Freedom Party Wins
MILITANT Legal Ballot Status in
Lowndes
County
Vote
Officials Demand
THE
Published in the Interest of the Working People
V o l. 31 - No. 42
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
P rice 100
B y John Benson
Death for Blanco
Hugo B lanco has once again
been placed u nde r th re a t o f exe­
cution. The sudden tu rn in the
case o f the P e ruvia n peasant lead­
er, w ho was sentenced Sept. 8 to
25 years in prison, to be served
in the g rim island fortress o f El
F rontón, came N ov. 4 w hen the
L im a papers announced the new
m ove b y the prosecution.
The defense had appealed the
savage sentence passed b y a m ili­
ta ry trib u n a l in Tacna. The ap­
peal is now before the Supreme
C o uncil o f M ilita r y Justice. This
body o f m ilita r y o fficers was to
re vie w the Tacna co u rt record be­
tw een Nov. 7 and 12 and then
re nder its ve rd ict. The date fo r
th is was n o t announced.
The prosecution answered the
legal moves o f the defense b y de­
m a nding th a t the appeals body
sentence H ugo B lanco to death,
alleging th a t he was g u ilty of
“ prem editated m u rd e r.” In the
tr ia l a t Tacna, w here the m ilita r y
police acted as both prosecution
t o d judge, the prosecuting a tto r­
ney d id n o t ask fo r death b u t fo r
25 years in prison, A consulting
judge a t the Tacna tr ia l, Fernán­
dez H en an i, recommended the
death penalty, b u t the c o u rt did
h o t fo llo w his advice in v ie w o f
the Widespread support H ugo
B lá n co was receivin g on an in te r­
n a tio n a l scale.
The prosecution hinged its a r­
guments on th e fa c t th a t three
policem en Were k ille d d u rin g ef­
fo rts Of th e P eruvia n m ilita r y to
repress the peasant m ovem ent
headed b y H ugo Blanco. A c tu a lly ,
H ugo B lanco is the m a in p o litic a l
p risoner in the hands o f the
B elaúnde governm ent. He and
28 others Were held in prison at
A re q u ipa w ith o u t charges fo r
m ore th a n three years u n til the
a u th o ritie s fe lt th a t th e p o litic a l
atmosphere in P eru made i t pos­
sible to dispose o f th is courageous
p o litic a l opponent w ith o u t touch­
in g o ff a m ajor upheaval.
T he danger fo r H ugo B lanco is
now even g ra ve r than a t the open­
in g o f the Tacna tria l. U nder
P eru’s fo rm e r m ilita r y code, an
u n ju s t decision b y the Supreme
C ouncil o f M ilita r y Justice could
be appealed to the Supreme
C ourt. La st year, however, d u rin g
a ra b id M cC arthy-type w itc h h u n t,
the p a rlia m e n t enacted a new
code. T h is bars any appeal fro m
the decisions handed dow n b y the
Supreme Council.
To save H ugo Blanco, an im ­
m ediate m o b iliza tio n o f in te rn a ­
tio n a l support is required. Student
organizations and sectors o f the
iiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiitiiiitiiiiiuiiiiiiihiiiiiiiiiiiiu
NEW YORK PROTEST DEMONSTRA­
TION demanding amnesty for Huge
Blanco has been called by the U.S.
Committee for Justice to Latin
American Political Prisoners. The
demonstration will be held a t the
UN building, a t 42nd and 43rd Sts.
on First Ave., from 4 to £ p.m. »■
TUESDAY. NOV. 22.
Iimirtiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiliiiiiiiniiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiftiiiiiifiiiiiii
la b o r m ovem ent in P eru w ill do
w h a t th e y can on a n a tio n a l scale;
b u t th e y face a b ig obstacle in
the w itc h h u n t atmosphere s till
p re v a ilin g in the country. In ad­
d itio n , the defense is seriously
hampered b y la ck o f funds.
The N a tio n al E xecutive Com­
m itte e o f the Frente de Izquierda
R evolucionario [L e ft R evo lu tio n ­
a ry
F ro n t],
the
organization
headed b y H ugo Blanco, has ap­
pealed fo r dem onstrations o f soli­
d a rity . D eclarations pro te stin g the
new th re a t to Hugo B la n co’s life
and asking th a t he be granted an
im m ediate amnesty should be
cabled to the Consejo Supremo de
J u s ticia, L im a , Per u. S im ila r
cables should be sent to Presidente
Fernando Belaunde T e rry , L im a ,
Peru. Copies o f these should be
air-m ailed to Hugo B lanco’s at­
torney, D r. A lfre d o B a ttila n a , A v ,
N icola de P ierola, 96d; O ficin a
215, L im a , Peru.
S im ila r protests and appeals fo r
(Continued on Pace 3)
Move to K ill Blanco Protested
[T h e fo llo w in g is th e te x t o f a cable sent N ov. 11 to th e
president o f P e ru b y th e U .S . C o m m ittee fo r Justice to L a tin
A m erican P o litic a l Prisoners.]
To: P re sid eh t F ernando Belaunde T e rry
L ima, Peru
D ear M r. P resident:
W e W ould lik e to re m in d y o u o f the recent p e titio n sent
b y 400 scholars fro m N ew Y o rk C ity asking clem ency fo r Hugo
Blanco. In a dd itio n, w e kn o w th a t o th e r messages w ere sent
fro m Europe, Canada and A sia, a ll concerned about H ugo Blanco
and h is companions.
T herefore, w hen w e hear th a t th e Suprem e C ou ncil of
M ilita r y Justice is being asked to re -in s ta te th e death p e n a lty
w e are shocked. B lanco was n o t a m ilita r y m an and should
have been tr ie d before a c iv il co urt. T h a t is h ow th in g s are
done in m ost c iv iliz e d nations. In a d d itio n , i t is p la in th a t the
death o f Blanco w i ll n o t stop social change in P eru. H is death
how ever, w o u ld b ra n d his executioners as b e re ft o f h u m a n ity
and sanity. O n ly fe a r w o u ld d riv e anyone to the insane con­
clusion th a t B lanco’s death w i l l h a lt social m ovem ent in Peru.
t)o n o t a llo w P e ru to be disgraced b y th e w an to n m u rd e r o f a
m an w h o has desired o n ly th a t ju s tic e be done the people o f
Peru.
F ree H ugo B lanco and his companions.
F e lix J. M c G o w a n
E xe c u tiv e Secretary
U .S . C om m ittee fo r Justice to
L a tin A m e ric an P o litic a l Prisoners
LO W N D ES C O U N TY , A la. —
On Nov. 8, the Lowndes C ounty
Freedom O rganization
(L C F O )
became a recognized p o litic a l
p a rty b y p o llin g 41 percent o f the
vote fo r co u n ty offices. T w e n ty
percent is needed to achieve rec­
o g nition as a p o litic a l p a rty . The
LC FO is w id e ly-kn o w n as the
B la ck P anther P a rty because o f its
symbol.
O ver 1,600 Negro voters cast
th e ir ballots fo r the B la ck Pan­
ther. T h is compares w ith the 900
w ho attended a mass m eeting in
M a y to nom inate the new inde­
pendent b lack pa rty.
A lth o u g h about 500 Negroes
fa ile d to vote as a re s u lt o f in ­
tim id a tio n and fe a r o f economic
reprisals, a t least 80 percent of
Negroes w h o d id vote p u lle d the
le ve r fo r the B la c k P a n th e r in
spite o f the fa c t th a t m any o f them
w ere being w atched b y W hite
p la n ta tio n owners.
The vote fo r the B la c k P anther
candidates, according to the in ­
fo rm a tio n available in Low ndes on
NoV. 11, was as fo llo w s: fo r she­
r if f , Sidney Logan, Jr., (P an­
th e r), 1,643 to 2,320 fo r F ra n k
R yals (D e m o c ra t); fo r coroner,
E m ery Ross (P a n th e r), 1,610 to
2.265 fo r the D em ocrat; fo r ta x
assessor, A lic e Moore, 1,604 to
2.265 fo r the D em ocrat; fo r ta x
collector, F ra n k M iles, Jr., 1,603
to 2,268 fo r the D em ocrat; fo r
board o f education, R obert Logan,
1,664 to 1,937 fo r the R epublican;
fo r board o f education, John H in ­
son, 1,66ft to 1,966 fo r the Repub­
lica n ; fo r board o f education, Mrs.
W illie Mae S trickla n d , 1,600 to
2,170 fo r the Democrat. W here the
tw o R epublicans ran, the Demo­
crats offered no opposition.
Second V ic to ry
Leaders and supporters o f the
p a rty I ta lke d to view ed the re­
sults as another step fo rw a rd . B e­
com ing an o ffic ia lly recognized
p a rty was the second m a jo r v ic ­
to ry fo r the p a rty th is ye a r — the
fir s t was getting on the b a llo t in
the M ay p rim a ry . M r. Charles
Sm ith, president o f the Lowndes
C ounty C h ristia n M ovem ent fo r
H um an R ights, said: “ I th in k the
cat d id w e ll fo r the fir s t tim e out.
I t ’s s till a young cat. W a it to see
i t can do when it's fu ll-g ro w n .”
(T he residents o f Low ndes fre ­
q u e n tly re fe r to the B la c k Pan­
th e r as the “ cat” ).
Because so fe w Negroes in
Lowndes have cars, a mass trans­
po rta tio n n e tw o rk was organized
to b rin g Negroes to the polls.
T h ro u g h o u t the county, there
were perhaps 50 pick-up points.
Cars, tru c k s — a n yth in g th a t
could be used to h elp — drove
back and fo rth between the polls
and these pick-up points.
I began the day at the p a rty ’s
campaign headquarters, and every
New York SWP Vote
N E W Y O R K — As w e w e n t
to press th e N e w Y o r k Board
of Elections was slated to
m ake av a ila b le th e elections
returns fo r N e w Y o r k C ity ,
in clud ing th e gub ern ato rial
vote of th e Socialist W o rkers
P a rty . I f th e canvass is m ade
as scheduled, w e w i l l rep o rt
th e vote in o u r n e x t issue.
C om plete state returns w ill
not be av a ila b le fo r several
m ore weeks.
■
R E A D Y T O V O T E . Low ndes C ounty residents w a it in fro n t of
F reedom O rgan izatio n headquarters to be d riv e n to polls.
(
fe w m inutes, a carload w o u ld pass
by on th e ir w a y to the polls.
W h ile people w ere W aiting fo r
rides a t th e headquarters, SNCC
and B la ck P anther w orkers w o u ld
make sure th a t everyone knew
how to use the v o tin g machines.
M odel machines w ere used to show
people how to vote. M a n y people
w aited fo r over an h o u r e ith e r a t
the headquarters o r a t pick-up
points.
A t the polls themselves, the
Freedom O rganization had organ­
ized to help voters. Each p o ll had
a w atcher whose m a in task was
to m ake sure th a t e very Negro
knew how to vote, o r to arrange
help fo r those w ho needed it. A n y
v o te r in the county can help one
other voter. I f no such person is
around, the election o ffic ia ls can
help, b u t th a t w o u ld always mean
a t least one w h ite in the vo tin g
booth w ith the Negro voter. In
o rder to prevent this, a m em ber
o f the p a rty asked each Negro, as
he o r she came to vote, i f they
needed help. I f th e y did, the n e x t
Negro in lin e w h o was able be­
came the helper.
The poll-w atchers also had the
d iffic u lt jo b o f checking the w h ite
voters. The m a in task here was
to e lim inate th e “ graveyard vo te”
(dead w h ite people have had th e ir
ballots counted in the past) and
catch the people w ho have moved
out o f the county. Each w atcher
was th o ro u g h ly brie fe d on the
procedure fo r challenging voters.
A challenged vo te r could n o t vote
on the m achine, b u t had to use a
paper b a llo t, and had to sign an
a ffid a v it.
A b o u t 11 a.m., I w e n t to the
p o llin g place in Benton, an area
w here the B la ck P anthe r is strong.
A t th a t tim e, o ver 200 Negroes
w ere gathered a t the polls and
o n ly a h a n d fu l o f w h ite s w ere
there. The slogan o f the new par*
ty was “ P u ll the le ve r fo r th e Pan­
ther, and then go on home.” (T h is
m eant vote a s tra ig h t B la ck Pan­
th e r tic k e t.) B u t here, the slogan
became in fa ct: “ P u ll the le v e r fo r
the P anther and stay around to
help.” The vote fo r s h e riff in th is
pre cinct was a p p ro xim a te ly 635
fo r B la ck P an ther candidate, Sid­
ney Logan, to 265 fo r th e in cu m ­
bent D em ocratic s h e riff, Ryals.
The a ttitu d e at th is one p o llin g
place illu s tra te s the purpose and
aims o f the Freedom O rganiza­
tio n . Negroes in Low ndes have not
voted fo r n e a rly 100 years — they
w ere not going to m ake v o tin g
(Continued on PAge 3)
A Racist Decision
-------------------------------------
A N E D IT O R IA L
-------------------------------------
A n observer o f th e A m e ric a n p o litic a l scene once said th a t
th e Suprem e C o u rt fo llo w s the e lection re tu rn s. T h is w o u ld &P“
pear to a p p ly to the Suprem e C o u rt’s N ov. 14 action u p h o ld in g
th e “ trespass” convictions o f 32 c iv il- r ig h ts dem onstrators. F o l*
lo w in g on th e heels o f th e N ov. 8 elections, w he re racism scored
s ig n ific a n t gains a t the polls, the u tte r ly re a c tio n a ry Suprem e
C o u rt decision strikes a legal b lo w at the b la c k freedom m ove­
m en t and is a cu rb on the c o n s titu tio n a l r ig h t o f fre e assembly.
M o tiv a tin g his dissent in th e fiv e -fo u r decision, Justice W il­
lia m D ouglas declared: “ I t is a great and w o n d e rfu l police-sta te
d octrine .”
T he decision ra n squarely in the face o f a w ho le series o f
leg al precedents established over the past fiv e years in w h ic h
the h ig h c o u rt u p h eld th e rig h ts o f S outhern dem onstrators.
