Venezuelans Affirm Revolution: 'Chávez Isn't Leaving'
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¡Huelga en Detroit! Europa: Resistencia contra austeridad 12 Workers and oppressed peoples of the world unite! workers.org Oct. 18, 2012 Vol. 54, No. 41 $1 CHÁVEZ NO SE VA! Venezuelans arm revolution: ‘Chávez isn’t leaving’ By Berta Joubert-Ceci UNASUR, the bank of the South — and the cooperation among the countries and people to lift the masses out of Chávez won! The Venezuelan people won! Latin Amer- poverty. At stake was the road to real liberation from im- STOP KILLER COPS ica and socialism won! These slogans capture the world- perialism and for the socialist construction of their soci- wide sentiments expressed as Venezuela’s National Elec- ety that millions in the region are pursuing. PHILADELPHIA 2 toral Council (CNE) announced Hugo Chávez’ victory During an interview with Telesur after he voted, just after 10 p.m. on Oct. 7. Chávez said, “It is not about me; it does not depend on a NEW YORK 3 With nearly all votes counted the next day, Chávez led man. What is at stake is independence, the answer to the with 55.1 percent or more than 8 million votes. The U.S.- Free Trade Agreements, to neoliberalism. That is what is BALTIMORE 3 backed opposition candidate, Henrique Capriles Ra- at stake. In 13 years, there have been 14 elections and we donski, had 44.2 percent or about 6.5 million votes. The only lost the referendum [for a reform of the Constitu- other four candidates, two men and two women, totaled tion]. [In Venezuela] the people have been empowered; less than 1 percent. it now belongs to her owner, the people.” STRIKE! No other elections in Venezuela have aroused such ex- Capriles’ discourse during the elections was demagogi- citement and commitment in Venezuela and worldwide. cally tailored to appeal to the masses of poor, with the Taking on Walmart A record high of more than 80 percent of those eligible message that he would improve the programs already es- Detroit city workers win 5 voted, compared to 75 percent in 2006 and 70 percent in tablished by Chávez. The truth is that he would destroy 2004. (vtv.gob.ve) Progressive forces around the world them, or try to. sent statements or have organized demonstrations in Millions of Venezuelans understood this and voted for solidarity with Chávez’ Bolivarian Revolution. Chávez to defend the Misiones — the many programs Our view on In Caracas, the capital, people began celebrating early that have benefited health, education and housing for on election day, confident that Chávez would prevail. Af- the majority of the people — funded with oil industry THE ELECTION 10, 11 ter the CNE announcement, thousands converged at the income. They voted to defend a revolution that has in- Miraflores Presidential Palace for a big, cheerful, mass creased the support of arts and culture; extended the celebration to hear Chávez’ victory speech. At nearly rights of women, children and the elderly; and increased midnight, Chávez appeared on the balcony and sang the the participation of the most excluded from society: the NO WAR national anthem, “Gloria al Bravo Pueblo” (“Glory to the Continued on page 6 Brave People”), together with the crowd. Natl & intl antiwar protests 7 The president congratulated those who voted for and even against him for “not having fallen into destabiliz- BUFFALO ing plans.” This referred to reports weeks earlier that the opposition planned to mobilize, claiming election fraud. Foreign nongovernmental organizations, particularly those from the U.S. like the U.S. Agency for International Development, Freedom House, etc., would back these phony claims. Bolivarian Revolution vs. imperialism Everyone knows Chávez, not so Capriles. During the WW PHOTO: ELLIE DORRITIE April 2002 coup against Chávez, Capriles was mayor of BOSTON LOS ANGELES the Miranda municipality and led an attack against the Cuban Embassy in Caracas. This counterrevolutionary activity led to his spending 119 days in prison. In 2008, he became governor of the Miranda state. The following year he was accused of corruption and fraud. On February 2012, he became the sole opposition candidate. He has strong ties with the business sector. All of world imperialism, especially Washington, supported him. Thus the election squared off not just two individuals, Chávez Frías versus Capriles Radonski, but indepen- WW PHOTO: JOHN PARKER dence and sovereignty versus imperialism, the Bolivar- ian Revolution versus neocolonialist counterrevolution. WW PHOTO: GERRY SCOPPETTUOLO For the people in Latin America and the Caribbean, what was at stake was the future of integration of the re- gion which the Bolivarian Revolution has propelled. It was the future of regional organizations — ALBA, CELAC, SUBSCRIBE TO WORKERS WORLD 4 weeks trial $4 1 year subscription $30 Sign me up for the WWP Supporter Program. For information: workers.org/supporters/ 212.627.2994 www.workers.org Name _______________________________________________________ Address _____________________________________________________ NEW YORK