union and the struggle for socialism Based on a talk by Fred Goldstein tive influences of world imperialism. There is not one iota of to the Dec. 6-7 conference The Bolshevik Revolution took place on historical evidence that in New York. a foundation of poverty in the poorest capitalist country in the West. It was isolated the collapse of the USSR Since the theme of this conference is in its poverty and backwardness once the reviving the struggle for socialism, I would revolutionary attempts by the European represents the failure of like to turn to a subject that is ideologically working class to seize power were crushed socialism as a social system. and politically highly essential to that by the European ruling classes after World effort–that is, taking back our own history War I. Yet, amidst the devastation caused Fred Goldstein WW PHOTO: JOHN CATALINOTTO from the capitalist class on the question of by imperialist intervention and bloody workers–the fundamental asset of the rev- and Frederick Engels were participants, the Soviet Union. civil war, the revolution finally expropri- olution. The disastrous split with the the workers in Paris were slaughtered The socialist movement has long been ated the means of production from the People’s Republic of China during the and the Prussian and Austrian monar- laboring under a cloud of demoralization capitalists and landlords, instituted the PRC’s revolutionary phase, caused by the chies, with the aid of the Russian tsar, and doubt because of the collapse of the monopoly on foreign trade and inaugu- Soviet leadership and fostered by U.S. crushed the revolutions in their realms. Soviet Union. Of course, the collapse was rated the planned economy. imperialism, was one of the truly historic Revolutionaries all over Europe were arguably the greatest setback for the setbacks to building a strong, united executed, jailed or exiled. By 1852, reac- Socialist accomplishments working class movement in history. The socialist camp that could hold the imperi- tion reigned supreme. of the USSR political and economic gains were enor- alists at bay. But in the midst of reaction, on March mous for world imperialism. It reaquired The revolution overcame the near-total But these reactionary retreats from 5, 1852, Marx wrote a letter to a friend in one sixth of the globe. It gained a free hand collapse of the productive forces and socialist norms took place under crisis New York, Joseph Wedemeyer, in which to make war and intensify its plunder raised Russia and its colonies from a semi- conditions imposed by imperialism and he calmly said that “… no credit is due to among the oppressed countries, which feudal region to the second industrial under conditions of extreme material me for discovering the existence of used to rely on the USSR as a partial shield power in the world. The USSR led the hardship. These setbacks had nothing classes in modern society or the struggle against imperialism. And it intensified world in steel and coal production. In the whatever to do with socialism and every- between them. … What I did that was imperialism’s assault on the labor move- sphere of science and engineering, the thing to do with imperialist encirclement, new was to prove: (1) that the existence ment everywhere. USSR inaugurated the space age, built the a world imperialist embargo on technol- of the classes is only bound up with par- But the demoralization and weakening largest construction projects in history, ogy, and a 24-hour-a-day threat of nuclear ticular historical phases in the develop- of the socialist movement is not confined and, most importantly, from a class point attack during the Cold War. This perma- ment of production, (2) that the class to concern over material and political set- of view, it did all this while lifting the peas- nent state of war constantly disrupted struggle necessarily leads to the dicta- backs. It goes deeper than that. It is a mat- ants and workers out of poverty, bringing socialist construction, exacerbated social torship of the proletariat, (3) that this ter of having lost confidence in the revo- literacy, medicine, vacations, early retire- tensions, promoted bourgeois elements dictatorship itself only constitutes a lutionary socialist goal itself. ment, and numerous other social benefits fearful and conciliatory to imperialism, transition to the abolition of all classes Much of the movement has consciously to the people. and undermined the development of and to a classless society.” or unconsciously accepted the bourgeois The planned economy eliminated eco- socialism in the extreme. This was written 20 years before the interpretation of the collapse of the USSR nomic crises. Not once in its history, save None of the setbacks caused by bour- Paris Commune and 65 years before the as a proof that socialism—socialism in the during the Nazi invasion, did it suffer a geois influence can nullify or disqualify Bolsheviks established the dictatorship of communist sense of establishing the rev- decline in production. The five-year plans the extraordinary world-shaking achieve- the proletariat in the Soviet Union. olutionary dictatorship of the proletariat brought a steady growth in the economy