T he present r u lin g uph eld the co n victio n o f 32 b la ck students
fro m F lo rid a A & M U n iv e rs ity in Tallahassee w ho gathered in
the d riv e w a y o f the loca l ja il to p ro test the b ru ta l tre a tm e n t o f
fe llo w students w ho had been arrested fo r opposing J im C ro w
a t a local theater.
The Suprem e C o u rt has p ro vid e d one m ore c o n firm a tio n th a t
b la c k people m u st b u ild th e ir ow n independent p o litic a l pow er
i f th e y are to s trik e o ff the chains th a t b in d them .
Page Two
T H E M IL IT A N T
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
Answ er to Supermarkets
Don't Blame the Farmers!
B y E d S m ith
Federal m ediators announced
M ich . GE claim s th a t the g rie v ­
on N ov. 11 th a t the in te rn a tio n a l
ances constitute “ an a tte m p t to
B rotherh ood o f E le ctric a l W orkers
re-open the n a tio n a l wage agree­
had reached te n ta tive agreement m ent.”
w ith W estinghouse on a new threeThe local union has re p lie d th a t
ye a r contract. The term s appear — since a local contract hasn’t
s im ila r to those accepted b y o ther been signed a t the H o lla n d p la n t
unions w ith m em bers a t West­ — the w o rke rs are free to s trik e
inghouse. T hey are said to include
over the issues, i f the grievances
three annual wage increases o f
are n o t sa tis fa c to rily resolved.
» * *
fiv e percent; a lim ite d cost-of-liv­
in g escalator clause; and im p ro ve d
B o th GE and W estinghouse have
pension, insurance and vacation
file d charges w ith the N a tio n al
provisions.
L a b o r R elations B oard, accusing
There are co n tra d icto ry reports
the A F L C IO o f “ u n fa ir la b o r
as to w h e th e r th e proposed con­ practices.” The charges are based
tra c t w ill cover a ll 14,000 IB E W
on a cla im th a t i t is “ ille g a l” to
mem bers in volved . U p to now,
establish a b a rg a in in g co a litio n
o n ly a sm all p o rtio n o f the m em­ among un io n in v o lv e d in contract
be rship at re p a ir plants has been
negotiations w ith the corporations.
covered b y a single na tio n a l agree­
A t an N L R B hearing on the
m ent. A s a result, the IB E W says,
charges, George M eany te stifie d
average h o u rly wages fo r its mem­ th a t he had n o t personally directed
bers are 59 cents below those of 1 the un io n strategy and had not
W estinghouse w orke rs belonging kn o w n a n yth in g about the course
to o ther unions. W hatever the
o f negotiations. M eany is the m an
scope o f the proposed contract, i t
who,, upon his election to the pres­
does n<jt settle local disputes; these
idency o f the A F L -C IO , made the
m ust s till be resolved a t the in ­ boast:
d iv id u a l plants. Some previous
“ I never w e n t on s trik e in m y
lo ca l contracts, in v o lv in g 3,800 life , ne ve r ra n a s trik e in m y life ,
w orkers, do n o t exp ire u n til m idnever ordered anyone else to ru n
December.
a s trik e in m y life , never had any­
The announced settlem ent came th in g to do w ith a p ic k e t lin e .”
*
•
*
a fte r negotiations had been moved,
a t the governm ent’s request, fro m
On Nov. 4 some 1,400 IB E W
P itts b u rg h to W ashington. H eavy
members s tru c k 13 shipyards, fro m
pressures w ere p u t on un io n nego­ San Francisco to Seattle. Mem bers
tia to rs th rough propaganda fro m
o f o ther unions have la rg e ly
the Johnson a d m in istra tio n th a t honored the p ic k e t lines, despite
th e IB E W s trik e was h a vin g “ an
demands fro m top un io n bureau­
im p a ct on the defense e ffo rt of crats th a t th e y abide b y th e ir “ no­
th e na tio n.”
s trik e ” contracts. A ro u n d 11,000
R a tific a tio n o f the proposed con­ are o ff the job.
A fte r
draw n-out negotiations
tra c t depends on a vote o f ac­
since th e ir contract e xp ire d over
ceptance b y the IB E W m em ber­
16 m onths ago, the s trik e rs are
ship. Top o fficia ls o f th e union
have been pressing fo r rank-and- dem anding wage increases o f fiv e
file approval o f the settlem ent percent a year in a tw o-year con­
term s, so as to end the w a lk o u t tra c t, re tro a ctive to J u ly 1, 1965.
b y thousands o f its mem bers at This is a red u ctio n fro m th e ir
o rig in a l demand fo r a raise o f 70
Westinghouse. They w ere also said
to assume th a t there w o u ld be cents an hour. T h e ir present
fu r th e r postponem ent o f a th re a t­ jo u rn e ym a n ’s ra te is $3.50 an hour.
* * *
ened w a lk o u t b y 2,400 w o rke rs at
G overnm ent spokesmen have at­
th e Westinghouse aerospace p la n t
tacked the s trik e on the p re te x t
in B altim o re . A lth o u g h the local
co n tra ct had expired a t the p la n t, th a t i t “ poses a p o te n tia l danger
w h ic h
m anufactures
radar-op­ to the n a tio n ’s defense needs.”
T h is anti-union propaganda is
erated arm am ents controls, i t had
been exem pted fro m the general based on a contention th a t the
yards re p a ir ships h a u lin g goods
IB E W w alkout.
A fte r the na tio n a l settlem ent to V ietnam .
F ederal m ediators have asked
was announced, IB E W L o ca l 1805
th a t negotiations be tra n sfe rre d
called a s trik e on N ov. 13 a t the
B a ltim o re p la n t. The local, almost fro m the W est Coast to W ashing­
h a lf o f whose members are w om ­ ton, and th a t the s trik e rs re tu rn
to w o rk w h ile the ta lk s proceed.
en doing assembly w o rk , rejected
th e com pany’s “ fin a l o ffe r.” L o ca l U n io n spokesmen have said th e y
spokesmen said the w o rke rs w a n t w ill go to W ashington fo r 48
“ h ig h e r cash wages,” instead o f hours, adding th a t th e y w o u ld then
p u ttin g stress on im pro ve d pen­ have to re tu rn to the scene o f
the strike.
sions, insurance and vacations.
*
*
*
The B a ltim o re strikers are c a ll­
The W a ll Street J o u rn a l reports
in g fo r a tw o-year contract, as
“ lin g e rin g
stoppages”
at
against the proposed three-year th a t
A rm s tro n g C o rk Co. p la n ts in
te rm ; an im m ediate general wage
h ik e o f 36 cents an hour, retroac­ B ra in tre e , Mass., and M o n tre a l are
tiv e to Oct. 31; and fu rth e r gen­ causing a d ro p in d ivid e n d pay­
e ra l pay increases o f seven per­ ments on company stock.
A rm s tro n g faces eight, f u ll la ­
cent on June 1, 1967, and Feb. 1,
1968.
b o r contract negotiations in 1967,
* • »
plus wage-reopeners, at a ll b u t tw o
L o ca l 931 o f th e IU E (A F L o f its plants.
A company o ffic ia l is quoted as
C IO ) has file d 73 grievances,
saying th a t 1967 “ w il l be a rough,
m a in ly over wage rates, a t the
tough year.”
G eneral E le ctric p la n t in H o lla n d ,
I W a n t to Help
I want to help fulfill the quota in the $ 18,000
Socialist Fund. Enclosed is my contribution of.............
NAME
___ _____________________________________________________________
STREET
______ _____________________________ _____ _____________________
C I T Y __________________________ Z I P _____________ S T A T E _______________
Send check or money o rd e r to :
SOCIALIST WORKERS PARTY
873 Broadway
New York, N. Y. 10003
Food prices are going to keep
going up in 1967 and the ta ke home pay o f farm ers is going to
go dow n. These tw o predictions
w ere made a t the annual outlook
conference o f the U.S. Dept, of
A g ric u ltu re in W ashington, N ov.
13. T hey are e xtre m e ly s ig n ific a n t
n o t o n ly because o f th e ir w a rn in g
to housewives about fu r th e r price
rises th a t can be expected in the
fu tu re , b u t because th e y to ta lly
dem olish one of the superm arkets’
fa v o rite argum ents.
T h is is the c la im th a t farm ers
are “ e q u a lly to blam e” fo r high
food costs w ith the food chains
themselves. I t reveals th a t u n lik e
the superm arkets, the sm all fa rm ­
ers are trapped between in fla tio n ­
a ry forces, and do n o t p ro fit fro m
the general ris in g o f prices. “ T o ta l
fa rm p ro d u ctio n expenses w ill
p ro b a b ly reach a new record,” the
A g ric u ltu re D epartm ent noted.
In te re s t U p
M oreover, “ prices p aid b y fa rm ­
ers are expected to continue th e ir
persistent uptre n d o f the past de­
cade,” and another “ substantial in ­
crease is in prospect fo r such over­
head costs as interest, taxes and
depreciation charges.” The re su lt
w ill be th a t fa rm e rs’ to ta l n e t in ­
come w il l decline b y about fiv e
p e r cent in 1967.
H ig h interest rates w h ic h the
sm all farm ers have to pay on th e ir
mortgages and on o ther debts, and
h ig h taxes, are the d ire c t re s u lt
o f the D em ocratic a d m in is tra tio n ’s
in fla tio n a ry fin a n c in g o f the w a r
in V ietnam . T h e y are n o t th e fa u lt
o f the farm ers, and a num ber of
polls have shown th a t i f you p u t
the question to farm ers, they
w o u ld ju s t as soon have the U.S.
get out o f the w a r.
s jim u im in im iiii
The general u p trend o f prices
caused b y the w a r is h ittin g fa rm ­
ers fro m another direction , re ­
vealed b y a N ov. 10 W a ll S treet
J o u rn a l re p o rt fro m W ashington.
This showed th a t the re ta il prices
o f a g ric u ltu ra l m achinery had
taken a w hopping 3.9 percent ju m p
between A ugu st 1965 and A ugust
1966, and th a t a fu r th e r 4 percent
ju m p in fa rm equipm ent prices
could be anticipated in 1967. These
costs w ill also have to be absorbed
b y farm ers and th e y w il l be re­
flected in h ig h e r food prices.
Monopoly
B u t there is a b ig difference
between the sm all farm ers and the
superm arkets as fa r as raising
prices is concerned. The super­
m arkets have a v irtu a l m onopoly
on food re ta ilin g . T hey are n o t
trapped b y in fla tio n a ry price pres­
sures — th e y p r o fit fro m them . I f
th e ir costs go up, there is no thing
to prevent them fro m raising
prices m ore than enough to com­
pensate fo r increased cost.
The sm all fa rm e r — lik e the
average consumer — is caught in
between. He is w a lle d -in b y the
banks, fed eral governm ent taxes,
and h ig h -p rice -e q u ip m e n t m an­
ufa cturers on one side, and the
food monopolies on the other. T h a t
is w h y food prices can go up, as
the A g ric u ltu re D epartm ent p re ­
dicts, b u t fa rm e rs’ income can go
down.
There is another im p o rta n t fa ct
w h ic h the food chains t r y to cover
up. This is th a t m any o f the p rod ­
ucts the y sell are owned b y them
fro m the ground to the re ta il
counter. They ow n the farm s, they
are the wholesalers, and th e y are
the retailers. T his allow s the m to
m ake huge m arkups on fin a l food
prices a t the same tim e th ey com -
SO CIALIST FUND
1 St. Louis Forges Ahead I
.
B y M a rv e l Scholl
F u n d D ire c to r
The P a r t y - B u i l d i n g
Fund
launched b y the S ocialist W o rk ­
ers P a rty to ru n fro m Oct. 1
thro u g h Dec. 31, is e xa ctly h a lf
over. The scoreboard shows o nly
41 percent collected b u t w e are
ce rta in th a t b y the n e x t issue, w e
w ill be on schedule.
T h is w eek the N ew Y o rk branch
deserves special credit. T h is liv e ­
ly , y o u th fu l b ra iA h raised its p e r­
centage b y 15 points th is w eek and
clim bed tw o places on the score­
board. Reba A u b re y, th e fu n d d i­
rector, has introduced a ne w idea
w h ic h is g e ttin g excellent results
— a w e e kly scoreboard sent to a ll
members w ith th e c ity le tte r.
St. Louis also took a b ig leap —
to the top!
Fannie C., the M inneapolis-S t.
P a u l fu n d d ire cto r, w rite s th a t
th e y expect to go over the to p o f
th e ir quota b y a t least $200.
A n d Boston, whose fu n d dire c­
to r, G lo ria G., was pessimistic in
the beginning, has v e ry h a p p ily
fo u n d th a t she was w rong. She had
said th a t p ro b a b ly Boston w o u ld
have to lag back u n til people there
collected th e ir Xm as bonuses —
b u t th a t d id n ’t happen. Boston is
in second place.
T h a t Xm as bonus business gave
me an idea. W hat be tte r Xmas
present could any reader o f The
M ilita n t give h im se lf than using
p a rt o f the bonus to m ake a dona­
tio n to th e SWP — the organiza­
tio n w h ic h is fig h tin g to m ake a
b e tte r w o rld fo r everyone? You
w o u ld n o t have to g if t w ra p i t
e ith er. Just use the coupon on this
page.
Send y o u r co n trib u tio n s to the
S ocialist Fund, 873 B roadw ay, New
Y o rk , N . Y . 10003. We th a n k you
in advance.
Fuiid Scoreboard
Branch
St. Louis
Boston
M inneapolis-S t. P aul
N ew Y o rk
O akland-B erkeley
D e tro it
P h iladelphia
Chicago
A lle n to w n
San Francisco
N e w a rk
Seattle
Los Angeles
C leveland
San Diego
M ilw a u ke e
D enver
G eneral
T otals th ro u g h Nov. 14
Quota
$ 150
1,000
1,000
4,800
1,000
1,200
450
1,500
135
1,000
100
250
4,000
900
125
400
100
$18,110
Paid
110
676
624
2,819
589
572
210
695
50
310
20
50
524
115
15
25
'
00
46
$7,450
p e titiv e ly d riv e dow n the w hole­
sale food prices o f th e sm all in ­
dependent farm ers.
