Huelgas en Sudfrica Protestan ley racista 12

Workers and oppressed peoples of the world unite!

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Oct. 11, 2012

Vol. 54, No. 40

$1

City union strikes in Detroit

Debt service to banks saps budget
By David Sole Detroit The writer is a longtime Detroit Water & Sewerage Department city worker and past president of Sanitary Chemists and Technicians Association (formerly United Auto Workers Local 2334). Oct. 2 Workers at the Detroit Waste Water Treatment Plant walked off the job at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 30, and immediately set up strong picket lines. Members of American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees Local 207 with 950 members, the largest union among almost 2,000 workers at the Detroit Water & Sewerage Department had voted Sept. 26 to authorize a strike. According to one union official, the rank-and-file workers jumped the gun on Sept. 30 while union leaders were still making plans for a strike later in the week. On Oct. 1, federal Judge Sean Cox, at the request of management, issued an order for the workers to end the strike. The unions attorney denounced the order as outrageous and announced plans to file a motion to dissolve the order. As of this writing, the workers and the local union leadership remain defiant and on the picket lines. Top management, operating in panic mode, according to a chemist on duty Sept. 30, rushed to the plant the first day of the strike. All leaves and vacations were canceled. Workers from other, nonstriking unions were ordered to work 12-hour shifts and told they could not call in sick. Several workers, who had worked all night on Sept. 29, were ordered to stay in the plant and put in over 20 hours. None of these other unions, however, do the same work as the hundreds of AFSCME 207 members who keep the waste water plant operating. Detroit city workers have been battered for decades with pay cuts, concessions and wage freezes. Recently the situation has grown even worse. Claiming financial distress, Mayor Dave Bing and Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder reached an agreement to Continued on page 6

FIGHTBACK VS. KILLER COPS

Baltimore Oakland Boston 4 - 5
WW PHOTO: SHARON BLACK

WORKERS WORLD STATEMENT

STOP THE ATTACKS AT HOME & ABROAD

Workers struggles
Free the CUBAN 5 Europe resists austerity No more drones Homeless children Solidarity with Muslims Iran and the UN
3 6 7 10 10 11 11

SOCIALIST REVOLUTION
Learn about Workers World Party
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OCCUPY FOR

e commend all who rally and march on the Oct. 5-7 weekend to resist the imperialist war drive and say, U.S./NATO out of Afghanistan! Hands off Syria! Dont attack Iran! No more drone attacks! and No sanctions! We commend the United National Antiwar Coalition and its constituent organizations who called and coordinated the anti-war actions. They are expressing internationalist solidarity with all those who are victims of U.S. militarism and all those who resist it by whatever means are at hand. We would like to see a massive popular response from the great majority of people who have no interests in pursuing wars. In any case, UNAC has made an important contribution to struggle and progress by defending its anti-imperialist message and setting the correct tone for all those who oppose the U.S. attempt to reconquer the former colonial world. And what is the strong message of these anti-war actions? There are two main parts. The first and this was agreed upon at UNACs national conference last spring is that no slogans should be

No imperialist, racist wars!

raised against countries or governments that imperialism has under attack. This means that the leadership of the anti-war movement sets a tone of resisting the imperialist regime of the country where they live, in this case, U.S. imperialism. This is also an assertion that the coordinators of the anti-war movement here should resist the imperialist propaganda machine that works day and night to lie to the masses of people and to confuse the anti-war movement itself. Workers World is clear that the main enemy of humanity is the imperialist U.S., its banks and its Pentagon. Washingtons NATO and Japanese allies are equally pernicious, if not as well armed. Thus we will defend any country, people or state under attack from the U.S., NATO or Japanese war machines. We will also resist any attempt by the imperialist media to demonize leaders and countries which is usually a prelude to economic sanctions or military attack by the imperialists. The anti-war movements other strong step is to condemn the war at home, to raise slogans like No to racism, raids Continued on page 1o

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CHINA The ouster of Bo

Page 2

Oct. 11, 2012

workers.org

This is what solidarity looks like!

Leslie Feinberg: Open call to submit photos for multimedia dedication to CeCe McDonald
In the U.S.
Sept. 19, 2012 Dear friends and activists in the struggle, I am dedicating the 20th-anniversary author edition of Stone Butch Blues to CeCe McDonald and the ever growing struggle to free her. For more information, explore: supportcece. wordpress.com. I thank the small team of wonderful individuals who are helping me do the work required to publish my novel, without profit, under author copyright. I expect to go to trial in Minneapolis in mid-December on a charge resulting from my demonstration of solidarity with CeCe on June 4. In the months until then, I will be circulating a message to photographers who have made photographs that show the demand to free CeCe McDonald. A link has been set up at for downloading and sending out the permission form at iacenter.org/lgbt/ cecemcdonaldpictures. Please forgive me for what will be form letters even to beloved friends/activists. I cant pay for photo use, but I do promise to show my respect for your labor and your permission in photo credits. If youve made or make a photograph in solidarity with the struggle to free CeCe, please send me your photo/s with a filled-out permission form via social media.

WORKERS WORLD

this week ...

City union strikes in Detroit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 This is what solidarity looks like! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Parents protest long, twisted school-bus routes . . . . . . . . . 2 Longshore struggles continue as poor go hungry . . . . . . . 3 Lessons from the NFL referees lockout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 On the picket line. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Community speaks out against Blueford killer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Houstons Brother Ester King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Monsanto, genetic engineering & food . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Community protests police killing of Anthony Anderson . 5 Police victim Mark McMullen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 The Cuban 5: What General Clapper said . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Building for peoples power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Growing crisis for homeless children. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Drones protested at U.N. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Riders & transit workers protest anti-Muslim subway ads 11 Protests decry anti-Islam lm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Donate/make/send photo(s) for a slide show

of individuals, groups and street art in solidarity with the struggle to free CeCe McDonald! in the multimedia dedication to FREE CECE NOW! I will include as many photos as I can in an online slide show, to be part of a multimedia dedication to free CeCe McDonald in the digital online 20th anniversary authors edition of Stone Butch Blues. The dedication to CeCes slide show will be titled: This is what solidarity looks like! I cant get back to individuals before trial but if you send the photos/ permissions to transgenderwarrior@gmail.com or via social media, Ill organize them when I can return home!
WW PHOTO: BRYAN G. PFEIFER

Around the world

Music that impacted anti-apartheid struggle. . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Tribunal & Assembly demands Free the Cuban 5! . . . . . . . . 6 European workers take streets to resist austerity . . . . . . . . . 7 Behind the expulsion of Bo Xilai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 South African miners strikes continue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Struggle continues in Philippines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 War threats against Iran as UN meets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Parents protest long, twisted school-bus routes

By Sara Catalinotto New York With 21st century technology and vehicles, why should thousands of young and/or disabled children in New York City suffer long, twisted commutes between school and home? Does this have something to do with the fact that the billionaire, anti-union mayor put himself in charge of the Department of Education? To the parents and communities of these children, there is no acceptable excuse for the negligence of the DOEs Office of Pupil Transportation, which once again cut out more than 300 routes at the start of September when compared to the number in June. Students were left with no route or packed onto buses that pick up from multiple schools whose start and dismissal times differ by 30 to 75 minutes. Various activists who live this problem are taking the lead in fighting back by all available means, including getting exposure in the mass media. The city has tried to calm the anger by firing one of the companies linked to certain extreme cases. But parents say this step has failed to stop the problems. Pictured here is the press conference hosted by From Day One Coalition the morning of Sept. 19 in front of DOE headquarters in Manhattan. Leaders of Parents to Improve School Transportation spoke out: Its not just pre-K, its not just one company, its not just special education. Calling for unity, they

Editorial
No imperialist, racist wars! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Noticias En Espaol
Huelgas en Sudfrica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Protestan ley racista . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Workers World 55 West 17 Street New York, N.Y. 10011 Phone: 212.627.2994 E-mail: ww@workers.org Web: www.workers.org Vol. 54, No. 40 Oct. 11, 2012 Closing date: Oct. 2, 2012 Editor: Deirdre Griswold Technical Editor: Lal Roohk Managing Editors: John Catalinotto, LeiLani Dowell, Leslie Feinberg, Kris Hamel, Monica Moorehead, Gary Wilson West Coast Editor: John Parker Contributing Editors: Abayomi Azikiwe, Greg Butterfield, Jaimeson Champion, G. Dunkel, Fred Goldstein, Teresa Gutierrez, Larry Hales, Berta Joubert-Ceci, Cheryl LaBash, Milt Neidenberg, Bryan G. Pfeifer, Betsey Piette, Minnie Bruce Pratt, Gloria Rubac Technical Staff: Sue Davis, Shelley Ettinger, Bob McCubbin, Maggie Vascassenno Mundo Obrero: Carl Glenn, Teresa Gutierrez, Berta Joubert-Ceci, Donna Lazarus, Michael Martnez, Carlos Vargas Supporter Program: Sue Davis, coordinator Copyright 2011 Workers World. Verbatim copying and distribution of articles is permitted in any medium without royalty provided this notice is preserved. Workers World (ISSN-1070-4205) is published weekly except the first week of January by WW Publishers, 55 W. 17 St., N.Y., N.Y. 10011. Phone: 212.627.2994. Subscriptions: One year: $30; institutions: $35. Letters to the editor may be condensed and edited. Articles can be freely reprinted, with credit to Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., New York, NY 10011. Back issues and individual articles are available on microfilm and/or photocopy from University Microfilms International, 300 Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Mich. 48106. A searchable archive is available on the Web at www.workers.org. A headline digest is available via e-mail subscription. Subscription information is at workers.org/email.php. Periodicals postage paid at New York, N.Y. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to

WW PHOTO: ELLEN CATALINOTTO

denounced the lax standards for wheelchair safety and highlighted the strain bus trouble takes on families. PIST joined Crystal Alfano of the Facebook group New York City Parents Fed Up with Transportation Troubles in likening the long routes to child abuse. Common Sense Busing, Brooklyn Movement Center and other community groups and elected officials also addressed the crowd, which included children who use these buses. City Councilmember Robert Jackson announced hearings on the school bus system to be held Oct. 10. Parents and the bus drivers/attendants union are mobilizing for this and other opportunities to build the movement for a School Bus Bill of Rights to enforce safer, sensible routes. PIST NYC can be found on Facebook at pistnyc@gmail. com or call 347-504-3310 (se habla espaol). Donations are welcome.
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Page 3

On the Picket Line Longshore struggles continue as poor go hungry Walmart warehouse workers
by Sue Davis
By Cheryl LaBash Angry longshore workers walked off the job Sept. 28 in ports up and down the West Coast protesting news that a Cowlitz County, Wash., jury found their international President Robert McEllrath guilty of a misdemeanor. The charges arose during the Sept. 7, 2011, struggle at the Longview, Wash., Export Grain Terminal when a train attempted to deliver Midwest corn to the new high-speed export facility without recognizing ILWU jurisdiction. Hundreds of workers, family members and ILWU supporters objected to the unilateral action by the grain exporting giant. Then, a massive mobilization of the Occupy movement, united with rank-and-file union members, shut Oakland, Calif., ports on Nov. 2 and West Coast ports on Dec. 12. The activists threatened to block any attempt to put the new terminal online without an agreement with the ILWU. A concessionary agreement took effect Feb. 15. McEllraths first trial in June ended in a hung jury, but he was tried again. Eighty-nine days of the potential 90-day penalty were suspended. The judge sentenced McEllrath to one day in jail with $543 in fines and court costs. Further rank-and-file response may erupt when McEllrath is taken to jail. The port job action came just days before the contract between the ILWU and four companies that own six Pacific Northwest grain terminals global food giants Cargill, ADM, Louis Dreyfus and United Grain was to expire on Oct. 1. The ILWU has agreed to work the grain facilities without a contract for two more weeks while negotiations continue. ILWU.org states, Northwest ports accounts for between one-quarter to one-third of U.S. grain exports. Contracts for International Longshoremens Association workers at East Coast ports also were to expire Oct. 1, but were extended 90 days for mediation. The question facing port workers on both coasts and every worker in between is who will benefit from hightech development? The workers and poor? Or the profithungry multinational corporations? ILWU.org points out that big grain rakes it in while the poor go hungry.