ments in production, science, economic The collapse of the USSR, as cata- and organizing a planned economy—is while the capitalist world went through stability, rational planning for human strophic as it was, has not changed the fact fundamentally flawed. The movement has boom and bust, including a world depres- need while raising the material and cul- that capitalism creates its own grave dig- been in a defensive posture in the face of sion in the 1930s. Unemployment was tural level of the workers and peasants. gers, the working class. A setback in the a bourgeois ideological onslaught. It has abolished. The present horrendous living The great strides forward in affirmative workers’ struggle, no matter how bad, retreated on this question in the face of a conditions of the peoples of the former action for formerly oppressed peoples and does not change the laws of historical mountain of bourgeois lies and distor- USSR are sufficient testimony to what support for the world liberation struggle development nor can it rescue capitalism tions. The most common response of was lost. were strictly due to the establishment of from its fatal contradictions. To regard the those who do not simply jump on the The revolution gave the oppressed the dictatorship of the working class and Soviet Union as an historical anomaly bourgeois bandwagon is to remain embar- nations who were in the tsar’s “prison socialist institutions. would be to abandon materialism alto- rassed and silent or ambiguous and apolo- house of nations” the right to self- deter- On balance, it was the combined forces gether. We must regard it as the first and getic on the whole subject. mination and created the first legislative of material insufficiency and the cam- crucial phase in the struggle for world house of nationalities in history. In its paign of aggression and pressure by impe- socialism, which arose out of the funda- Marxist approach early years the Soviet government rialism that were the dominant factors in mental contradiction between private to the Soviet Union exposed the secret treaties of imperialism the demise of the USSR, not its attempts property and socialized production. Thus, this question has everything to do and called upon the oppressed peoples of to build socialism. The same forces of capitalist exploita- with the future of the movement. The the world to overthrow their colonial mas- In analyzing the development of the tion that drove the Russian workers to question of dealing forthrightly with the ters. It supported anti-imperialist govern- USSR, communists should take the make the Bolshevik Revolution are now collapse of the USSR from a Marxist point ments and liberation struggles around the approach of Lenin. After the collapse of operative on an even broader global scale, of view is not merely a matter of setting the world and inaugurated a foreign policy of the international working class movement and will eventually propel the entire work- historical record straight for posterity, but internationalism. known as the Second International, mil- ing class to make the world socialist revo- rather it has become a measure of the These accomplishments of the USSR lions of workers were pitted against each lution and lay the basis for communism. degree of confidence in Marxism, histori- took place in the face of a constant war by other in a great imperialist war and the The achievements of the USSR in its cal materialism, the doctrine of the class world imperialism, including intervention bourgeoisies of all the countries were rid- attempts to build socialism showed that struggle and the outlook for the struggle by 14 imperialist countries in 1918, the ing high. In the midst of that war, in 1916, society could be planned in a rational way for world socialism and communism. The Nazi invasion which killed over 20 million Lenin wrote his book “Imperialism, the to meet human need and could make movement must retake the initiative on people and wrought massive destruction Highest Stage of Capitalism,” in which he enormous progress without private prop- this question, dispel the clouds of confu- on socialist industry and agriculture, and showed that world imperialism was erty, without the profit motive and with- sion and doubt, and renew its confidence the 45-year military, economic and polit- preparing the way for world socialism. out bosses. In a word, when the socialist in Marxism and especially in the teachings ical Cold War by the U.S., NATO and Lenin could do this amidst the horren- side of the USSR is separated out from the of Lenin, the architect of the Bolshevik Japanese imperialism. dous collapse because he had a profound regressions induced by world capitalism, Revolution. scientific understanding of capitalism and it showed that the capitalist class is his- Retreats, violations of socialist In a talk of this length it is only possi- its historical development that led to his torically unnecessary, parasitic and an norms and imperialist pressure ble to propose a framework for what must confidence in the decisiveness of the class obstruction to the progress of society. be a thoroughgoing discussion and analy- To be sure, the demise of the USSR was struggle. Lenin