C learly, there are m any im p o r­
ta n t facts about food produ ction
hidden behind the fin a l prices o f
food item s on th e superm arket
counters. T his is w h y the demand
o f “ opening the books” is so v ita l­
ly im p o rta n t to the struggle o f the
housewives’ comm ittees. I t is good
news to see i t com ing o u t lo ud
and strong in the three demands
o f the massive Seattle housewives’
cam paign reported below. T his
exam ple can b e n e fit o th e r s im ila r
campaigns across the nation.
Seattle Housewives
Hit Price Gougers
With Picket Lines
B y N o ra D u p ire
The Seattle area W omen F o r
L o w e r Food Prices, lik e s im ila r
groups across the country, believe
th a t n o th in g speaks lo u d er than an
em pty cash register. A lre a d y, o ve r
33,000 Seattle area housewives and
th e ir husbands have pledged to
boycott the fo u r largest chain
grocers in th e state. The w o rk to
gain support fo r the boycott is
being done in cam paign s p irit,
m a in ly b y telephone, w h ile news­
papers and T V p u blicize each new
aspect o f the campaign.
In addition, some o f the groups
un ite d in to th e W F L F P are picke t­
in g in d iv id u a l superm arkets and
asking shoppers to sign pledges
th a t they w ill boycott the th re e
firm s : Albertson’s, T h riftw a y , and
T radew ell, u n til prices are s ig n if­
ic a n tly lowered.
Open the Books
B oycott leaders fro m 10 d iffe r ­
ent areas in and around S eattle
m et on Oct. 27 and agreed on
three basic demands: u n ifo rm ity
o f prices w ith in a given chain;
reasonable s ta b ility o f prices; and
th e opening o f the fir m ’s books to
the p ublic. The group is organiz­
in g com parative price checking
crews th is w eek and plans to issue
a challenge to the cha in-store
heads to answ er th e ir questions a t
a p u b lic meeting.
T he w om en are being supported
b y the U n iv e rs ity o f W ashington
Com m ittee to End the W a r in
V ietna m w h ich has set up a sub­
com m ittee to w o rk w ith th e
W F LF P . S upport has come also
fro m the Boeing In te rn a tio n a l A s­
sociation o f M achinists, w h ic h
issued a p u b lic statem ent in sup­
p o rt o f the wom en and donated
th e use o f th e ir h a ll fo r a m eeting.
Weekly Calendar
C H IC A G O
IS A A C DEUTSCHER, THE E VO LU ­
T IO N O F H IS T H O U G H T . Speaker:
Dan Styron, na tional co m m itte e m em ­
ber, Young S ocialist A llia n c e . Fri., N ov.
25, 8 p jn . Debs H a ll, 302 S. C anal St.
Ausp. F riday N ig h t S ocialist Forum.
•
Percent
73
68
62
59
59
48
47
46
37
31
20
20
13
13
12
6
00
41
LOS A N G ELES
M A R X IST C O M M E N T A R Y . A bi-week­
ly analysis o f the news b y Theodore
Edwards, So. C a lif, chairm an o f th e So­
c ia lis t W orkers Party. M on. N ov. 28,
6 p.m . (re p e a te d Thurs. Dec. I, I p.m .)
KPFK-FM (90.7 on your d ia l) .
•
N E W YORK
THE P A G E A N T PLAYERS w ill present
the p re m ie r pe rform ance o f th e ir new
A n ti-V ie tn a m W a r Play and tw o short
plays. Fri., N o v. 25, 8:30 p.m . 873
Broadway, a t 18th St. C o n trib . $1. A usp.
M ilita n t L a bor Forum.
•
T W IN CITIES
M IL IT A N T A N N IV E R S A R Y D IN N E R .
C om m em o ratin g th e 38th yea r o f The
M ilita n t. Full d in n e r inclu d e d . Sat.,
N ov. 26, 6 p.m . 704 H enn epin A ve. Rm.
240. C o n trib . $2.
Page T hre e
T H E M IL IT A N T
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
...Lowndes County Freedom Party
(C ontinued fro m Page 1)
a ro u tin e m a tte r o f w a lk in g in to
a booth and p u llin g a lever. Ne­
groes w ere w a lk in g around s m il­
ing, jo k in g , ta lk in g to frie n d s
about ho w th e y had p u lle d the
le ve r fo r the cat. A n d th e y w ere
n o t about to be frig h te n e d o ff or
leave any sooner than th e y had to.
Mem bers o f the Freedom O r­
ganization had prepared sand­
wiches, especially fo r the pollw atchers, w ho had to be there
fro m 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Everyone
was frie n d ly , determ ined, and
con fide nt o f the pow er th a t they
w ere b u ild in g . T hey came to vote
against years and years o f oppres­
sion a t the hands o f the racist
D em ocratic P arty.
In sta rk contrast was the mood
o f the w hites. W h ile Negroes liv e d
in such p o ve rty th a t transporta­
tio n had to be organized to b rin g
them to the polls, the w hites drove
up in one’s and tw o ’s. The e ffect
o f d riv in g in to a sea o f several
hun dred determ ined b la c k voters
was c le a rly e vident on the faces
o f w hites. N o smiles, no jokes, no
discussion, even. There w ere never
m ore than a h a n d fu l o f w hites
present*
M any Obstacles
The B la ck P anthe r had m any
obstacles to overcome in achiev­
in g w h a t i t d id the fir s t tim e out.
A ll o f the opposition d id not come
fro m the w hites, either. A semi­
p riv ile g e d la ye r o f Negroes, p r i­
m a rily the teachers, has opposed
the Freedom O rganization fro m its
inception. T hey opposed the break
fro m the D em ocratic P a rty and
have continued to support coali­
tio n w ith in the D em ocratic P a rty
against the Freedom Organiza­
tio n .
D u rin g the past year, as Negro
re g istra tio n rose, w h i t e s
in
Low ndes began to see the danger
th a t th e y could lose the elections.
Then, some o f the biggest p la n ta ­
tio n owners, w h o had trie d to pre­
ve n t th e ir tenants fro m registering
up to then, began to help them
register. On election day, the p la n ­
ta tio n owners had frie n d s b rin g
th e Negro tenants to the polls,
take them to the w h ite election
o ffic ia ls w ho w e n t in to the booth
and w atched them vote. In some
areas, alm ost every N egro w ho
voted had a w h ite n e x t to o r in ­
side the booth, w atchin g the vote.
P o ll w atchers and B la c k P anther
voters were threatened w ith evic­
tio n . As John H u le tt, president o f
the Freedom O rganization, ex­
plained, m any “ realize th e y don’t
have a place to go,” and stayed
aw ay fro m the polls.
The racists ke p t up enough
pressure on the inexperienced
b la ck poll-w atchers th a t m any
fra u d u le n t votes w ere n o t caught.
A w h ite couple th a t had moved
fro m the county m ore than three
years ago was challenged and ju s t
w a lke d away, b u t th a t was the
exception. A t F t. Deposit, Negroes
w ere challenged a ll m orning.
La te r, w hen w hites w ere chal­
lenged, the ra cist o ffic ia ls claim ed
th a t a ll the challenge b allots were
used up. The w hites then voted
unchallenged.
The m ost d ire ct a ttack on free
elections occurred in F t. Deposit.
I t has the largest concentration of
w hites in the county. F o r m any
years, i t has had the re p u ta tio n of
being the most vicious and v io le n t
area in the county. P o ll watchers
received the most harassment
here. W hites w atched alm ost every
Negro w ho voted. Tension was
high. One Negro man, M r. A n d re w
Jones, was attacked and beaten.
A group o f about 50 w hites be­
gan to gather outside the p o llin g
place s h o rtly before da rk. The at­
ta ck occurred as the polls w ere
closing, and the Negroes were
ge ttin g ready to leave in o rd e r to
avoid any violence. B u t M r. Jones
was te m p o ra rily isolated, and at
th is point, the local police tu rn e d
out a ll the outside lights, and
M r. Jones was jum ped.
No one know s fo r sure w h a t
M r. Jones was h it w ith , b u t there
was a large cut on his head, and
one ra cist was seen g e ttin g a chain
out of a pick-up tru c k . He spent
tw o days in the hospital.
The hospital b ill w ill ru n over
$200 and i f there is no insurance,
the Freedom O rganization w ill pay
the b ill. John H u le tt said, “ He
was the strongest person in the
com m unity. I f we le t h im down,
other people w ill get shaken.”
M r. Jones has been a leading
a c tiv is t fo r the Freedom O rgani­
zation fro m its inception. D u rin g
the election, he had been a t the
S id n ey Log an , J r.
polls almost a ll day, h e lp in g Ne­
gro voters.
The Negroes expected the racists
to step up th e ir attacks on the
Freedom O rganization th a t n ig h t.
T hey prepared to do w hatever
th e y could to prevent the continua­
tio n o f violence directed a t th e ir
com m unity, and no other violence
was reported. Adequate prepara­
tio n undoubtedly was a decisive
fa c to r in pre ve n tin g fu rth e r v io ­
lence.
The B la ck P anther has been o r­
ganizing to get Negroes to the polls
since the M a y 3 p rim a ry . F o r over
a m o n th before the general elec­
tions, m eetings w ere h e ld every
w eek in 17 com m unities, ranging
in size fro m about 20 to 50. B la ck
P anther candidates w e n t to the
c o m m u n ity m eetings to e xp la in
the duties o f the offices th e y w ere
ru n n in g fo r. Sample ballots w ere
prepared to show people how to
vote, and posters w ere p u t u p a ll
over the county.
The preparations culm inated in
a m eeting M onday n ig h t o f over
400 people. A tto rn e y fo r the Free­
dom Organization, M o rto n Stavis,
o u tlin ed the procedures fo r chal­
lenging, p o ll-w a tch in g and how to
help others vote. He asked th a t
the poll-w atchers keep accurate
records on the num ber o f voters,
w h ether th e y w ere w h ite o r black,
the approxim ate tim e th e y voted,
w h e th e r th e y w ere challenged o r
n o t and any unusual events. Such
records w ill be necessary to de­
te rm in e the e x te n t o f vote fra u d
and to prepare fo r a challenge to
the election, i f necessary.
Absentee Votes
The m eeting broke in to precinct
m eetings fo r a sh o rt tim e. People
w e n t o ver the re g istra tio n lis ts to
see i f any o f the w h ite people
had moved o r died. A ll o f the
absentee voters had been checked
and some w ere challenged. M im e ­
ographed sheets w ere d istrib u te d ,
in d ic a tin g w here the car pool p ic k ­
up points w o u ld be.
The atmosphere became one of
a v ic to ry meeting, p a rtia lly be­
cause o f confidence o f a large
tu rn o u t, b u t m ostly because b ig
gains had been made d u rin g the
year, regardless o f the results o f
th e elections. M r. H u le tt empha­
sized th is p o in t: “ Y ou can’t lose.
I f you don’t get anybody elected,
w e’ve already won. I t ’s a v ic to ry
ju s t to have the B la ck P anther on
the b a llo t. ”
S tokely Carm ichael, w ho had
w o rke d in Low ndes fo r over a
year before he became chairm an
o f SNCC, received an enthusiastic
response when he spoke to the
m eeting. “ W e have w o rke d so
hard fo r th is m om ent, ” he said.
“ T his is an exam ple o f b la ck peo­
ple com ing together and organiz­
in g the w a y we w a n t to. T o n ig h t
w e have been proven rig h t; we
have proven we can stick together.
M ove to Execute Blanco
(Continued from Page 1)
an im m ediate amnesty should be
lodged w ith consulates and em­
bassies o f the P eruvia n govern­
m en t in every possible area. M a x i­
m um p u b lic ity should be sought
fo r these protests th ro u g h accom­
p anying demonstrations.
T he U . S. C om m ittee fo r Justice
to L a tin A m erican P o litic a l P ris ­
oners was organized a fte r 400
scholars at a S ocialist Scholars
Conference signed a p e titio n o f
amnesty fo r Hugo Blanco, P e ru ’s
peasant-union organizer.
W hen A d o lfo G illy , the L a tin
A m erican p o litic a l w rite r, along
w ith some professors a t the U n i­
v e rs ity o f M exico, w ere arrested
in A p ril, 1966, concern rose among
L a tin A m ericans and c iv il lib e r­
tarians in the U . S. th a t a w itc h ­
h u n t was being unleashed by
L a tin A m e rica ’s “ co n stitu tio n a l”
regimes against a ll c ritic s o f the
h o rrib le conditions o f the m a jo rity
o f people south o f the R io Grande.
A sh o rt tim e la te r, V ic to r R ico
Galán, another w e ll-k n o w n M e x ­
ican p o litic a l w rite r, and some of
his frie n d s w ere also arrested.
A lm ost, sim ultaneously in Peru,
H ugo B lanco and 27 peasant lead­
ers w e n t on tria l.
Convinced th a t these incidents
indicated th e steady dete rio ratio n
o f c iv il lib e rtie s in the so-called
dem ocratic regimes o f L a tin A m e r­
ican countries, some o f the p a r­
ticip a n ts a t the conference and
others interested in L a tin A m erica
concluded th a t N o rth A m ericans
m ust do som ething about ensur­
in g justice fo r L a tin A m erican
p o litic a l prisoners.
Mem bers o f the organization be­
lie ve th a t U . S. citizens have a spe­
c ia l re sp o n sib ility to demonstrate
th e ir distastes and disapproval of
vio la tio n s o f elem entary ju stice
and la w . T hey feel th a t cases lik e
those o f G illy , Blanco, Galán and
Joáo F irm in o , the in s p ire r o f the
B ra z ilia n Peasant Leagues, m ust
be b ro u g h t before the people of
the U . S. Once acquainted w ith the
facts about these cases and the
m a n y others lik e them , A m ericans
can be decisive in securing justice
fo r these v ic tim s of p o litic a l reac­
tion.
The com m ittee has already had
speakers a t a te a ch -in a t T r in ity
College in Connecticut, and a t the
recent conference o f L a tin A m e r­
icanists in Chicago. A t a m eeting
in N ew Y o rk sponsored b y the
M ilita n t L a b o r F orum , close to
$200 was raised to help thp com ­
m itte e get established.