in Calif. end strike Sept. 28

Lessons from the NFL referees lockout

By Dave Zirin Read the entire Sept. 27, 2012, column, Its Over: The NFLs Union Referees Return to Work in Style, at http://tinyurl.com/8ban5wc. The National Football League referee lockout is over and we now have an answer to the question, What does it take to pierce the shame-free cocoon of unreality where NFL owners reside? All you need, it seems, is condemnation across the political spectrum ranging from the president of the United States to small-town mayors, to even anti-union corporate lickspittles like Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. All you need is one of your flagship teams, the Green Bay Packers, publicly threatening to strike or take a knee on every play. All you need are your star quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees blasting your product. All you need are online petitions with miles of signatures and 70,000 fans calling the league offices in the twenty-four hours following the debacle of a Monday night game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers. All of this collective scorn finally punctured the owners magical mental space, bringing them to the negotiating table to settle. Issues behind lockout The deal is damn near a slam dunk for the NFL referees. Remember the root of this lockout was two-fold: the league wanted to end the pension system and ban refs from holding jobs outside of the sport. Now the league will continue and even increase the pension payouts for the next five years before a negotiated transfer to a 401(k). Refs will also be given a 25 percent hike in pay starting next year, with more salary increases until the end of the seven-year agreement. The NFL owners wanted to hire twenty-one more officials to phase in as full-time employees. The refs agreed to seven new fulltime hires, and no restrictions on their own abilities to take outside work. In other words, Roger Goodell and the owners were shellacked by the same people they locked out, dismissed, and disrespected. The entire country received a high-def, prime-time lesson in the difference between skilled, union labor and a ramshackle operation of unskilled scabs. When Scott Walker is sticking up for the union, you know weve arrived at a teachable moment worth shouting from the hills. People who care about stable jobs with benefits and reversing the tide of inequality in the United States should seize this moment. We should ask not only the Scott Walkers of the world but politicians of both parties drinking from the same neoliberal fever-swamp: Why do you think we need skilled union labor on the football field but not in our firehouses, our classrooms, or even our uranium facilities? Similarly players need to be asking questions to the owners: how can you actually posture like you care about our health and safety ever again after subjecting us to this hazardous environment the first three weeks of the season? Lastly, its another embarrassment after a year of embarrassments, for NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. He has through his arrogance placed an asterisk on this season, left an indelible mark on his legacy as commissioner and created a crisis of confidence in his ability to do his job. He learned that people may not pay to watch referees, but they do pay to watch a competently officiated contest. He also hopefully learned that if theres one thing people dont pay to watch, its him: sweating before the cameras and doing his damnedest to make the NFL a reflection of the worst corporate arrogance. Hear the message, Roger. This $9 billion league? This unprecedented popularity? This immense national audience? You didnt build that. Your owners didnt build that. Your sponsors didnt build that. It was built by the blood, sweat and tears of those on the field of play, including the referees. It was built by fans who invest their passion and the taxpayers who have underwritten your archipelago of mega-domes in cities across the country. I cant wait for the union refs to be cheered when they take the field this weekend. We may go back to booing them after the first play, but it will be with respect: respect earned because they stood as one and beat the NFL bosses.

Though workers at Walmart warehouses in California and Illinois are pursuing different strategies, organizers in both places are committed to making Walmart accountable for the backbreaking conditions and need for union representation by 85,000 workers in this industry. Workers at the giant Inland Empire warehouse, a subcontractor of Walmart in Mira Loma, Calif., returned to work Sept. 28 after a 15-day strike that included a six-day, 50-mile march for safe jobs. On Sept. 18, more than 30 tired but happy marchers were joined by hundreds of supporters in front of Los Angeles City Hall. They told the crowd that marching in 103-degree heat was nothing compared to the brutal conditions they are forced to endure on the job. The workers, who are mostly immigrants, agreed to return to work after winning a few safety improvements, though a Walmart spokesperson continued to deny the workers claims that theyre forced to work with broken and dangerous equipment. However, on Sept. 25, Warehouse Workers United issued a press release that workers had found a checklist with a Walmart logo dated Aug. 8 listing broken and dangerous equipment that had not yet been fixed. To put pressure on Walmart to change these conditions, sign the petition at takeactionwalmartwatch.org. While youre at it, sign the petition for the National Day of Action against Walmart on Oct. 10.

PHOTO: WAREHOUSE WORKERS FOR JUSTICE

Walmart gets a lesson from Illinois workers at recent protest.

Walmart warehouse workers in Ill. call mass rally Oct.1

Inspired by the gloriously successful Chicago teachers strike, a caravan of buses from Chicago is bringing activists to join community, faith and labor activists in Will County on Oct. 1 to support the warehouse workers who have been on an unfair labor practice strike since Sept. 15. A rally, called by Warehouse Worker Organizing Committee, will highlight the usually invisible Walmart distribution center in Elwood, Ill., where wage theft, unsafe working conditions and discrimination, as well as retaliation against the mostly immigrant workers who speak up about poor conditions, are routine at the countrys largest inland port. After assembling in a public park behind the warehouse, the crowd will march at 2 p.m. to the shipping entrance where a group of local clergy and community leaders plan to block the road preventing goods from coming in or leaving the warehouse. These supporters are prepared to be arrested in defense of the strikers demands to end the abuse and pay a living wage with benefits. (warehouseworker.org, Sept. 28)

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Longshore contract talks extended on East Coast

East Coast contract negotiations by the International Longshoremens Association with the Maritime Alliance over a contract that affects nearly 65,000 longshore workers on the Atlantic, Gulf and inland coasts has been extended from the original Sept. 30 deadline to Dec. 29. Because a federal mediator is conducting the negotiations, no issues have been formally announced, according to a Sept. 20 notice posted on ilaunion.org. However, ongoing high-tech containerization and speedup are two contested issues that ILA has noted in the past. Stay tuned.

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Oct. 11, 2012

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Community speaks out against Blueford killer

By Terri Kay Oakland, Calif. The Justice for Alan Blueford Coalition (J4AB) held a speakout Sept. 29 at the Oakland Police Department substation in east Oakland, the neighborhood where Alan Blueford, a Black youth of 18, was shot and killed by OPD officer Miguel Masso on May 6. Blueford was a victim of OPDs stop-and-frisk practices. He was killed for running from Masso, who rolled up on him and three friends who were guilty of no more than standing on a corner while Black. Family and community members denounced the inaction of the Oakland City Council in failing to demand the production of the police report for the Blueford family. Attorney Walter Riley said they have given up their right to represent the people. Bluefords older sister declared, Theres only one truth. We want the truth on what happened to my baby brother on his last night in this world. The crowd erupted in chants of Truth to power! and Justice for Alan Blueford! as usual and increase the social cost of the war against Black youth. Jeralynn Blueford, the slain youths mother, brought many to tears as she shared her sorrow: Every day since May 6, I ask myself can the days get better? They vilified my son as if he didnt have any worth to his life. Everybody should be outraged. Its my son, so Im gonna be out here. I dont want any other mother to feel this pain. Ill make you a promise. We will get justice for Alan! Im gonna walk and fight and yell until I cant stand anymore. They try to sweep it under the rug someone has to pick it up and shake it out. J4AB is going back to the Oakland City Council on Oct. 2, after shutting down the meeting two weeks prior, when the Council still wouldnt produce the police report, five months after Blueford was killed. The Council has threatened to suppress community participation at this meeting, declaring it will shut down the balconies and expel anyone disrupting the proceedings. For more information, see justice4alanblueford.org.

Demanding justice outside police station, Sept. 29.

PHOTO: DANIEL ARAUZ

Drea, one of Bluefords cousins, said: In school we learned about genocide as a form of street sweeping. They treated [Alan] like a piece of trash! When I was growing up, we were told police officers are nice. But now in the community, when people see them, they run. Alan shouldnt

have been murdered for running. Attorney Dan Siegel declared, OPD is the most violent, reckless police department in the U.S. They practice what is known as social control. The job of the cops is to harass and intimidate the Black community. We must declare no business

Houstons Brother Ester King 1943-2011

By Joanne Gavin Houston His name was unusual; he was extraordinary. He said hed been named after an admired pastor. To chemists, an ester is any of a class of often fragrant compounds. The fragrant memory of Brother Ester Kings life lifted the spirits of those gathered to honor him a year after he had, according to an African expression, joined the ancestors. The Sept. 22 memorial, which was organized by his daughter, Tandiwe Kone, was one of joy at having been privileged to know such a brother, rather than of sadness all have felt at losing his leadership, knowledge and love. Deloyd Parker, director of the hosting S.H.A.P.E. (Self Help for African Peoples through Education) Community Center, urged all present to take it up a notch in honor of Ester King. It was recalled that King was a working-class organizer and a lifetime worker, from school-age summers on a family farm to long years as a boilermaker at a local oil refinery. His family told that this self-taught scholar, after attending Historically Black Bishop College and Texas Southern University, was always reading, sharing knowledge and urging people to Brother Ester King, whom I have known since I was 17 years old, was a friend, big brother, comrade, teacher and mentor. He was a man of integrity, compassion and fortitude who served as a moral compass to many. I am honored to have worked with him in the Organization of Black Student Unity at TSU, the Black Panther Party and S.H.A.P.E. Community Center. Ester valued family and community and fought against injustice. He was consistent and persistent. He leaves the legacy of bridge builder between many progressive communities. His work reflected the belief that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. His revolutionary spirit serves as a beacon of light and an example to all. Long live the spirit of Comrade Ester King! Human rights activist Marie Brignac met Ester King at a recent Students for a Democratic Society event. She related, I was inspired to be part of the larger movements that our elders were working with, which led me out to S.H.A.P.E. Center and the [Texas Death Penalty] Abolition Movement. Ester revealed the history of local struggles. The wide knowledge he showed us, plus the dedication and solidarity he displayed, was something that none of the students who met him could forget. We all grew from it and worked to be more like Ester. Ester King will live on as a community organizer, in the lives of many activists on so many fronts: in the struggles of his own African-American community in the 1960s for Civil Rights, voting rights and desegregation; on the front lines in the Deep South; fighting the new Jim Crow, the new slavery of mass incarceration; and in the movement against state legal lynchings executions. He was instrumental in bringing people from the African-American community to Texas annual anti-death penalty marches. King saw the oneness of all oppressed people and joined struggles of new immigrants, the DREAMers and the established Mexican/Chicano communities. Ending Palestinian oppression was of special importance to King; he is remembered and loved by the Palestinian community. He was prominent in the successful campaign to prevent the Zionist consulate from having a radio program on Houstons Pacifica station, KPFT, where he served on its local board and was a regular guest on Connect the Dots. The writer and King were Civil Rights activists who worked with SNCC in Mississippi in the 1960s.

learn that which would help free them. Kofi Taharka, National Black United Front national chairperson, reminded people to follow Brother Esters example of studying and researching a situation before deciding on an action. Organizers of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, with whom King worked in the 1960s, called that doing your homework. Members of Kings extended family talked about him at family reunions, where he brought his dear friend, anti-apartheid activist Omowale Lithuli. The family and Lithuli told Ester stories that brought lots of healing laughter to those gathered. Bridge builder, teacher, comrade Community activist Ayanna Ade said,