viewed the immediate sit- The two fundamental impediments sis. So the first thing to establish is that immeasurably aided by the leadership’s uation as so bleak that in January 1917 he that distorted and strangled socialist there is not one iota of historical evidence eventual abandonment of socialist norms gave a speech in Switzerland stating that development and brought the USSR that the collapse of the USSR represents and Leninist practices. The growth of he would probably not see the revolution down—the material insufficiency of the the failure of socialism as a social system. excessive material privilege and social in his lifetime. Yet he was confident in the productive forces to support advanced On the contrary, the extraordinary inequality under the guise of material inevitability of the revolution. socialist relations and the weight of world achievements of the first victorious work- incentives, the abandonment of revolu- imperialism—would both be removed ers’ state in history are a living demon- tionary proletarian internationalism, and Lenin and Marx in face of defeat with the socialist revolution in the United stration of the potential of socialism to lift the use of repressive measures which went Karl Marx himself never let victorious States. It is the revolution in the devel- the world out of the morass and nightmare beyond the justifiable repression of the counterrevolution force him to abandon oped imperialist countries that lays the imposed by private property, once social- bourgeoisie and landlords to include the his scientific view of history, and conse- basis for an era of true peace and solidar- ism can be built on a strong economic party and loyal communists, helped to quently never lost faith in the struggle. ity to begin, that is, the beginning of foundation and be freed from the destruc- undermine the revolutionary spirit of the After the revolution of 1848, in which he human history. Page 10 Dec. 18, 2003 www.workers.org Pentagon slaughters 15 Afghan children Gore, Dean Continued from page 1 which have troops in Iraq or are about to send them. “ring road.” The “ring road” is a giant pro- Meanwhile, a car bomb near Mosul in ject that the United States, Saudi Arabia northern Iraq wounded 51 U.S. troops. & Clinton and Japan have undertaken to develop The official number of U.S. troops killed Afghanistan’s infrastructure. in action since Bush’s triumphant speech he groundswell of mass opposi- Would she send more troops? Since October 2002, the Louis Berger at the beginning of May reached 194 on tion to the war in Iraq, that last “Is failure an option?” he asked. “No, Group of East Orange, N.J., has been Dec. 10. So far, the Pentagon hasn’t been winter filled the streets with the absolutely not,” responded Clinton, T working on a $180-million enterprise able to overcome the Iraqi people’s resis- largest protests since the Vietnam War, meaning she would not bring U.S. reconstructing the critical road connect- tance and “rebuild” much of anything. But is continuing to roil politics in the U.S. troops home and let the Iraqi people ing Kabul, Kandahar and Herat. The U.S. that isn’t stopping Washington from using as the bloody occupation drags on. just take over. Then she actually Agency for International Development potential construction contracts as both This is what’s behind former Vice attacked Bush from the right, criticizing sees Afghanistan’s location and the devel- carrot and stick. President Al Gore’s endorsement of the his “moving up the time table on opment of its land routes as central to its Dean campaign. To support Dean, Gore sovereignty which I think struck a lot of “special geo-strategic and economic U.S. empire having problems had to offend a lot of his erstwhile polit- people as, you know, a little bit hasty importance,” according to a State The U.S. military is having a hard time ical allies. and improvised.” Of course, she knows Department publication. waging endless war. On Nov. 26, Todd Purdum wrote in the New York Bush did this to boost his election The U.S. concern with protecting infra- Washington announced a decision to Times of Dec. 9: “In moving to endorse chances. But she’s hoping to score a few structure over human lives is in keeping close down 20 percent of its military Howard Dean, Al Gore embraced an points with his right-wing critics—like with its military priorities in what is, installations in Europe and parts of Asia insurgent candidate who has spent those who resonate to Sen. John according to UNICEF, the fourth-poorest to move to “geographic areas where U.S. months railing against the brand of cen- McCain, for example, who accompanied nation in the world. One in every five chil- forces have increasingly found themselves trist-at-home, hawkish-abroad her on the trip. dren still dies of disease and/or malnutri- ... particularly in the Middle East and Democratic politics that Mr. Gore Clinton then talked about trying to tion before the age of five. Central Asia.” (Boston Globe, Nov. 26) worked 20 years to help build. And in get others involved in the occupation of Afghanistan’s children are Washing- Meanwhile, the Nov. 18 Stars and winning the endorsement, Dr. Dean has Iraq, saying, “I