In addition, the Com m ittee to
Free A d o lfo G illy voted to dissolve
in to the broader com m ittee and
placed its resources a t the disposal
of th e U S L A Justice Com m ittee.
The officers elected w ere Dave
D e llin g e r and P a u l Sweezy, co­
chairm en; John Gerassi, vice­
chairm an; F e lix M cG owan, e x ­
ecutive secretary; R ich a rd Garza,
assistant executive secretary; and
N e ll Salm, treasurer.
The U S L A Justice C om m ittee
deserves w idespread backing. C or­
respondence can be addressed as
fo llo w s: U S L A Justice Com m ittee
— A tte n tio n : F e lix M cG owan, c /o
C atholic W o rke r, 175 C hrystie St.,
N ew Y o rk , N ew Y o rk 10002.
“ T o m o rro w , ”
he
continued,
“ when w e p u ll th a t lever, w e are
p ro vin g w e can stay together. We
are ta lk in g to people a ll over the
country. Come to Low ndes C ounty
and we w ill show you how . We
are ta lk in g to a ll Negroes in
A labam a. We can do things fo r
ourselves. B la ck people can b u ild
th e ir ow n p o litic a l p a rty . T hey
ow n it, co n tro l i t and ru n i t —
lock, stock and b a rre l. ”
The re a l v ic to ry o f the B lack
P anther P a rty lies in ju s t that.
C oalition p o litics dominates in the
rest o f the country. The labor
bureaucrats and m ost o f the Negro
leadership supports coalitionism
w ith in the D em ocratic P a rty. M a r­
tin L u th e r K in g and other Negro
coalitionists /cam paigned in A la ­
bama against the exam ple o f
Lowndes and urged Negroes to
w o rk
w ith in
the
Dem ocratic
P a rty.
B u t Lowndes has shown th a t
i t is possible to b u ild a p a rty based
on and responsible to th e b lack
masses. The m agnitude o f the v ic ­
to ry can o n ly be understood in
th is lig h t.
As F ra n k M iles, Jr., B la ck Pan­
th e r candidate fo r ta x collector
said, “ Y ou don’t have a chance in
the
D em ocratic P a rty , unless
yo u ’re a p o w e rfu l man. I f you are
going to stand up fo r w h a t is rig h t
and w h a t is in the interests o f the
people, you w ill be kicked out o f
the p a rty . ”
The B la ck P anther leaders now
plan classes on the recent elec­
tions, w h a t happened and w h y th e
B lack P anthe r lost. Classes w ill
be held on poll-w atching. T he
evaluation o f the elections has
already begun. W ith the exp eri­
ence, the Lowndes C oun ty Free­
dom P arty, as i t is now called,
w ill be in a stronger position to
challenge the D em ocratic P a rty in
tw o years.
Superm arket P roje ct
O ther a ctivitie s w ill continue.
One o f the most im p o rta n t is the
defense and aid o f v ic tim s o f ra c is t
in tim id a tio n . A „ cooperative has
been established. T w o o f its fir s t
projects w ill be to b u ild a super­
m a rke t and b u y land fo r people
who have been evicted because o f
th e ir support to the Freedom
P a rty . T hey w il l be raising m oney
to pay M r. Jones’ m edical ex­
penses. V o te r re g istra tio n w ill con­
tinue. A tte m p ts w ill be made to
teach people w ho do n o t know ,
how to read and w rite . A lre a d y,
the Freedom P a rty is w o rk in g
w ith people in o ther counties to
spread the new pa rty.
W h ile d iffic u lt struggles lie
ahead fo r the new p a rty, an im ­
pressive beginning has been made.
The Low ndes C ounty Freedom
P a rty deserves the support o f
everyone w ho stands on the side
o f the N egro struggle fo r e q u a lity.
Funds are u rg e n tly needed, and
should be sent to M r. John H u le tt,
Rt. 1, B ox 125, H a yn e ville , A la.
London Exhibit Publicizes
Slated W ar Crimes Tribunal
B y A nton io F a rie n
LO N D O N — A n e x h ib itio n of dhist monks as a means o f p ro ­
some 200 photographs, maps and
test.
diagrams dealing w ith the w a r
The E ffects o f N apalm , L ife in
in V ie tn a m is being toured through
Lib e ra te d Areas, On the B a ttle fie ld
England.
and The Occupied C ity — Saigon
Prepared b y the B e rtra n d Rus­
are the title s o f the fo llo w in g sec­
sell Peace Foundation, i t portrays
tions.
som ething o f the h is to ry and na­
P ro b a b ly the m ost h o rrify in g is
tu re o f the struggle instead of
the n e x t section, The Arrogance o f
being a m ere catalogue o f h o r­
Power. H ere the photographs dis­
rors, as one m ig h t have imagined
p la y N L F captives as w e ll as w o m ­
i t w o u ld be. The re s u lt is an in ­
en and ch ild re n being to rtu re d b y
d ictm en t o f the U . S. role in V ie t­
Saigon and U . S. troops. The d if­
nam and a trib u te to the N ational
fe re n t methods o f to rtu re consti­
L ib e ra tio n F ro n t. A t the annual
tu te an educational series.
trade union conference in B la c k ­
Tow ards a T h ird W o rld W ar
pool, w here i t was sponsored b y
20 unions, i t received a ve ry good deals w ith the escalation o f the
w ar. I t shows the ru in s o f hospi­
response.
tals and schools in n o rth V ie t­
G eoff Coggan, w h o p u t the e x­
h ib itio n together, explained th a t nam, the re su lt o f U . S. bom bings.
Then comes a series show ing
its purpose is to help publicize
the w o rld w id e reaction in the fo rm
the investigation projected b y the
o f huge dem onstrations th a t have
In te rn a tio n a l W a r C rim es T rib u ­
n a l in itia te d b y B e rtra n d Russell. taken place in m any d iffe re n t
countries against the U . S. and the
Geneva Conference
w a r in V ietnam .
The e x h ib itio n is made up of
The closing section has no title .
several sections, each dealing w ith
I t m e re ly starts w ith a photograph
a p a rtic u la r aspect o f the w a r.
o f Johnson d e liv e rin g a speech.
The fir s t section deals w ith the
The caption quotes h im : “ Unless
Geneva conference and how the
the U n ited States has u n cha l­
U . S. became invo lve d in V ietnam .
lengeable a ir pow er, w e sh a ll be
The n e x t deals w ith the g ro w th
hostage to e very y e llo w d w a rf w ith
o f the resistance o f the V ie tn a ­
a pocket k n ife . ”
mese people and shows some o f
Then come photographs o f the
th e ir ingenious methods o f struggle
most m oving k in d — a c h ild be­
against an o ve rw h e lm in g ly su­
h in d barbed w ire , a w om an w ith
p e rio r technological power.
her naked ch ild, tw o refugee c h il­
The character o f the national dren and an old man blin d fold e d ,
resistance is n e x t displayed w ith
bound and labelled.
photographs o f student and B u d ­
The fin a l photograph shows a
d h ist demonstrations, the execu­
w eeping G I. The caption reads:
tio n o f N guyen Van T ro i and self­
“ A n A m erican soldier in V ie tn a m
im m o la tio n com m itted b y B u d ­
has cause to despair. ”
Page Four
T H E M IL IT A N T
THE
MILITANT
E d ito r: JO S E P H H A N S E N
M a n a g in g E d ito r: B A R R Y S H E P P A R D
B u sin e ss M a n a g e r: K A R O L Y N K E R R Y
P u b lis h e d w e e k ly , e x c e p t d u r in g J u ly a n d A u g u s t w h e n p u b lis h e d b i- w e e k ly ,
b y T h e M ilit a n t P u b lis h in g A ss’n ., 873 B ro a d w a y , N e w Y o r k , N . Y . 10003. P hone
533-6414. S econd-class postage p a id a t N e w Y o r k , N . Y . S u b s c rip tio n : $3 a y e a r;
C a n a d ia n , $3.60; fo re ig n , $4.50. S ig n e d a rtic le « b y c o n trib u to rs d o n o t n e c e s s a rily
re p re s e n t T h e M ilit a n t ’s v ie w s . These a re e xpressed In e d ito ria ls .
V o l. 31 - No. 42
»345
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
The 1966 Elections
“ F irs t, as a good A m e rican , I th in k we are a ll glad to see
a h e a lth y and com petent existence o f th e tw o -p a rty system .”
T h is in it ia l com m ent b y L y n d o n Johnson on the outcome of
th e elections, u n lik e m ost o f his declarations, contained a basic
tr u th — th a t is, fo r th e c a p ita lis t m in o r ity whose ru le is ensured
b y th e tw o -p a rty system.
T h e tw o -p a r ty sw in d le is n o t designed to express th e w ill
o f th e m a jo rity . T his fa c t o f life is recognized b y a s u rp ris in g
n u m b e r o f A m ericans. F o r exam ple, in th is election, o n ly 46.5
o f those e lig ib le to vo te a c tu a lly tro u b le d to do so. A n d th is was
n o t an unusual fig u re . In th e 1964 elections, w h ic h set an a ll­
tim e record, o n ly 62 percent o f the e lig ib le voters w e n t to the
polls.
.
Y e t c e rta in p o litic a l facts can be discerned in th is te r r ib ly
d is to rte d expression o f “ th e people’s w ill. ” F o r one th in g , the
e lection co n firm e d th a t th e V ie tn a m w a r is e x tre m e ly u npopular.
T h is was attested to b y George G a llu p , head o f th e G a llu p P o ll.
A N ov. 10 A P dispatch re p o rte d :
“ George G a llu p, th e n a tio n a l p ollste r, to da y credited th e Re­
p u b lic a n P a rty ’s success in Tuesday’s election to th e V ie tn a m
w a r . . . D r. G a llu p . . . said th a t o th e r issues had been in v o lv e d
‘b u t th e great u n d e rly in g issue and p ro b a b ly the p rim e reason
w h y th e GO P d id so w e ll was the p u b lic ’s distress and concern
over V ie tn a m .’ ”
I t is rep o rte d th a t n o t a single “ h a w k ,” th a t is, one w ho
cam paigned ope nly as an aggressive su pp orte r o f th e w a r, was
elected. In such k e y states as N ew Y o rk and C a lifo rn ia , th e m a jo r
p a rty nominees ducked th e issue.
The b ig R epublican v ic to ry u n d o u b te d ly also expressed v o te r
anger w ith th e Johnson a d m in is tra tio n o ve r ste a d ily escalating
prices.
H ow ever, th e re -s ta b iliz a tio n o f th e tw o -p a rty game, w h ic h
was th ro w n o ff- k ilte r by the G o ld w a te r defeat, was accom plished
w ith in the fra m e w o rk o f th e co n tin u in g d r if t to the r ig h t o f the
c a p ita lis t parties. T his rig h tw a rd tre n d has been th e h a llm a rk
o f the era o f cold w ar.
Racism, w h ic h is so deeply rooted in A m e rica n ca p ita lis t
society, was g iven s ig n ific a n t expression at th e polls. Perhaps
th e clearest expression o f racism was the o ve rw h e lm in g v ic to ry
in N ew Y o rk o f the p ro po sition to b a r c iv ilia n c o n tro l o f the
police. O n ly a m in o r ity o f ra d ic a l and lib e ra l-m in d e d w hite s
sided w ith th e b la ck people in th is fig h t w h ic h was squarely
posed on a ra c is t basis b y th e reactionaries w ho ram m ed th ro u g h
th e p roposition.
The outcom e o f th e N ew Y o rk refe re n d u m was also one
m ore lesson in th e fa lla c y o f lo o kin g to professional lib e ra l
p o litic ia n s fo r m e a n in g fu l aid in such a fig h t. Those w ho cham ­
pioned th e p ro p o sitio n to b a r c iv ilia n c o n tro l of th e cops spent
an estim ated m illio n d ollars. T he com m ittee organized b y M ayo r
L in d s a y to oppose th em spent $100,000. These fig u re s are a good
m easure o f th e co n tra stin g v ig o r o f th e tw o campaigns.
Even m ore scandalous was th e ro le o f th e N ew Y o rk lab or
o ffic ia ld o m w h ich , w ith a fe w secondary exceptions, rem ained
silen t.
I f a n y th in g p ro ved th e need fo r b la c k pow er, th e N ew Y o rk
re fe re n d u m did. I t was an object lesson th a t b la c k people m ust
re ly on th e ir o w n s tre n g th and n o t on th e lib e ra l w h ite “ con­
science.”
The election p oin te d up once m ore th e ru in o u s n a tu re of
th e p o lic y o f the u n io n bureaucracy in re ly in g on D em ocratic
“ frie n d s .” The n u m b e r o f open partisans o f a n ti-la b o r le g isla tio n
in Congress was increased, and Johnson w i ll have an even easier
tim e in p ush in g h is p ro je cte d a n ti-s trik e and o th e r u n io n -c u rb in g
leg isla tion .
T h e lesson fo r w o rk in g people, Negroes and a n tiw a r fig h te rs
i n 't h e 1966 election, is th e need to b re a k w ith th e parties of
c a p ita lism — the parties o f w a r, racism and a n ti-u n io n is m .
Sound Advice from ACLU
T he A m e rica n C iv il L ib e rtie s U n io n is to be commended
fo r its N ov. 13 appeal to th e n a tio n ’s colleges and u n iv e rs itie s to
b lo c k fu tu re e ffo rts b y H U A C to o bta in th e m em bership lists
o f campus organizations c ritic a l o f the U.S. ro le in V ie tna m .
T he A C L U acted on th e basis o f th e House com m itte e sub­
poenaing such lists fro m th e U n iv e rs ity o f C a lifo rn ia a t B e rke le y
and fro m th e U n iv e rs ity o f M ich ig a n la st A u gu st. In M ich iga n,
u n iv e rs ity a u th o ritie s p ro vid e d th e Congressional w itc h h u n te rs
w ith th e names o f m em bers o f an a ffilia te o f SDS, a campus
a n tiw a r com m ittee, and a W .E.B. D uB ois C lu b chapter.