Monsanto, genetic engineering and food

By Betsey Piette If genetically modified (GM) foods and genetically engineered (GE) agricultural products are as safe as manufacturers Monsanto and Dow AgroSciences claim, why go to such great lengths to block efforts to label them? Why have these chemical companies along with DuPont, Syngenta, BASF, Bayer, Pepsi, Nestle and Coca-Cola spent nearly $33 million to block passage of Proposition 37, the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act? Monsanto has declared that crushing this ballot initiative is its single highest priority. Over 50 countries, including China, Russia, Australia, France and Spain, all require GM organisms to be labeled. Efforts to pass labeling laws in 19 U.S. states have all been blocked by the pesticide companies. GM foods dominate food supply Genetically modified foods are increasingly overtaking the food supply. Nearly 80 percent of non-organic processed foods on grocery shelves, including foods labeled natural, contain genetically engineered bacteria, viruses, antibiotic-resistant genes or imported DNA. Through ownership of patents on 90 percent of all GE seeds, Monsanto effectively owns most of the U.S. food supply, and not just processed foods. This August Walmart sold fresh Monsanto GM sweet corn the first to go straight from farm to table. Under the brand name Roundup Ready seeds, Monsanto sells products genetically engineered to be resistant to the herbicide glyphosate. These GE seeds are designed to let farmers aerially spray fields to kill weeds while leaving their crops intact. Usually repeated applications are needed, althought GE crops are often grown in the same field, year after year. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, glyphosate gets absorbed by the crops and has appeared in foods sold for consumption. Monsanto also sells seeds engineered to produce their own pesticides. Genes from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis are inserted into plant genomes. The plant cell then produces an insecticidal protein known as Bt which gets incorporated into food. The EPA and the Food and Drug Administration have approved Monsantos sale of Bt seeds for potato plants, maize, soybeans and cotton. Some seeds can produce more than one Bt protein and be resistant to Roundup, an herbicide Monsanto manufactures. Monsanto developed and then sold recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST or rBGH), a synthetic hormone designed to increase milk production when injected into cows. In 2008, this product line was sold to pharmaceutical Eli Lilly for $300 million. When organic dairies began labeling their products rBST-free, a pro-rBST advocacy group made up of dairies originally affiliated with Monsanto lobbied to ban such labels. However, Monsanto acknowledged possible rBST side effects for cows, including lameness, disorders of the uterus, increased body temperature, digestive and birthing problems. Dow AgroSciences, a subsidiary of Dow Chemical, is getting into the act. Dow is awaiting approval of GM corn that can withstand spraying with 2,4-D, an ingreContinued on page 1o

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Oct. 11, 2012

Page 5

Baltimore cops out of control

Community protests police killing of Anthony Anderson Sr.

By Steven Ceci Baltimore Anthony Anderson Sr. was brutally killed by Baltimore police officers on the early evening of Sept. 21 in front of his family, including his 2-year-old and 9-year-old grandchildren, his children and his mother. Both grandchildren continue to have nightmares. In an investigation conducted by the Baltimore Peoples Assembly, countless witnesses described how knockers a term used by the community to identify undercover narcotics police ran up behind Anderson, grabbed him around the knees, hoisted him in the air and brutally slammed him to the ground. Anderson was a small man who weighed about 135 pounds. Most believe that he died on the scene, handcuffed, prior to being transported to the hospital. Some describe Anderson convulsing with seizures; others stated that police tried to prop up his limp and lifeless body in order to remove him from the area. The police immediately claimed that Anderson choked and died after trying to swallow a bag of drugs. All community witnesses agree that this is a lie. A leaked autopsy report, broadcast by WBAL TV investigative reporter Jane Miller, states that Anderson had no drugs in his system and that he suffered from a massive ruptured spleen and two broken ribs. Even before the autopsy was leaked, police had to admit that nothing was in Andersons airway. A press conference of close to 100 people took place Sept. 25 to refute the Baltimore Police Departments lies. The conference was organized by the Baltimore Peoples Assembly, Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the All people to call us if anything changed. Occupy members had spent the day right afterward taking the first shift. After funeral services for Anthony Anderson Sr. on Sept. 29, close to 200 people marched from the funeral home behind a banner reading Justice for Anthony Anderson Sr. Others carried signs demanding Jail killer police and Community control of police. The protesters, filled with anger and outrage and followed by a small procession of cars, marched a mile and half through Baltimores East Side to the scene of Andersons killing. People are waking up Organizers of this struggle describe a changed situation. The Rev. Witherspoon said, Baltimore has been like the valley of the dry bones, meaning there has been almost silence, but now the bones are rattling. The people are waking up. Sharon Black, All Peoples Congress organizer and Baltimore Peoples Assembly representative, added: The fact that people are standing up under the weight of all these things the joblessness, foreclosures and massive police brutality,

BULLETIN: As we go to press, the autopsy report released Oct. 2 o cially ruled Anthony Andersons death a homicide. The report showed he died from a ruptured spleen, severe blunt trauma injuries, six to 10 broken ribs and other injuries. The Baltimore Peoples Assembly including Andersons family is calling for the jailing of killer cops. Read updates on workers.org.

WW PHOTO: SHARON BLACK

Sept. 25 demonstration demands justice for Anthony Anderson Sr.

Peoples Congress. Following the press conference, police stopped Anthony Anderson Jr., the victims 20-year-old son, as he was leaving the house and called out to him to drop the gun. He was carrying a bag of his fathers clothes to the funeral home. Fortunately five witnesses had the presence of mind to take down the police tag number. The Rev. Cortly C. D. Witherspoon, a Baltimore Peoples Assembly organizer and president of the Baltimore chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, said, Obviously, police were trying to terrorize and intimidate Anthony [Jr.] or, if he had made the wrong move, kill him. Witnesses called us immediately. We wrote a public complaint to the mayor, commissioner and district major that informed them we intended to occupy the home and neighborhood if the police persisted. Police officials agreed to withdraw officers from that block, according to Rev. Witherspoon and Sharon Black, of the Baltimore Peoples Assembly. One organizer stated: We had full intentions and the ability to carry out such an occupation to protect the family; in fact we returned the next day to make sure police kept their word. We also distributed fliers and asked

which is in many ways unspeakable and have begun to speak openly without fear is remarkable. After every rally and whenever we have been in the streets, we have heard accounts of the kind that you only hear about in a war-torn, occupied country. Weve heard so many detailed accounts from women of sexual abuse by police, abuse of loved ones and sons, daughters and companions. Yesterday we spoke to one woman whose 9-year-old son died of asthma in the street surrounded by police. A bystander was trying to give the child CPR and the police forced him to stop. Organizers announced that they will continue this fight until justice is won, not only for Anthony Anderson Sr. , but for the entire community.

Police victim Mark McMullen

Another cry for justice

Music that impacted anti-apartheid struggle

By Sue Davis The documentary Searching for Sugar Man, released this July, attests to the power of music, the kind of music that can inspire protest and help change the political course of a nation thousands of miles away from its source. The film spins the tale of music, written, sung and recorded in 1971 in Detroit, Mich., that is so powerful that it jumped the Atlantic Ocean and found an eager audience in the then apartheid South Africa, especially amongst privileged white youth. Also restricted by the tightly controlled, highly censored, fascist apartheid state, these youth were so inspired by the working-class lyrics and soulful melodies that some joined the Black-led fight to bring down that racist system. But the singer, Sixto Rodriguez, didnt know for more than 25 years that he was bigger than Elvis in South Africa. Thats why the documentary calls him the greatest 70s rock icon who never was. How two South African fans located Mexican-American poet-lyricist songwriter-singer Rodriguez and brought him out of obscurity in 1997 is told like an ex-

Searching for Sugar Man

w w movie review:

citing detective story. Thats why the movie has won fistfuls of film festival awards in the past few months. Whats surprising when you examine Rodriguezs songs is that the lyrics are not rabble-rousing or in-your-face. Even such tunes as Inner City Blues, Street Boy and A Most Disgusting Story are not obvious calls-to-arms. The most provocative poetry can be found in I wonder. It begins: I wonder how many times youve been had/And I wonder how many plans have gone bad/I wonder how many times you had sex/And I wonder do you know wholl be next. It includes: I wonder about the tears in childrens eyes/And I wonder about the soldier that dies/ I wonder will this hatred ever end do you wonder? Its the plaintive, yearning, totally honest-and-true way that Rodriguez sings, combined with his easy fingering on a sixstring guitar, that touches the heart and mind. Thats why his music is said to have the political impact and cultural clout of the early Bob Dylan. Even though Rodriguezs music was famous in South Africa, little was known Continued on page 9

In an alarming epidemic of police killings of African-American men throughout the U.S., the case of Mark McMullen is another tragic example. The 44-year-old was shot to death, unarmed, without cause, in his stationary car in Plymouth County, Mass., on Sept. 7, 2011, by Boston police operating outside of their jurisdiction. In a shocking but all too familiar cover up, the state police have refused to release important autopsy photos, reports or McMullens personal belongings. The district attorney has refused requests by the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Police Accountability Project and others to grant an inquest into his death. Despite existing evidence that McMullen family members and activists believe contradict the police account, the district attorney supposedly conducted a hidden investigation that cleared the police officer who killed McMullen. After more than a year, the Boston police have not communicated at all with slain mans family. Civil rights and faith leaders, the McMullen family and other supporters held a rally in front of the Massachusetts State House on Sept. 27, demanding justice. King Downing from the New York

City based Human Rights-Racial Justice Project opened the rally, explaining how McMullens killing was symptomatic of a racially repressive system, stating,There are now more Black and Brown men behind bars than there were slaves during the Civil War! He was followed by Bishop Felipe Teixeira, Diocese of St. Francis Assisi, Brockton, Mass., who declared, We cannot rest until we find the answer and justice for those killed by the Boston police in our community. Other speakers included Carltone Williams of the National Lawyers Guild; Brigit Keller, representing the National Accountability Project; Jamarhl Crawford with the Blackstonian Community News Service; and Frank Neisser, representing the International Action Center. McMullens sister, Karen McMullen, also spoke, urging everyone to sign the petition to District Attorney Martha Coakley, at change.org, urging her to conduct a real investigation of the case with a public report, including missing evidence that can help tell what really happened to Mark McMullen. Story & photo by Gerry Scoppettuolo

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TORONTO

Tribunal & Assembly demands Free the Cuban 5!

By Cheryl LaBash Toronto Encanto department store; the first midair bombing of a passenger airline, Cubana A complete version of this article can 455, over Barbados on Oct. be found at workers.org. 6, 1976, killing all 73 people Toronto City Hall was the site of the aboard; and hotel bombings Breaking the Silence Peoples Tribunal in the 1990s. and Assembly Sept. 21-23. Representatives Not all evidence presented came from from unions and Cuba solidarity organiza- sources friendly to Cuba. For example, tions heard evidence and rendered a peo- in 2005, a three-judge panel of the U.S. ples judgment calling for President Barack 11th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned Obama to use his executive authority to end the convictions of the Cuban 5 in a unanithe 14-year imprisonment of the Cuban 5 mous 90-page decision, citing the perGerardo Hernndez, Ramn Labaino, An- fect storm of prejudice that existed in tonio Guerrero, Fernando Gonzlez Llort Miami. That decision was later reversed and Ren Gonzlez and allow them to in 2006. Although generally critical of return to their families in Cuba. the Cuban government, Amnesty InterTestimony detailed the history of U.S.- nationals October 2010 report, The based terrorism against Cuba that neces- Case of the Cuban Five, concludes: Amsitated Cuba sending agents to monitor nesty International is supporting calls for the violent plans hatched in South Florida a review of the case by the U.S. executive during the 1990s. Raymundo Navarro, authorities through the clemency process representing the Confederation of Cuban or other appropriate means. Workers, listed outrages orchestrated against Cuba: the Bay of Pigs invasion in Legal e orts to free the Five 1961 and the destruction of 97 schools by Defense attorney Richard Klugh said arson, including a nursery school where the legal team is currently pursuing ha570 children and 176 staff were killed. He beas corpus appeals at the district court recalled the explosion of the freighter Cou- level, presenting new information and erbre in Havana harbor; the burning of El rors not known at the time of the trial. AlGerardo Hernndez Nordelo, Ramn Labaino Salazar, Antonio Guerrero Rodrguez, Fernando Gonzlez Llort and Rene Gonzlez Sehewert.

though originally revealed by the Miami Herald, subsequent Freedom of Information Act requests from the National Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five and Liberation News uncovered further documentation and evidence. Klugh said that in Miami, The most prejudicial articles were being written by people whose primary job was to work for the United States to prejudice the interests of Cuba. Of the Cuban 5, he asserted, This was a political prosecution whose purpose was to prosecute innocent people. That was the whole purpose. They are prosecuting Cubas right to exist, Cubas right to defend itself.

