PUBLISHED BY THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS Of AMERICA
January /February 1994 E T .. ..,, Volume XXII Number 1 Biology, Ethics,
1d Socialist Values ti
Margaret O'Brien Stein/els on Euthanasia . Dorothee Benz on Homosexuality and Biology Claire N. Kaplan on the Disabilities Rights Movement INSIDE DEMOCRATIC LEFT BIOLOGY, ETHICS, DSAction. . .15 AND SOCIALIST VALUES The 1993 DSA National Convt.:ntion .. 16 Euthanasia and the Left by Margaret O'Brien Stein/els . . .3 On the Left by Harry Fleischman. . .20 Il's In the Jeans: Biology, Culture, and the Struggle for Gay Liberation DSA Commission New.s. . .21 by Dorothee Benz. . 6 Janie Higgins RcporL~ . . .24
Toward a Socialist Movement Without Barriers cover pholos -- mp: Meryl L~vin/lmp.icl Vuuals by Claire N. Kaplan . .. IO bonom ldl: I larvcy hnldc/lmpact Vuuah bouome righ1· An health care system our major issue. 1994, DSA will abo work in congres EDITORIAL DSA members have served on the sional campaign:. that tar~t anti-re Clinton Health Care Task Force and in form incumbenb and that ~upport HEALTH CARE: the leadership and rank and file of single-payer advocates We will also national and state single-payer coali continue our work m ~t.ate t..:am tions. Perhaps most importantly, in paigns to e!>tablLh !>mcle-payer :.ys THE CRUCIAL 1991 we organized a twenty-two-city tems. national tour of over forty Canadian Th~ m :.t delicate aspect of l1ur health experts (from our sibling party, work i:. hO\.\ '' e balance our efforts in YEAR AHEAD the Ne\.v Democrats) that helped to improving the Clmt l propo:. 2 DEMOCRATIC LETT I n t r o d u c ti o n: Biology, Ethics, and Socialist Values Being a socialist means 11ot reacl1i11xfor the quickfix. The three articles we print here look at iss11es of biology and ethics 011 which people ofgood u1if /, h11111am· 111lentio11s, and, yes, socialist politics, differ Some are not even iss11es that DSA lzas debated, but all are topics that the authors believe an organization concerned wzth health care and social justice must face. Margaret 0 ·Brien Ste111fels argues that wlten progressives support legalized e11tha11as1a tltey should exam me the long-range 1mplicatio11s of such a move, especially i11 light of tlte prospect of managed l1ealtf1 care. For w/1011'1 would the hemlock lie poured? Would more drmks go to the terminally ill but flllly conscious and mmlally competent ad11lt whose agony we wish to ease, or lo the unpoverished aged, 11erso11s with AIDS, a11d people of color whose cv11ti11ued heaW1 care mould dra111 7mblic coffers? Dorothee Benz ca11 t ion:; aga i 11st look i11g for a s11nple "genetic" ca llse for homoserna It t y a11d tl1erefore limiting the gro1111ds on ur11ic11 the battlt•for f11ll soc ta I a11d civil rights m11st be fought Whatever we might gain byarg11i11g that homosex11ality is a l1iologicalg1ven. shepoi11ts out, would be offset by the samel>acklasl1 that affects other gro11ps 111111l1le to change their gendl'r, color, qr pl1ysical co11d1tio11 Claire Kaplan warns against easy sympatl1y and "do-gooderism" toward tl1e disabled community Don't try to ease the 11am, site says, 1111til you know the source of the p11111 Th ts means listenmg to the disabled, making DSA acces;;ible, and fi11di11g lite common interests (jobs, education, and l1ealtl1 care, for starters) that allow for coaltlion b11ild111g Not all ofour reader-:- will agree with every slatemml i11 tltese articles. We may or may 1101 be members ofthe groups 1111der diswss1on Homever, as we tit ink a/Jo11t tl1ese issues and debate tlwir place 111 011r own lives a11d 111 the agmda~ of DSA locals, let us ask, t11 eaclt case As a member of one of tltese groups, what polici6 wo11/d I consider fair' -- Maxine Phillips Ellthanasia: Prospects and Perils BY MARGARET O'BRIEN STEINFELS he word e11tl1anas1a, "good death," 1s dition be confirmed by a second physician. the catch-all phrase describing refer It is too early to predict the outcome in enda ina number of states that would Oregon. But if the initiative passes, the state T allow doctors to end the lives of pa would become the world's first jurisdiction to tients who are terminally ill. Oregon will have give full legal approval to the killmg of termi such an initiative on its November 1994 ballot nally ill people. (Holland's current--and legally despite defeats in California (1992) and the state ambiguous -- 4rrangement comes closest to al of Washington (1991). lowing euthanasia: it remains against the law, The Oregon initiative 1s described as physi but physicians are not prosecuted when they kill cian aid-in-suicide; the others have been de a terminally ill patient. The practice has led to scribed as physician aid-in-dying. Details vary charges that some physicians have abused on the bills' provisions. The right-to-die (or prosecutorial leniency by euthanizing patients death with dignity) movement has generally who are not terminally ill or who have not framed these measures to provide that a compe requested it.) tent, terminally ill patient with less than six Despite their carefully worded use of months to live can ask a physician to end (or "physician aid-in-dying," all of these measures help end) his or her life. The bills have usually cross a line in allowing a physician to kill di provided that a patient sign a statement re rectly or help kill a patient. This change in the q uesting "euthanasia," that the signing be wit law would reverse a widely held precept in nessed by individuals not involved in the pa-· medical ethics against the taking of human life. tient's care, and that the patient's terminal con- In fact, the drive to change the law is not led by 1994 3 biology, ethics, and socialist values physicians or medical care givers, but by the greater protection for people on respirators. In Hemlock Society and the right-to-die move many states, people can sign "advance direc ment along with individuals who have watched tives" that tell their family and physician a loved one suffer through a prolonged terminal whether and when to end treatment if they are illness. The measure was also supported in unable to make their preferences known. In California by the Northern and Southern Cali some places it may be harder to terminate treat fornia ACLU, the Gray Panthers, the Unitarian ment than to refuse 1t in the first place. Adults Universalists, and the AIDS Council of Los who are alert and competent can generally ref Angeles. use medical treatment, although in life-threat The goal of "death with dignity" propo ening situations they may be required to seek nents is to provide terminally ill people a ra· counseling or psychological assessments. tional and legal means of dying. The underlying This turn away from physician-dominated assumption is that 1f a patient cannot be cured decision-making enhances patient choice in and they are dying anyway, there is little pur medical care and treatment. Proponents of pose in their continuing to live. physician aid-in-dying argue that killing termi Proponents of euthanasia argue that medi nally ill patienb at their own requ~t b the next cal advances and an aging population have step in honoring patient autonomy; it puts outpaced current moral and legal restrictions. medicine at their service by ending life. The technological sophistication and skilled Yet there is an important difference. Allow care provided today by most hospitclls, physi ing patients to die, to terminate treatment, or to cians, and nurses can now often prolong life at refuse treatment -- none of which involves di all ages, but they are not alw 4 D£MOCRATIC LFFT ------biology, ethics, and socialist values while treating others with leniency. Publicity follow ing the physician-assisted suicides arranged by Dr. Jack Kevorkian in Michigan have raised the::.e issues - along with tht>lr potential for abuse -- to national con sciousness. (None of Dr. Kevorkian':> "patients" was terminally ill.) The states of California, Washington, and Oregon with their "pro gressive" traditions and relatively accessible books, they would gradually extended to in A doctor referendum processes have become te::.ting clude those who could not consent to or request examines ground::.. Yet ::.o far the::.e measures have been termination? And what of those who are other technical defeated. Why? wise vulnerable and already marginalized by equipment. Opponent::. of physician aid-in-dying have our society? This argument emphasizes poten offered several arguments against the refer tial abuses when the law permits physicians and enda Perhaps the most powerful one i!