P o in tin g to th e strong legal precedents fo r resisting th e de­
m ands fo r such lists, the A C L U w arn e d th a t the action a t U C L A
and M ich ig a n co nstitu te d “ one o f the m ost serious breaches o f
academic freedom o f students in recent decades, n o t e xclu d in g
th e M c C a rth y era.”
S tud en t organizations w o u ld do w e ll to m o b iliz e campus
se ntim en t s u ffic ie n t to h e lp campus a u th o ritie s see th e w isdom
o f accepting th e A C L U ’s v e ry sound advice.
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
Attacks on SNCC and CORE
Condemnedby SCEFBoard
Those w ho attack advocates of
black pow er are in ju rin g the
cause o f democracy in the U n ite d
States, the board o f directors of
the S outhern Conference Educa­
tio n a l Fund (SCEF) declared in a
m a jo r p o lic y statem ent issued in
L o u is v ille , K y ., on Oct. 29, SCEF
also indicated its ow n v ie w of
b la ck power.
The board charged th a t ideas o f
w h ite supremacy, and n o t b la ck
power, are the ro o t o f the p ro b ­
lem fa cin g A m e rica today.
The statem ent was d ra fte d and
adopted a t th e sem i-annual m eet­
in g o f the board, w h ic h includes
w h ite and Negro leaders fro m a ll
the S outhern states and the D is­
tr ic t o f C olum bia. T he board m et
at C a lv a ry B a p tis t C hurch.
The p o lic y stand was announced
b y the Rev. F re d L . S hu ttle sw o rth ,
o f B irm in g h a m and C in cin n a ti,
w h o is president o f SCEF. H e is
also secretary o f the S outhern
C h ris tia n Leadership Conference,
headed b y D r. M a rtin L . K in g , J r.
K in g h im s e lf has attacked black
pow er, w h ic h indicates a d ivisio n
w ith in SCLC on th e question.
The board adopted a separate
resolution saying i t is “ outraged
a t the c u rre n t attacks on the S tu ­
dent N o n v io le n t C oord in a tin g Com­
m itte e (S N C C ), the Congress of
R acial E q u a lity (CORE) and other
m ilita n t c iv il-rig h ts organizations.”
Personal Persecution
“ We v ie w these attacks as an
e ffo rt to underm ine and fin a lly
destroy the w hole c iv il-rig h ts
m ovem ent," the resolution said.
“ We especially deplore the sin g l­
in g o u t o f in d iv id u a l leaders
fo r personal persecution. We be­
lieve th a t S tokely C arm ichael
should n o t be made a scapegoat
fo r A m e rica ’s social problem s.”
The SCEF board pointed to a
p a rt o f its p o lic y statem ent w h ic h
said: “ Those w ho a ttack c iv ilrig h ts leaders and organizations
th a t are ra isin g the questions
w h ic h w h ite A m e rica m ust face
are denying o u r society the op­
p o rtu n ity to exam ine w h a t is
destroying us.”
The board declared th a t “ the
idea o f bla ck pow er has a long
and honorable h isto ry, b u t i t is
c u rre n tly being misrepresented in
the news media in the U nited
States.”
The p o licy statem ent then de­
fin e d SCEF’s understanding o f the
term , bla ck pow er. I t said:
“ In term s o f A m erica n democra­
cy today, there is n o th in g im ­
p roper about Negro people de­
m anding th a t the y should be able
to elect representatives o f th e ir
ow n choosing to key p o litic a l o f­
fices, especially in those areas o f
the South and in the N o rth w here
th e y are concentrated and in a
clear n um e rical m a jo rity .
“ T his demand carries w ith i t
the idea th a t th e y w o u ld exercise
responsibly and in the p u b lic in ­
terest and the powers associated
w ith such p u b lic offices. T his
w o u ld mean m a jo rity ru le w ith
concern and safeguards fo r the
rig h ts o f m inoritie s.
“ The board o f SCEF is sym ­
pathetic to th is essential and
o rig in a l m eaning o f the phrase,
b la ck pow er. F o r b la ck people to
elect th e ir ow n representatives in
areas w here th e y are a m a jo rity
w ill represent a m ea ningful brea k­
th rough and a step to w a rd achiev­
in g a m ore e ffective representa­
tiv e democracy fo r a ll Am ericans.
“ The sim ple tr u th Is th a t the
ra n k and file o f A m ericans have
never re a lly controlled th e ir gov­
ernm ent. We believe th a t the
R ev. F re d S hu ttlesw orth
a b ility o f the N egro people to take
th is successful step to w a rd de­
te rm in in g th e ir own fu tu re w ill
p rovide us a ll w ith an o p p o rtu n ity
to m ake A m erican democracy
w o rk as i t has never w orked be­
fore.
“ The c ry o f bla ck pow er has
arisen because m any b la ck peo­
ple decided th a t i t was now tim e
to stop re ly in g solely on p e titio n ­
in g the governm ent fo r redress
o f grievances, and instead, to
organize themselves p o litic a lly to
elect persons w ho w ill represent
them in governm ent. T here is
m uch to support the argum ent
th a t recent c iv il-rig h ts b ills w ere
passed, n o t because o f appeals to
the m o ra l conscience o f w h ite peo­
ple, b u t because n o n vio le n t dem­
onstrations b y Negroes and w h ite
people developed and disclosed
p o litic a l pow er.”
Need A llies
The SCEF directors added, h o w ­
ever, “ th a t p o litic a l success w ill
have o n ly lim ite d significance fo r
black people unless th e y have a l­
lies in the la rg e r w h ite com­
m u n ity.
“ SCEF believes th a t the needs
and interests o f the poorer and less
p rivile g e d w hites o f the South
are s im ila r to those o f the poor
black people. Since 1938, SCEF’s
objective has been to develop
among these groups common allies
in a jo in t struggle fo r a m ore
dem ocratic A m erica . The board
feels th a t this present challenge
increases o u r obligation to do even
m ore e ffe c tiv e ly w h a t has always
been o u r declared fu n c tio n .”
In th is connection, the board
voted to expand SCEF’s w o rk of
organizing poor people in the
S outhern m ountains and other
parts o f the South. The stated aim
is to b rin g together poor w h ite
and N egro people fo r jo in t action
to solve p o litic a l and economic
problems.
SCEF also made plans to help
organize S outhw ide opposition to
plans o f the House U n -A m e rica n
A c tiv itie s C om m ittee (H U A C ) to
“ investigate the c iv il-rig h ts m ove­
m ent on the p re te x t o f lo o kin g fo r
‘subversive’ influences in o u t­
breaks w h ic h occurred in various
cities.”
W o r ld Events
State of Siege
The Guatem alan governm ent
headed b y President J u lio César
Mendez Montenegro, declared a
state o f siege Nov. 3. A ccording to
b u lle tin s on ra d io and television,
the move was taken to cope w ith
violence being waged b y e x tre m ­
ists o f “ both le ft and rig h t.”
The state o f siege, w h ic h was
set fo r 30 days, bars m eetings o f
m ore th a n fo u r persons and legal­
izes arrests w ith o u t w a rra n ts. M a­
jo r blow s seemed to be directed
against the le ft. The student week­
ly E l E studiante was closed down
b y police. A n unrevealed num ber
o f le ftis ts w ere said to have been
arrested.
Yankee Involvement?
A U. S. company m ay have in ­
spired th e Guatem alan govern­
m e n t’s sudden move. The day be­
fo re the state o f siege was an­
nounced, eig h t m en arm ed w ith ,
m achine guns attacked the Em ­
presa E léctrica de Guatemala, a
subsidiary o f A m erican and F o r­
eign Power. T hey bombed the
electric p la n t and set fir e to tw o
tanks containing 90,000 gallons o f
diesel o il.
•
The g u e rrilla s id e n tifie d them ­
selves as members o f the Rebel
A rm e d Forces. T his is th e group
fo rm e rly headed b y Turcios, w ho
was re ce ntly k ille d in an auto­
m o bile accident th a t was n o t w ith ­
o u t its suspicious circumstances.
It Worked Before
The Belaunde governm ent in
P eru opened its a n ti-g u e rrilla cam­
paign last year w ith s im ila r mea­
sures to those o f Guatem ala’s M en­
dez. These proved to be o f s u ffi­
cie nt m e rit in W ashington to w a r­
ra n t the bequest o f counter-guer­
r illa weapons s im ila r to those used
in the e a rly period o f the V ie tn a m
w a r — napalm bombs included.
A lth o u g h the Mendez regim e
has sought to represent its e lf as
lib e ra l, i t re ce n tly m ounted a m ili­
ta ry cam paign in the northeast
m ounta in region against the guer­
r illa forces w ho have long been
entrenched there. Mendez m ay be
hoping to m atch B elaunde’s suc­
cess in u tiliz in g U.S. arm s and
d o llars against the struggle fo r na­
tio n a l lib e ra tio n and socialism.
Line of Duty
In a noticeably frie n d ly in te r­
v ie w w ith South A fric a ’s new
p rim e m in is te r John V orster, U.S.
News and W o rld R eport asked
him , “ W h a t about y o u r own
image? W hen you became P rim e
M in iste r, people described you as
a tough, ruthless, u n re le n tin g in ­
d iv id u a l. Do you th in k th a t is an
accurate description?"
V o rste r replied, “ A ll I can say
is th a t I ’m p e rfe c tly prepared to
be judged b y m y opponents in
th is country. Perhaps the reason
w h y the tough image was b u ilt up
in the outside w o rld was because
i t was m y jo b to eradicate Com­
m unism — and th a t is, in fact,
w h a t I d id .”
Japanese Politics
The Japanese C om m unist P a rty
unanim ously agreed to fo llo w an
independent p o lic y fro m Moscow
and P eking, according to an Oct.
29 Reuters dispatch fro m Tokyo.
The m ove was said to fo llo w the
p u rg in g o f m ore than 50 pro-Pe­
k in g p a rty members.
Antiwar Paper
To be welcomed is the publica­
tio n o f an E nglish e d itio n o f the
Swedish
“ V ie t/N a m
B u lle tin .”
T h is is a h a rd -h itting , fa c t-fille d
magazine expressing the v ie w ­
p o in t o f the Swedish a n tiw a r
m ovem ent. Copies m ay be ob­
tained fro m V I E T /N A M -b u lle tin ,
postal account 400 632, S tockholm
K , Sweden.
E d S m ith
THE M ILITA N T
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
Page F iv e
National Antiwar Protest Iowa Professor Fired
[Last week we reported on the
rally of 20.000 in New York and
the Cleveland participation in the
November 5-8 Mobilization against
the w ar in Vietnam. Following are
reports of activities from other
cities.]
B A Y AREA
S AN FR A N C ISC O — A lth o u g h
i t was a cold, damp day, 700 a n ti­
w a r activists d istrib u te d thousands
o f leaflets in the Bay A rea against
th e w a r, Nov. 5. The le a fle tin g was
organized b y the B ay A rea Peace
O rganizing Com m ittee, a coordin­
a tin g body o f m any groups.
The V ie tn a m D ay Com m ittee a t
the U n iv e rs ity o f C a lifo rn ia in
B erke le y h eld a r a lly N ov. 4 w h ich
a ttracted 4,000 students. P ro f.
Crews o f the E nglish D epartm ent,
C a rl F ra n k and R ic k Fineberg of
th e VDC, and Pete Cam ejo o f the
U n ite d C om m ittee A g a in st the
W ar, spoke on V ietnam . The sec­
ond p a rt o f the ra lly was devoted
to fre e speech and opposition to
campus a d m in istra tio n moves to
c u rb it.
M a rio Savio, the leader o f the
1964-65 Free Speech M ovem ent,
spoke along w ith conservative
student leader Dan Rosenthal,
B e ttin a A p th e k e r o f the Com m u­
n is t P a rty , K a re n Lieberm an, and
others. Savio received a prolonged,
standing ovation.
O n the evening o f N ov. 5, the
V D C held a v e ry successful fu n d ­
ra isin g dance. A b o u t 1,000 people
pa id $2.25 to attend, a fte r the
campus adm in istra tio n banned a ll
film showings a t the dance.
T here w ere several ra llie s at
San Francisco State College be­
fo re Nov. 5, and a teach-in Nov.
7 at S tanford U n iv e rs ity . The
S tanford a d m in istra tio n refused
fa c ilitie s fo r the teach-in , and it
had to be held outside.
On Nov. 10, representatives of
D o w Chem ical, one of the m an­
u fa ctu re rs o f napalm , attem pted to
in te rv ie w U n iv e rs ity o f C a lifo rn ia
students a t B e rke le y fo r fu tu re
jobs. They w ere m et b y a sp irite d
p icke t lin e, led by the VDC. The
VDC expected no m ore than 30
pickets because o f short notice,
b u t 750 w ere on hand to greet the
D ow representatives. K e e r Jones,
a VDC m em ber and chem istry
m a jo r, made a batch o f napalm
a t th e ra lly .
W A S H IN G T O N
W A S H IN G T O N , D.C. — In re ­
sponse to the N ovem ber 5-8 M o b il­
ization, 550 people picketed the
W h ite House, m arched to D upont
C ircle fo r a ra lly , and proceeded
to Secretary o f Defense R obert
M cN am ara’s house w here they
picketed fo r an hour. T his was
on Nov. 5. The dem onstration was
preceded by p icke tin g o f General
H ershey’s house, Secretary of
State Dean R usk’s house, and Sec­
re ta ry o f Defense R obert M ac-
A N T IW A R F IG H T E R . L in co ln
L yn ch , associate n atio n a l d ire c ­
to r of C O R E , spoke a t a num ber
o f a n tiw a r rallies. B oth C O R E
and S N C C gave support to n a ­
tio n al protest.
N am ara’s house on the previous
T hursday and F rid a y . The dem ­
o nstration and r a lly on Saturday
was la rg e r and had broader sup­
p o rt o f D.C. area a n tiw a r groups
than any previous local m arch,
and was organized b y the Wash­
ington CEWV.
