Workers Resistance

Author: Fight Back

  • Chicago forum on U.S. role in Ukraine: fascists attempt disruption

    Chicago, IL – Under attack from aggressive Ukrainian fascists, 40 anti-war activists held a teach-in here on the unfolding Ukraine crisis and NATO expansion, April 12. An equal sized crowd of Ukrainian reactionaries, one carrying the battle flag of the fascist Ukrainian Insurgent Army and another man wearing a scarf bearing the insignia of the violent neo-Nazi Right Sector, attempted to push their way into the door of the union hall during the speakers’ presentations.

    When they failed to get inside, one of them slipped a Right Sector leaflet through the door. It included language used in Hitler’s Mein Kampf, such as the need for “living space” for Ukrainians. The flyer defines Ukrainians as a “genetic community,” meaning that the Russians and Jews that live there aren’t part of their nation.

    Delivering his remarks over the muffled chanting from outside, Rick Rozoff from the Stop NATO Network detailed the U.S.’s imperialist maneuvers in Ukraine, emphasizing the role of NATO as a vehicle for American foreign policy. Rozoff explained the State Department intervention in Ukraine and arms build up in Eastern Europe as part of a long-term strategy to besiege Russia.

    Speakers from the Anti-War Committee-Chicago included Kait McIntyre, who is running as an anti-war candidate for Boeing’s Board of Directors. McIntyre’s campaign targets the world’s second largest weapons manufacturer, headquartered here in Chicago, which profits off the billions poured into drone warfare and NATO expansion by the U.S. defense budget.

    Sara Flounders of the International Action Center in New York outlined the historical cooperation between the U.S. and fascist forces in Europe. The U.S. propelled these forces into power during the violent breakup of Yugoslavia, aided by the NATO bombardment. She stated that the U.S. actively maintains right-wing opposition movements around the world in order to eliminate governments that assert their national independence.

    With the fascist Svoboda party now occupying prominent positions in the new Ukrainian regime, the anti-war movement must take a strong stand against U.S.-funding of the Kiev junta, whose rise to power, as Rozoff noted, echoed Mussolini’s March on Rome. Alfonso Casal of the American Party of Labor (APL) told attendees about the history of fascism in the Ukraine. The panel was organized by Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Workers World Party (WWP) and APL, with Erich Struch of WWP as chair of the event.

    Many young people attended and contributed to the engaging discussion.

    The participants bravely defied right-wing intimidation to stage this important teach-in, refusing to allow the fascists to shut down the meeting.

  • Tampa forum demands “Legalization for all, stop the deportations”

    Tampa, FL – Over two dozen activists attended a panel discussion here, at the University of South Florida in Tampa. ” Legalization for all, stop the deportations!” read the banner at the front of the room. Professor Masao Suzuki of San Jose, California, an economist and expert on immigration, was the guest speaker.

    Professor Suzuki began the immigration panel with a report on what is happening across the country with immigration. In 2006, the House of Representatives passed the Sensenbrenner Bill, a big attack upon undocumented immigrants. The bill contained harsh consequences for being undocumented, like a mandatory $3000 fine before being deported. Also, the bill had a felony charge and up to three years in prison for friends, family members or good Samaritans housing or aiding undocumented immigrants. The reactionary Sensenbrenner bill sparked the largest marches in U.S. history, with millions upon millions of immigrants and their supporters taking to the streets of every city, big and small. This became known as the Mega-marches of May Day 2006.

    Suzuki spoke about the January 2013 Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR), which was supposed to help immigrants but took a turn for the worse. The Republicans changed it, adding more and more repressive measures, until there was more bad than good in it for the people. The current CIR bill adds more militarization at the border, more stalking at the workplace thru E-verify, more abuse of immigrant workers with the Guest-Worker Visa, an extreme wait of ten years to apply, and higher cost to immigrants.

    “Neither the Republicans nor the Democrats are interested in the passing of CIR at this time. And that is why we are urging those who support CIR to join forces with those pushing to put a stop to the deportations and those who are urging for Deferred Action for All, or DAFA,” says Suzuki. “Not only would DAFA be an immediate relief, it would help stop the over 1100 daily deportations.”

    The professor continued, “The executive order of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals [DACA] in June of 2012 allowed for some young DREAMers to have immediate relief from being deported. If DAFA was issued to the more than 11 million undocumented immigrants, DACA could be an all-inclusive sigh of relief for the undocumented.”