> the the medical-care system to consider "aid-in most obvious and the most persuasive to voters: dying" as part of their medical armamentarium. direct killing of an innocent person b wrong, Perhaps reflecting this concern, post-elec even when that person wants to die and even tion polls in California showed that those when a physic1,m 1s willing to help. I3ut other groups most likely to vote against "Proposition arguments m<1y be equally persuasive. For 161" were women, racial minorities, and older example, giving physicians leg<1l warrant to kill voter:>. Strongest support came from affluent a patient, even under limited conditions, would white males aged eighteen to thirty-four. If aid irrevocably alter the patient-doctor relation in-dying rests on assumptions of per::.onal au ship, changing 1t from one in which the ultimate tonomy and control, those least likely to have goals of cure, care, or comfort subtly ::.hift so autonomy and control seem most likely to that, all else failing, killing ii patient become:> a understand the long-term consequences for thinkable alternotive. Giving this power to society's most vulnerable. These may also be physician:> would ultimately mean giving it to the people most able to foresee the pressure that the medical care system as a whole. would be brought to bear on patients or physi To proponents' argument that some lives cians to end particularly complex and expensive are so full of pain and suffering that they cease to care under an increasingly standardized and be worth living, opponents counter that pain nationalized health care system. controlling medications and techniques along The great potential for abuse by physician:>, with various forms of hospice care can relieve the medical care system, and state-supported mo::.t pain and provide comfort to the patient financing ought to raise a fundamental question and re::.pik for the family. for supporters of physic1,m aid-in-dying, who Advocate::. of physician aid-in-dying have often take up the cause in the name of civil framed their bills to emphasize the autonomy of liberties, individual rights, or with the hope of the in••idual -- this is a choice a dying person ending unnecessary suffering: Are we in the will make him or herself. Yet medical care process of creating a mechanism that will vio gi\'ers point out that many of the most difficult late the most basic right, the right to life, espe cases are not tho:.e of alert and competent cially of the poorest, weakest, sickest, and most adults, but of children, the comatose, or the vulnerable people in our society, all m the name senile unable to make independent decisions. In of individual autonomy and control? Cl! other words, the current bilb don't fit any of the most troubling case:>. bit not likt>ly, they argue, Margaret O'Brien Stemfel:; 1s the edllor of Com that once physician aid-in-dyinh laws are on the monweal f/\NUMlY/FEBRU/\RY 1994 5 It's in the Jeans • Biology, Culture, and the Struggle for Gay Liberation BY DOROTHEE BENZ he July 1993 release of a study that cal research on sexual orientation is still incon links male homosexuality to an area clusive, and in any case it is unlikely to affect on the X chromosome met with either the lives of gay people or the opinions of T mixed reactions from gay rights ad those who hate them. vocates. The Human Rights Campaign Fund, The most recent study, conducted by Dr. the Washington-based gay lobby, welcomed the Dean Hamer of the National Cancer Institute findings and said, "We believe it will help in and published in the July issue of Science, found crease support for gay and lesbian rights" (New that more than 75 percent of a group of pairs of York Times, July 16). Others were less enthusi gay brothers had inherited identical DNA astic. Many gays are suspicious of attempts to markers on a particular region on the Xchromo find the cause(s) of homosexuality because his some, suggesting that same-sex attraction may torically the search for a cause has been part of have some hereditary disposition. But even the search for a "cure." Anti-gay forces, on the those who consider this finding interesting or other hand, have decried the recent research as significant are quick to acknowledge that sexual "pro-gay" and contend that the "hypothesis of orientation is a complex, multi-dimensional recruitment" and the "traditional psychological phenomenon whose determinants are at best model of disturbed families producing more partially genetic. Hamer's study did not isolate homosexuals" should be given greater attention a "gay gene," and it is still a matter of total (Wall Street fo1mral, August 12). A 1991 study by speculation as to how likely carriers of a "gay Simon LeVay that found differences in the size gene" -- or, more likely, genes -- would be to of the hypothalamus of gay and straight men become gay asa result of such a genetic makeup. met with a similar reception. Researchers, Moreover, the study has been criticized for meanwhile, have found themselves m the spot omitting a control experiment checking for the light on a politically "hot" issue that has been presence of the genetic markers•among hetero t!Xploited by the right wing in distinctly non sexual brothers. The results have not yet been scie1 tific ways. And women, as usual, have replicated, and the small number of cases in been ignored; both studies have dealt exclu volved in the study (forty) is further reason for sively with men. a cautionary reading of the results. Neverthe For all of the uproar, however, the biologi- less, Hamer's study has generally won acclaim 6 D 1 t.W< RATtr Lrrr biology, ethics, and socialist values and will certainly encourage similar research. The argument of biological difference can be a Gay proponents of biological research on tool gay rights activists can use to help their sexual orientation argue that discovering a bio cause, but without a movement that challenges logical cause of homosexuality would heterosexist norms, it is ultimately useless. strengthen the <:ase for legal protections against The focus on legal advances is, of course, discrimination. A crucial part of equal protec only part of the broader goal of overcoming ig tion law isbuilton the concept of an "immutable norance and hatred for gay people. Supporters characteristic." If sexual orientation were con of biological research hope that demonstrating sidered an immutable characteristic, like race or that sexual orientation is not chosen will compel gender, efforts to decriminalize homosexual bigots to see gays in a different light. However, sex, outlaw discrimination, and legalize mar religious intolerance of lesbians and gays - riage would have improved chances of enact which provides much of the fuel that feeds the ment. That a biological basis for homosexuality current anti-gay hate -- already acknowledges could help the legal case for gay rights is indis the immutability of sexual orientation (or its putable, but it is important to note that such a possibility, at least). The argument of many basis is neither a necessary nor a sufficient argu anti-gay Christians has long been that one may ment for legal protections. Religion is constitu not be able to help having homosexual feelings, tionally protected and considered an "immu but one definitely has the capacity and obliga table" characteristic in this context, and yet tion to resist acting on them and to learn to adapt there is clearly no biological basis for religion. 1n to heterosexual habits. In b1bltcal 1argon, this is addition, legal victories have been won for gays known as "loving the sinner, hating the sin." on the basis of immutability despite the lack of The religious argument against homosexuality conclusive biological evidence. is not based in a distinction of whether the More instructive than the success of the behavior is voluntary or not, and hence biologi Marchers at the immutable characteristic argument sans bio cal evidence that it is inborn or hereditary will April 25, 1993 logical determinants, however, is the historical not lessen the prejudice of those who consider it March on failure of biological differences to inspire tolera immoral. Washington for tion and equal treatment. As the experience of Discovering a biologica I basis for homo Lesbian and African Americans should make abundantly sexuality is at best a two-edged sword. Far from Gay Civil Rights clear, hereditary difference is no guard against helping erode prejudice, grounding difference and Liberation. oppression. The argu ment that skin color was an illegal (and immoral) basis for discrimination gained purchase only af ter decades of calculated legal struggles and a con siderable popular mobili zation on its behalf. (The same can be said for gen der differenes, of course -- and both are battles that are still far from over.) The lesson is an important one: unless Americans are persuaded that homo phobia is wrong, no amount of biological evi dence of its immutability will suffice to dismantle legal discrimination against gays and lesbians. fANUARY/F£BRUARY 1994 7 biology, ethics, and socialist values At the April in biology has a long and horrible history as the echoes of the ass1milationism of the homophile 1993 March basis of persecution. People of color, Jews, the movement of the 1950s and 1960s, and risks lim • On disabled and the mentally ill have all suffered iting the gay rights agenda in similar ways. Washington. unspeakable crimes in the name of racial or While asserting that our human similarities are genetic inferiority. The very premise of Nazi more important than our sexual differences - anti-Semitism was the claim that Jews were a which is certainly true -- it runs the risk of biological threat to German racial purity. In undercutting our claim to the right to be differ deed, biological difference is typically used not ent. to demonstrate that people are