Speakers a t the r a lly included
Professor H o w a rd Z in n ; Ju liu s
Hobson o f A C T ; S tanley F a u lk ­
ner, a tto rn e y fo r the F t. Hood
T hree; and B a rbara Pashoff, who
represented the n e w ly - form ed
W ashington A rea H ig h School S tu ­
dents Com m ittee to End the W a r
in V ietnam . B ill F re d e ric k fro m
P h ila d e lp h ia sang topical fo lk
songs a t the ra lly .
P IT T S B U R G H
The h ig h lig h t o f the weekend
a c tiv itie s in P itts b u rg h was a
te a ch -in attended b y 1,500 people,
the largest a n tiw a r action in P itts ­
b u rg h to date. The te a ch -in was
organized b y an ad hoc group o f
in d iv id u a ls , and held in the C a r­
negie M usic H a ll.
O th e r a ctivitie s included a show­
in g a t the U n iv e rs ity o f P itts b u rg h
o f slides on V ie tn a m taken by
F e lix Greene. T h is was organized
b y th e campus Students fo r Peace.
7 D E T R O IT
D E T R O IT — The N ovem ber
D ays o f P rotest A gainst the W a r
in V ie tn a m here w e re m arked b y
a fe a r cam paign m ounted b y m em ­
bers o f a local u ltr a - r ig h t w in g
group, B reakthrough. P rio r to the
m arch and r a lly on Saturday,
D onald Lobsinger, one o f the
m ore
p ro m in e n t
members
of
B reakthrough, sent a message to
the
D e tro it
Common
C ouncil
th reatening “ bloodshed” i f “ in ­
fla m m a to ry ” signs and banners
were displayed.
The reaction o f the a n tiw a r
m ovem ent was to close ranks
against these te rro ris ts : a p p ro x­
im a te ly 1,000 a n tiw a r dem onstra­
tors massed before C e n tra l M e th ­
odist C hurch in d ow ntow n De­
tro it, in face o f a p re -w in te r’s
snowstorm , and m arched dow n the
m a in street in D e tro it to event­
u a lly r a lly behind the Veterans
M e m o ria l b u ild in g . S etting the
pace o f the m arch w e re o ver 40
A fro -A m e ric a n s organized b y the
A fro -A m e ric a n U n ity M ovem ent,
one o f the sponsors o f the dem­
onstration, amd behind them a
good size contingent o f Veterans
A g a in st the W a r in V ietnam ,
m a rch in g to a steady r o ll o f
drum s. Members o f B re akthrough
picketed along the route o f the
m arch, b u t made no a tte m p t to
c a rry o u t th e ir previous threats
against the w e ll-o rg a n ize d dem ­
onstration.
On S unday evening, 150 people
attended a fu n d -ra is in g “ H oot fo r
Peace” h eld a t the W ayne State
U n iv e rs ity campus. There w ere no
d isruptions. W e ll kn o w n artists,
Ron Colder, Jan and L o rra in e , P it
P in e ll, Bob M ille r, among m any
others, donated th e ir talents fo r the
“ H oot.”
On M onday, the W ayne C o m m it­
tee to End the W a r in V ietnam
held a te a ch -in against the w a r on
campus. N a tio n a l speakers in ­
cluded M.S. A rn o n i, e d ito r o f the
M in o rity o f One; James Aronson,
e d ito r o f the N a tio n a l G uardian,
B a rry Sheppard, m anaging e d ito r
o f The M ilita n t, Joe M ora, b ro th e r
o f D ennis M ora, one o f the F o rt
Hood Three; and F lo y d M cK issick,
N a tio n al D ire c to r o f CORE.
Local speakers included the
Reverend A lb e rt Cleage; James
L a ffe rty o f A C L U ; and Professor
A rn o ld K a u fm a n fro m the U. of
M ichigan. M cK issick, the last
speaker o f the teach-in, d re w re ­
sounding applause and a standing
ovation.
One h ig h lig h t o f the teach-in,
although unscheduled, was a n tic­
ipated. Several kn o w n B re a k ­
thro u g h members w ere allow ed
e n try in to the te a ch -in b y the
U n iv e rs ity o fficia ls. Upon e nter­
in g the te a ch -in fo r th e second or
th ird tim e, members o f B re a k ­
th ro u g h shoved and in tim id a te d
one of the ushers. T hey w ere im ­
m ediately surrounded b y members
of the audience u n w illin g to le t
them achieve th e ir goal o f d is ru p ­
tion, and were im m e d ia te ly ejected
fro m the a u d ito riu m .
T hree people w ere arrested, tw o
members o f B reakthrough, and one
mem ber o f the D e tro it CEW V, J im
G riffin . T h e y are a ll being charged
w ith d is tu rb in g the peace b y the
U n ive rsity. G r iffin is also filin g
charges against one o f th e m em­
bers o f B reakthrough, w ho th re w
a ka ra te punch across the chest at
G riffin , w h ile G r iffin was being
held b y the U n iv e rs ity security
police. O ther members o f the au­
dience are also filin g charges
against members o f B reakthrough.
A ju r y tr ia l is set fo r N ov. 15.
C H IC A G O
C H IC A G O — Several events
were held here as p a rt o f the
Nov. 5-8 Peace M o b iliza tio n . On
Sunday, N ov. 6, a “ to w n h a ll meet­
ing” was held, sponsored b y the
Chicago Peace C ouncil. A b o u t 500
attended the m eeting at w h ich
senatorial candidates o r th e ir re p ­
resentatives presented th e ir views
on the w a r. They answered ques­
tions p u t to them b y a panel of
Charles E. Osgood, U n iv e rs ity of
Illin o is professor, Gordon C. Zahn,
professor o f sociology at Loyola
U n iv e rs ity , and Sidney Lens.
T he representative o f Dem o­
cra tic senator Douglas defended
the w a r. R epublican candidate
Charles
P ercy’s
representative
trie d to sell P ercy as a “ peace
candidate.” T w o w rite -in candi­
dates, M a x w e ll P rim a ck, an in d e ­
pendent a n tiw a r a ctivist, and
Claude L ig h tfo o t o f the Com m u­
n is t P a rty , spoke against the w a r.
D a rw in Johnson, b ro th e r o f one
o f the F o rt Hood Three, spoke
b rie fly about the case o f the three
soldiers w ho refused to go to
V ie tn a m and questioned the can­
didates about th e ir stand on the
case. Johnson also spoke a t a
church th a t m o rn in g and a t a
gathering to raise funds to defend
the F o rt Hood Three th a t n ig h t.
On M onday, Nov. 7, a te ach-in
was held at the U n iv e rs ity of I l ­
lin o is, sponsored b y the C ircle
Campus C om m ittee to End the
W a r in V ietnam , the F a c u lty Com­
m itte e on V ietnam , SNCC and
SDS. Students fo r a D em ocratic
Society sponsored a te ach-in at
Roosevelt U n iv e rs ity on the same
day. Each o f the meetings was a t­
tended b y about 60 people.
BUFFALO
B U F F A L O , N .Y. — Lafayette
Sq. in d o w ntow n B u ffa lo was the
scene o f an outdoor m eeting of
60 people against th e w a r in V ie t­
nam on Nov. 5. The r a lly was
sponsored b y SDS, Y A W F and the
U n iv e rs ity o f B u ffa lo Socialist
C lub. R obin M aisel o f the P h ila ­
delphia CEW V, on to u r fo r the
Nov. 5-8 M o b iliz a tio n Com m ittee,
spoke along w ith several members
of YAW F.
S T . L O U IS
ST. L O U IS — One hundred and
f i f t y people, m o stly college stu­
dents, m arched in to d o w ntow n St.
Louis on N ov. 5 and d istrib u te d
a n tiw a r leaflets. A fte r the d is trib u ­
tio n , the leafleters gathered at the
O ld Post O ffice in the center o f
the business d is tric t and sang s p ir­
ite d a n tiw a r songs.
The singing was fo llo w e d b y an
address b y John Moore, fo rm e r
president o f SDS at W ashington
U n iv e rs ity here, and now a leader
o f the St. L o u is E th ic a l Society.
The m o b iliza tio n was called by
the St. Louis Citizens fo r Peace in
V ietnam .
T W IN C IT IE S
M IN N E A P O L IS — The M in ­
nesota Com m ittee to End the W ar
in V ietnam conducted its most
successful mass m eeting to date,
d ra w in g over 1,200 persons to a
protest te a ch -in Nov. 7. Addressing
the m a in r a lly w ere S id Lens, o f
L ib e ra tio n
magazine;
L in c o ln
For His Marxist Views
D r. D onald B arn ett, an anthropologist a t the U n iv e rs ity o f Io w a
in Io w a C ity, w ill n o t have his contract renewed in June, 1968, accord­
in g to the u n iv e rs ity adm in istra tio n .
W h ile o n ly vague o ffic ia l reasons w ere given, D r. B a rn e tt said,
“ The m ain reason m y co ntract was n o t renewed was because th e y
don’t care to have dissenting view s p u b lic ly expressed in th e ir [an­
th ro p o lo g y] departm ent. There w ere no in q u irie s made in to m y classes,
m y research, m y book, or m y students; i t was c le a rly a m a tte r o f m y
p o litic a l a c tiv ity and m y being a M arxist-orien ted anthropologist. ”
D r. B a rn e tt has been active in the Io w a S ocialist League, and has
spoken a t several te ach -in and a n tiw a r dem onstrations.
A t a protest r a lly against the w a r, on Nov. 5, D r. B a rn e tt had
stated th a t he w o u ld n o t su b m it grades o f his students to th e u n iv e r­
s ity as long as the u n iv e rs ity turn ed th e m over to the d ra ft board.
“ As an anthropologist, ” he said, “ I fin d th is situ a tio n p a rtic u la rly
iro n ic and bizarre. In teaching about tr ib a l societies and peasant
peoples in the u nder developed w o rld , the grades w h ich anthropologists
give are being used to decide w h o among o u r students should go and be
sent to k i l l o u r in fo rm a n ts and the subjects o f o u r studies.”
The dism issal n o tific a tio n was sent p rio r to th is statement, however,
and appa re ntly had n o th in g to do w ith it.
The Nov. 5 r a lly and m arch in Io w a C ity against the w a r d re w
between 400 and 500 pa rticipants, and was sponsored b y F riends o<
SNCC, the Io w a V ie tn a m D ay Com m ittee, SDS and th e Io w a So­
c ia lis t League.
1
L yn ch , CORE; E dw ard K eating,
e d ito r o f R am parts; C la rk K issing­
er, Chicago C IP A ; Douglas Camp­
bell, d ire c to r G u th rie Theatre;
James M alco lm W illia m s, fo rm e r
R epublican S enatorial candidate;
and Joe Johnson, SWP candidate
fo r the U . S. Senate.
T he m a in program o f speakers
was fo llo w e d b y a num b er o f sem­
inars on various aspects o f the
w a r th a t continued th roug h most
o f the n ig h t. The hig h p o in t o f
the sem inar series was a panel dis­
cussion conducted b y the In te r­
n a tio n al Students C ouncil. A south
Vietnamese student presented the
case fo r A m erican in te rve n tio n
w h ile students fro m Ira n , A rg e n ­
tin a , W est G erm any and Ira q de­
nounced A m erican aggression, e x­
plained the cru cia l relevence of
the w a r to the rest o f the colonial
re v o lu tio n and described the a n ti­
w a r m ovem ent in th e ir own coun­
tries.
The b u lk o f the audience at the
te a ch -in w ere students and fac­
u lty fro m the U n iv e rs ity o f M in ­
nesota, though there was greater
p a rtic ip a tio n fro m off-cam pus peo­
ple than previous meetings. C arleton College in N o rth fie ld sent tw o
busloads o f students fo r the event.
On Nov. 5, the M C E W V held
tw o street ra llie s in dow ntow n
M inneapolis and d ow ntow n St.
Paul.
M A D IS O N
M A D IS O N — Because the No­
v e m b e r M o b iliza tio n coincided
w ith the U n iv e rs ity o f W isconsin’s
Homecoming, th e M adison CEW V
adopted as the m ain them e o f its
a ctivitie s the slogan “ Homecoming
fo r the Troops — End the W ar
in V ietnam . ” I t was fe lt th a t th is
slogan w o uld p o in t out to the com­
m u n ity the fa c t th a t i t is the a n ti­
w a r m ovem ent w h ich best re p­
resents the interests o f A m erican
soldiers.
On S aturday n ig h t a fu n d -ra is ­
in g p a rty succeeded in raisin g
m ore than $100 to replenish the
C EW V ’s depleted treasury.
The fo llo w in g afternoon was the
h igh p o in t o f the m ob iliza tion . A
r a lly on the m a ll o f the U n iv e r­
s ity lib r a r y attracted a crow d of
a p p ro xim a te ly 800. One o f the
featured speakers, E dw ard K e a t­
in g o f R am parts magazine, was
unable to appear, b u t the crow d
responded enth usia stically to the
speech o f the Reverend James
B evel o f the S outhern C hristia n
Leadership Conference, w ho a t­
tacked- th e tendency o f W estern
c iv iliz a tio n to regard as “ u n c iv il­
ized” any society w h ich does not
engage in mass m urder. O ther
speakers a t the r a lly were Fred
Bassett B la ir, C om m unist P a rty
candidate fo r governor, and James
B oulton, S ocialist W orkers P a rty
candidate fo r Congress in M ilw a u ­
kee’s fif t h d istrict.
The r a lly was fo llo w e d b y a p o tlu c k supper w h ic h fu rth e r con­
trib u te d to m a kin g the m o b iliza ­
tio n a fin a n c ia l success.
On M onday n ig h t, a cro w d o f
150 to 200 heard the noted Negxo
correspondent W illia m W o rth y at­
ta ck m a n ip u la tio n o f the news by
the governm ent and the press.
F o llo w in g W o rth y ’s speech, w o rk ­
shops on b la ck pow er, program s
fo r ending th e w a r, and electoral
p o litics w ere held.
The M o b iliza tio n concluded on.
Tuesday evening w ith a speech
delivered b y L in c o ln L yn ch , as­
sociate n atio nal d ire c to r o f CORE,
to an audience o f 125.