    Professor Suzuki ended his presentation saying, “But we know that DACA currently isn’t applicable to all DREAMers and we know that because of the current criminalizing of the undocumented, many don’t qualify. If DAFA were to be ordered by President Obama, we also know not everyone would be able to obtain DAFA. That is why we push not only for DAFA but also for legalization for all of the undocumented.”

    Veronica Juarez spoke next about the tuition equity campaign of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) in Florida. Tampa Bay SDS joined other chapters to organize for in-state tuition for the undocumented students of Florida. As it currently stands, undocumented Florida students pay 3.3 times as much as other students they went to high school with. SDS organized call-in days, campus speakouts and a big rally in the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee demanding politicians take action and make education affordable and fair.

    “It wasn’t until we started having rallies, speak-outs and actually organizing affected students that we saw bills like Senate Bill 1400,” says Veronica Juarez of Tampa SDS.

    SB 1400 allows a DACA student to pay the same tuition rate as all other resident students of Florida. SB 1400 is well on its way and moving forward, having already passed the Judiciary portion needed to come into effect.

    Juarez pointed out two glaring problems, “The thing is, even though SB 1400 would make tuition more affordable for undocumented students, two bad amendments were sneaked into the law; the first being that the student would on paper, still not be a ‘resident of Florida’ and the second is that a student would have to be enrolled in a Florida high school for 24 consecutive months. This means DACA students who are migrant farm-workers would be most affected. Migrant families are forced to move with the changing crop seasons across the U.S.”

    Marisol Marquez of Raíces en Tampa rounded out the immigration panel saying, “In Florida we saw that the majority of deportations involved the police using driving without a license as an excuse to detain and eventually deport. We wanted to help stop deportations and knew that if we pushed for Florida to issue drivers licenses to all of the undocumented, we could help.”

    Raíces en Tampa is working to unite with other groups around Florida and create a buzz about driver’s licenses for the undocumented. Raíces en Tampa created a campaign page called Driver’s Licenses for All Undocumented – Florida and is seeing a building movement around Florida.

    “We take a table and place it where we know there will be people interested. We walk around and ask people to come show their support!” says Marquez, describing how Raíces en Tampa has been able to go viral in the immigrant areas of Florida. “The people want to be able to drive without looking behind their shoulder and without fearing they will be torn away from the years they have put into trying to create a life for themselves in Florida.”

    The organizing in the Tampa community is a completely new experience for some. “As an undocumented individual, being with Raíces en Tampa gives me not only a sense of identity, but the strength to continue fighting for everyone’s dreams,” says Cristian Cintora, one of the newest members of Raíces en Tampa.

    Those in attendance were able to pick up free literature, buttons, information and even know-your-rights pamphlets from various groups including: Tampa Bay SDS, Raíces en Tampa, and Freedom Road Socialist Organization. Activists gathered for a picture and held up the banner, “Legalization for all, stop the deportations!”

    Marquez finished the event, announcing, “Future actions for Raíces en Tampa include coordinating May Day events in many cities to call for a stop to deportations, legalization for all, and for Florida politicians to issue driver’s licenses to all of the undocumented. We hope everyone can come out or show their support by signing our petition.”

     

  • Extended Unemployment Compensation (EUC) passes Senate

    Washington, DC – Legislation to extend unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless passed the Senate, April 7. Nearly 3 million workers have gone without unemployment insurance since Congress failed to extend benefits last December.

    The bill now moves to the House where it faces opposition from Republicans. House Republican leader Jon Boehner says he considers the extension “unworkable.” Many House Republicans blame the jobless for high unemployment rates.

    The Democratic Party leadership gave Republicans the power to veto an extension of unemployment benefits when they refused to include the measure in last year’s budget compromise.

  • Say no to U.S. Intervention in the Ukraine

    What the U.S. is doing in the Ukraine is nothing short of criminal. The U.S. is backing outright fascists, in an effort to put the country under the domination of the West. The White House and Pentagon are acting as a threat to peace by imposing sanctions on Russia and sending warships and missiles into the region. All progressive people should oppose the ongoing U.S. intervention in the Ukraine.

    In February, reactionary mobs with fascist gangs in the lead managed to bring down the democratically-elected government of President Viktor Yanukovych. This was the culmination of a process promoted by the U.S. and countries of the European Union to bring instability and turmoil to the Ukraine. The U.S. alone spent about $5 billion on the project. The result was there for all of us to see on TV: neo-Nazis trying to destroy monuments to the heroes of World War II and the socialist past and seizing government buildings.