similar despite An overemphasis on the biological determi genetic variations, but rather to argue that nants of sexual orientation leaves gays and les people are morally different because they are bians more vulnerable to cultural intolerances. biologically predisposed to certain behaviors. Someone might argue, for instance, that basic (Abnormal sexual appetites m particular have vanilla sex and traditional relationships be frequently been ascribed to biological or genetic tween same-sex couples is okay (because homo predispositions, for instance in the racist image sexual inclination 1s involuntary) but that cross of black men as sexual predators.) There is no dressing is unacceptable, or that butch women reason for gay people to expect a more enlight and effeminate men should alter their behavior. ened interpretation than others have been sub Someone might :;ay that S/M or cruising are jected to throughout history. Lest readers immoral behaviors. Earrings, pierced nipples, should consider this an unnecessarily dark and pink triangles, short hair, and black leather pessimistic view, I offer the London Daily Mail would all be open to the argument that since headline reporting on the Hamer study as a predilections toward them are not biologically possible omen of what the future could hold: determined, they need not be tolerated. But the "Abortion Hope After 'Gay Gene' Findings" fact 1s that if all these things were taken away (New York Times, August 2). from gay people, a very large part of what Enthusiasts of biological research are at defines us as gay, and what makes beinggayfun heart interested in showing that sexual orienta and expressive, would be gone. And that is tion is not a matter of choice. The importance of because fighting for the right tp be gay means demonstrating the involuntary nature of homo fighting for the right to act gay, whatever that sexuality lies in its usefulness for the strategy of means to the individual. appealing to a common humanity as a basis for Gay people are not essentially a biological tolerance and acceptance. Gay people are minority but a cultural minority. Moreover, the people like everybody else, except they happen source of most people's prejudice against gays is to be gay. This approach has unmistakable not the (mistaken) view that homosexuality is 8 DrMOCRAT1c LEFT biology, ethics, and socialist values chosen, and therefore the struggle against depends on the ability to transmit our culture to homophobia cannot be advanced by demon each new generation. Randy Shilts has said that strating that it is not chosen. Rather, the source a biological explanation "would reduce being of bias is a complex field of cultural/ideological gay to something like being left-handed, which beliefs (expectations about gender roles, includ is in fact all that it is" (New York Times, August ing appropriate sexual object choice for each 2). Apart from the fact that left-handed people gender, religious teachings, general hang-ups until recently were routinely forced to switch, about sex, and so on) and thus the terrain of making this a very unfortunate choice of anal struggle for gays and lesbians must also be ogy, Shilts is simply wrong. It's much more in cultural. the jeans -- and the bandannas in the back pock Coming out has been the quintessential gay ets, the matching boots, and the pose -- than in political act since the Stonewall Riots. It is at the genes. GD once an act of individual liberation from a life of Al the 1993 lying and hiding and a challenge to social Dorothee Benz, a DSA meml1er, is tile Director of New York City norms. But the battle against the closet is cul Comm1111ical1011s for Local 23-25 ofthe l11temalio11ol lesbian and tural battle; the closet has no biological mean Ladies Garme11t Workers Union and a freelance Gay Pride ing. Clearly, there is no biological basis compel writer. March. ling people to come out, and yet the right to be out is at the very core of the struggle for gay rights. A misdirected emphasi::. on biological determinants in fact J undercuts our claim as a cultural minority. Ifgayness 1s focused on biology instead of culture, then people are more likely to question whether we should dress dis tinctly, socialize together, have gay neighborhoods, and so on. They can say -- and some have - there is no such thing as gay cul ture. In truth, of course, there not only is gay culture (many gay cultures, some more visible than others) but it is the existence of gay culture and the communityI communities it sustains that has made the daily life of gay people better. We need our community centers, our nehvorks, our news papers and magazines, our gath ering places, our traditions, our trademarks. Our claim to them, however, has nothing to do with our genes. Gay people are born into a diaspora; in addition to the Deaf and disabled, we are the only minority whose parents do not share our minority status. Our collective identity and survival fANUARY/FFRRU.1RY 1994 9 Toward a Socialist Movement Without Barriers Engaging with the Disabilities Rights Movement BY CLAIRE N. KAPLAN hen President George Bush and much to gain by incorporating the agenda signed the Americans With Dis of this movement as our own. And yet, we must abilities Act (ADA) into Jaw in be prepared to learn first. W 1990, a subtle shift in power oc curred. just as major legislative initiatives, such The Americans With Disabilities Act as the Civil Rights Act, empowered racial mi The Americans With Disabilities Act is norities to resist institutionalized racism, the designed to ensure accessibility in employment, ADA made it possible for 43 million Deaf and public services, transportation, public accom disabled Americans to fight a myriad of physi modations, and telecommunications. The Act cal and social barriers. mandates that public facilities (such as DSA's As with those earlier civil nghb laws, the national office) must be accessible by wheel work ahead seems daunting. People with d1s chair and other assistive equipment. Techni abil1tiesorwho aredeafhave the highest rates of cally, offices are not required to purchase a ITY unemployment, lowest wages, and highest (teletypewriter; also known as TDD, or telecom rates of illiteracy of any group in the United munications device for the Deaf), unless they States. allow Deaf or hard-of-hearing people to make Capitalists view the ADA as a major victory outgoing calls. of a social movement -- in other words, a major The ADA is the successor to the Rehabilita pain in the ass. It's ironic not only that Dush tion (or "Rehab") Act, which was passed during signed it into law, but that the only Reagan/ the Nixon administration. During the mid- Bush-era domestic legislation that forces a 1970s, the government's extreme procrastina semblance of social responsibility 111 the corpo tion 111 implementing the Rehab1litahon Act rate and government sectors was pushed sparked major protests by disabled activists in through Congress by a movement in which California -- most famously a takeover of Sena socialists have played at best a peripheral role. tor Alan Cranston's office, in which activists For both ethical and strategic reasons, chained themselves and their wheelchairs for democratic socialists must take the disabilities days. rights movement more seriously. There are few The ADA is far broader than the Rehab Act, social movements in this country whose goals which applies only to recipients of Federal fi are more like ours. From national health care to nancial assistance, but it still has real weak workplace democracy, DSA has much to offer nesses. rt provides very few employment pro- 10 DrMOCRATIC Len biology, ethics, and socialist values tections for disabled and Deaf indi racial balance on panels was a some who cannot hear, see, or move about viduals. "Employment b the pri times seen as a chore, too. Ilut we still without difficulty may not see them mary issue," argues civil-rights attor did it, because it wasn't only the selves as "impaired" -- a term gener ney Stanley Fleischman. "There are "right" thing to do, it was the only ally disdained by those to whom the no affirmative action requirements thing to do. We understand that if we word is attached. This 1s the underly regarding people with dbabilities, are to become the multicultural or ing challenge for socialists: to resist except that an t'mployer can't say, ganization ""·e wish to be, we must the desire to ease pain and suffering 'I'm not hiring you because you're build bridge::. with leaders in many before finding out what the real disabled.' They can come up with a communitit':>. source of the pain is. All their lives, thousand reasons why they can't hire Bmige building applies to t!)e disabled and deaf people have been someone." One of the problems, Deaf and disabled communities as medically labeled, experimented according to Flebchman, is that there well. This process must begin with upon, controlled, pathologized, and is no specifically measurable pool to the understanding that the "disabled patronized to the point of total help use as a yardstick. There are few data community" is as diverse as any lessness -- and rage. available on the number of disabled other group of human beings, with