support the administra- ton’s least concern. But killing children by Stripes reported that to keep more troops shown that he is now much more con- tion’s request to NATO that they hunger or rockets isn’t helping the United in the military, the Army has imposed a cerned about wooing the Washington become involved in Iraq. ... We can cre- States win Afghan hearts and minds. “stop-loss/stop-movement order” on all establishment than whacking it. ate some new entity, the Iraq, you active-duty units preparing to deploy into “In pledging allegiance to Dr. Dean, know, Reconstruction Stability Losing hearts and minds Iraq. This means the Army is preventing Mr. Gore passed over Sen. Joseph I. Authority. We can do something that in Iraq, too service members from retiring or leaving Lieberman, the man he chose three then gives frankly cover to other coun- The British daily, the Guardian, the service at their scheduled time; stop years ago as his own running mate; tries to come in and support us.” reported Dec. 9 that U.S. intelligence and movements prevent permanent change- Gen. Wesley K. Clark, for whom several Russert pressed her on the troops: military officials had admitted that the of-station moves. of his former aides are working; Rep. “But if other countries say no, they just Israeli army sent warfare specialists to Even this is not enough. The Pentagon’s Richard A. Gephardt, a onetime rival don’t have the troops, would you, as the Fort Bragg in North Carolina, where U.S. military might cannot control Afghanistan who warmly endorsed him four years president, send more Americans to Iraq special forces are based, to train them for any more than it can defeat Iraq. Both ago; and Sen. John Kerry, a former col- and Afghanistan?” operations in Iraq. The Guardian report occupations are brutal, killing thousands league who declined to challenge him “Well, the highest priority is to stabi- said U.S. special forces units were also of civilians, including children, and turn- for the nomination in 2000.” lize Iraq and provide security,” she operating inside Syria. ing the populations into resistance fight- What pushed Gore—the person Bill replied. “This is basically an assassination pro- ers. Clinton brought onto his 1992 ticket to Just to be sure, Russert asked: “So if gram. That is what is being conceptualized With U.S. forces inadequate to the task, prove he had the support of the the president came forward and said, here. This is a hunter-killer team,” a for- Washington is turning to NATO for help. Democratic Party establishment—to ‘We need another 50,000 American mer senior U.S. intelligence official told On Dec. 2, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald now support Dean, considered a maver- troops for Iraq,’ you’d look at that the newspaper. Rumsfeld called for a shift of NATO forces ick on the war? It wasn’t shining princi- favorably?” The U.S. occupation forces were carry- into Afghanistan, saying, “NATO might ples. It was the calculation that Dean is “I would look at it very carefully and I ing out raids throughout Iraq, including take over military operations in Afghan- tapping into the energy of a lot of young would say, ‘You know, let’s get the job attacking union offices. According to a istan some time in the future.” Democrats, who in turn are motivated done.’ ... I think we’re in for a very diffi- release from the Iraqi Federation of Trade Eager to expand the NATO-led “peace- by very strong anti-war feelings in their cult time. And we need to make sure Unions, the U.S. military, “using a force keeping” mission in Afghanistan beyond communities and families. Gore’s move we’ve got the troops there in whatever of about 10 armored cars and dozens of Kabul, the imperialist and comprador shows that even centrists don’t believe numbers are needed to do it,” was soldiers,” attacked the temporary head- powers of NATO have committed them- the argument that an anti-war stance Clinton’s final word. quarters of IFTU at the offices of the selves to “deliver ... real security from will alienate voters and cost the The election of a Democrat has never Transport and Communications Union in Kosovo to Kabul.” Democrats the election. stopped a war. The anti-war movement Baghdad on Dec. 6 and arrested eight of At a Dec. 3 meeting in Brussels, NATO But how anti-war is Dean? should not relax and think that if Dean its leaders. The troops then wrecked the Secretary General Lord Robertson pro- He’s not for pulling out of Iraq, that’s gets the nomination, the imperialist rul- offices, “without giving any reason or posed shifting NATO forces from Bosnia for sure. But by focusing on the mess ing class here will see the light and explanation.” to Afghanistan. NATO began its expan- Bush is in, rather than on a program to abandon their grandiose ambitions for The U.S. had made appeals for relief sion in the war on Bosnia in 1992, but its end the war, he is trying to capture the total domination of the Middle East. troops from NATO. But the Pentagon, in 17,500 troops in Kosovo are still necessary bring-the-troops-home spirit that is But the movement should take notice of a directive from Deputy Defense for that occupation. growing—without actually saying