PHILADELPHIA City / State / Zip _______________________________________________ WW PHOTO: BRENDA RYAN WW PHOTO: JOE PIETTE Email _____________________________ Phone ____________________ Workers World Newspaper 55 W. 17th St. #5C, NY, NY 10011 SYRIA 7 SOUTH AFRICA 8 HAITI 8 Page 2 Oct. 18, 2012 workers.org WORKERS WORLD Police beat Puerto Rican this week ... In the U.S. woman in Philly Police beat Puerto Rican woman in Philly ................2 Police brutality: An all-too-familiar story .................3 By Berta Joubert-Ceci No life sentence! Free Mumia Abu-Jamal! ................3 Philadelphia Community outraged as lying killer cops are exposed....3 Voter ID law delayed but not dead.......................4 With only two days of organizing, close to 100 people rallied in front of the Philadelphia On the picket line..............................................4 City Hall on Oct. 5 to protest police brutality Striking warehouse workers shut down Walmart warehouse . 5 against the Puerto Rican community. Waste water workers score victories, end strike...........5 The attack occurred on Sept. 30, during a Protests condemn U.S./NATO wars and wars at home ....7 celebration in the community at the end of the WWP leader: ’It doesn’t matter who wins’ .............. 11 Puerto Rican Day Parade. The parade itself Mumia Abu-Jamal: ’From hope to fear’ ................ 11 was held on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, in an area near the Philadelphia Museum Around the world of Art, far from North Philadelphia’s Puerto Venezuelans arm revolution . .1 Rican community, but close to a community where gentrification displaced hundreds of Liberation-era atrocities by colonialists further exposed..6 Puerto Rican families in the early 1980s. Turkey uses false pretext to attack Syria ..................7 In a video that went viral, ‘ Stop drones’ protest in Pakistan.........................7 taken by Gisela Valentín, a cop South African strikes spread to public sector . .8 is shown hitting Aida Guzmán in the face and in the back of Fired GM Colombia workers update......................8 her head, so hard that she fell to Haitian masses to president: ‘Leave! We’ve had enough!’..8 the ground. Several other police Protests against racism held in 14 European countries....9 were surrounding the area while WW PHOTOS: JOE PIETTE Vancouver activists exercise rights, defy police ...........9 she was being hit, preventing With her attorney Enrique anyone from getting through Latoison at her side, after Behind Canadian Auto Workers settlement ..............9 and allowing the attack to con- meeting with Mayor Nutter Okinawa: Protest deployment of U.S. helicopters....... 10 tinue. Adding insult to injury, in City Hall, Aida Guzmán accepts Puerto Rican ag Guzmán, bleeding from the in- Editorial from rally participant. jury, was then handcuffed and Where we stand on the election ....................... 10 arrested on charges of disorder- ly conduct. The case against her of people of color or even Noticias En Español was eventually dropped. of poor whites. ¡Huelga en Detroit! .................................... 12 This act of police brutality The officer has been Europa: Resistencia contra austeridad.................. 12 against a woman has outraged many in the city and par- dismissed for a month, and the police department ticularly Puerto Rican women, who complained about claims it intends to fire him afterwards. He has not been the silence from city public figures and elected officials. charged with any crime, and already the infamous Fra- Only one, Puerto Rican Councilperson María Quiñones, ternal Order of Police is trying to overturn his dismissal complained about the attack and demanded an inves- from the force. Workers World tigation. It took several days and several views of the The “We are all Aida” protest was initiated by Puerto 55 West 17 Street video (http://tinyurl.com/8eybtou), which showed that Rican women demanding respect for the women and New York, N.Y. 10011 Guzmán did nothing to provoke the attack, for the police the community as a whole, and that charges be brought Phone: 212.627.2994 commissioner and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter against the individual cop and against all the other ones to issue a statement. Had it not been for the video, the at- standing by. The outrage demonstrated by those attend- E-mail: [email protected] tack would have been ignored completely. It wasn’t until ing the rally was evidenced by remarks like, “How am I Web: www.workers.org Oct.5 that Nutter offered an apology to Guzmán. going to teach my sons and grandsons that they should Vol. 54, No. 41 • Oct. 18, 2012 But, as the Oct. 5 protesters stated, an apology will not not hit a woman, when they see a police officer hitting Closing date: Oct. 9, 2012 suffice. Philadelphia has been marred by police brutal- a woman for no reason?” and “If they do not charge the Editor: Deirdre Griswold ity ever since the infamous Frank Rizzo headed the city’s officer, there will be riots.” Technical Editor: Lal Roohk police department.