This rage was memorably ex people who are able to work, as there various sets of political priorities, pressed during the historic protest at are for women or racial minorities. cultural norms and values, and -- in Gallaudet Uniwrsity, the Washing Salary and promotions are an addi the case of the Deaf and the Blind - ton, D.C. school for the Deaf, in 1988. tional issue, but "getting in is the languages. When students' hopes that a Deaf hardest part," says Fleischman. Increasingly, many Deaf people person would be hired as president of do not consider themselves disabled, the school were dashed, they shut the Moving Beyond "Accommodation" but instead a cultural and linguistic school down -- first alone and then DSA has a checkered history in minority (hence the preference for with support from faculty and out its work with people with disabilities. Deaf over den[, which is said to refer to side Deaf organizations. To describe An underlying reason for this is that a medical condition). Illind activists the ensuing victory as a groundswell we, like most people, continue to are staking similar claims to the cul in the Deaf rights movement is an view accommodation as simply an ture which has developed around the understatement. The anniversary of other chore when we plan events, use of Braille. the "DPN" (Deaf President Now) hold meetings, and so forth. It wasn't It may seem paradoxical to hear revolt is celebrated annually. Nation long ago that planning for gender and ing, sighted, able-bodied that people ally, there are now fourteen Deaf jANUt\RY/FFBRUARY 1994 11 biology, ethics, and socialist values superintendents of schools for the Deaf--up from one in 1988. Upon his C 0 lvf MUN I CA TI 0 N con fir ma tion as Galla udet' s first Deaf president, I. King Jordan said to the ACCESS TIPS exhilarated crowd," All our lives we were told, 'Deaf people can't. Deaf + Sign Language Interpreters people can't.' Well, Deaf people Most sign language interpreters are free-lance workers. There are a can." variety of ways to find professionals who not only have training an~ certification, but who come recommended by the consumers who use their The Charge to Socialists services. First, contact Deaf service organizations in your area. They may DSA's critique of capitalism and even serve as a clearinghouse or network for interpreters. If you go through market culture, and our concern with such a group, you may be paying more than if you contact the individual single-payer health care, social con interpreters on your own. It's okay to do that: it may be easier to work trol of the economy, political self through these groups at first, until you find someone suitable, then make determination, and the right to edu separate arrangements if you have an ongoing need for services. cation, transportation, communica Sign language interpreters aren't cheap, yet you may be able to find an tion, and a living wage are all serious ally who is willing to cut a deal. Don't expect them to work for free; they are concerns among people with disabili professionals who expect a professional wage, depending on experience and ties. Yet they can't know about us if level of certification. But it is okay to negotiate a fee. Most interpreters also we do not make our agenda and our charge for a two-hour minimum, even if no Deaf people show up and their organization accessible on the most services are not needed. But you may be able to agree on a "cancellation" basic levels. fee if this is the case. DSA locals and the national or ganization must accomplish three Some other rules to keep in mind: basic tasks in order to make the or 1) lfyou know that Deaf people are definitely attending the event, have ganization truly accessible: your Deaf community contact help you work out room arrangements for the First, contact local disabled and best viewing of interpreter and speaker(s). If you aren't sure, ask the inter deaf-rights organizations, preferably preter for suggestions. Be sure there is plenty oflight on the interpreter, ~nd groups run by members of those that sight lines are clear. Place the interpreter near the speaker(s), to the side, communities. At the very least, there so that people can see the interpreter and the speakers without too much eye may be some kind of center for inde movement. Don't walk in front of the interpreter, blocking the view. pendent living or the like nearby. Ask 2) Avoid lavish praise on interpreters. It's appropriate to thank them, for the names of local activists and but they are there to do their job. Leave it to the Deaf people in attendance contact them. (If you are calling a to provide feedback (especially if you know nothing about sign language)! Deaf person, you don't need a TTY. Too often ignorant hearing people tell the interpreter how wonderful she or Use the services of the state or na he was; meanwhile, the Deaf person, who hardly understood one thing tional telephone relay system which because of the interpreter's incompetence, is standing nearby, fuming. provides third-party assistance. 3) If the program is longer than one hour, you should hire two interpret Look in the front of your phone book ers, who will switch every twenty to thirty minutes. Unlike spoken language for information.) Invite these people translation, sign language is physically tiring, and it becomes harder to sign to a meeting to discuss disability I clearly when your arms feel like they're falling off. deaf issues, and then ask specifically 4) Remember that interpreters can only interpret for one person at a how you can ensure this meeting is time. Try not to talk over one another, especially during group discussions. accessible. Ask for suggestions of meeting spaces, if regular meeting + FM or Loop Systems places are not appropriate. Get There are people who may not use sign language, especially hard of names of sign language interpreters hearing or late-deafened people. These individuals may be able to use FM from Deaf people (tliey know who is or Loop systems which provide amplification and screen out ambient sound good and who isn' t). which interferes with hearing the speaker. Again, contact Deaf agencies or Second, explore issues in com state agencies/commissions for assistance. mon that can be fought together. -C.K. Disabilities-rights groups are active 12 DEMOCRATIC LrH ------biology, ethics, and socialist values in health care coalitions. Issues of long-term and home care; provision of mobility assistants (which is not included in the ADA); pre-existing conditions; coverage of assistive devices; and ~a ps on spending are ob viously crucial to many disabled people. Bring them into your organ .!! izational discussions and forums on .i > health care reform. .tl Keep in mind the history of op g- pression; don't take control of an ac :;;'5 tion; don't control the agenda. Yetdo Li:" ... >- this work as a DSA local, and be .. ~ totally open about who you are. De :: prepared to mobilize in support of disabled groups if they are making demands of local government or businesses. Third, make it a policy of the organization always to ensure acces sibility at any major function. In 1991, Is Our Meeting Place Accessible? DSA's national convention passed a The only way to be sure is to have someone with mobility problems tell resolution requiring that all major you. We all have war stories of making arrangements at "accessible" facili national outreach events be sign lan ties, only to have a person who uses a wheelchair blocked from entering guage interpreted. Prior to that we because the "ramp" was a produce delivery chute, or the bathroom had a had a commitment always to hold one-mch step up. Certain public buildings must be accessible, such as banks, events in accessible facilities. Locals commu111ty centers, and libraries. But, to be certain, call the local independ are "encouraged" to take such stt-ps ent living center and ask if they have a published guide to local accommo (considering that cost may be pro dations, or their opinions on which buildings are the best. hibitive for some), not required. Other issues to check in advance: Is the lighting bright enough? Are the Publicize events that are accessible bathrooms accessible? Where are the potential trouble-spots for blind and/or sign language interpreted to people or others with visual disabilities? Is the seating such that people with disabled and deaf people by mailing disabilities will be "ghettoized" into one section without being able to sit • to organizations, sending announce with their friends and companions? ments to newsletters, etc. Invite community leaders to participate in Resources: major events and get their groups to National Association of the Deaf include flyers in their mailings. 301/587-1788 301/587-1789TTY Last, don't expect mobs of deaf and disabled people to suddenly Self-Help for the Hard of Hearing appear at meetings. Heanng/able 301 /657-2248 301 /657-2249 TTY bod ied organizations Ii ke DSA have a history of uneven commitment, at Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund best. Be consistent and be patient. ft 510/644-2555 510/644-2629 TTY may take months, even years. Even tually, we'll find that the outreach U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division events pay off. &JI 202/514-0JOJ 202/514-0383 TTY Claire N. Kaplan is Chair of tlte Cllarlot U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission tesville local of DSA and a member of lite 800/669-3362 800/800-3302 TTY NPC. fAN UARY jf[flRW.RY 1994 13 DSA Locals and Organizing Committees Northeast KENT OH O.C., Eric llensal. 