    To say that the movement that ousted President Yanukovych was something progressive or democratic is to confuse right and wrong. Certainly there were legitimate reasons to be dissatisfied with Yanukovych and his oligarch associates, but that does not change the reactionary nature of the anti-government turmoil.

    It is a fact that the leading forces in this right-wing movement, such as Right Sector and Svoboda, have their roots in the most disgusting of Ukraine’s political currents. They see themselves as the political heirs of the Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera, an anti-communist, anti-Semitic butcher who first did Hitler’s bidding and then went on to be a servant of the CIA. Look at the photos of the turmoil in Keiv and other Ukrainian cities; the portrait of Stepan Bandera shows up again and again. In the Ukraine, the White House and its EU allies are supporting ugly nationalists, who preach hatred against other nationalities, especially Russians, and who will carry out the most reactionary of agendas if they are successful in consolidating power.

    Given this reality it is not surprising that the people of Crimea, who are mainly ethnic Russians, voted overwhelmingly to rejoin Russia. They did not want to live under the monsters who roam the halls of government in Kiev. They understand what these vicious chauvinists are all about. After all, one of the first measures passed by Ukraine’s new regime was abolishing the equality of languages.

    It is also understandable and just that people in the eastern Ukraine are rising up and attempting to take things in their own hands. They are standing up to fascists and a U.S./EU power grab.

    The Ukraine is an important prize for the Western imperialist powers, who covet its natural resources and industries and plan to make use of its strategic location. Their goal is the complete encirclement of Russia. Western powers have prepared a large loan from the International Monetary Fund, and in return, the Kiev authorities are preparing austerity measures that will further impoverish the people, starting with a 50% rise in the price of gasoline on May 1.

    Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the U.S. has systematically expanded its aggressive military alliance, NATO, throughout Eastern Europe and the Baltic states. It has reached the point where Russia is close to being surrounded. Russia’s elite and their political representative Vladimir Putin want to expand their sphere of influence and control. As a result they find themselves being drawn into a conflict with the Western imperial powers.

    The U.S. government has no right to complain about the actions of Russia. Its moral authority is less than zero. The U.S. invaded and occupied Iraq and Afghanistan. Along with NATO, it destroyed Libya. It is trying to subjugate Syria and finances the Israeli occupation of Palestine. The list of current U.S. wars and interventions is much longer, but the point is clear enough: Washington DC is the capitol of an empire and those that speak for it are hypocrites and liars.

    All progressive people should oppose sanctions on Russia. We have seen this before. Sanctions are a step towards war. Likewise, we need to be clear about how we assess events in the Ukraine. A victory for fascists and their Western backers would be a setback for people everywhere.

    Here in the U.S. we are under attack by a system that takes away our jobs, exploits us when we work and thrives on inequality and oppression. Our enemy is right here at home.

    End U.S./European Union Intervention in the Ukraine!
    Stop U.S. Funding for Ukrainian Fascists!
    No Sanctions on Russia!

  • Los Angeles Unified School District Board backs call to stop deportations!

    Los Angeles, CA – On April 8, the Los Angeles Unified School District Board (LAUSD) passed a unanimous resolution calling on President Obama to use federal administrative action to suspend any further deportations. The resolution, introduced by LAUSD board member Bennett Kayser, is part of the growing Protect Our Families Campaign that has already gotten several resolutions passed by the city councils in Los Angeles, Carson, Santa Ana and Cudahy. Similar resolutions have also been approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the City Council of Berkeley and in Chicago, Illinois.

    Board Member Bennett Kayser stated, “We have a broken immigration system that is harming families and children in this school district. On their behalf, I authored this motion calling on President Obama to immediately cease the deportations that are separating parents from their children.” LAUSD is the second largest public school district in the nation, with over 650,000 students. 70% are Latino of Mexican origin. Bennett Kayser is a strong advocate of public education and has fought against attempts by the privatization movement to take over LAUSD and attack the teachers union.

    A key speaker in support of the school board resolution was Los Angeles City Council Member Gil Cedillo, who spearheaded the resolution.

    The members of the Protect Our Families-Save the Children Campaign include Father Richard Estrada of Jovenes Inc., Angela Sanbrano of CARECEN, Armando Vázquez-Ramos of California-México Studies Center, and Nativo Lopez of Hermandad Mexicana. They urge the public to participate and be present at future presentations to protect migrant families.