Klugh emphasized an important point made frequently by late attorney Leonard Weinglass: The U.S. government admitted it had no evidence and could not convict Gerardo Hernndez of the 1996 shootdown of Brothers to the Rescue planes that continually violated Cuban national airspace. Yet, denied a change of venue to Fort Lauderdale, Hernndez and the other members of the Cuban 5 were convicted by a Miami jury under sway of U.S. government-paid propagandists posing as reporters, enveloped in the perfect storm of prejudice. There was even a conviction on a charge for which the prosecution admitted there was no evidence.

The Cuban 5:
By Cheryl LaBash

What General Clapper said

A modest three-minute video posted at theCuban5.org deserves more attention than the 3,096 or so views it had as of Sept. 29. Although the title, The Cuban 5 with Danny Glover and Peter Coyote, attracts those interested in the latest work of these well-known progressive actors, and the growing community aware of the massive injustice done to the Cuban 5, the real star of the video is a name far less known to the general public: Lt. Gen. James R. Clapper Jr. Clapper was a witness in the 2001 Cuban 5 trial in Miami that lasted more than six months. At the time of the trial, Clapper was director of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (2001-2006). Clapper is not merely a retired high-ranking U.S. military officer, he is currently the director of national intelligence. According to DNI.gov, The Director of National Intelligence (DNI) serves as the head of the Intelligence Community (IC), overseeing and directing the implementation of the National Intelligence Program (budget) and acting as the principal advisor to the President, the National Security Council, and the Homeland Security Council for intelligence matters related to the national security. Working together with the Principal Deputy DNI (PDDNI), the Office of the DNIs goal is to effectively integrate foreign, military and domestic intelligence in defense of the homeland and of United States interests abroad. In the video, Glover and Coyote re-enact Clappers answers to some very interesting questions presented by Cuban 5 defense attorneys, both taken from the actual trial transcripts. What did Clapper say? Cuba does not represent a threat Q: General Clapper, would you agree on saying that having access to public information is not an act of espionage? asked Gerardo Hernndezs attorney. A: Yes. Q: Would you, with your experience in intelligence matters, describe Cuba as a military threat to the United States? A: Absolutely not. Cuba does not represent a threat. Q: Did you find any evidence that Gerardo Hernndez was trying to obtain secret information? A: No, not that I recognized. Q: Did you, General Clapper, come across any secret national defense information that was transmitted to Cuba by Gerardo Hernndez or the other defendants? A: Not that I remember, no. This lifelong military intelligence officer knows what happened in the trial of the Cuban 5. He was there. He was appointed as DNI by President Barack Obama in 2010. The Cuban 5 Gerardo Hernndez, Ramn Labaino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando Gonzlez and Ren Gonzlez are beginning their 15th year of unjust imprisonment in the U.S. The five men, unregistered agents of the Cuban government, infiltrated paramilitary organizations in south Florida during the 1990s to prevent a wave of more hotel bombings and other terror acts against tourists and other civilians in Cuba. They are the focus of a growing international and U.S. campaign calling for their release from prison and repatriation to Cuba. Their trial, subsequent conspiracy convictions and the unspeakably long sentences as much as double life plus 15 years for Gerardo Hernndez took place in Miami in a hostile atmosphere stoked by an inflammatory print and television campaign by U.S. government-paid propagandists who presented themselves as journalists. It is past time to free the Cuban 5.

City union strikes in Detroit

Debt service to banks saps budget
Continued from page 1 overturn collective bargaining and authorize the imposition of vicious wage, benefit and pension cuts on the thousands of city workers. Some DWSD workers had hoped that a ruling by Judge Cox, who oversees the water department, would prevent them from suffering these attacks. The DWSD is a separate entity whose budget is not under the citys general fund, but is based on revenues from water and sewerage rate-payers. Privatization, union-busting plans It became clear, however, that DWSD was going to go even further than other city departments in cuts and union busting. DWSD had hired a consulting firm, the EMA Group, which issued a report in August calling for the elimination of 81 percent of all public workers in DWSD. The corporate-controlled media ran ridiculous stories alleging that DWSD was overstaffed and wasteful. This, in turn, was used to whip up public opinion against the public utility, especially against the largely African-American work force. A closer examination of the EMA Group report shows that a major recommendation is to privatize large sections of DWSD. This has been a long-term goal of the corporate world for the city of Detroit. About 10 years ago, former DWSD director Victor Mercado brought in a different consulting firm, the Infrastructure Management Group. And federal Judge John Feikens, who had oversight of DWSD before Judge Cox, had authorized the creation of a secret corporate-dominated committee to examine ways to dismantle and outsource the department. Those efforts failed when Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was forced to resign in the face of perjury, obstruction of justice and corruption charges in 2008. Mercado is now undergoing a trial, along with Kilpatrick and others, on federal charges of corruption. DWSD has approved a $48 million contract with EMA Group to implement their union-busting proposals. Priority: paying debt service to banks Despite all the anti-worker and antiunion propaganda, the fact is that Detroits general fund budget shortfalls and the DWSDs cries of poverty are caused entirely by the huge interest payments demanded by the big banks. Of DWSDs sale in June of $660 million in bonds, $300 million goes directly to the biggest banks, including JPMorgan Chase. Debt service payment to banks now eats up more than 40 percent of the water departments revenues. A recent report from Gov. Snyders own financial review team found that Detroit had more than enough revenue to cover all city services and pay current workers except for the fact that payment on the debts owed the banks gets priority. Only after paying debt service to the banks does the city show a deficit. Detroits debt is estimated at $16.9 billion! Picket lines honored The morning of Oct. 1 found large and militant picket lines at all the gates to the waste water plant. Cars and trucks were used to block the driveways. Starting at 6:20 a.m., no one was allowed into the plant. Workers from other, nonstriking unions took one look at the picket lines and turned around to go home. Vendors and contractor workers have refused to cross picket lines. It has been widely reported that management may fire all workers who went on strike. But these tactics may backfire. City workers in water as well as other departments are fed up with having all the burden of the economic crisis put on their backs. And the people of Detroit are sick and tired of cuts to their crucial city services. This strike has the potential to trigger a wider fightback by Detroit residents, workers and the poor against the bankers and their lackey politicians who put the profits of the banks ahead of the needs of the people.

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workers.org

Oct. 11, 2012

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European workers take streets to resist austerity

Hardening arteries of a dying system Leftist youth
By Deirdre Griswold Money is the lifeblood of capitalism. More and more, the bankers have it locked away in their vaults and dont know what to do with it. They already face that most irrational feature of capitalism, overproduction, which to them means that corporations arent expanding because theres not much of a market for more goods and services, so therefore companies arent borrowing money and the bankers are stuck with cash thats just sitting there, not drawing interest. Meanwhile, the workers, who have produced everything of value, increasingly find it impossible to scrape up enough cash to live. Right now, the European banks, principally those backed by German capital, are trying to overcome the crisis that all capitalists are in by lending out money to debtor countries in the European Union especially Spain, Portugal and Greece at the highest interest rate they can get. To make sure these governments can pay that interest, the bankers have been demanding draconian cuts in every needed social service won over generations of struggle pensions, unemployment insurance, health care, education, you name it. These steps are driving the working class, and many in the middle class, into a frenzy of strikes and protests. The bankers dont even listen to the bourgeois voices warning their class to ease up a bit in their own self-interest. As long as there is capitalism, capital will flow to where the profit returns are the largest, creating an entire world divided between haves and have-nots. However, after decades of the scientifictechnological revolution, the very thing that drives capitalism into crisis high productivity provides the basis for quickly rectifying these divisions by reallocating the surplus product to where it is needed the most. In other words, when the working class breaks the grip of the capitalists over society and sets up a socialist system, bankers in richer countries like Germany wont be milking the poorer European countries, as they do now. Besides the massive workers struggles detailed below, some 80,000 people assembled Sept. 30 in downtown Paris to protest government cutbacks and tax increases; and across Germany on Sept. 29 some 40,000 people protested social cuts and growing social inequality. By Caleb T. Maupin A primarily youth-led action called under the slogan 25S: Encircle Parliament, did exactly that on Sept. 25 and 26. Despite heavy violence-baiting from the regime of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and the corporate media, some 25,000 people gathered in Neptune Square to try to stop the center of government from functioning as usual. The center-right-wing Popular Party has led Spains government since November 2011, sharply cutting social spending and laying off thousands of public workers. The social-democratic opposition party, the PSOE, has been complicit in these cuts. Currently, the Spanish government is seeking an additional bailout from the European Union as it again faces bankruptcy. A new bailout plan will likely demand even more drastic spending cuts. Already, 25 percent of workers in Spain are unemployed, with the situation growing worse daily. Many working-class families in Spain are being evicted from their homes. Courts processed 58,000 foreclosures in 2011, while 2 million properties stand vacant. Youth started taking over public spaces in May 2011 and have halted home foreclosures. A lengthy miners strike in the Asturias region in response to cuts in mining subsidies led to police attacks that workers stood up to with homemade projectiles. Long marches of thousands of miners moved from Asturias to a triumphal entry into Madrid. The Indignados those who began the occupations of the town squares as well as the more radical sectors of the anarchist and communist movements, and grassroots unionists led the event. Unleashed by the government, the cops attacked with batons and pepper spray. Cops arrested 35 people and injured 60. Some of the injured suffered wounds from plastic bullets. Videos made available all over the Internet show youths with their faces covered, bearing large red flags. They are seen confronting lines of police in riot gear. As police violently drag youths away, the shouting crowds come to their rescue, pulling them away from the police. One extremely popular video first shows a cop brutalizing people. Then, one youth leaps into the air to drop kick that same cop, who then falls to the ground where he is accessible to mass anger. Arguing that the current center-right government is losing control of the country, the social-democratic PSOE promises to implement austerity in a way that

SPAIN:

encircle Parliament
PORTUGAL
Unionized workers ll Lisbons biggest square.
PHOTO: CGTP

would soften unrest. What the movement in the streets is demanding, however, is an end to austerity itself, not a more responsible version. Spains labor unions are discussing a general strike in the near future. One held in the Basque Country on Sept. 26 was a big success. In Spain and elsewhere, these confrontations between the capitalist state and the working-class movements are growing. The rage that millions of people feel toward harsh economic circumstances is translating into more serious actions that challenge the capitalist state.

resistance, but it is now spreading to other European countries.

Massive rally sets stage for strike

By Chris Fry Thirty-eight years ago, organized and militant Portuguese workers acted immediately with strikes and demonstrations to back up a revolt within the military, weary of a long colonial war, to overthrow the long-entrenched, U.S.-backed, fascist regime that had ruled Portugal since 1932. Now, a new generation of workers and youth face the hated troika of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, which is demanding greater and greater measures of austerity from the present right-wing Portuguese government. On Sept. 29, some 200,000 people marched through the streets of Lisbon, the capital city, and crowded Commerce Square, near the waterfront, with a massive rally. Protesters carried banners carrying the messages: The struggle continues! and Go to hell, Troika! We want our lives back! The demonstration was organized by the CGTP-IN, Portugal largest union with 750,000 members (Portugals population is 11 million). It came two weeks after other huge nationwide demonstrations against austerity measures that involved over 1 million people and were led by militant youth organizations. The Sept. 29 action was held simultaneously with large demonstrations in Greece, Spain and other European capitals. Portugals workers are enduring record unemployment of over 15 percent. At the behest of imperialisms banking troika, the Portuguese government, led by Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho, has slashed social benefits and hiked taxes for the workers. The Portuguese economy is mired in a deep recession, with the contraction of the gross domestic product expected to total 3 percent for 2012, and a deeper slide is expected in 2013. To curry favor with and obtain rescue funds of $100 billion from the same international bankers who caused Europes financial crisis in the first place, and who now want the workers to pay for it, Portugals right-wing government has imposed one cutback after another on Portugals workers, who are already among the poorest paid in Europe. The government recently announced plans to raise the workers contribution to the countrys social security system by 64 percent while cutting back the business contribution. After the Sept. 15 mass protests, Passos Coelho pulled back in words. But the mid-October annual budget may call for even harsher cutbacks to satisfy the banks. More than just a one-day show of force by the countrys trade unions, the CGTPIN announced that the Sept. 29 demonstration was a prelude to future struggle. On Oct. 3, meetings will be held to prepare a general strike.