216-677-9789 134 East Oak Street, Kent OH 44240 ALBANY Local. Mark Schaeffer, 518-463-5611 MAHONING VALLEY OH 0.C.. Allan Curry, 216-534-9327 399 State Street. Albany NY 12210 117 Caroline Avenue, Hubbard 011 44425 BALTIMORE Local, Laila Atallah. 301-467-9424 MILWAUKEE O.C.,Tom Sobottkc. 414-367-5893 1443 Gorsuch Avenue, Baltimore MD 21218 162 llill Court, Hartland WI 53029 BOSTON Local, Glenn Kulbako. staff, 617-354-5078 ST. LOUIS Local, Dave Rathke, 314-773-0605 11 Garden Street, Cambridge MA 02138 3323 Magnolia, St. Louis MO 63118 CENTRAL NJ Local. William Volonte. 201-642-0885 TWIN CITIES Local, Dan Frankot, 612-224-8262 PO Box 2029, Princeton NJ 08543 695 Onawa Avenue. Saint Paul MN 55107 CENTRAL PA Local. Curt Sanders. 717-328-5124 WICHITA 0.C., Jim Phillips. 316-681-1469 115 Loudon Road, Mercersburg P/\ 17236 2330 North Oliver Street #219, Wichita KS 67220 CONNECTICUT Local, Mike Phelan. 203-397-5412 194 /\Iden Avenue. New Haven CT 06515 DC/MD/NORTHERN VA Local, Dill Mosley. 202-48.1-3299 P.O. Box 33345, Washington DC 20033 ARKANSAS O.C .. Jason Murphy. 501 -661-0984 ITHACA Local. Kevin Heubusch. 607-256-5341 512 North Oak. Liule Rock AR 72205 108 fcrrace Place #3. Ithaca NY 14850 AUSTIN Local. Dick Fralin. 512-820-0257 NASSAU COUNTY NY Local. Mark Finkel. 516-538-8246 2409 West Eighth Street, Austin TX 78703 662 Howard Avenue. West Hempstead NY 11552 CENTRAL KENTUCKY Local. Ann Patterson, 606-268-2983 I NEW YORK CITY Local. Julia Fitzgerald. 212-962-1079 P.O. Box 1190, Lexington KY 40589 15 Dutch Street #500. New York NY 10038 CHARLOITESVILLE Local. Claire Kaplan, 80./ 295-8884 PHILADELPHIA Local. Lisa Jlolgash. 215-248-9013 Route l Box 1250, Troy VA 22974 125 East Mount Airy Ave .. Philadelphia. PA 19119 HOUSTON Local. Elroy Sullivan. 713-667-2726 PlTfSBURGH Local. Dill Weksclman 3322 Durhill, I [ouston TX 77025 P.O. Box 5122, Pittsburgh P/\ 15206 RICHMOND 0 .C.. Irene Ries. 804-276-8271 READING-BERKS PA Local. Doh Millar. 215-944-0991 P.O. Box. 5011. Richmond VA 23220 RD4, Box 4482A, Fleetwood PA 19522 ROCHESTER. John Roberts. 716-442-0751 »'est~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 109 Linden Street, Rochester NY 14620 SUFFOLK COUNTY NY Local. Hugh Cleland. 516-751-0340 ALBUQUERQUE Local. Gerry Bradley. 505-881-4687 528 Pond Path. Setauket NY 11733 6008 Ponderosa NE. Albuquerque NM 87110 EAST BAY CA Local. Dean Ferguson, 510-763-8054 Midwest 150 17th Street #404. Oakland C/\ 94612 EUGENE OR O.C., Jean Hanna ANN ARBOR Local. Eric Ebel. ?1.1-662-4497 2316 #3 Pauerson Drive. Eugene. OR 97405 P.O. Box 7211 . Ann Arbor MI 48107 FRONT RANGE CO Local, Harris Gruman, 303-444-9049 ATHENS OH O.C., Paul Durke. 614 594-7927 3075 Broadway #D. Boulder CO 80304 4 Pine Place. Athens Oil 45701 ALASKA Local. John Dunker, 907-465-3400 CARBONDALE TL 0 .C .. E.G Hughes. 618-549 1409 592 Scatter Street. Juneau AK 99801 P 0. Box 2201 . Carbondale ll. 67902 LOS ANGELES Local, Steve Tanynski, 310-451-li934 CENTRAL INDIANA Local. Brad Lorton 317-293-2612 1102 North Brand Blvd. #20, Glendale CA 91202 6446 Whitehaven Road #1028, Indianapolis. IN 46254 MARIN COUNTY CA Local, Mark Wittenberg. 415-388-6396 CENTRAL OHIO Local. George Boas. 614-297-0710 215 ·Throckmorton Avenue #2. Mill Valley CA 94941 44 Brunson Avenue, Columbus Oll 43203 PALO ALTO Local. Carolyn Curtis, 415-364-6124 CHICAGO Local. Maggie Shreve, 312-384-0327 69 Lloyden Drive. Atherton C /\ 94027 1608 N. Milwaukee Ave.,4th noor. Chicago IL 60647 SACRAMENTO VALLEY Local. Duane Campbell, CLEVELAND Local. Terri Burgess. 216-476-8560 916-361-9072 11316 Dale Avenue, Cleveland OJ [ 44111 PO Box 162394. Sacramento CA 958 I 6 DANE COUNTY WI O.C .. To 14 DEMOC RATIC LEFT DSAction--- li]a n do m iihompson Notes Memorial +Staff News: DSA has a new administrative assistant, Mar + DSA co-sponsored a memorial tribute to E.P. gie Burns. Margie is a graduate of the New York University Thompson, the distinguished British labor histo School of Journalism. Her responsibilities at the nattontll rian, teacher, literary critic, and non-aligned so office include coordinating our membership data and fulfill cialist peace activist, on December 12 at the New ing requests for literature and information. Long-time DSA York Society for Ethical Culture. administrative assistant Barbara Farrow McKoy left in early Over five hundred people attended the event, September to pursue another career. Good luck, Barbara! which was organized by The Nation Institute. Thompson, who died on August 28 at the age of +Health Care Survey Update: Many thanks to the thousands 69, was honored by several friends and colleagues, of you who responded to our recent membership survey on including his spouse, Dorothy. Many of the pre health care activism. Results of that survey will bl> published senters read selections from Thompson's diverse in the next issue of Democratic Left. Also: If you requested writings and bro<1dcasts. copies of the upcoming revised edition of our health care "It is hard to imagine anyone else who added pamphlet, those will be sent out in early February, hot off the such richness to the intellectual life, the political p1ess. life, the personal life of so many of us," said DSA member David Montgomery, a professor of labor +The 1994 DSA National Activist Conference: This summer history at Yale University who was a long-time conference will feature intensive training for organizers and friend of Thompson's. in-depth discussions about socialist political strtltegy for the Two final books by Thompson were pub 1990s. Look for details in the next issue of Democratic Left. lished in 1993 by the New Press in New York. 1994 REGISTRATION dsa youth section NAMr~~~~------~ • A DDR~~------~ WINTER CONFERENCE PHONL: DSA CilAl'll:R ------Toward Economic Registration fees will total Justice Everywhere! approximately $30. Free housing wiU be available if you reserve space by INVITED SPEAKERS: Cornel West • Barbara Ehrenreich • February 20. Some financial aid may Manning Marable • Dorothee Benz • Jack Clark • Shakoor be available. Aljuwani • Jose Laluz • And Many More! WORKSHOPS AND PANELS: The Backlash Against Diversity For further information, call •International Solidarity at a Crossroads • Building Vibrant (212) 962-0390. Return to DSA Chapters • Socialist History • And More! DSA, March 4 - 6 • New York City 15 Dutch St. #500, NY, NY location to be announced • call for info 10038. f ANUARY/FEllRUARY 1994 15 DSA Convention 1993: "A Celebration of the Possible" elegates and observers from and Corne! West and from Porfirio Munoz twenty-five DSA locals gathered in Ledo, the president of Mexico's Party of the Los Angeles in early November to Democratic Revolution (PRO). D evaluate the state of our movement and to lay out strategies and goals for the next Outreach Events Draw Hundreds two years. The 1993 DSA National Convention, The weekend's major outreach event was an held during the days leading up to Congress's evening of dialogue and entertainment entitled d1sastrous NAFT A vote, was dominated by "Breaking Bread." Over seven hundred people conversations about how to construct a visible came to Saint John's Episcopal Church to hear and effective democratic socialist movement in Comet West, UCLA Chicano Studies Professor this age of globalizing capital and social break Gloria Romero, Joe Hicks of the Southern Chris down. tian Leadership Conference, and Bong Hwan Despite the many obstacles we face, the Kim of the Los Angeles Korean Youth and Com convention was marked by an extremely con munity Center. For almost three hours, these Porfirio Munoz structive and forward-looking tone. The con four progressive leaders carried on a riveting Ledo exhorts vention delegates developed and approved a conversation about the state of urban politics the delegates broad series of resolutions designed to revital and the prospects for forging effective multira to work on behalf of ize DSA's culture of activism and its political ef cial alliances. international fectiveness. This was the first major pubhc event of worker The weekend was highlighted by speeches DSA 's ongoing Breaking Bread Project, which is solidarity. from DSA Honorary Chairs Barbara Ehrenreich designed to bring activists of color together to work toward creating a new progressive poli- • tics in U.S. cities. On Saturday night the convention held its second major public event -- the annual Debs/ Sinclair Awards banquet sponsored by Los An geles DSA. Over two hundred people attended. This year's award recipients included Los Ange les City Council member Jackie Goldberg, Donna Wilkinson of the Southern California Library for Social Studies and Research, and Maria Elena Durazo, the president of Local 11 of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union. DSA Honorary Chair Barbara Ehrenreich gave the keynote address. DSA Vice Chair Jos~ La Luz, who presented the Eugene Debs Award to