SEATTLE
S E A T T L E — N ov. 5 a “ D riv e
A gainst the W a r” motorcade criss­
crossed Seattle fo r several hours.
T he motorcade, sponsored b y the
Seattle CEW V, was made u p o f
about 40 cars. Each car had a
large three dim ensional banner
m ounted on the ro o f w ith a n tiw a r
slogans. A t the head o f the m o to r­
cade was a car equipped w ith aloudspeaker w h ich could be heard
in a several blocks radius.
On M onday, Nov. 7 the U n iv e r­
s ity o f W ashington C EW V spon­
sored a m arch to protest the w a r
in V ietnam . The m arch began on
the campus a t 12:30 P. M., w ound
thro u g h the U n iv e rs ity shopping
d is tric t, and ended about an hour
la te r behind the U n iv e rs ity l i ­
b ra ry. A b o u t 60 students p a rtic ­
ipated.
Im m e d ia te ly
fo llo w in g
the
m arch, a teach-in was held on the
U n iv e rs ity o f W ashington campus,
co-sponsored b y the U W C E W V and
F a c u lty Com m ittee on W a r and
Peace.
R IV E R S ID E
R IV E R S ID E , C a lif. — A nu m ­
ber o f a c tivitie s w ere held here
in co njunction w ith th e n ationa l
m o biliza tio n. Preceeding th e w eek­
end activities, th e SDS chapter o f
the U n iv e rs ity o f C a lifo rn ia here
held several w e ll-a tte n d e d ra llie s
on campus.
On N ov. 5, 150 people m arched
th roug h th e do w ntow n d is tric t to
the county courthouse w here they
heard speakers. F o llo w in g the
dem onstration, 35 students con­
tin ued an a ll-n ig h t v ig il on the
county courthouse steps. Groups
o f people w ere sent o u t to dis­
trib u te lite ra tu re to shoppers in
the d ow ntow n d is tric t.
One in d ica tio n o f the grow ing
a n tiw a r sentim ent in th is com m u­
n ity has been th e d issolving o f the
Y oung D em ocratic Clubs as a p ro ­
test against th is d is tric t’s p ro ­
Johnson D e m o cra tic' congressman.
BO STO N
BOSTON — A planned m arch
o f a n tiw a r activists was rained out
on Nov. 5, b u t a r a lly w h ich was
to have fo llo w e d the m arch was
held, w ith about 200 people b ra v ­
in g the storm to hear speakers and
see the B read and Puppet Theater.
The m eeting was sponsored b y the
G reater Boston C oordin atin g Com­
m ittee A g a in st the W a r in V ie t­
nam.
Page & ix
T H E M IL IT A N T
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
A M AJOR SPEECH
Cuban-Korean Declaration on Vietnam
Castro on Moral Incentives
In an im portant speech last
Sept. 28, F id el Castro announced
th at a ll rents would be abolished
in Cuba in 1970 (except fo r those
who are not paying the govern­
m ent the rent they are supposed
to today.)
Castro indicated there had been
spine opposition to the idea of
abolishing rents by those who, he
said, had too narrow and conser­
vative an approach to the revolu­
tion. H e argued th at the manpower
expended in the collection of rents
coold be more effectively em­
ployed elsewhere.
H e w ent on to discuss the issue
of m oral versus m aterial Incen­
tives in rallyin g popular support
fo r increased production and other
necessary tasks of the revolution.
This issue has been debated in
Cuba and Che G uevara had been
reported the principal champion
of m oral incentives, w ith leaders
o f the old Cuban Popular Socialist
(Com m unist) P arty arguing for
m aterial incentives.
. Castro also assailed those “tired
revolutionaries” who resist deep­
ening the* revolution and embrac­
ing ever w id er goals fo r it. D e­
c la r in g . s u c h . p e o p le .m u s t. step
aside, he declared: “I t is better
to have a retired revolutionary
tjiban a tire d man tryin g to act lik e
A revolutionary.”
Because of space lim itation , we
ai*e able to present only sections
of the speech dealing w ith the
issue of m oral incentives.
* * *
I was saying th a t i t is m an’s
a ttitu d e before obstacles and d if­
fic u ltie s, his a ttitu d e to w a rd e f­
fo r t, th a t serves as a ya rd s tic k to
gauge the m e ttle o f a re v o lu tio n ­
a ry. The o p tim istic, re v o lu tio n a ry
Ideas th a t we defend w ill no doubt
be challenged b y calcu la tin g c ri­
tics, b y those whose a ttitu d e to­
w a rd life is e n tire ly m etaphysical,
w ho add and subtract, b u t come
o u t w ro n g on the to ta l — w h ic h
is th e sum o f w illp o w e r, courage
and determ ination . I t is the sum
to ta l o f the m o ra l facto rs w ith
w h ic h the peoples have always
undertaken — and accomplished
— the great tasks in the h isto ry
o f m a n kin d . . .
There are often some w ho va­
c illa te w hen faced b y great tasks,
b u t among the va cilla to rs w e w ill
fin d th e f ir s t opportunists.
W e have n o t the slightest doubt
th a t w ith th e e ffo rt made b y the
people, w ith th e e ffo rt w e have
been m a kin g and are m a kin g to­
day, w ith the ever greater e ffo rt
th a t w e m ust m ake in the com ing
year, the people, w ith its strength
and w ith its sweat, w ill be capable
o f creating riches incom parably
su perio r to w h a te ve r fin a n c ia l im ­
p lications m ay be in vo lve d in the
fa c t th a t the people stop paying
re n t in 1970. W ith the o ther c ri­
te rio n w e w o u ld never have a r­
riv e d a t any re n t cut, and one
o f the fir s t things the re v o lu tio n
d id was to reduce rents — in
m a n y cases as m uch as 50 per­
cent.
Everyone is fa m ilia r w ith the
anguish, th e bitterness and the
fe eling o f in s e c u rity th a t existed
un d e r the fo rm e r system, th e suf­
fe rin g o f h a ving to pay re n t —
in m a n y cases as m uch as h a lf
the salary earned — fo r a sm all
MALCOLM X
TALKS TO
YOUNG PEOPLE
35c.
The Young Socialist
P.O. Box 471
Cooper Station
New York, N. Y. 10003
house o r a sm all apartm ent. E v e ry ­
one
rem embers
the
common
dream : to one day have a home
o f one’s ow n. We a ll rem em ber
those com m ercial firm s th a t, in
o rd e r to sell soap o r newspapers,
ra ffle d o ff a sm all house each
m onth; and ho w m any in the
co u n try and in the cities saved
those soap coupons o r newspaper
coupons in the hope th a t, as one
out o f e ve ry thousand, o r one out
o f eve ry m illio n , he w o u ld be lu c k y
enough to w in a house.
A “ fin a n c ie r, ” a pure economist,
a m etaphysician o f revolutions
w o u ld have said, “ C areful! Rents
shouldn’t be low ered one cent.
T h in k o f i t fro m a fin a n c ia l stand­
po in t, fro m an economic stand­
point. T h in k o f the pesos in ­
volved. ”
Such persons have peso signs
in
th e ir
heads
and
hearts.
B u t, i f w e w a n t a people w ho
rem ove
the
peso sign
fro m
th e ir m inds, w ho rem ove the
peso sign fro m th e ir hearts, we
m ust have m en w ho have gotten
rid o f th e ir o w n m ental peso signs.
Those persons w o u ld have said,
“ No.” A n d th e y w o u ld have added
up accounts.
Against P rivilege
We could have asked them then,
“ F o r w h a t reason do you ask the
people to m ake a revolution? B y
chance fo r p u re ly m etaphysical
reasons? F o r w h a t reason are you
going to ask the people to struggle
and even die in defense o f the
re vo lu tio n ? ”
C ould w e expect the people to
believe, to be sim ple a p rio ri be­
lievers in a ll o f that? O r was i t
necessary, in the fir s t place, to
demonstrate th a t the re vo lu tio n
was on the side o f the people, th a t
the re v o lu tio n was against the in ­
terests o f the ric h , th a t the re v o lu ­
tio n was against the interests of
the exploiters, th a t the re vo lu tio n ,
w ith no hesitation whatsoever, sa­
crific e d and h u rt th e interests o f
the p riv ile g e d m in o ritie s fo r the
sake o f the interests o f the people?
There w o u ld n ’t have been even
one la w in the name o f those p rin ­
ciples. T hey w o u ld have proposed
to go on charging th e farm ers
rent. In the name o f the same
principles, th e y w o u ld have con­
tin u e d to charge the fa rm e rs in ­
terest on loans. T hey w o u ld have
charged fo r m edical and hospital
care. T h e y w o u ld have charged
school fees. T hey w o u ld have
charged fo r the b o arding schools
th a t are n ow com pletely fre e —
a ll in the name o f a m etaphysical
approach to life .
Mass Enthusiasm
T hey w o u ld never have had the
people’s enthusiasm, the masses’
enthusiasm, w h ic h is the p rim e
fa cto r, the basic fa c to r fo r a people
to advance, fo r a people to b u ild ,
fo r a people to be able to develop.
A n d th a t enthusiasm on the p a rt
o f the people, th a t support fo r the
re v o lu tio n is som ething th a t can
be measured in term s incom parab­
ly su p e rio r to the adding and sub­
tra c tin g o f the m etaphysicians.
O f course the re v o lu tio n was
unable to give th e people a ll th a t
th e y needed. The people could n o t
be given w h a t the re v o lu tio n did
n o t have to give. B u t the re v o lu ­
tio n d id give the people a ll th a t
i t could. The re v o lu tio n has sought
to give the people a ll th a t i t had
to give. I t has sought, above a ll,
to create confidence among the
people and a sense o f se cu rity in
th e ir ow n fu tu re .
We have spoken in the name of
socialism, we have spoken in the
name o f comm unism, b u t w e w ill
never create socialist conscious­
ness and m uch less com m unist
consciousness w ith a storekeeper
m e n ta lity.
We w ill never create socialist
consciousness and com m unist con­
sciousness w ith a peso sign in the
mindfe and hearts o f the m en and
wom en o f the people.
A n d i f w e ask ourselves the
reason fo r the a ttitu d e o f the
people in a ll parts o f the co u n try
— in the cities and in the ru ra l
areas, in the loneliest m o untain —
the reason fo r th e ir firm ness in
support of th e re v o lu tio n , i t is be­
cause the re v o lu tio n has created
confidence and a sense o f security
among the people. I t has created
the conviction th a t e v e ryth in g
m ay be accomplished b y w o rk and
struggle.
I t is n o t because the re v o lu tio n
has fille d a ll the m a te ria l needs
o f the people. No. B u t a great p a rt
o f the m o ra l needs o f th is people
have been fille d b y the re vo lu tio n .
M any
people
w onder
w hy
there’s such enthusiasm among the
masses; w h y such reactions arise
in in d iv id u a ls everyw here. A n d
there’s som ething th a t can’t be
calculated m a th e m a tica lly sim p ly
b y m u ltip ly in g and d iv id in g , by
adding and subtracting, and th a t’s
the m o ra l benefits th a t the re vo lu ­
tio n has m eant fo r the people,
w h a t fe e lin g fo r the fir s t tim e lik e
hum an beings, lik e men and w om ­
en in the fu lle s t sense o f the
w ord, has m eant fo r e ve ry m an
and wom an in th is country, w h a t
i t has m eant fo r m illio n s o f men
and wom en in th is co u n try —
w h a t i t has m eant to cease being
n o th in g in order to become some­
th in g . F o r in th a t old society
w here ju s t a h a n d fu l were every­
th in g , m illio n s o f hum an beings
w ere nothing, m illio n s o f hum an
beings d id n ’t
count fo r any­
th in g . . .
T here’s n o t one fa m ily , one fa r ­
mer, one single w o rke r, one com­
m on man, in o u r co u n try th a t
doesn’t fe e l th a t se cu rity in the
face o f death, accidents, illness, in
the face of a nything. A n d a ll th is
has been creating in o u r citizens
a sense o f th e ir ow n w o rth . This
has been creating in them a sense
o f th e ir ow n d ig n ity .
Arm ed Populace
Today in the ru ra l areas o f o u r
country, you no longer see pairs
o f ru ra l guards w ith th e ir m a­
chetes, w ith th e ir b ig horses. No,
you no longer see a single man
o r w om an in the countryside w h o
sees pow er as a th in g apart, au­
th o r ity as a th in g apart, the state
as a th in g apart. F o r today these
men and wom en are the a u th o ri­
ty . T hey are the ones w ho have
the weapons in th e ir hands —
m ore and b e tte r weapons than
those ru ra l guards had. Today
th e y are the pow er. B u t n o t ju s t
in w ords o r in theory, b u t in fact,
in re a lity . T here’s no fa rm e r, re­
gardless o f age, w h o doesn’t have
his weapon there in his company
o r in his ba tta lio n . There’s no fa r­
m e r w ho doesn’t have there the
means fo r defending his rights,
fo r defending his re v o lu tio n . A n d
th is has created a m o ra l fo rtitu d e
in the men and w om en o f th is
co u n try, a m o ra l fo rtitu d e th a t
cannot be measured in term s o f
num erals. F o r those are the things
th a t have made th e people mo­
b iliz e to c a rry o u t every task, to
answer every appeal o f the re v o lu ­
tio n , o f any k in d w hatsoever. . .
D iffic u lt struggles have to be
waged against re a ctio n a ry ideas.
A n d w e’ve been m oving fo rw a rd
fro m th a t stage.
B u t w e have new stages before
us. A n d once more, we w ill fin d
re a ctio n a ry ideas in o u r w ay, ideas
th a t m ig h t have been re v o lu tio n ­
a ry 10 years ago, y e t can be per­
fe c tly re a ctio n a ry today. The ide­
ological positions o f yesterday m ay
n o t be s u ffic ie n tly advanced when
confronted w ith the ideological
positions o f today. Today w e see
beyond them ; we are n o t satisfied
w ith drops in the bucket; w e are
n o t satisfied w ith a re v o lu tio n b y
halves. W e believe in the people.
W e believe in man.