PORTUGAL:

Workers march in 70 cities

By Gene Clancy Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and the Greek and European ruling classes are facing a major dilemma: They have promised the European Union and the International Monetary Fund nearly $15.5 billion in spending cuts over the next two years. The bulk of these funds is expected to come from cutting wages, pensions and welfare benefits, heaping a new wave of misery on the Greek working class. Greece is currently in the midst of a deep capitalist economic recession aggravated by previous austerity measures. At question is how the Greek people will react. On Sept. 26, tens of thousands of workers participated in militant demonstrations in 70 cities across the country. Millions responded to a call for a 24-hour general strike by PAME, the All Workers Militant Front, the union confederation close to the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). Riot police used tear gas and pepper spray against demonstrators near the countrys parliament. Protesters set fire to trees in the National Gardens and used hammers to smash paving stones and marble panels to use as missiles against the riot police. Over 50,000 people joined the march in central Athens. Ships stayed in port, museums and monuments were shut down and air traffic controllers walked off the job. The strike closed the Acropolis, Greeces most famous tourist site, and halted flights for hours. Train, airline and ferry services were suspended, schools, shops and gas stations were closed, and hospitals were functioning with emergency staff only. People, fight! Theyre drinking your blood! protesters chanted as they banged drums. (AP, Sept. 26) Hospital worker Alkis Betses, who has seen his monthly salary fall from $1,680 to $1,035, says new cuts will bring it down to $775. How can you survive on $775 a month, with ever-rising taxes, and continue to pay bills and buy necessary supplies? he asked. (AP, Sept. 26) Led by PAME, Greek workers have held more than a dozen general strikes in the past four years. The European and Greek ruling classes have tried to ride over this

GREECE:

SPAIN

Spanish protesters clash with police, Sept. 26.

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workers.org

The crisis in China

Part 11

Behind the expulsion of Bo Xilai

By Fred Goldstein The leadership of the Communist Party of China has expelled former Politburo member Bo Xilai from the party, removed him from his position in the National Assembly and is preparing criminal charges against him. This is another major step in what has all the earmarks of an authoritarian, bureaucratic frameup by a fearful party establishment trying to silence and suppress the leader of a left current in the party, a current that seeks to slow down Chinas march along the capitalist road. This explusion has grave consequences for China. Bo was the party secretary for the municipal province of Chongqing in central China and was known for his progressive politics. He led a campaign to revive Maoist culture, including texting Maoist sayings to state employees, organizing the singing of Maoist songs dating to the Cultural Revolution and openly trying to revive the socialist spirit. Chongqing province has 32 million people, including 10 million workers. As head of the province, Bo emphasized state enterprises in the economy and built massive low-income, high-quality housing for workers. He made it easier for peasants and rural residents to get urban status. He was in a polemic against party leaders who said that development should come before social and economic justice. He cracked down on corrupt local and party officials and businesses. He threw businesspeople in jail for corruption. And, above all, he invited the masses to participate in unmasking corruption. While he invited transnational corporations into Chongqing to develop industry, Bo antagonized local capitalists, the so-called small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs), with his policy to restrict state bank loans to SMEs in favor of loans to state enterprises. He further antagonized both the central authorities and the local bourgeoisie by banning commercial advertising on Chongqing television. He replaced commercial programming with Red culture. In short, the rise of Bo was the first pronounced expression to surface inside the Chinese party leadership of opposition to rampant inequality and the seemingly unrestrained growth of capitalist development in China, which has been carried out under the false banner of so-called market socialism or socialism with Chinese characteristics. The monumental campaign of demonization of Bo and his spouse Gu Kailai (see WW, Aug. 23) is aimed at concealing the profound political and ideological rift in the country. Two factors have converged to deepen this rift: The world capitalist crisis is flooding into China at the same time that the CPC is expected to install new leaders in line with its usual 10-year transition. Why the political crisis? It is a tenet of Marxism that beneath any great political struggle lies the class struggle. Insofar as Bo and his program of reviving the socialist spirit, fighting inequality and combatting the untrammeled rule of the market represents the general interests of the workers and the peasants, within the framework of the present Chinese model, his persecution is a reflection of the class struggle in China. In justifying Bos expulsion, the CPC leadership has conjured up charges of corruption and other unspecified serious violations, including massive bribery, sexual misconduct and unspecified other crimes. The one charge not leveled against Bo the one that all China and the entire world bourgeoisie know to be true on the basis not of hearsay but of incontestable, publicly known facts is that he developed the Chongqing model. This was done in opposition to the capitalist-road leaders in Beijing, from gradualists of the Hu Jintao variety (the outgoing party secretary and president) to more aggressive capitalist reformers like Wen Jiabao (the outgoing premier). Bos politics were popular among the workers and peasants of Chongqing, and his reputation for fighting inequality and corruption was spreading throughout China. Bos case has been referred to as Chinas greatest political crisis since the 1989 counterrevolutionary rebellion at Tiananmen Square. But if Bos case is merely a matter of corruption and misdeeds alone, then why should it cause a political crisis that has thrown the leadership into a panic? Corruption is a straightforward issue. If corruption, bribery and misdeeds have been uncovered on the magnitude alleged in Bos case, that should hardly be a matter of venomous dispute or take many months to resolve. If in the year 2012 Bo has been unmasked as corrupt beyond measure, an outright rogue, then how to explain that from 1990 on he became mayor of the important city of Dalian (capital of Liaoning province), was then promoted to provincial governor, soon took on the nationally and internationally important post of Chinas Minister of Commerce, was appointed to the 25-member Politburo of the party, and became party secretary of the key province of Chongqing? How was it that Bo managed to escape detection by the partys extensive investigative apparatus until the moment when the leadership struggle in China was about to come to a head and the issues involved in the future course of Chinas economic regime had become a matter of bitter contention? The public should take into account a statement by Bo Guagua, Bos son, a graduate of Harvards Kennedy School with a masters in public administration. The Wall Street Journal wrote about it on Sept. 30: Personally, it is hard for me to believe the allegations that were announced against my father, because they contradict everything I have come to know about him throughout my life, Bo Guagua, who is 24 years old, said in a statement on a Tumblr microblog account dated Saturday. Although the policies my father enacted are open to debate, the father I know is upright in his beliefs and devoted to duty, he said in an apparent reference to Mr. Bos controversial policies as party chief of the city of Chongqing, which included a Maoist revival movement. The statement continued: He has always taught me to be my own person and to have concern for causes greater than ourselves. I have tried to follow his advice. Gu Kailai evidence questioned As the frameup of Bo proceeds, questions are being raised in China about the frameup of his spouse, Gu Kailai, who was sentenced to a commuted death sentence in August for the alleged murder of British businessperson Neil Heywood. The Wall Street Journal wrote on Sept. 29 that one of Chinas top forensic experts, Wang Xuemei, cast doubt on Beijings carefully scripted version of events. She said that the prosecution did not produce any evidence showing that Heywood was killed by cyanide poisoning, the basis for Gus murder conviction. Wang is a forensic expert in the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate, the countrys top body for investigation and prosecution. Wang posted an essay on the matter on her blog. The essay was removed; she doesnt know by whom or how. She has been praised nationally for her work. Wang said, according to the Journal, that information at the trial didnt include a description of what she said should have been an immediate and extreme health reaction after being poisoned by cyanide. After cyanide was poured into Heywoods mouth, she said, he didnt suffer any corresponding reaction from cyanide poisoning. The Journal also wrote that the growing skepticism by prominent Chinese figures and Mr. Heywoods friends over inconsistencies, ambiguities and omissions in the prosecutions official narrative could undermine authorities credibility in handling the case ahead of the countrys sensitive once-a-decade leadership transition legal experts and political analysts say. The authorities cremated Heywoods body after three days without performing an autopsy, claiming at the time that Heywood died of excessive consumption of alcohol. But prosecutors at the trial alleged that Gu had lured Heywood to a hotel room in Chongqing and killed him because she was afraid he would harm her son, Guagua, who they said owed Heywood money. Her fears, they said, were partly based on the claim that Heywood had forcibly detained her son. There are several problems with the governments version. First, Heywoods close friends reportedly say he did not drink. They were so disturbed by this version that they raised it with the British Embassy. (Wall Street Journal, March 27) Why would Heywood go into a room with a powerful person with whom he has an antagonistic business relationship and get drunk when he did not drink? Furthermore, several friends of Mr. Heywood have disputed that, saying that Mr. Heywoods relations with Bo Guagua appeared to be good right up until his death, and pointing out that at the time of the alleged detention, Mr. Heywood was in China and Bo Guagua was studying in the U.S. (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 30) More could be said about the frameup of Gu. Heywood himself worked with the firm Haklyut, Inc., an industrial spy agency in China formed by former British spies working for MI6. The evidence against Gu was handed over to the U.S. Consulate (CIA station) in Chengdu by a top Chongqing police official, Wang Lijun, who was under investigation for corruption by the central authorities. Corruption can carry a death sentence. During the events the U.S. was working closely with British diplomats on the case. Clearly, U.S. and British imperialism had a common interest with the Chinese leadership in stopping the political rise of Bo Xilai. The case against Gu was the opening shot in the struggle to undermine Bo politically. Rule of law and persecution of Bo After Bos expulsion Xinhua carried a widely circulated release entitled Cadre, citizens uphold CPCs Bo decision. In the release they cite the praise and testimony of various individuals a student, a party cadre, a model worker, the Standing Committee of the Chongqing Municipal Committee, etc. All are said to have praised the rule of law and the farsightedness of the CPC Central Committee as well as its superb handling ability to deal with complicated situations. But bear in mind that Bo has been in custody, held incommunicado since April. He has not been allowed to issue one word in public. The nature of any proceedings against him have not been divulged. Have the requisite party procedures been followed? Has he had an internal trial? What was his testimony? Who acted in his defense? None of these questions has been answered in public. And none of the individuals and groups who were cited by Xinhua and the party has any objective knowledge whatsoever about the socalled ability or farsightedness of the Central Committee. Bos political enemies at the top of the party are in complete control of every shred of public information about the case. They are free to manufacture whatever charges they want to hurl without any contradiction or opposition. They have shut down every website that defends Bo. Where are the champions of the rule of law now? This crude frameup is taking place when the stakes are extremely high. There is a struggle about whether or not to deepen the capitalist measures in China in response to the economic crisis. The capitalist crisis has magnified the crisis of Chinas leadership and of the working class as the growth of production slows, inventories pile up, unemployment threatens and the bitter fruit of opening up wide to capitalism is harvested. To be continued. Goldstein is author of Low-Wage Capitalism and Capitalism at a Dead End. More information is available at www.lowwagecapitalism.com. The author can be reached at fred.goldstein@ workers.org.