he what’s going on in the bourgeois elec- Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, has barred On Dec. 6 Rumsfeld roared into Mazar- will bring them home. tions, for it reveals the weakness and French, German and Russian companies e-Sharif with a cavalcade of 35 vehicles to Gore made his move on the same bankruptcy of those who have beaten from competing for $18.6 billion in con- announce an escalation of the war on weekend that his former ally, Sen. the war drums. tracts for the “reconstruction” of Iraq, Afghanistan: Operation Avalanche, which Hillary Rodham Clinton, who had The only light at the end of the tunnel saying the step “is necessary for the pro- began with the slaughter of the innocents recently visited Baghdad, appeared on will come when the efforts of the Iraqi tection of the essential security interests in Hutala. the influential NBC-TV Sunday morn- resistance and of the worldwide anti- of the United States.” To the military occupiers, Afghanistan ing program “Meet the Press.” Its tran- war movement, acting independently of Of course, the Pentagon is keeping the is still “the worst place in the world,” scripts are available online. the capitalist parties, force the lion’s share of the contracts for U.S. cor- according to U.S. Army Col. Rodney Interviewer Tim Russert zeroed in on Pentagon to beat a retreat and release porations like Halliburton and Bechtel, Davis. “This forgotten war is not about to what Clinton would do in Iraq if she U.S. soldiers from the hell of being an which have contributed a long line of cor- end any day soon.” (London Daily were president. Would she pull out? occupying army. porate officers to government posts in Telegraph, Nov. 30) order to grease the wheels of military For the people of Afghanistan the recent adventure and expansionism. U.S. offensive began with a war on their Subscribe to Workers World Paris, Berlin and Moscow, which beloved children. As one Afghan man opposed the U.S. moves toward war last asked a reporter, “As a human, what would SPECIAL TRIAL SUBSCRIPTION $2 for eight weeks (NEW SUBSCRIPTION) year but were cooperating with the U.S.- you think?” (New York Times, Dec. 8) $25 for one year led occupation, reacted angrily. The European Commission said it is investi- Name ______gating whether the move complies with global trade rules. Canada and China are Join the Workers Phone number ______also cut out of the contracts. World Supporter But the U.S. will dole out a few to those Address______Program countries—like Britain—that sent soldiers City/State/Zip ______to help the U.S. suppress the Iraqi people, Workers World Newspaper Workers World Newspaper and to Spain, Japan, Italy and Poland, 55 West 17 St. NY, NY 10011 55 West 17 St. NY, NY 10011 (212) 627-2994 (212) 627-2994 www.workers.org Dec. 18, 2003 Page 11 Bolivar, Marx and the liberation of Latin America The Indigenous communities, Based on a talk by Berta Joubert-Ceci States has considered this region its back- the landless, women, at the Dec. 6-7 conference yard. U.S. capitalists have stolen labor and in New York. raw materials. Washington has invaded all those excluded for militarily multiple times, intervened polit- When El Libertador—Simon Bolivar— ically and economically, deposed democ- decades are pushing their died at age 47 in 1830, Karl Marx was ratically elected heads of state in Chile and governments to take stands barely 12 years old. Bolivar had liberated Guatemala, and imposed violent and five countries from the Spanish Empire criminal dictators like Pinochet, Somoza against the policies of under the banner of his ideals of abolition and Trujillo, to name just a few. of slavery, equal distribution of wealth, Neoliberalism is nothing but the inten- Washington. end of oppression and discrimination for sification of imperialist exploitation with the Indigenous people, and the unity of all these added impositions: privatization of South American countries against what he natural resources, key national enter- then saw would be a future threat to the prises, public and social services; reduc- region, the U.S. ruling class. He was far tion of the government apparatus, taxes Berta Joubert-Ceci WW PHOTO: G. DUNKEL ahead of his time. on the private sector, and social safety the region’s popular political and social The response from the masses then was nets; and removal of any trade regulation. tional forums—the World Social Forum forces to act in coordination and cooper- not sufficient to carry on Bolivarian ideals. This is necessary for the imposition of the and the Sao Paolo Forum—originated in ation in fighting for liberation. To chal- However, more than one-and-a-half cen- Free Trade Area of the Americas and other South America, in Brazil. lenge the Free Trade Area of the Americas, turies after his death, Bolivar’s ideas are so-called free trade agreements. Because of the lack of uniformity in the known in Spanish as ALCA, there is a now spreading like fire. And this time, These economic measures go hand in movement, many leaders and Marxist Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, or there is the added benefit of Marxism. hand with state repression and military intellectuals of the region are