Durazo, said that the dinner was "a wonderful celebration. We cele- 16 DEMOCRATIC L£TT Left: Jose Laluz presents the Eu gene Debs Award to Marla Elena DSA'S MISSION IN THE COMING PERIOD: Durazo. Right: Paula Utt (left) pres EXCERPTS FROM THE POLITICAL STRATEGY DOCUMENT ents the Upton Sinclair Award to Jackie Goldberg. CIRCULATED AT THE CONVENTION The supposed "triumph of capitalism" has ushered in a world of un bratt>d tht> best of the tradition::. that bridled transnational corporate power, growing international inequality, we art> all about." and environmental degradation. . .The political collapse of Thatcher Reaganism does not, however, guarantee a strong rebirth of the democratk Looking Toward DSA's Future left. In light of the collapse of communism and the crisis of social democratic The weekend's plenaries, work welfare states.... there is a striking absence of faith in the traditional Jt'ft. The shops, and resolution session::. were left cannot continue to adhere to an anachronistic model of social progress as devoted to hard examinations of the purely quantitative economic growth. current political environment and Changes in the global economy have resulted in the search for new appropriate strategies for DSA. models of North-South relationships and new models of living. These are In his address to the convention, often focused around the concept of sustainability -- learning to live within Profino Munoz Ledo stressed the the limits of natural systems, while ensuring a decent quality of life for all need to develop a higher level of in people. Thus, the coming period must be one of base-building for a ternational solidarity among workers remodeled left, but a left still committed to the core socialist values of and activists throughout the Ameri equality, justice, solidarity and freedom. just as those values continue to be cas. Only through such solidarity, he relevant, so too 1s the socialist analysis of how the undemocratic nature of said, can we build effective move corpOrilte power reinforces structures of economic, racial, ilnd gender ments to resist NAFTA-style agree domination .. ments that will "level down" wages, Our challenge is to engage in concrete political work that demonstrates environmental standards, and work that reforms which promote our vision of global economic justice are ing conditions across the hem1spht>re. possible. The Convention approved . a . . . This coming period will be a crucial test of whether or not DSA can resolution calling for the continu transform its numerical growth into real organizational and activist growth. ation and expansion ofDSA's Ameri We need to rebuild vibrant locals, campus chapters, commissions, and issue cas Project, which seeks to develop activist networks that convince our own members (as well as potential links between DSA and emerging members) that DSA is an effective vehicle for politically intervening in the progressive forces in the Western crucial issues of their communities... Hemispht>re. TI1e resolution stresses If our long-term mission is to build a democratic socialist society, our that DSA's anti-NAFTA work was medium-term mission (a project ot the next decade) 1s to: "not a protectionist battle cry against 1) Bring socialism back into the mainstream of American politics; economic progress, but rather the 2) Build democratic coalitions for reform that wectken global corporate basis for an alternative approach to power and empower workers, women, people of color and a globalized hemispheric economic integration. working class; Our vision of democracy and t'CO 3) l3uild a strong, local-based, multiracial, national democratic socialist nom1c 1ust1ce challenges the neo-lib- organization capable of effectively intervening in grassroots politics. }ANUl\RY/Ff.EIRUl\RY 1994 17 DSA National Convention 1993 11 eral agenda of privatization and 'free trade' for the benefit of corporate and The National Political Committee financial elites." The convention's other major Convention delegates elected the following 23 people to serve as the 1994-1995 international affairs resolution calls DSA National Political Committee (NPC). The NPC is charged with leading the for the creation of a DSA Women and implementat1011 ofthe political projects defined by the delegates to the Convention. Politics Program. This program will The new NPC will set up task forces to carry out each of DSA 's major political focus on international issues of eco projects for the next two years, including the campaign for single-payer health nomic development, reproductive care, tlze global justice a,id solidarity campaign, the labor law refonn project, and freedom, and electoral representa the Breaking Bread/New Urban Agenda project. tion. (For more information on this project, see page 21.) Shakoor Aljuwani Lynne Engelskirchen Cltristine Riddiough New York. NY Santa Mon iCJI, CA Washington, DC Domestic Resolutions Theresa Alt Bob Fitrakis Al Rojas Topics of domestic resolutions lthnCJ1 , NY Columbus, OH Sacramento, CA included health care (see page 23), urban politics, labor law reform, the Pat Belcon Julia Fitzgerald Joe Schwartz housing crisis, and D.C. statehood. Rod1ester, NY Brooklyn. NY /tluica, NY The convention also passed a Duane Campbell Claire Kaplan Ruth Spitz resolution on electoral politics that Sacrammto, CA Ouirlottesv11/e, VA New York. NY was informed in part by a plenary Dominic Cltan Michael Lighty Kurt Stand session entitled "Politics in the Clin San Francisco, CA San Francisco, CA WasJ1111gto11 , DC ton Era." At this session NPC mem Jack Clark Frank Llewellyn Steve Tarzynski bers Jack Clark, Bob Fitrakis, and Boston, MA Brooklyn, NY Santa MoniCZJ , C\ Lynne Mosley Engelskirchen, along with Sacramento civil rights attorney Suzanne Crowell Jo-Ann Mort Juanita Webster ry Eric Vega, discussed the obstacles Washington, DC Brooklyn, NY New York, confronting progressive coalitions in Rachel Dewey Steve Oliver the current climate. Pasadena, CA Brooklyn, NY The resolution on electoral poli tics declares that "the imperative task +The Youth Section Coordinating Committee E!lects one of its mem~rs to serve as for the democratic left is to build anti a votingmemberof theNPC. As of January 1994, that person is Karen Marie Gibson corporate social movements that are of Rochester OSA. capable of winning reforms that +There is one vacancy on the NPC, which the Convention authonzed the NPC to empower people. ..The fundamental fill. This position must be filled by a woman. question for DSA is not what form our electoral intervention takes . .Rather, the crucial task is building such grassroots, multiracial coali tions; there is no shortcut to doing so. Democratie • Flying the flag of third parties that Soclali lack a mass social base, or placing of. OSA Honorary Chair Cornet West Amer addresses the Convention. Oppo site page left: Sacramento OSA activist Eric Vega during the ple nary on polltcs In the Clinton era. Opposite page right: Dominic Chan ot San Francisco OSA during the plenary on OSA's strategy. 18 DEMOCRATIC LUT Excerpts from Cornel West's Address, November 13 uncritical faith in isolated progres sive Democratic politicians, would be foolish." ... I think we have to acknowledge and in some way celebrate, if only for a moment, the fact that we're still here. Many said in March of 1982 that Constitutional Amendments OS~ would never make it through the first decade, never make it through The Convention also passed a the ice age, when those powerful conservative elites organized and solidi series of constitional amendments ?ed and began t~ shape this society in their image and in light of their own designed to increase the effectiveness interests. DSA did su~ive. Brother Michael died in 1989; many people said and democratic accountability of DSA would no~ survive. We are still here, growing -- to some degree DSA's governing bodies. ho~lo~ed out, with ou~ l?Cals not as strong-- but growing, with new energy, The first set of amendments bU1}d1~g on the best v1s1ons and analyses of the past, and recognizing that • eliminates DSA's national board. we re m a very, very unique and distinctive moment in the history of this country. Responsibility for governing the or ...None of us have thought that somehow DSA would be the sole or ganization now rests straightfor exclusive vehicle for American radicalism, but we know that we can be the wardly with the National Political socialist lea_ven that keeps alive an internationalist vision that highlights the Committee (NPC), which is elected rule of capital today, promoting the kind of strategy and tactics that we by delegates from DSA's locals at know must be multiracial and multicultural. Whatever movement we are each convention. The biennial meet working in, we still have the democratic socialist vision that accesses inter ing of the national board will be re nationalist vision and a focus on class, and equality, and white supremacy, placed by a "National Activist Con ference." a~~ m~le s_upremacy, and ecological abuse, and homophobia. With this v1s1on m mind, we must try to create an anti-corporate myltirac1al alliance. The second set of amendments eliminates the so-called "National Wher~ are we, then, in terms of the democratic