Capitalism at a Dead End

For more information go to LowWageCapitalism.com

Available at Amazon and other bookstores

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Oct. 11, 2012

Page 9

South African miners strikes continue, spread to transport workers

By Abayomi Azikiwe Editor, Pan-African News Wire Strike actions continue by workers in the platinum and gold mines in South Africa and have spread to the transportation industry. As the struggle goes on, the government investigation began into the unrest surrounding the wildcat strike, led by rockdrill operators, at Lonmin Platinum PLC. On Oct. 1, the proceedings in Rustenberg started with the reading of the names of the 34 workers killed by police on Aug. 16. Ian Farlam, the retired judge who is directing the Commission of Inquiry into the Marikana tragedy, commented, Our country weeps because of the tragic loss, and this commission will work expeditiously to ensure the truth is revealed. (AllAfrica.com, Oct. 1) Not only is the four-month inquiry scheduled to investigate circumstances surrounding the Marikana unrest, but it is also mandated to examine workermanagement relations in the mining sector, the miners living conditions and the real issues behind the unrest at Lonmin. Its findings could be damaging to the government of President Jacob Zuma and the ruling African National Congress. At the ANCs December congress, elections will take place and policies will be agreed upon for the 2014 national elections. Week two of truckers strike The miners upsurge has affected transport workers. Thousands of drivers have gone on strike, led by the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU), an affiliate of the 2-millionmember Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU). Truck drivers marched through Johannesburg on Oct. 1 urging the Road Freight Employers Association to agree to a 12 percent pay increase, double what was offered. RFEAs statement reads, We are aware that the strike has an effect, not only on our members and the industry, but also on the South African public and economy as a whole. During the march, a SATAWU leader said, We must keep up the fight for economic freedom. We must not let the fight die. People must be with us. They must not work and side with the employer. (Business Day Live, Oct. 1) The strike has resulted in violence in some regions, including Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape, where trucks have been torched and accidents caused by rocks thrown at vehicles. SATAWU has rejected responsibility for the violence, saying their members were not involved. Many people are beginning to stock up on fuel, food and medical supplies, which cannot be easily transported during the strike. Bosses threaten to close mines With industrial actions spreading from the mining sector to transport, the capitalists in South Africa are concerned about further disruption to the economy. There is already high unemployment, and downsizing continues in the most organized industries. On Oct. 1, Anglo Gold Ashanti Ltd. announced that it might close some mines and fire workers if the wildcat strikes go on much longer. All their mines were shut down after 24,000 workers walked off the job a week ago demanding better pay. Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) in Rustenburg has also been closed due to strike activity. The bosses gave workers an Oct. 1 deadline to return to the job or face dismissal. The Chamber of Mines indicated that it would engage in discussions with COSATU in an effort to get the mining industry back to full production. We are especially interested to hear if they [COSATU] are able to convince workers to return to work and what their proposals are for entering wage negotiations in light of the unprotected strike action, said Elize Strydom, senior executive for employment relations. (BDL, Oct. 1) On Sept. 29, COSATU General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi told mineworkers at Gold Fields KDC West facility in Carletonville that the federation was prepared to take up the fight for wage hikes in the industry. Although he did not support the wildcat work stoppages, Vavi committed COSATU to work for a R12,500 ($1,500) monthly pay rate. Because of strike activity in the mining areas, 75,000 workers are idle. Although South Africa remains the largest source of platinum production in the world, the gold industry has declined tremendously over the last two decades, as mine closures and downsizing have escalated since the ANC came to power in 1994.

Marking the death of BAYAN leader

Struggle continues in Philippines

By Renato Reyes, Jr.

The place of honor is in the line of fire. Lean Alejandro

Twenty-five years ago, on 19 September 1987, Lean Alejandro, the first Secretary General of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), was killed when armed men opened fire with automatic weapons on his car as it was about to enter the gate of the headquarters of BAYAN. Lean had just come from a press conference at the National Press Club, where he had called for mass protests against the inordinate and increasing say of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in the 18-month-old administration of then President Corazon C. Aquino. Leans assassination was one of many grievous human rights violations committed under the first U.S.-backed Aquino regime. While the Cory regime denounced the killing, it remains unsolved to this day. It is widely believed that the Rebolusyonaryong Alyansang Makabansa (RAM) carried out the dastardly act just as they did the assassination of labor leader RoWW MUSIC REVIEW

Music that impacted anti-apartheid struggle

Continued from page 5 about the singer. His two records, Cold Fact and Coming from Reality, had been bootlegged, so he never received a penny in income over the decades. Rumors were that he had committed suicide. But an Internet search in 1997, called The Great Rodriguez Hunt, revealed, thanks to a message from one of his three daughters, that he was alive and working construction in Detroit. That led to a series of concerts in South Africa in the late 1990s, and since the films release, to a current tour in the U.S. and an upcoming one in England, Scotland and Ireland. (For more information, see the official Rodriguez website: sugarman.org.) While the movie has jump-started Rodriguez career, after a delay of 40 years, which provides a welcome, good-eventu-

ally-wins-out scenario, it does leave out one aspect of the story. The viewer cant help but notice that footage of South African concerts shows all-white crowds. Is that because of the lingering effects of economic apartheid that Blacks cant afford to attend? Interviewing Black musicians and activists to find out how they view the subversive role Rodriguez played in destroying the hated apartheid government would have added another whole, important dimension to the films impact. But that observation does not diminish the overall importance of this documentary. May the poets, playwrights, novelists, songwriters, musicians and filmmakers of the 99% rise to inspire revolution as they expose and oppose the 1% in the struggles that lie ahead. Davis self-published a pro-choice novel, Love Means Second Chances, in 2011.

lando Ka Lando Olalia and his driver, Leonor Alay-ay, in 1986, with the objective of strengthening the hand of the rightists and militarists in the Aquino government, if not causing its outright downfall. Earlier this year the long-standing case for double murder of Ka Lando and his driver inched forward with the issuance of warrants of arrest for the accused still at large by RTC Branch 98 judge, Ma. Consejo Gengos-Igualaga. They are Eduardo Kapunan Jr., Oscar Legaspi, Filomeno Maligaya, Cirilo Almario, Jose Bacera, Fernando Casanova, Ricardo Dicon, Gilbert Galicia, Dennis Jabatan, Gene Paris, Freddie Sumagaysay and Edgar Sumido -- all leaders and members of RAM. Despite the alleged restoration of democracy, widespread and grievous human rights violations blackened the first Aquino regime. Mrs. Aquino unsheath(ed) the sword of war and launched another brutal counterinsurgency program against the communist-led revolutionary movement. In the process, many civilian communities were displaced and terrorized and many more lives were lost, especially due to the abuses of paramilitary forces such as the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (Cafgu) under the direction and control of the AFP. While martial law had been rescinded and the fascist Marcos dictatorship overthrown, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and torture still took place at an alarming rate and frequency. The first Aquino regime continued and even exacerbated the anti-people policies of the Marcos regime, notably in relation to agrarian reform, foreign debt service and economic liberalization, deregulation and privatization. Mrs. Aquino also called for the retention of the U.S. military bases, reneging on her position when she was not yet president and even marching in a Malacanangorganized rally to pressure the Philippine Senate to vote in favor of bases retention. It is no surprise that the peoples struggles against exploitation and oppression and for nationalism and democracy continued and even grew in strength. As we commemorate the death of Lean, we also remember the declaration of martial law 40 years ago and the peoples heroic resistance to the Marcos dictatorship, whose victims continue to seek jus-

Lean Alejandro

tice. Justice remains elusive, as well, not only for the family and kin of Lean, but also for the thousands of victims of human rights violations committed under the first Aquino regime. In remembering Lean and his unjust and untimely passing, we note the failure of the first Aquino regime and the succeeding regimes up to the second Aquino regime of President Benigno Noynoy Aquino, to render justice and indemnification for all victims of human rights violations. Such failure, along with the continuing anti-people policies carried over from one regime to another, fuel the peoples continuing struggle and resistance. Concretely, the Noynoy regime has failed to deliver on its promise of indemnification for the victims of martial law. It has also not taken any step to release the more than 350 political prisoners all over the country while it had amnestied and set free more than 300 military officials and personnel who had rebelled against the preceding Arroyo regime. Today, we honor Lean and all our martyrs and heroes who valiantly and steadfastly fought for the cause of national and social liberation. We offer our multisectoral march on September 21 to the memory of all those who fought against the U.S.-backed Marcos fascist dictatorship, as we pledge to continue their unfinished struggle for genuine freedom and democracy. The writer is the national SecretaryGeneral of BAYAN-Philippines.

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Oct. 11, 2012

workers.org

No to imperialist, racist wars!

Continued from page 1 and repression and No to Islamophobia, meaning anti-Islam bigotry. The anti-war movement needs to take these stands in order to build solidarity with the workers and the most oppressed and with all those who face the most repression from the state. An example of this approach though were sure its repeated in many cities is the effort in New York to oppose stopand-frisk cop actions, to hold the anti-war demonstration in Harlem, and to join the struggle against police brutality to the struggle to stop anti-Muslim bigotry. What adds to the demonstrations significance is that they take place in the midst of a capitalist election campaign. The two major capitalist parties are spending vast sums on political propaganda. These ads at worst promote the most reactionary, racist and anti-working class ideology. Even the least offensive ads aim to keep workers, oppressed peoples and all progressives focused on the ballot box and away from the streets the only arena for real democratic action. The movement is thus carrying out these anti-war actions not only against the Republican candidates hawkish, racist and xenophobic comments. They are also against the Democrats and Barack Obama administration, who direct the capitalist government and thus are responsible for the drones, the war machine and state repression. As of Oct. 2, a look at the UNAC website showed there are demonstrations, vigils or meetings scheduled in at least 40 cities in North America and around the world, including in Tehran, Islamabad and London. During the week before Oct. 5, a group of North American anti-war activists including from UNAC is in Pakistan joining with local progressives to protest U.S. drone attacks. We applaud these actions and any moves that can expose and disrupt the imperialist war machine.

editorial

PHILADELPHIA

Building for peoples power

By Berta Joubert-Ceci Philadelphia ful in engaging people in the area that organizers followed with speakouts A step forward toward on different key issues in building peoples power was the community. Issues taken in Philadelphia when like unemployment, lack WW PHOTO: JOE PIETTE of health care and educaactivists met on Sept. 26 in the western part of the city. Patrice Armstead tion, the destruction of The Peoples Power Assembly had been small, family-owned businesses that preceded by a series of speakouts during provided stability in the community, and the summer where community residents cuts in General Assistance were some of addressed the issues that concerned them. the main topics repeated by many people The speakouts were sparked by a march during the speakouts. on May Day that went through what the Interesting was the fact that many resiorganizers called the repression center. dents wanted to do something about those Activists marched by the construction site issues, but felt that nobody else in the of a so-called Youth Study Center, bet- neighborhood was interested in joining the ter described as a youth detention center; effort. Sadly, this is a symptom quite pera new Immigration and Customs Enforce- vasive not only here but across the country. ment office; and a new police headquar- It is the ruling class, through its media and ters, all within a few blocks of each other other institutions, that has instilled the in West Philadelphia. false idea that people have no power, that The May Day march was so success- their only power is exercised through their votes every four years. So the next step was to organize a meeting, a Peoples Power Assembly, where all those who wanted to fight back could meet each other. That was the first goal of the West Philly PPA to unite for struggle. That was what brought out residents from this preended all housing assistance for home- dominantly African-American commuless families more than a year ago, forcing nity. The assembly was chaired by Patrice more people into shelters. Additionally, Armstead, the main PPA organizer and Bloomberg and New York Gov. Andrew resident from the West Philly neighborCuomo cut $48 million and $65 million, hood. Erin Morales, a young poet and acrespectively, for programs aiding families tivist, opened the meeting by reading one of her moving poems dedicated to Mumia in obtaining permanent housing. Now, the pro-corporate city adminis- Abu-Jamal and the injustice of mass intration has descended so low as to wrong- carceration and solitary confinement. fully deny even shelter access, so that this Other speakers were Anthony Monteiro, year, only 35 percent of applicant families professor of African-American studies at were approved to enter the facilities, say Temple University and longtime Philadelthe Coalition for the Homeless and the phia activist, who spoke about unemployment and prisons. Betsey Piette, from the Legal Aid Society. The two organizations said in their International Action Center, spoke about testimony at a Sept. 25 New York City education. Several issues were raised by the audiCouncil Committee on General Welfare meeting, In recent months, the NYC De- ence, who in general spoke of the necessipartment of Homeless Services has begun ty of fighting back and not remaining pasto deny overnight shelter placements to sive in the face of possible gentrification, homeless children and families, even dur- lack of fresh produce in the community, ing declared weather emergencies. The and foreclosures, among other attacks doors are shut even to those with serious against the poor. A followup meeting will be scheduled soon to take up a course of health problems. When confronted at the City Council further action. meeting about homelessness, NYC Homeless Services Commissioner Seth Diamond was intransigent. He insisted that there would be no city aid forthcoming to help families get permanent housing. Bloombergs response to the emergenContinued from page 4 cy is to open five more homeless shelters. dient in Agent Orange, the deadly dioxinBloomberg and Cuomo should be held based defoliant used by the U.S. military accountable for their roles in worsening during the Vietnam War. Soybeans and the homeless crisis. The city and state cotton that can withstand 2,4-D are also should immediately rescind the budget planned. cuts, and refund and implement all housing assistance programs to enable families Reinvention of Monsanto For thousands of years farmers saved to obtain permanent residences. The city should allot a sizable number of its apart- seeds from prior years harvests for planting the next spring. This age-old, costments for homeless families, and more. Homelessness is innate to capitalism. cutting practice is known as seed culling. For over two centuries the U.S. Patent It worsens during an economic decline. Housing for all should be included as and Trademark Office would not grant part of progressive struggles all over the patents for seeds, viewing them as a lifeform with too many variables to be patcountry. In a humane, socialist society, where ented. All this changed in 1980 when the peoples needs are the priority, the neces- U.S. Supreme Court extended General sities of life for all, especially the needs Electric patent law protection to a bacteof children, would be guaranteed. Public rium developed to clean up oil spills. Founded in 1926, Monsantos legacy housing would not be a hot potato for the superrich and their politicians to ignore includes development of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs); dichlorodiphenyltriand evade.