also con- ALBA, first put forward by Venezuelan The prevalent slogan—“Beware imperi- preparations, mandated and assisted by ducting debates. Their most pressing President Hugo Chavez. alists, Bolivar’s sword is going throughout the United States. Plan Colombia is the issues at the moment can be summed up The groups represented on the Con- Latin America”—is not an empty threat. most widely known measure. It is aimed as insurrection, anarchy and spontaneous gress’s Provisional Secretariat look like a The people are moving. at the FARC and ELN insurgencies in social explosions vs. revolution and the Who’s Who of the Latin American strug- It is not a homogenous movement, but Colombia—but also at other countries in defeat of the established power with the gle today: Venezuela’s Bolivarian Circles, it does share this: It’s massive, popular, the region, to the point that it is now constitution of a new social order. Brazil’s Landless Movement, the Cuban anti-capitalist and mostly pro-socialist. known as the Andean Region Initiative. To put it another way, they are grap- Communist Party, Ecuador’s Indigenous Another important feature of this pling with the divergence between the Pachakutik Movement, Bolivia’s Move- movement is solidarity—not only within ‘Everything is being debated’ masses in motion on one hand, and hav- ment Toward Socialism, Argentina’s Latin America and the Caribbean, but with There is no place in Latin America or ing an organization that can bring cohe- Piquetero Movement and the FMLN of El people all over the world who are victims the Caribbean without some progressive sion to that movement in order to seize the Salvador. of oppression and occupation, like Iraq development—whether it’s the election of moment, change the balance of forces and The Continental Bolivarian Coordi- and Palestine. It can bring tears to your popular, left-leaning presidents in Brazil, take power. nation is an attempt by the Latin Amer- eyes when you hear people chant at Ecuador and Argentina; the ouster of the Many of the traditional left parties have ican left to re-establish republics on the demonstrations, “Irak, aguanta, que el U.S. Navy from Vieques; the tremendous failed to immerse themselves in the strug- basis of true democracy and the sharing of mundo se levanta” (Iraq, hold on, the mobilizations that brought down gle of the masses. So one of the discussions wealth. This Coordinadora directly calls world is rising). It’s like saying, give us President Sanchez de Lozada in Bolivia; or is the role of a vanguard organization, how for rebellion against U.S. imperialism. some time, we’ll help you. the latest general strike in the Dominican it cannot be a self-proclaimed vanguard, Venezuela and Cuba are key in provid- From awareness of the oppression Republic. Where newly elected officials how it has to influence the masses through ing venues and political space for many of stemming from the United States and its have failed the people, as in Ecuador, the immersion in their struggle, bringing these meetings. In fact, it is written in the corporations, the people have moved to struggle of the masses has continued. cohesion and unity. Only then will it be new Venezuelan Bolivarian Constitution denounce it. And now they are organizing Everything is being debated. There are recognized by the masses as the vanguard. that “the Republic will promote and favor to change that reality. The actors are those regional Social Forums, forums about the One of these efforts was the first Latin American and Caribbean integra- who have been voiceless for too long—the FTAA, Plan Colombia, issues concerning Bolivarian Congress of the Peoples held in tion, to advance toward the creation of a Indigenous communities, the landless, the Indigenous, Afro descendants, November in Caracas, Venezuela. With Community of Nations, defending the women. women, youths and so forth. It’s no acci- national chapters in 20 countries, the economic, social, political and environ- Since the Monroe Doctrine, the United dent that the most well attended interna- Bolivarian Congress is an attempt to unite mental interests of the region.” Protest set to greet Gen. Clark at the Hague tribunal

By John Catalinotto didate was himself tried and convicted in to the surface. It is the U.S. that literally period of 48 hours to censor also this part.” Belgrade of war crimes. On June 10, 2000, dictated to the tribunal the terms under The New Communist Party of the Organizations in the Netherlands and right here in the United States, a people’s which Wesley Clark will testify. Following Netherlands has organized a protest for 8 around the world plan to protest the tribunal found General Clark, along with the direct conditions from Washington, a.m. in front of the tribunal building. At 9 appearance of Gen. Wesley Clark before then-President Bill Clinton and other U.S. no public and no media will be allowed a.m. there will be a press conference of the the tribunal in The Hague on Dec. 15. He and NATO leaders, guilty of war crimes. inside. The only people who will observe ICDSM in the Hotel Bel Air next to the tri- is scheduled to be a prosecution witness A call for the protest distributed by the the