    Carlos Montes was present in the crowd to show solidarity and invite all to participate in the May 1 march and rally in Los Angeles, calling for Legalization for All and to Stop the Deportations. The march starts at 4:00 p.m. at Olympic and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles.

  • New York Local 804 Teamsters fight back, force UPS to rehire drivers

    New York, NY – Since the Feb. 26 walkout at the UPS facility in Maspeth, Queens, Teamsters Local 804 and UPS traded blows in a critical struggle over the fate of 250 workers and their families. Workers walked out to defend a union activist and 24-year worker, Jairo Reyes, after UPS walked him off the job. The company authorized Reyes to start early in the weeks leading up to Feb. 26, but when he filed a grievance over UPS abusing seniority provisions in the contract, the manager went back and claimed he was never authorized to start early, and ironically tried to fire Reyes for “dishonesty.”

    The struggle that exploded over UPS’ abuse of their workforce and the unjust firing of union activists ended with the company giving in to the demands of Local 804 and the legion of supporters that they assembled nationwide. Today, April 9, UPS settled with the Executive Board of Local 804, and agreed to rehire all the fired workers, including Jairo Reyes, and committed to treating workers with dignity and respect.

    Richard Pawlikowski, a veteran driver who participated in the walkout, spoke about the conditions in Queens, “In our contract, UPS agreed to treat us with dignity and respect at all times. They don’t even do it for five minutes. They treat us like criminals. It finally reached a boiling point.”

    Pawilkowski was one of the 36 out of the 250 Queens drivers who were walked off the job by supervisors, and told they were fired. When asked about how he felt after being fired by the company he gave so much for, he said, “I walked out with my pride. I didn’t do anything wrong. I had a clean conscience. I’ve grieved hundreds of abuses by the company, and I have no discipline in my file.”

    After the walkout, UPS issued working terminations to the 250 participants. In response, Local 804 launched a national campaign of support that included gathering over 120,000 names on petitions, solidarity from hundreds of local unions and aggressive support from a wide range of politicians. The union held several rallies, and many of the fired drivers even went and discussed the situation with their customers, who demanded UPS rehire their delivery drivers. As support and solidarity continued to spread, UPS caved.

    Driver Tom Oliver, who participated in the walkout, spoke about the union power that ultimately brought UPS to the table. “It’s a sweet victory that only happened because we stuck together and we got tremendous support. Even with all the stress that came with the walkout and the aftermath, it brought attention to a lot of problems with our facility that I hope can be corrected.”

    Oliver, a committed union fighter, and family man with a wife and two children, joined the walkout and stood up for justice despite the threats of retaliation from UPS. “I think the excessive overtime, the unfair discipline, the micromanaging and the outright bully tactics took a toll on all of us. The unjust firings and, specifically, the firing of Jairo Reyes was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

    After a battle that inspired thousands of union members across the country, Local 804 members look forward to resting easy for a night after several weeks of uncertainty. The message from the Local 804 website read: “Tonight is first and foremost about the 250 drivers and their families. We congratulate them on standing together through this ordeal and winning their return to work with respect and dignity.”

    Dustin Ponder is a union activist and member of Teamsters 804.

  • Milwaukee based People’s Books Co-op boycotts Israel

    Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Milwaukee Palestine Solidarity Coalition.

    The Milwaukee Palestine Solidarity Coalition is celebrating a major victory this week as the People’s Books Cooperative bookstore joined a growing list of organizations that endorse the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.

    The People’s Books Co-op board voted in favor of “instituting a consumer, cultural and academic boycott of the Israeli state due to significant human rights concerns involved with Israel’s policies against the Palestinian community,” according to a statement released on their website (http://tinyurl.com/kcuubky).

    People’s Books becomes the second cooperatively owned business in the United States to sign on to BDS, behind the Olympia, Washington Food Co-op whose endorsement won a decisive court battle after being challenged by pro-Israel Zionists.

    People’s Books joins the likes of Nelson Mandela, Naomi Klein, Stephen Hawking, Stevie Wonder, Alice Walker, Roger Waters, Elvis Costello, Gil Scott-Heron, Judith Butler, The American Studies Association, and many others who have signed on to the Palestinian call to boycott, divest, and sanction Israel. The BDS movement was launched by Palestinian civil society in a 2005 call to the international community.

    The People’s Books board responded to the call to BDS by conducting a survey of their membership which resulted in overwhelming support for the boycott proposal. Members of the Milwaukee Palestine Solidarity Coalition advocated for their proposal before the board of People’s Books, who previously did not carry any Israeli products. We applaud the members and board of People’s Books for their principled stance on social justice issues, and their strong stance in support of Palestinian human rights, especially while facing the economic difficulties inherent to operating a small local cooperative business.