NEW YORK CITY

Growing crisis for homeless children

By Kathy Durkin New York It is generally assumed, except by the most hardened reactionaries, that governments, even under capitalism, have a responsibility to ensure that childrens basic needs for housing, health care, food and education are met. However, this basic tenet is being undermined across the U.S., as states cut back essential programs for children, under the pressure of the economic crisis and the greedy 1%. In New York City, the richest city in the country, 20,000 children now live in shelters. This is the largest number of homeless children here since the Great Depression. It is expected only to get worse. Unemployment, low-wage jobs, combined with exorbitant rents and gentrification of working-class communities by big real estate interests have created the perfect storm underlying growing homelessness. In 2005, billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg, with great fanfare, announced that he would decrease the number of homeless people, 33,000, by two-thirds within four years. The city then stopped prioritizing homeless families for federal assistance for housing and financial aid, programs which help people stay in permanent homes. After the administration implemented those cutbacks, the number of homeless families rose. Today, 11,000 families and 46,000 individuals are without homes, the highest levels since the 1930s. African Americans and Latinos/as have been disproportionately impacted. For the 20,000 homeless children today and those of the future as there is no end in sight for this catastrophic situation its devastating. It affects their emotional and physical health, their school attendance and achievement, and more. Exacerbating the crisis further, the city

Drones protested at U.N.

The Pakistan USA Freedom Forum and its allies rallied for three hours at 47th Street and First Avenue across from the United Nations General Assembly, which has brought many government leaders from around the world to New York City from Sept. 18 to Oct. 1. The Sept. 25 gathering aimed its protest at the United States use of drones, that is, pilotless airplanes, to carry out assassinations of U.S. opponents in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and other countries and whose rocket attacks also kill many civilians, including children. The demonstrators also called for an end to the attacks on Irans sovereignty and protested the hypocritical use of the International Atomic Energy Agency or other agencies to selectively target countries for political, economic or military attacks. (P-USFF email). Speakers from Women Against Military Madness, Workers World Party, SI Solidarity with Iran, the International Action Center and others took the microphone during the rally.

Monsanto,

WW PHOTO: BRENDA RYAN

Sara Flounders from IAC and Iranian activist, Kazem Azim spoke at the rally.

GAZA: Symbol of Resistance A book of articles from WW, edited by Joyce Chediac The story of how Gazans withstood blockade and bombardment, refusing to give up the right to determine their own lives.
Joyce Chediac

John Catalinotto

Available at Amazon and other bookstores

workers.org

Oct. 11, 2012

Page 11

War threats against Iran as U.N. meets

By Abayomi Azikiwe Editor, Pan-African News Wire This years United Nations General Assembly session opened during an escalation of tensions between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. But concerns surrounding the use of predator drone warfare and the ongoing occupation of Afghanistan were the themes of a demonstration outside the U.N. on Sept. 25, the opening day. The imperialist countries and the Soviet Union set up the U.N. after World War II ended, ostensibly to resolve conflicts and prevent wars as well as foster humanitarian work and economic development. More than ever, the global body is now dominated by the imperialist states of North America, Western Europe and Japan. These states have used the U.N., especially the Security Council, to justify wars of aggression and other measures against Peoples Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries, actions which caused the deaths, injuries and displacement of millions. Just last year, the Security Council approved the imposition of a no-fly zone (Resolution 1973) that provided a pseudolegal basis for the massive bombing of Libya, the overthrow of its government and the brutal assassination of its leader, Col. Moammar Gadhafi, and members of his family. Zimbabwes President Robert Mugabe in his speech before the General Assembly on Sept. 26 condemned the war of regime change against Libya during 2011 and stated that the situation inside the country had worsened since the toppling and killing of Gadhafi last year. Mugabe noted with irony, As we join the United States in condemning that death [Ambassador Christopher Stevens], shall the United States also join us in condemning the barbaric death of Gaddafi. It was a loss, great loss to Africa. (Zimbabwe Sunday Mail, Sept. 30) Iranian presidents meeting in New York City The U.N. Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran hosted over 100 religious leaders, scholars, journalists and social justice activists Sept. 25 for a dialog with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Some of the most notable guests included former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, a co-founder of the International Action Center; Minister Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam; Imari Baraka, renowned poet and longtime activist; Glen Ford, editor of the Black Agenda Report; Phil Wilayto, organizer for the Virginia Defenders; Nellie Bailey of the Harlem Tenants Council; Sara Flounders, codirector of the International Action Center; Leah Bolger, leader of Veterans for Peace; Joe Iosbaker, trade unionist and solidarity activist; Sarah Martin, a leader of Women Against Military Madness; Joe Lombardo, administrative committee member of the United National Anti-War Coalition; retired Col. Ann Wright, author of Voices of Conscience; and Ray McGovern, former Central Intelligence Agency analyst, among others. A panel discussion featuring several guests, including Jonathan Lee of the Hartford Seminary and attorney Stanley Cohen, continued for more than an hour. The corporate media in New York had worked to create a hostile environment for the Iranian delegation to the General Assembly. But at this get-together, a warm reception greeted President Ahmadinejad, who spoke for nearly 50 minutes at the conclusion of the other presentations. There were, however, reports of an assault against members of the Iranian delegation to the U.N. outside the Warwick Hotel by members of a previously but no longer listed terrorist group, the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization. The group has engaged in an armed campaign against the government in Tehran, Irans capital. New York City police did not make any arrests in the alleged incident. Information distributed to all guests at the Warwick Hotel dinner with President Ahmadinejad stated, The Islamic Republic of Iran is a State party to all major international legally binding instruments prohibiting weapons of mass destruction. Over the last several years, numerous Iranian nuclear scientists have been assassinated. The state of Israel and the U.S. have threatened in the past to bomb Irans nuclear facilities. Press TV correspondent assassinated On Sept. 26, the Press TV news correspondent for Syria was assassinated by sniper fire while covering two truck bombings in the capital of Damascus. Maya Naser, 33, was gunned down while making a live report to the international satellite television network that is viewed by millions every day. Press TV, which originates from Tehran, has exposed the character of the U.S. imperialist backed and financed war against Syria, where tens of thousands have died since February 2011. Over 30 journalists have been killed in Syria since last year, most of whom are Syrian nationals. This satellite news channel represents one of the few major media outlets that provide information about the Syrian war outside the confines of what is generally advanced through the Westernallied corporate and governmental press agencies.

Riders & transit workers protest anti-Muslim subway ads

By Tony Murphy New York The capitalist media waged a frenzied war campaign against Irans President Mahmoud Ahmadinejahd while the United Nations was in session the end of September. This propaganda campaign was designed to create popular support for regime change in Iran so that Wall Street can take over that countrys oil resources. A little before the U.N. convened, the media broadcast stories that the Metropolitan Transit Authority would begin running ads with racist, anti-Muslim slurs to support Israel in 10 subway stations. The repeated mention of the racist slurs by the media served to promote racism and war. Of course, the MTA denied it was being used for propaganda purposes, claiming it had been ordered by a federal judge to run the ads. If the MTAs story is true, it would be the first time the transit agency has refused to be used in the bogus war on terror. In recent years, the MTA has in fact allowed public transit to become strongly militarized. SWAT teams armed with submachine guns and accompanied by attack dogs regularly patrol the subway. Since 2001, the New York Police Department has conducted racist-profiling spot checks of peoples bags and backpacks. Recently the Transportation Security Administration the airline industrys notoriously intrusive security agency has taken over this task in many stations. Sold as anti-terror tactics, the actual result of this activity is an extension of the NYPDs racist stop-and-frisk program. The ugly, anti-Muslim ads were paid for by arch-racist Pamela Geller, who in 2010 tried to stop a mosque from being built in downtown Manhattan. Geller plays a key role for U.S. imperialism by demonizing the people who happen to live over large quantities of oil and whose dominant religion is Islam. Anti-racists spring into motion As soon as the racist ads went up, the thriving progressive movement in New York City went into action. Activists placed stickers over the subway ads with slogans reading Racist and Hate speech. On Sept. 25, writer Mona Eltahawy and three other people were arrested and charged with criminal mischief for righteously spray-painting over the ads. Two days later, the International Action Center protested outside MTA headquarters with placards reading: The subway belongs to the 99%: Take the racist ads down! Joined by members of Transit Workers Union Local 100, protesters then went inside for the MTA monthly board meeting. During the public comments section of the meeting, one by one speakers denounced the hate-mongering ads in what local media later described as a vocal outburst. MTA train operator Seth Rosenberg, one of the transit workers who spoke, denounced the ads as racist, anti-Muslim and vile to the core. As for the MTA argument that it was forced to run the ads by a court order, speakers noted that the agencys board, representing powerful banking and real estate interests in New York City, could have hired lawyers and tied up the issue in court for years. Of course, Geller didnt waste the opportunity to promote her bigoted line and showed up to speak last. But the anti-racist crowd used the mic check strategy of Occupy Wall Street to drown her out. The MTAs many security guards rushed to quiet the crowd, briefly arresting protester Caleb Maupin before releasing him a half hour later, and pushed the others out. IAC Co-Director Sara Flounders said the anti-war group had raised money for its own set of 10 subway ads that read: Resist Another War: No to Racism & Anti-Muslim Bigotry, Tool of 1% Rule. We the 99% Need Unity & Solidarity! Its important to confront these bigoted attacks that are used to justify U.S. wars in the Muslim world and increased repression at home, Flounders told Workers World. Every day, thousands of people use a subway system that has been systematically downgraded and dismantled by the MTA with constant service cuts and fare hikes. The average person hates the MTA, added Flounders. Anyone who is against racism will hate them even more.

NEW YORK CITY

genes and food

chloroethane (DDT); and the dioxin compound Agent Orange. Monsanto was also involved in the Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb. The EPA called Monsanto potentially responsible for 56 contaminated superfund sights. By 1979, attempting to shed its chemical company image, Monsanto had sold off much of the production for these now-banned products. It focused instead on the production and sale of Roundup. Monsanto then took advantage of the Supreme Courts patent law ruling to become the world leader of GM seeds with 674 biotechnology patents. By shifting into production of GE seeds, Monsanto virtually guaranteed a market for its ubiquitous weed killer Roundup. Today Monsanto enjoys net profits of $1.7 billion (2011) and holds a monopoly over the worlds pesticide markets. Next: A monopoly of proprietary seeds.