proceedings will be two representa- bunal. Canadian attorney Tiphaine in the trial of former Yugoslav president International Committee for the Defense tives of the U.S. government. And not Dickson, legal assistant to Milosevic, will Slobodan Milosevic. of Slobodan Milosevic (ICDSM) expressed only this: the U.S. government has the speak to the media. Clark was commander of NATO when, outrage over how the trial is being con- authority to decide which parts of the tes- ICDSM chapters in other countries are beginning on March 24, 1999, it waged a ducted: timony will remain secret. The other also protesting General Clark’s secret tes- 78-day bombing campaign against Yugo- “More clearly than ever before now the parts will be presented to the U.S. gov- timony. For information on the activity of slavia. The current U.S. presidential can- direct influence of the U.S. regime comes ernment, which will then have a time the U.S. section, see www.icdsm-us.org. MARKET ELECTIONS: How democracy serves the rich By Vince Copeland The Bolsheviks and War Every four years, big money chooses the presidential candidates. Their war chests filled to the brim, they are then packaged by the media as "the people's choice." Lessons for today’s anti-war movement It's U.S.-style democracy-of the rich, by the rich and for the rich. But how do By Sam Marcy these chosen politicians win the votes of the millions as well as the millionaires? Who has been excluded from voting? How were electoral politics used to betray $4.95 plus $1 for shipping Black freedom after the Civil War? How did two Roosevelts wield reform at home Order from: World View Forum to facilitate empire-building abroad? Why did no 'normal' elections take place 55 W. 17th St., 5th fl., NY, NY, 10011 between 1960 and 1976? Market Elections takes us into smoke filled rooms and raucous conventions to tell the story. $18, at leftbooks.com it's 15% off, $15.30 Sistema de Salud Comunitario salva vidas en Las Filipinas

Por Hillel Cohen Visité esta comunidad rural como parte como alimentos, vivienda, sanidad y agua paramilitares derechistas. Mindanao, Las Filipinas de un viaje de “exposición” organizado potable libre de contaminantes. Ellos tam- A pesar de que los PSC son organiza- por el Consejo de Salud y Desarrollo bién discuten las situaciones políticas ciones legalmente reconocidas, frecuente- Nunca ha habido un apagón porque (CSD), junto con la Conferencia Inter- internacionales que les afectan directa- mente el gobierno asume que cualquier nunca ha habido electricidad. Las inun- nacional de Desafíos en el Trabajo de la mente o indirectamente. persona que labora gratis par ayudar a sus daciones no pueden dificultar el sistema Salud Frente a la Globalización y la En una reunión con tres trabajadores vecinos tiene que ser una amenaza peli- de alcantarillado por no existe. El servicio Guerra. El CSD es una organización de salud de la comunidad tuvimos una grosa al estatus quo. de agua potable nunca se corta porque nacional de más de 50 programas de salud conversación sobre los últimos sucesos en La madre de nuestra anfitriona quien nunca se ha instalado un sistema de comunitarios no gubernamentales que la guerra de los Estados Unidos contra vive a unos pocos pasos, vino a platicar Nos tubería. trabaja en las Filipinas. Uno de ellos, El Irak así como el impacto de la dijo que su hija era una de 13 hijos que ella El agua más cercana es un arrollo que Programa de Extensión de Salud de la Organización de Comercio Mundial. había parido, pero que 10 de ellos está a por lo menos 20 minutos bajando Península de Zamboanga hizo posible mi murieron antes de la edad de cinco años. por una escarpada colina y otros 20 min- visita a esta parte de Mindanao. Preocupación sobre interven- Nuestra anfitriona está embarazada con utos regresando. Los programas comunitarios comen- ción imperialista su sexto hijo, pero hasta la fecha no ha per- En esta comunidad rural de la zaron en las Filipinas hace casi 30 años Hace aproximadamente un año las dido ninguno de ellos. Ella atribuyó la Península de Zamboanga ciudad de cuando el país estaba bajo el régimen tropas de los EE.UU. estuvieron en mejoría al modesto entrenamiento que ella Mindanao, un viaje al centro del pueblo apoyado por EEUU de Ferdinand Marcos. Mindanao, cerca de aquí Bush las había y sus vecinas habían recibido por medio quiere decir una hora en “taxi” bajando la Los doctores, enfermeras, parteras y otros enviado como parte de la “guerra contra del programa de salud comunitaria. montaña. El “taxi” es una motocicleta que que tienen conocimientos sobre la salud el terrorismo.” Los activistas filipinos Como sus vecinas, ella tenía una letrina. lleva hasta cuatro pasajeros. Las motoci- trabajan voluntariamente con las comu- creen que las tropas fueron un anticipo del Tan simple como es, era algo raro en el cletas son el único tipo de vehículo que nidades rurales. reestablecimiento de las bases militares vecindario cuando ella era niña, y los orga- puede subir y bajar por el camino lodoso A diferencia de la misiones de salud de de los EE.UU. acá. nizadores de la comunidad tuvieron que de la montaña, y eso si no ha llovido “ayuda humanitaria”, la filosofía del La lucha popular había