Vol. 17, No. 10, Dec, 1972

ON THE INSIDE What happened to Cuban Revolution? by Raya Dunayevskaya P. 5 :£ New York: a new Alabama P. 2 :•:• r 'Work ethic' and four more years P. 7 £: » Labor leaders' EWS foHy divides workers' vote by Charles Denby, Editor The national election is over, and the wide margin by which Nixon won over McGovern stunned many people. You hear commentators give their analysis of what happened without saying that the overwhelming majority came from racists' votes that went to Nixon. The "last crooked mile" on November 7 was the walk that white America took to get to the polls. The statistics say that only 10 or 15 percent of the Printed in 100 Percent Blacks in this country voted for Nixon-Agnew. One would VOL. 17—No. 10 Union Shop DECEMBER, 1972 be thinking wrongly, however, to think that the rest of us were voting for McGovern. Out of all McGovern's speeches, not once did he mention civil rights or the Editorial Article struggle of Blacks in this country as an oppressed minority. This same reason is why many white labor leaders who did support McGovern can't understand why so many of the white working class deserted their tradition Nixon's racist victory places and voted for Nixon and Griffin in Michigan. Because they too have swept the question of Black workers under the rug from the early beginnings of the UAW. They would say it is a class question, with no separate or American civilization on trial special problems outside the class nature. They never By Andy Phillips students on the campus of Southern University would take on management alongside Black workers The first bitter harvest of President Nixon's in Baton Rouge, La., where students had been when it came to breaking down lily-white departments. racist victory at the polls on Nov. 7 was reaped boycotting classes for weeks in an effort to have In those early days of the UAW, practically every on the campus of America's largest Black college local union had one officer called the Education Direc a greater voice in determining the school's ad'' tor, and at least once a month we were asked to attend barely a week later, on Nov. 16. Two murderous ministration policies and curriculum. an educational meeting. And every teacher would be blasts from police shotguns, fired into a crowd of The storm of outrage on the part of the Black com ready to lecture on the class question, or trade unionism, protestors, ripped into the heads of two Black munity forced Louisiana Governor Edwards to appoint or any political question except the independent struggle a "blue-ribbon" commission to investigate the senseless of Blacks in the shop or the country as a whole. Many killings, which police officials and the governor had at white workers, some just up from the Deep South, were first denied were committed by the police. But what ready and willing to learn all about the struggle that ever the findings of that commission, they will not be Blacks were fighting. But the union leaders weren't connecting what happened on the Southern University ready. campus to what had happened at the polls on Nov. 7. Now there is no such education director, and racism FLOODGATES OF AMERICAN never was discussed openly because most of the labor RACISM OPENED leaders were prejudiced themselves, although the great That is when the floodgates of American racism were majority of them had been previously connected with opened wide. It is not enough to explain the overwhelm some radical group. Some had more deep-seated racism ing victory of Nixon to say that he had skillfully con in them than many of the so-called raw whites just up ducted a racist campaign for re-election—which cer from the South. tainly goes back to his 1968 nomination in Miami where he pledged to restore "Law and Order," and by which When some, like Meany, said that McGovern was a he clearly meant to call a halt to gains made during radical, and never mentioned Black people in his cam the decade of the '60s by Black Americans. paign, it was just like most of these old trade union It is true that Nixon had found other expressions radicals. during his administration to reaffirm his opposition to BUSING HYPOCRISY Black progress and national desegregation. Every Amer The white UAW leaders of today never uttered a ican, Black and white, understood exactly that Nixon word about the business of busing, so Nixon and Wallace was lashing out against further Black progress when he made it the main issue. As a Black worker said to me: —IMS photo demanded an end to school busing, permissiveness, wel "I pass through an all-white working-class neighborhood East Baton Rouge, La., police stand over covered fare abuse, laziness or crime in the streets. About his every day, and many of the houses have signs in the bodies of two murdered Black Southern University own racism, Nixon was perfectly clear. (Continued on Page 7) students. However, it was not Nixon's racism that was demon strated in the voting booths, it was the racism in the majority of white America. Even more critical is the cold and hard fact that for the first time in modern America, so many working class whites voted for a West coast longshoremen auctioned off Republican—only this was not just any Republican, it Los Angeles, Cal.—The latest discussion we the rumor that the ILA was not interested in merging was a thoroughly racist Republican, Nixon. So deep have been having on the docks in Los Angeles is with ILWU. But the basic questions of will we have real was this racism that workers had to disregard their autonomy, will we be able to get out if and when we own self-interest to vote for Nixon. For the overwhelm about merger. Our local president Curt Johnson ing majority of white workers know very well that released a letter sent him by President Gleason want to, have not been touched. Bridges seems ready to deliver us to the Teamsters. Nixon's economic policies mean a continuation of high of the East coast International Longshoreman's Others want to deliver us to the ILA. When are we going unemployment, worsening working conditions and wor Association (ILA) in which he stated the ILA was to be consulted? When are we going to have real de sening standards of living. interested in merger with the West coast long cision-making power over what happens to us? Not OTHER ISSUES WERE MINOR shoremen. merely a vote when everything is decided and we have Of course, there were many other issues: Nixon's Gleason spoke about how unity could work for both no real choice, but before that when it really makes Vietnam war, his invasion of Cambodia and Laos, his unions against anti-strike legislation in the longshore a difference. attacks against the youth and Blacks, Watergate bug industry, a united front in contract negotiations and pro —Longshoreman, L.A. ging, corruption a la ITT and a raft of campaign fund tection against raiding by other unions. He stated that scandals. Then there was McGovern, alienating old west coast longshoremen would have a substantial degree party regulars at the Miami convention, the Eagleton of autonomy and representation in the union. affair, his vacillating policies on welfare reform. But all of these factors pale in the light of the one over The release of this letter has to be seen in the context Season's Greetings riding conclusion: the unifying force s" Nixon's land of ILWU President Harry Bridges' attempts to have us slide victory was racism. merge with the Teamsters' Union. Many in both the to Our Readers Certainly many election results were not all Nixon- membership and the leadership are unhappy about pos ite. The fact that Democrats retained control of both sible merger with the Teamsters. Many of us don't I houses of Congress, and indeed increased control in the think we would have much security in the Teamsters. As For Your Gift-Giving Senate, will prevent a completely free hand by Nixon. a union we feel its- effectiveness is nil. If it came down Moreover, the Black Coalition in the House of Repre to a choice I know many would prefer the ILA to the sentatives was increased from 13 to 16, with the addi Teamsters. See Our Special Offer tion of Barbara Jordan of Texas, Yvonne Braithwaite But what becomes very clear is that much of the Burke of California and Andrew Young of Georgia— leadership wants to merge with someone. The question On Page 7 I with the latter winning in a predominantly white dis for them is who. The politics of running a union is every trict in Atlanta. thing to these leaders, the rank and file comes second, Have you put N&L on your gift list? | Another significant victory was the defeat of Chicago if then. Democrat Edward Hanrahan, who waged his campaign The letter fr^m ILA President Gleason cleared up (Continued en Page 5) PACE 2 NEWS & LETTERS DECEMBER, 1972 FORCE 'Sophisticated' New York: a new Alabama Canarsie whites bar Black students Low income housing killed in Queens New York, N. Y.—"This isn't Little Rock, this New York, N. Y.—For the past months this isn't Mississippi. It's not going to happen here," city has seen incident after incident of pure shouted a Black woman, angry, frustrated, hurt, racism which can't help but remind one of George into a T.V.

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