MICHIGAN

Protests decry anti-Islam lm

Fifteen hundred people packed the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn, Mich., for a rally on Sept. 28 against Islamophobia. The largely ArabAmerican crowd was joined by representatives of community organizations, other religious groups and elected officials. Delegations from five churches across Michigan traveled to stand in solidarity with this mass community outpouring against the recent anti-Islam film that has evoked mass demonstrations and uprisings around the world. The opening guest speaker was David Sole from the Michigan Emergency Committee Against War & Injustice. He told the crowd that as a Jewish American who had family members exterminated in concentration camps by Hitlers regime, I know personally the violent horrors that can grow out of religious and racial hatred. Sole got a round of applause when he exposed the forces behind anti-Islam bigotry and hate. Who benefits from this? It is designed to create a public opinion that will allow the U.S. government, the Pentagon, the CIA, the giant oil companies and the Wall Street banks to control the Middle East and steal the huge oil wealth of that region. The next day, at the call of Muslims of South Asian descent, hundreds of area Muslims rallied and marched in the Detroit suburb of Canton, Mich. Two other protests were held Sept. 21 outside mosques and other sites in Dearborn against The Innocence of Muslims film and growing anti-Islam hate mongering. Metro Detroit has the largest ArabAmerican population in the United States and the second largest Arab population outside of the Middle East. WW Detroit bureau

Proletarios y oprimidos de todos los paises unios!

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Las huelgas sin apoyo del sindicato de mineros de platino y oro re ejan profundizacin de crisis econmica
Por Abayomi Azikiwe Editor, Pan-African News Wire
Los mineros de las instalaciones Marikana Lonmin Platinum PLC volvieron al trabajo el 20 de septiembre despus de una amarga huelga de seis semanas que dej 45 muertos y muchos heridos. Los empresarios de Lonmin acordaron un aumento salarial del 22 por ciento para que los obreros en huelga regresaran a las minas. El paro laboral y la masacre policial del 16 de agosto sacudieron las estructuras polticas y econmicas en frica del Sur, la cual est liderada por el Congreso Nacional Africano, CNA. El Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de las Minas, NUM por sus siglas en ingls, el afiliado ms grande del Congreso de Sindicatos Surafricanos, COSATU por sus siglas en ingls, se opuso a la huelga dirigida por los operadores de perforacin de roca. El conflicto laboral de Marikana provoc huelgas en las minas de platino, as como en otras instalaciones de oro y cromo. Algunos trabajadores de la Anglo American Platino (Amplats) an estn en huelga; ellos han elegido a sus propios negociadores, eludiendo al NUM. Alathus Modrsane, quien est en ese equipo, dijo: Ya no estamos con el NUM porque vimos que nos estn fallando. (Associated Press, 21 de septiembre) Los mineros an estn en pie de lucha en la AngloGold Ashanti Kopanang, donde hay 5.000 empleados. Los trabajadores en huelga de la mina Gold Fields cerca de Carletonville desean el mismo aumento logrado por los obreros de Lonmin. Segn el mismo artculo, Sven Lunsche en representacin de la Gold Fields, dijo que la empresa no puede cumplir las demandas de los trabajadores, instando a los huelguistas a resolver sus problemas a travs de las estructuras del NUM. l dijo que las huelgas sin la aceptacin del sindicato preocupan a la industria, ya que estos temas han ido ms all del foro de negociacin colectiva. Estn ocurriendo fuera de un foro establecido y ordenado. Pero los mineros del oro se quejan de que el NUM no les estn representando. Lesiba Seshoka, representante del NUM dijo: Si quieren retirar o sacar [a los representantes sindicales], ellos deben [tener] un voto de no confianza o decirnos las acusaciones y pondremos en marcha una investigacin. Aunque los salarios de los mineros han mejorado, muchos trabajos se han perdido por la reestructuracin masiva de la industria. Los trabajadores y sus familias dicen que sus condiciones de vida en las ciudades mineras son un verdadero infierno y que necesitan una vivienda moderna, electricidad, agua y mejoras sanitarias. Histricamente, Sudfrica ha sido el productor lder de oro a nivel mundial; sin embargo, Ghana y Mxico les estn superando ahora en la produccin de oro. La industria surafricana ha reducido tanto su fuerza laboral como la produccin. Despus de que las minas fueran cerradas all cuando el CNA tom el control del gobierno en 1994, COSATU tiene menos poder para exigir concesiones de los patrones. El economista Dawi Roodt dijo: COSATU se ha alejado de sus races para convertirse en una organizacin poltica, mientras que se supone que debe ser un movimiento sindical. Debido a la separacin entre la base y el liderazgo, el minero siente que sus intereses ya no estn siendo protegidos. (Radio Netherlands, 24 de septiembre) Segn se informa, Sudfrica est produciendo solamente el 7 por ciento del abastecimiento mundial del oro en comparacin al 65 por ciento hace 30 aos. Brent Cook, director de la compaa Exploration Insight, con sede en Estados Unidos, dijo que la industria de oro surafricano est envejeciendo y ya no es atractiva para los inversionistas, y que la minera de oro [all] disminuir porque cada vez es ms difcil extraer el oro de mayores profundidades, con costos ms altos y bajo disturbios sociales. (bdlive. co.za, septiembre 22) La intransigencia de estos capitalistas hacia las necesidades de los trabajadores no puede separarse de la crisis econmica mundial en general. Salarios ms bajos y condiciones de trabajo terribles estn siendo forzados a la fuerza de trabajo global. Con la fuerza y la militancia del movimiento sindical sudafricano, los dueos de minas y los banqueros estn buscando vas en otras regiones donde pueden obtener mayores ganancias sin la mano de obra organizada y la interferencia de los partidos polticos. Las actitudes de los patronos necesitan un enfoque diferente por el gobierno del CNA donde las minas y otros bienes nacionales se consideran como los intereses de propiedad de los trabajadores y del pueblo. Sudfrica an tiene la mayor riqueza mineral del planeta, con las mayores reservas de platino, magnesio y cromo. divisin en el partido. l y la LJCNA abogan por la nacionalizacin de la industria minera y la redistribucin de la tierra para la mayora de la poblacin africana. Los gobiernos del CNA no han expropiado los intereses del capital o de los agronegocios. Esto, junto a la gran tasa de desempleo y la pobreza debida al legado del apartheid y cinco aos de crisis econmica, ha empeorado las condiciones para muchos en la mayora de la poblacin, mientras que muchos sectores de la clase media y la empresarial se han enriquecido. Malema, que defendi la causa de los mineros, ha sido acusado por delitos de corrupcin; el Servicio de Rentas de Sudfrica le ha calculado un gravamen de $2 millones de dlares en impuestos sin pagar. l y su abogado Nicqui Galaktiou, dicen que los cargos tienen una motivacin poltica. Aunque Galaktiou no haba visto la orden el 21 de septiembre, ella dijo que [Malema] se va a entregar voluntariamente a una comparecencia ante el tribunal la prxima semana. (Guardian.co.uk, septiembre 21) El Congreso del CNA en diciembre debatir sus directrices para los prximos cinco aos y se seleccionar el liderazgo que correr en las elecciones nacionales del 2014. El presidente sudafricano Jacob Zuma buscar un nuevo mandato a pesar de las crticas en su contra sobre haber dado la espalda a los trabajadores, campesinos y jvenes del pas. Zuma y el liderazgo del CNA dicen en su defensa, que han mejorado los servicios en las ciudades y en las zonas rurales, pero que todava hay mucho trabajo por hacer. El prximo congreso del CNA ser seguido en Sur frica y en todo el mundo. La pregunta es si eso dar lugar a cambios fundamentales dentro del estado ms industrializado de frica.

SUDFRICA

Acusado el ex presidente de la Liga Juvenil del CNA

Los problemas internos dentro del CNA y el movimiento sindical han obstaculizado la revolucin democrtica nacional de proceder a una transicin hacia un camino de desarrollo no capitalista. La purga este ao de los principales lderes de la Liga Juvenil del CNA refleja las tensiones dentro de la alianza entre el CNA, COSATU y el Partido Comunista Sudafricano. Julius Malema, ex presidente de la Liga Juvenil del CNA, fue acusado de fomentar

Protestan ley racista de votacin en Pensilvania

Por Betsey Piette Filadel a
El 18 de septiembre, la Corte Suprema de Pensilvania envi la controvertida ley estatal de identificacin de votantes de regreso a un tribunal inferior para una opinin suplementaria, dejando a la ley en un limbo transitorio. Aduciendo que no toleraran la privacin de derechos del votante, la decisin mayoritaria de tres jueces republicanos y uno demcrata dio al juez del Tribunal de la Mancomunidad (Commonwealth) de Pennsylvania Robert E. Simpson Jr. hasta el 2 de octubre para decidir si el Estado tiene el tiempo suficiente para acomodar a los posibles votantes que en la actualidad carecen de la identificacin requerida. Algunos han calificado la divisin de la decisin en 4-2 del tribunal superior como una victoria para los opositores de la ley. Una decisin dividida en 3-3 hubiera dado lugar a que la ley fuera confirmada. Sin embargo, las preocupaciones continan sobre si la gente tendr tiempo para cumplir con la ley si es finalmente confirmada. La ley de Pensilvania requiere que los/as nuevos/as votantes estn registrados/as el 9 de octubre para poder votar en noviembre. Muchos temen que la decisin del tribunal superior solo aada ms confusin a las aguas ya enturbiadas por polticas contradictorias emitidas por el Departamento de Transporte de Pensilvania, el cual ha sido encargado de emitir las nuevas identificaciones. La jueza Debra McCloskey Todd, una de los dos jueces disidentes del Tribunal Supremo que criticaban a sus colegas por no bloquear directamente la ley, declar: Hay amplia evidencia de desorden en el registro. . . . Los ojos de la nacin estn sobre nosotros, y este tribunal ha decidido jugar en lugar de actuar. (Philly.com, 19 de septiembre) Apenas unos das antes de la decisin de la corte, cientos se manifestaron en Filadelfia en contra de la ley que muchos ven como un intento racista de privar de sus derechos a ms de un milln de votantes de Pensilvania predominantemente personas de color que son pobres, ancianos y viven en zonas urbanas, y que son los/as que menos que suelen tener licencias de conducir o pasaportes. Manifestaciones semejantes han tenido lugar en todo el estado desde que la ley fue aprobada en marzo de 2012 bajo el gobernador Tom Corbett y una legislatura estatal dominada por republicanos. Con la excusa de que tena la intencin de evitar el fraude generalizado de votantes, la nueva ley requiere que los/as votantes muestren una identificacin con foto con una fecha de vencimiento para poder votar en noviembre. Para aquellos/ as que no tienen una licencia de conducir de Pensilvania o pasaporte de los EE.UU, el Dept. de Transporte PennDOT, dice que emitir tarjetas de identificacin si las personas presentan certificados originales de nacimiento y tarjetas de seguro social. Un anlisis de los records de conducir a principios de este ao encontr que 9 por ciento de los/as votantes en todo el estado, o 758.939 individuos, no podan ser encontrados en la base de datos de PennDOT. La Unin Estadounidense por las Libertades Civiles, ACLU por sus siglas en ingls, denunci que otros/as 500.000 votantes registrados/as tienen tarjetas de PennDOT vencidas que pudieran ser rechazadas por los observadores electorales. En agosto, la ACLU disputando la ley como un impuesto de votacin del siglo 21, pidi una orden judicial para impedir que la ley sea puesta en efecto, lo que el juez Simpson neg el 15 de agosto. Un da despus de la decisin del Tribunal Supremo, un estudio publicado por el New York Public Interest Research Group report que al menos 28.500 estudiantes de ms de 15 universidades no podran utilizar sus identificaciones escolares actuales para votar en Pensilvania en noviembre porque sus tarjetas de identificacin carecen de una fecha de vencimiento. Si bien muchas de las casi 100 universidades del estado estn emitiendo nuevas tarjetas de identificacin estudiantil o distribuyendo pegatinas con fecha de vencimiento, las universidades en el estudio citado no planean ningn cambio. Un estudio hecho por un profesor de la Universidad de Washington estima que un 37 por ciento de los/as votantes de Pensilvania no estn conscientes de la nueva ley y otro 13 por ciento equivocadamente piensan que tienen una identificacin aceptable.