forzado al conducir una campaña de educación para recientemente y el lodazar no es muy Proyecto de Salud Comunitaria (PSC) no Pentágono a cerrar dos bases militares explicar por qué cada hogar debía tener hondo. enfatiza la práctica de proveer servicios de una década anterior. El Pentágono quiere una letrina para controlar los excrementos Si alguien está enfermo, no hay ni que salud que no puedan auto sustentarse y volver. Se han descubierto reservas petrol- humanos, que son fuente potencial de pensar en una ambulancia. Ninguna que desaparecerían una vez que los vol- eras sustanciales en Mindanao, y las enfermedades. puede subir la montaña, pero de todos untarios no pudieran continuar ayu- Filipinas están ubicadas estratégicamente Cuando anocheció y estuvimos prepa- modos, ninguna está disponible. Aún si dando. Sino que el enfoque es en el entre- cerca de importantes rutas de comercio rándonos para dormir, yo pregunté sobre alguien que estuviera enfermo pudiera lle- namiento de trabajadores en las comu- marítimo en el Mar Pacifico. los mosquitos, porque no teníamos gar hasta el pueblo, ella o el no tendrían nidades—miembros de las comunidades Los campesinos filipinos también mosquiteros. Con mucho orgullo, nuestra suficiente dinero para medicamentos, y que se entrenan voluntariamente a cam- están muy preocupados por la OMC y el anfitriona declaró, “Soy una trabajadora mucho menos para pagar los servicios de bio de que provean servicios de salud a su Fondo Monetario Internacional. Los comunitaria de la salud. No hay mosqui- la clínica o el hospital. comunidad. pagos de la deuda externa al FMI han tos en mi casa.” Cuando le pregunté cómo La mayoría de las familias cosecha Casi todos los voluntarios son mujeres. resultado en recortes inmensos del pre- había logrado esto, ella dijo que se ase- maíz. Muy pocos son dueños de su tierra. La mayor parte tiene educación a nivel de supuesto nacional. La OMC ha dificul- guraba eliminar cualquier lugar con agua Cada año los campesinos tienen que dar escuela elemental—seis años—aunque tado la venta de los productos de los estancada en los alrededores de la casa, y una gran parte de la cosecha a los dueños otras tienen menos. Las comunidades no campesinos en los mercados locales por que todos los días hacía una fogata con de las tierras como pago de alquiler. A pueden costear ni siquiera suministros la competencia de empresas agropecuar- mucho humo en la cocina porque los mos- menudo el maíz con el que se quedan para médicos básicos, así que los entre- ias internacionales. En esta remota quitos huyen del humo. Estas sencillas su alimentación no dura ni el año. namientos se concentran en sanidad comunidad rural, sin televisión, sin per- acciones ayudan a proteger las vidas y la Los bueyes que se usan para arar, están básica, primeros auxilios, extracción de iódicos y con sólo unos pocos radios tipo salud de su familia. escasos. Muchos hogares tienen unas dientes, partos, medicinas naturales y téc- transistor en el vecindario, estos traba- Los mosquitos, por supuesto, no son el pocas gallinas o un puerco que pueden ser nicas como la acupuntura y la acupresión, jadores comunitarios de la salud pare- único problema para estos campesinos sin vendidos o consumidos en ocasiones que no requieren equipos caros. Los tra- cen estar mejor informados y preocupa- tierra. Los terratenientes y los capitalistas especiales. bajadores de la salud también aprenden dos por los asuntos internacionales que globalizantes de la OMC son problemas Muy pocos habitantes en esta comu- a diagnosticar enfermedades peligrosas muchos de mis compañeros de trabajo que no se pueden superar con medidas nidad saben lo que es una enfermera, y como la tifoidea que requeriría un viaje al en Nueva York. sencillas. Sin embargo, tuve la sensación mucho menos un doctor. Los nacimientos hospital de la provincia si este se pudiera Los trabajadores comunitarios de la de que nuestra anfitriona y sus vecin@s y la muerte suceden en la casa. arreglar. salud y muchos de los voluntarios de los estaman igualmente dedicad@s a liber- Estas condiciones son comunes a todas Aunque los voluntarios del PSC no son Programas de Salud Comunitarios a veces arse del legado del colonialismo. las áreas rurales de las Filipinas. Las cose- abiertamente políticos, urgen a los traba- son detenidos u hostigados por militares Sus experiencias con un programa de chas y los terrenos pueden variar pero las jadores de la salud a que piensen sobre las que dicen que los trabajadores de la salud salud con base en la comunidad reforzaron dificultades del diario vivir son similares condiciones económicas y sociales que son agentes de las insurgencias locales que la conciencia de que cualquier cosa que para 40 a 50 millones de los 80 millones crean esas difíciles condiciones y cómo la existen en muchas zonas rurales. Un par quieran lograr será producto de sus pro- de habitantes de las Filipinas. salud requiere de necesidades básicas de años antes de nuestra visita por lo pios esfuerzos, y esto les brinda la confi- menos dos trabajadores comunitarios anza de que encontrarán la manera de hac- fueron asesinados por el ejército o por erlo.

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