socialist pro1ect? Well, for one thing, we are now moving on an international level, where, very Interim Committee," which will be replaced by an elected Steering Com- much as brother ~Ian talked abo~t this morning, it's beyond just support mittee of the NPC. BJ work, and e~gagmg at a much higher level of international solidarity, in North America, Incorporated, as Business Week puts it: Canada, U.S.A., Me~ico. I just ta.lk.ed w_ith brother Munoz Ledo this morning, and we're setting up some 1omt trips together in Mexico, right around the Mexican For complete copies of the resolutions and national elections. We'll be there m July. amendments passed by the Convention, write to Margie Bums at the 11ational ...The d1stinct~ve feature that I find traveling across the country, the 212/962-0390. two h4ndred or so times that I speak during the year, is the rage-- the flip office or call us at side of ~e sense of impotence, powerlessness. So how do we empower? By channel mg rage m constructive ways and then bringing our own democratic For infonnation 011 ordering a videotape socialist vision to bear of the Breakmg Bread event featuring .. .It's just so good to know that we're still going, that we're growing, Come/ West and the Debs/Sinclair and that the legacy of Michael Harrington and Irv mg Howe is still very, very Awards Di1mer featuring Barbara Ehrenreich, contact Ralph Cole at f us much alive. t1ce Visio11 at 213/747-6345. f.-.NUARY/F£BRUARY 1994 19 work on single-payer health care. of a direct-action campaign in which homeless Twin Cities residents occu pied vacant housing units owned by DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA the federal government. The local has also been active in The D.C./Maryland/North the movement opposing a Minnesota em Virginia local will co-sponsor a utility's plans to store nuclear waste forum February 25 entitled "Crime at an above-ground facility near a in the Community: Views From the by Harry Fleischman rural Native American community. Left." Among the speakers will be Clarence Lusane, the author of Pipe ARKANSAS Dream Blut'S. NEW YORK During November and De Arkansas DSA will be a coali cember, activists from the local The Housing Task Force of tion partner in the "Arkansas Lib walked the picket line with locked New York City DSA continues to erty Alliance," which will work to out Hotel and Restaurant Employ reorganize. On January 19, the task defend Little Rock abortion clinics ees workers at the Madison Hotel. from Rescue America, the ultramili force sponsored a talk on homeless ness by Joel Blau, author of Tile Visible tant anti-abortion organization. ILLINOIS Rescue America has announced Poor. The local's Environmental Task plans to come to Little Rock be Force will hold a forum on ecological The West Suburban branch tween April 17 and April 23. The issues in the NA FT A era on February of Chicago DSA sponsored a meet 11 at the City University of New York local urges any interested D~ A ing on single-payer health care De members to come to Little Rock that Graduate Center. cember 8 that attracted 35 activists week; free housing will be pro The West Side branch of New from a vanetyoforganizations. The vided. For more information, call York DSA sponsored organizer train branch recently made a donation of Jason Murphy at 501/661-0984. ing with representatives from the toys to the children of locked-out Industrial Areas FoundattononJanu A.E. Staley workers in Decatur. ary 4. CALIFORNIA KENTUCKY San Diego DSA co-spon PENNSYLVANIA sored a December 11 bus trip to in Members of Central Ken Reading-Berks DSA recently vestigate labor and human rights tucky DSA gathered on January 17 co-sponsored a public event to dedi conditions in Tijuana. Member of to watch video footage from the cate a public memorial to ten wofkers the local met with labor organizers 1993 DSA National Convention, in killed by the state militia in Reading and community activists on the trip, cluding the Breaking Dread event in the railroad strike of 1877. Local which was organized by the Sup featuring Cornet West. leaders Bob Millar and john Sellers port Committee for Maquiladora host a monthly cable-access televi Workers. The local also sponsored a forum December 12 on U.S. foreign MASSACHUSETTS sion program that is now being broadcast in Philadelphia as well as policy under the Clinton admini Derks County. stration. In late November Boston Members of the Valley DSA sponsored a forum on the branch of Los Angeles DSA have implications of the NAFT A vote. VIRGINIA been hard at work on the petition Speakers included Ed Clark, Vice drive to place a referendum that President of the Amalgamated The new DSA organizing com would create a statewide Canadian Clothing and Textile Workers Un mittee in Richmond has been doing style single-payer health care sys ion and Tom Estabrook of the Mas support work for locked-out mem tem on the California ballot. sachusetts Toxics Campaign. bers of the Communications Workers of America. They are also partici COLORADO MINNESOTA pants in the Virginia state-wide coali tion for single-payer health care, and Front Range DSA recently Twin Cities DSA has been they are co-sponsoring a series of lec received a $2,000 grant from the active in a number of areas. Mem tures and events entitled "Women On Chinook Fund of Colorado for its bers of the local worked in support Women's Issues in Bosnia." 20 DcMoeRAr1c Lcrr DSA COMMISSION NEWS •!• Th·e DSA Fe11zinist Commission The DSA Feminist Commission sponsored a series of failed in the pilst and will continue to fail," she said. events during the weekend of December 11 and 12 in "Governments must take a new approach to these issues, conjunction with a Washington, D.C. meeting of the ex one that focuses on reproductive rights and health. Such ecutive board of Socialist lntern;itional Women (SIW). an approach requires support for expansion of social secu The weekend was devoted to developing feminist ap rity in its broadest sense. We must have programs that proaches to the environment and internation,11 develop provide health care, health edu'-'.ation and sex education ment. The SlW hopes to present a comprehensive agenda and which are based in the concept of freedom of choice.'' to the UN conference 1111 Populatmn and Development, Another speitker was Brazilian scholar Elisa Larkin which will be held in Cairo later thb year. Nascimento, who spoke of the effects of Brazil's accelerat Dirgitta Dilhl, a member of the Swedish parliament, ing integration into the world economy -- especially the told the gathering that women's experiences have tradi effects on women's ability to make health choices. As tionally been left out of internilt1onal development poli Brazil has entered the system of international patent law, cies -- an error that has caused great harm both to women the cost of pharmeceuticals has skyrocketed. Women and to the environment. 'Women are the earners of the have responded by tapping into traditions of African basic knowledge of survival in most countries," she said. herbal medicine "They are responsible for water, sanitation, fire, food and The 1993 DSA Convention voted to launch a national waste management as well as the ~ocial network and project on Women and Politics, which is designed to cultural traditions." address many of the environmental and reproductive DSA Vice Chair Christine Riddim1gh, who is a Vice issues discussed during this SIW meeting. This project President of SIW, wtlrned that respon~es to the global will also address issues of electorill representation. population en sis must not include coerci\'e restrictions on The SIW's meetings were hosted by the office of U.S. women's reproductive choices. "Coercive policies have Representative Ron Dellums, who is a Vice Chair of DSA. •!• The DSA Latino Commission TI1e DSA Latino Commission hits engaged in a m1111- conditions in southern Mexico. ber of activities in re::.ponse to the guerrilla uprising in 1:he commission also co-sponsored a January 10 southern Mexico in early January. On January 6, leaders demonstration at which the Mexican consulate in Sacra of the commission in Sacramento, California helped to mento was taped shut, with activist:> shouting that they organize a demonstration at the offices of U.S. Represen would not allow the building to open until the Mexican tative Robert Matsui, who was a key congressional sup government agreed to respect the rights of dissenters. porter of NAFT A. Leaders of the Commission plan to organize a delega The demonstration sought to make Representative tion to observe the Mexican elections in August 1994. Matsui accountable for his NAFT A support and for the On another front, the Latino Commission has been human rights implications of U.S. supprt for the gm•ern• active in organizing support for the rights of Mexican and ment of Mexican President Carlos Salinas. The activists Latin American immgrants in the U.S. Tn the face of demanded that Matsui support a neutral, non-interven increasing anti-immigrant violence, the commission has tionist military position with respect to the uprising of the been petitioning the United Nations to investigate the Zapatista Army of National Liberation in southern Mex human rights