    The BDS movement is a growing, non-violent threat to Israel’s ability to continue its illegal occupation of Palestine which includes settlement construction, home demolitions, and illegal detention of Palestinian civilians. The Israeli state is scrambling to buy itself a better image abroad by throwing millions of dollars toward Israeli propaganda events in the US which deceptively present Israel as a liberal paradise with diverse culture and a healthy democracy. Israel’s propaganda strategy places college students, social justice activists, academic and cultural workers, and progressive people on the front lines. But those very people are increasingly throwing their support behind the cause of Palestinian liberation.

    The People’s Books Co-op stands as an example for all progressive people to follow as we work to build a better world that is free of war and apartheid, and based on the principles of social justice and cooperation.

    In Solidarity,
    The Milwaukee Palestine Solidarity Coalition

  • Chicago protest says: ‘Turkey, NATO, hands off Syria!’

    Chicago, IL – 100 Syrians gathered here, April 5, in front of the Turkish consulate to demand “Turkey, NATO, hands off Syria!” The group also called out their love for their homeland in Arabic, chanting “Tahya Suria!” Long live Syria!

    The incident that caused this international day of protest in places with Syrian and Armenian immigrant communities is an attack on the village of Kessab in northwestern Syria. Kessab is a mainly Armenian Christian community, which was attacked by the Turkish-backed terrorist group Al Nusra Front in late March. Thousands have fled Kessab, and the fear of a repeat of the Armenian genocide has caused even Armenian American Kim Kardashian to speak out.

    Mark Ahmad of the Syrian American Forum addressed the protest. “We want Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey to stop supporting and sending the terrorists to attack our motherland. Every one of you must inform your neighbors and coworkers and contact their legislators with the message that our U.S. policy should not support repeated aggression against Syria by the government of Turkey.”

    Joe Iosbaker of the Anti-war Committee-Chicago addressed the crowd. “We have to oppose the U.S. and its junior partners in NATO, which include Turkey; the U.S. puppets in the Gulf States; and of course Israel, the main provocateur and biggest cheerleader for war in Syria.” Iosbaker also called for the Syrians to support the Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh, who is facing charges by the U.S. Attorney in Detroit for her work in the Palestinian community in Chicago.

     

  • Asheville protest demands end to deportations

    Asheville, NC – Amidst the backdrop of continuing congressional inaction on immigration reform, over 100 community members gathered at Saint Lawrence Basilica and marched to the courthouse, demanding an end to deportations and full legalization for all families. The Asheville chapter of Coalición de Organizaciones Latino-Americanas (COLA) joined over 80 cities taking part in a National Day of Action to End Deportations on April 5, organized by the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON).

    With patience worn thin from discarded political promises, the marchers chanted “Hey Obama, don’t deport my mama!” Protesters held signs that said “Liberation not deportation” and “ICE out of our communities,” with the hashtags #Not1More and #2Million2Many. Several speakers relayed their experiences dealing with the deportation of family members.

    “More than 1000 people are being deported every day and President Obama has the authority and the power – he can definitely do what’s right,” said Bruno Hinojosa, a member of COLA. Speakers explained that, despite promises to take action on behalf of immigrants, President Obama has instead functioned as deporter-in-chief.

  • Senate vote on Extended Unemployment Compensation (EUC) expected Monday

    Washington, DC – A vote is expected on legislation to restore Extended Unemployment Compensation this Monday, April 7. The bill, which calls for Congress to bring back unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless, has faced repeated delays from Senate Republicans, but is expected to pass.

    The impasse in the Senate was broken when a small group of Republican senators decided to back the effort to restore the benefits.

    When the Democratic leadership in Congress failed to insist on the inclusion of Extended Unemployment Compensation in last December’s budget compromise, they in effect gave Republicans veto power over benefits for the unemployed.

    After the passage of the jobless bill in the Senate, the legislation needs to pass in the House. Most House Republicans are hostile to measures that assist working people. Many of the Democrats have gone along with cuts to social programs.

    More than 2 million workers have lost their benefits since extended unemployment insurance expired at the end of last year.

    Steff Yorek, a leader of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), states, “The capitalist system is a failed system that is unable to meet people’s needs. It serves the rich and so do many of the Washington, D.C. politicians. It’s time to turn up the heat on Congress.”