situation of immigrants in California. Write ico. They also pressured Matsui to support the creation of to the Comm1ss1on for more information (see address on an 1nternattonal human rights delegation to investigate page 22). fANUtlRY/Fff;/ + African American Commission + Feminist Commission +Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual Corne! West, chair Christine R. Riddiough, chair Commission Shakoor Aliuwani, convenor Lisa Foley, vice chair R.J. Hinde, co-chair Lynne Engebktrchen , co1we11or 5123 Fifth Street NW Claire Kaplan, co-chair newsletter: Our Stmggle/ Washington, DC 20011 715 Elmira Road Nuestra Lucha newsletter: Not Far E11011glz Ithaca, NY 14850 P.O. Box 162394 subscription: $10/year newsletter: Socialism and Sacramento, CA 95816 Sexuality subscription: $15/year + Labor Commission subscription: $8/year Tom Ellett, interim contact + Anti-Racism Commission P.O. Box 267 + Religion and Duane Campbell, chatr Necedah, WI 54646 Socialism Commission P.O. Box 162394 Rev. Judith Deutsch, co-chair Sacramento, CA 95816 + Latino Commission Andrew Hammer, co-chair Tomasa Gonzales, co-chair newsletter: Our Struggle/ Jack Spooner, 11ewsletter editor N11estra L11clia Jose La Luz, co-chair P.O. Box 80 Duane Campbell, membership: $15/year secretary Camp Hill, PA 17001 P.O. Box 162394 membership: $12/year +Environmental Commission Sacramento, CA 95816 newsletter: Mark Schaeffer, convenor newsletter: Our Struggle/ Religious Socialism J. Hughes, newsletter editor N11estra Lucha ($7.50/year) c/o Chicago DSA membership (includes 1608 North Milwaukee subscription): Chicago, IL 60607 $15/year 22 Dr.MocRAT1c LcrT contilmed from page two of "visionary gradualism." Demo •!• Resolution on Health Care Reform cratic sooali.st;· :>hould project a vi sion of a moral ~ociety based on free Passed by tlze DSA National Convention, 14 November 1993. dom, equality, and solidarity. We must also under::-tand that reaching such a goal in\'olws a gradual ap DSA supports the historic any federal health plan allow states proach over a long period of years, effort to radically reform our na to easily establish single-payer sys with each reform becoming the foun tion's health care system. The Presi tems. dation for the next. There i.s no other dent's plan is the most significant way, and hlStory alone will judge the piece of social legislation since the DSA will also organize and pace. Social Security Act. It isa first step in participate in the following efforts: Keeping th1::. m mind, in the the latest phase of the long-standing coming month DSA should struggle effort to establish national health in -- anti-corporate campaigns target at the grassroob and in Congress to surance. It 1s a welcome sight to see ing private health insurance and make the final lezhlabve proposal a U.S. President who believes gov pharmaceutical lobbies; the best that it can be given the cur ernment can be a positive and effec rent alignment of class forces in our tive force for the common good. -- campaigns against any corporate country. This \\'Ork must include This alone is a real change which or politkal forces which seek to stall support for single- pa er legislation should help ::;et a much needed new or destroy efforts at fundamental re and for a state opuon for same in the moral tone in our country. form; final package. What you can do, as a DSA agrees that six prin DSA mem~r . b commit yourself to ciples should guide reform efforts: -- congressional campaigns which increasingyour0\"'11 personal effort a univer::;ality, comprehensiveness, target anti-reform incumbents and notch or two m the coming months to affordability, progressive financing, which support single-payer advo help bring about fundamental health administrative simplicity, and cost cate::.. care reform. Gd involved in your containment. We believe these gofl/S DSA local':. effort, or help jump-start can be best achieved through a single - stale campaigns to establish it if needed. Th~ :.truggle continues. payer system. As health insurance single-payer systems. companies are spending millions of Steve Tarzy11s.l:i is a member of the DSA doJiar:. to undercut any govern The main organizational National Politm1I Committee and chairs ment-administered program - de vehicle for these efforts shall be the the DS.'1 ~atmnal Health Care Task spite the role given to big insurers by the DSA Health Care Task Force. Force. the Clinton proposal -we will focus The Ta!>k Force will seek to involve our efforts both at the grassroots and every DSA local in the fight for pro in Congress to eliminate the health gressive health reform. The 1995 insurance companies and to maxi +The next issue of Democratic Left DSA Convention delegates shall will contain a special section on mize single-payer elements in the receive a written evaluation of health care activism, including ar final legislative proposal. These ele DSA's campaign for health reform ticles by Susan Cowell and Jason ments are currently embodied in the prepared by the Task Force chafr in Kay and reports from leaders of Mc Dermott-Conyers-Wei I stone consultation with Task Force mem DSA locals. bills (HR1200/S.491), support for bers. which we re-affirm. It bcrucial that CLASSIFIEDS------ COMMUNITY JOBS, socially re MILITARY SPENDING IS KILLING ENcYcLoPEDIA OF THE AMERI ~pon-.ible job opportunities. Sub USALL! forinformatitmaboutredi CAN LEFT, now in PAPERBACK, ~cribe lo the only nationwide list recting your fed!:!ral taxes tu meet 970 pp., dozens of entrie-. on and /or ing coV!:!nng organizing, disam1a basic human ne~d:., contact th~ Na by DSAers. $29.95 from Univer-.ity ment, labor, environment, and tional War Tax R~sistancE! Coordi of lllirlois Press. Ask your book!:>tore morl' S3.5ll/sample $12/6 is rniting Committ~, P.O. 13ox 774, to st0ck it! ~ue.. 13ox DS1516PSt., NW, Wash Monroe, ME 04951. 1-800-269-7464. "A SHORT APPREHENSIVE His ington, DC 20005. tory of the World." Humorous, left Cl11ssifie11 11dwrtisi11g mies 11re $2 per /i11e, il>h, outrageous. 192 pp., ill Sl0.00 DEA TH ROW IN MATE l 5 yrs needs $50 pa colu11111 i11c/i. P11y111t•11t iu 11d1•1111ce. fri!:!nd:.. Ron Spiv~y, 13ox 3877C4104, Softcover, $] 6.00 Hardcover. Post TI1ere 1s 11 W% disco1111I if ttd(s) nm two or Jackson, CA 30233 age paid. Write to 13rainerd Book.,, mofl: t11114!s We rttserw l/1e rig/it to n•j.:ct 11d:. 1994 23 Janie Higgins Reports FISCAL MELTDOWN A KNIGHT IN INDONESIA Left environmentalists have long If you happen to have a pairortwoofold and smelly pointed at pollution as a prime example Nike sneakers, consider sending them back to Nike of the failure of free market mechanisms CEO Philip Knight (Nike Corporation, 1 Bowerman to protect the welfare of society as a Drive, Beaverton, OR 97005). The Oregon state AFL whole. And when pollution becomes CJO is leading a "shoe return" campaign to press Nike serious enough, of course, even the capi to respect labor rights and common decency at its plants talist economy that has nurtured it be in Indonesia, where workers as young as twelve rou gins to suffer. A new study underscores tinely earn as little as 15 cents an hour in desperately un this: William R. Cline, a senior fellow at the Institute for safe conditions. Higgins suggests that you stuff your rntemational Economics, has estimated that global sneakers with pages from Tile Joy of Running before you warming will cost the United States 2 percent of its mail them. Gross Domestic Product -- a vast sum -- by the year 2030, if losses in forestry, coastal properties, and heat MISSED OPPORTUNITY related health care are tabulated correctly. And Cline's As we environmentalists and labor activists lick our studies rely upon the EPA's most optimistic forecast - wounds following the NAFTA defeat, and as we lay that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels will only double plans for developing pubhc opposition to GA TI, we're during the next fifty years. left to contemplate what might have been. Heidi Fleiss, the so-called "Hollywood madam," boasted in Vanity IN THE STARS Fair this month about the number of political leaders Is capitalism's final crisis upon us? Sever::tl "finan who procured prostitutes through her agency. It seems cial astrologers" have solemnly forecast that a rare that Fleiss could have-- had she chosen-- used the fruits alignment of seven planets portends a stock market of her devil's bargain with commod1fied sexuality to crash during the first quarter of 1994. One of them told ward a progressive end. "If I really came out and the Wall Street foumal, "We are going to go over the cliff." talked," she said, "I could have stopped NAFfA." Deinocratic Socialists of America -----Join us!-.-. Members of the Democratic Socialists of America work in immediate struggles for justice - as we build a movement for long-term social change. We bring to our work a strategy for building alliances among social movements and a vision of a more just and equitable society. Join DSA and become a card-canying member of the largest and most exciting democratic socialist organization in the U.S.! a Send me more information about DSA. NAME.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q Enclosed are my dues! 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