A n d these things th a t the re v ­
o lu tio n does, these ideas in re la ­
tio n to housing, m edical services,
education, in re la tio n to every­
th in g th a t is given the people —
w ith o u t the need fo r paym ent,
T h e fo llo w in g are excerpts fro m a jo in t statem ent issued
b y th e governm ents of C uba and th e D em ocratic People’s R e­
public of K orea fo llo w in g conversations held in K orea Oct.
26-29.
#
*
*
T h e s tru g g le o f th e V ie tn a m e s e p e o p le a g a in s t U . S. im ­
p e r ia lis t aggression is th e fo cu s o f th e a n ti- im p e r ia lis t s tr u g ­
g le fo r th e p re s e n t. . . B o th sides [t o th e c o m m u n iq u é ] co n ­
s id e r th a t th e s o c ia lis t c o u n trie s , a ll th e a n ti- im p e r ia lis t fo rce s
i n th e w o r ld s h o u ld u n ite a n d a c tiv e ly assist th e V ie tn a m e se
p e o p le . . .
B o th d e le g a tio n s express f u ll, m ilit a n t s o lid a r ity w it h th e
fr a te r n a l n o r th a nd s o u th V ie tn a m e s e pe o p le . . . a n d once
a g a in d e cla re th e ir f i r m d e te rm in a tio n to send v o lu n te e rs a n y
tim e th e V ie tn a m e s e peo ple re q u e s t i t . . .
T h e tw o d e le g a tio n s co n sid e r th a t u n d e r th e c o n d itio n s
w h ic h th e U . S. im p e ria lis ts a re e s c a la tin g th e w a r o f ag g re s­
s io n in V ie tn a m stage b y stage, th e s tru g g le a g a in s t U . S. im ­
p e ria lis m a n d fo r assistin g th e V ie tn a m e s e p e o p le s h o u ld lik e ­
w is e be w a g e d in a m o re o rg a n iz e d w a y an d escalated on a
w o r ld scale.
T h e tw o d e le g a tio n s u n a n im o u s ly h o ld th a t f o r th is i t is
necessary, f i r s t o f a ll, to a ch ie ve in te rn a tio n a l a n ti- im p e r ia lis t
jo in t a c tio n a n d fo r m a n a n ti- im p e r ia lis t u n ite d fr o n t.
w ith o u t the need fo r a peso sign
in the head and b ills in th e pocket
— tend to g ra d u a lly create a m ore
advanced social consciousness in
the people, tend to create d if­
fe re n t p ro p e rty values in the
people, a d iffe re n t regard fo r m a­
te ria l possessions, a d iffe re n t re­
gard fo r m an’s w o rk.
W e do n o t believe in utopia. We
do n o t believe th a t th is can be
done ove rnight. We do n o t believe
th a t th is consciousness can be dev­
eloped in ju s t a fe w years, b u t
w e do believe th a t i t w il l never
be created i f w e do not struggle
unceasingly, i f w e do n o t advance
incessantly on th is path. . .
O f course, i t is fa r easier to ap­
peal to the selfish interests of
men than to appeal to th e ir feel­
ings o f so lid a rity, to th e ir feelings
o f generosity; and, clearly, m any
things can s till be solved w ith
money. C learly, even now , a fac­
to ry can “ h ija c k ” w o rke rs fro m
another
factory,
by
o ffe rin g
money. W ith h ig h e r wages, any
w o rk center can lu re w orkers
fro m another center in w h a t is
tr u ly a p ira tic a l action.
In the re a lity o f m atters as
th e y stand, m any m en and w om ­
en — fo r a series o f reasons —
economic, social, o r fro m la ck o f
conscience — s till cannot b rin g
themselves to tu rn dow n the op­
p o rtu n ity to receive som ething
more fo r themselves. B u t those
w ho w ish to solve problem s by
appealing to personal selfishness,
b y appealing to in d iv id u a l e ffo rt,
fo rg e tfu l o f society, are acting in
a re a ctiona ry m anner, conspiring,
although inspired b y the best in ­
tentions in the w o rld , against the
p o ssibilities o f creating a tr u ly so­
c ia lis t s p irit, a tr u ly com m unist
s p irit in the people. He w ill be
conspiring against the e ffo rt to
create an awareness in the people
o f the p o s sib ility o f a w a y o f life
in w h ic h men, acting and w o rk ­
in g in unison, w il l be able to give
each in d iv id u a l m em ber o f society
m uch m ore th a n he could ever
a tta in on a s o lita ry path, le ft to
his ow n resources.
Encourage Generosity
There are alw ays those w ho
pander to the selfishness o f others.
B u t those o f us w ho ca ll ourselves
re vo lu tio narie s should never re la x
the fig h t against such in d iv id u a l­
is t tendencies. We m ust alw ays
encourage the generosity and soli­
d a rity o f the m en and and w om en
o f o u r na tio n . . .
A n d as fo r those w h o never be­
lieved in the people, w ho had no
fa ith in them in th e past, how
can w e expect the m to believe in
the people today, o r to begin be­
lie v in g in the future ? Those w ho
have no fa ith in the m o ra l virtu e s
o f the peoples o f the w o rld can
never be leaders, can never lead
a people fo rw a rd . F o r m an does
not liv e b y bread alone.
A n d i f w e re ca ll those moments
in the past th a t w ere d iffic u lt
and perilous fo r us, we m ust also
re c a ll the people’s attitudes. I t
was clear on those occasions th a t
the people were prepared to die
ra th e r than surrender. To die be­
fore g iv in g up. A n d w illing ness to
die ra th e r than surrender signifies
th a t a hum an being is m otivated
by m uch m ore than m ere b io lo­
gical in stincts; th a t a hum an being
is m o tivate d b y som ething hig h er
than sim ple “ a n im a l appetites. ” . . .
Consider those w ho fo u g h t in
the d iffic u lt days o f o u r ow n re v ­
o lu tio n a ry struggle (the tim es we
kn ow best, since we experienced
th e m ); those in the cities w ho
risked th e ir lives d a ily d u rin g
those d iffic u lt days, ru th le ssly
persecuted; those in the m oun­
tains, sw eaty and hu ngry, th e ir
clo th in g tattered, w eighed dow n
b y heavy packs, w ho marched day
a fte r day, m onth a fte r m onth, and
year a fte r year to fig h t and to die.
W ha t w ere th e ir m otivations?
W ere
“ an im a l
appetites”
by
chance behind th e ir struggles?
W ere th e y m o tivated b y selfish
instincts? O r d id an idea, a cause,
a m o ra l fa c to r lie behind th a t
strength, th a t capacity fo r fin d in g
follow ers, th a t q u a lity w h ic h was
able to arouse a w ho le people
w hen the day arrived?. . .
A n d these factors are the ones
w h ic h m ob ilize o u r people today
thro u g h o u t th e e n tire nation. T hey
w ill enable us to w in today’s
battles and to reach to m o rro w ’s
goals.
R evolutionary M obilization
The nu m b e r reckoners w ill fin d
th a t such factors, w h ic h th e y have
never taken in to account, have
more force than a ll th e ir calcula­
tions, m ore force than a ll th e ir
figures. The num ber reckoners —
and there are those w ho act in
good fa ith and those w ho do n o t
— m ust also one day recognize
this re a lity ; fo r o u r people are on
the m arch, o u r people are advan­
cing.
W e m a y n o t reach e ve ry goal
now , n o r tom orrow , b u t w e are
g e ttin g nearer and nearer to the
tim e w hen the facts w il l show
e xa ctly w h a t o u r people are ca­
pable o f producing even though
faced w ith d iffic u ltie s w h ic h the
im p e ria lis t enemy forces upon us;
even though faced w ith d iffic u l­
ties w h ic h underdevelopm ent be­
queathed us, such as the w id e ­
spread illite ra c y and great ig n o r­
ance th a t existed in o u r co u n try;
even though faced w ith any n u m ­
ber o f adverse conditions, any
num ber o f reverses stem m ing fro m
o u r enemy or fro m n ature itse lf.
The Origins
Of Materialism
By G eorge N ovack
300 p p .
$6.95
MERIT PUBLISHERS
5 East Third Street
New York, N. Y. 10003
Page Seven
T H E M IL IT A N T
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
3 ottoha J ’Aom Owi HsuadsM
[This colum n is an open fo ru m
fo r a ll view po in ts on subjects of
general interest to ou r readers.
Please keep y o u r letters b rie f.
W here necessary the y w il l be
abridged. W rite rs’ in itials w ill be
used, names being w ith h e ld unless
a u th o riza tio n is given fo r use.]
Impressed
B ro o k ly n , N. Y.
On Sunday, last, at about 12: 15
p. m., over W A BC , a young w om an
speaker fo r the S ocialist W orkers
P a rty was in te rvie w e d w ith re fe r­
ence to th is a d m in istra tio n ’s con­
d u ct o f the w a r in V ietnam . I was
g re a tly impressed w ith h e r cour­
ageous and fo rth rig h t criticism s
and, i f possible, should lik e a copy
o f th is in te rv ie w .
A lth o u g h ha vin g no close re la ­
tiv e o r frie n d invo lve d , I have
been v e ry m uch opposed to w h a t
I consider the m ost ferocious and
b ru ta l w a r in th is 20th century,
w ith the accom panying slaughter
o f A m e rica n youth, upon the most
h yp o critica l, fanta stic and unbe­
lie va b le premise, and have so w r it ­
te n to men lik e Senator F u lb rig h t
and others o f his persuasion.
M . H.
Pro-SWP
G len Oaks, N.Y .
The tra g ic defeat o f the c iv ilia n
com p la in t re v ie w board fo r the
police departm ent o f N ew Y o rk
C ity is the newest v ic to ry fo r ra ­
cism, the u ltra -rig h t and illo g ic a l
em otion over a ll logic and reason.
The fa c t th a t the voters o f New
Y o rk C ity w o u ld not approve even
so in fin ite s im a l a step to w a rd the
o p p o rtu n ity fo r understanding be­
tw een m in o rity groups and th e ir
oppressors, shows the e x te n t to
w h ic h people u nder capita lism are
subject to fear, hatred, p re ju d ice
and propaganda.
The S ocialist W orkers P a rty o f­
fe rs a re fre sh in gly d iffe re n t idea
— a socialism in w h ic h everyone
is equal, in practice ra th e r than
m e re ly in theory, and in w h ic h
the emotions w h ic h re ta rd under­
standing are dealt w ith b y de­
stro yin g th e ir im m o ra l base. A n d
th e S ocialist W orkers, w ho sup­
p orted the re te n tio n o f th e board
m ore une quivocally than any o ther
p a rty in N ew Y o rk , have also led
th e struggle against aggression b y
o u r ow n blessed na tio n and fo r
com plete w ith d ra w a l o f the o nly
fo re ig n troops on Vietnamese soil
— th e troops o f the U nite d States
o f A m erica.
L. G.
Red Guards
D etroit, M ich.
W h ile you have review e d Isaac
Deutscher*s “ M ao a t B ay, ” you
should have also m entioned Franz
S churm an’s a rticle , “ W h a t Is H ap­
pening in C hina? ” in th e Oct. 20
New Y o rk R eview o f Books. I t was
q u a lita tiv e ly m uch su p e rio r to
b oth D eutscher’s and George Novack’s attem pts to illu m in a te the
Red G uard phenomenon. A tte m p ts
th a t w ere w a n tin g in scholarship
and often s h rill in conception. I
believe you w ill do y o u r readers
a service by recom m ending the
aforesaid article.
Elias Boukhara
Ray of Hope
W ashington, D . C.
In to th is re a ctio n a ry hell-hole
called a “ u n iv e rs ity ” w here I am
comes The M ilita n t, a b rig h t ra y
o f hope renew ing confidence in
the fu tu re . Its clear voice o f sanity
is m uch p rize d in a w o rld gone
m ad in its decay.
P. R.
From a Veteran Socialist
Vashon, Wash.
I see m y subscription is o u t and
I don’t w a n t the paper stopped,
so I ’l l send you $3 fo r another
year. I ’m gam bling w ith o ld Fa­
th e r T im e since I ’m 96 years old.
I have been reading socialist
papers since 1897. V ic to r L . B e r­
ger’s Social D em ocratic H erald
was the fir s t I read.
A c tu a lly , I ’ve been a socialist
since m y old g ra n d fa th e r to ld me
in 1879 th a t I was lu c k y I was
born in the h ills because i f I ’d
been born close to M anchester I ’d
be w o rk in g ten hours a day fo r
six pence (12 cents). He to ld me
th is w hen I objected to packing
peat o u t o f the bog d u rin g ho lid a y
in the summer.
K a r l M a rx got the foundation
o f his book, C apital, fro m w h a t
happened in Manchester. I have
his book and he w rite s w h a t m y
g ra n d fa th e r described to me.
I ’m in a rest home now , fo r a
w h ile , and reading about John­
son’s d ir ty w a r in V ietnam . I ’l l
q u it th is le tte r before I tir e you
out.
Y ours fo r a b etter system w h ich
is socialism.
B ill Scales
Capitalism and Slaughter
B ro o k ly n , N. Y.
I t is c e rta in ly possible, i f not
probable, th a t the massacre o f
h a lf a m illio n Indonesians since
la st year w il l u ltim a te ly b e n e fit
one o r m ore tita n ic A m e rica n cor­
porations. A n d there is no doubt
th a t the presidents o f the above
corporations w ill hand dow n a
fe w surplus crum bs to th e ir em­
ployes to p e rm it them to become
a “ tw o-car fa m ily . ” In other
words, a tin y share in the p ro ­
fits , o r a ke rn e l o f the “ P ira te ’s
booty” w h ic h seems to be m ore
appropriate.
A n d the w o rke rs o f these m am ­
m oth companies w ill no dou b t ra ­
tionalize th e slaughter o f 500,000
people (to open u p “ new m a r­
kets” ) as in A m e rica ’s interest.
F o r th e y have been brainwashed
since childhood in the pseudo-phi­
losophy o f th e “ m y co u n try rig h t
o r w ro n g ” crap.
Such is the poison o f capitalism
th a t can cause some A m erican
w o rke rs to ju s tify the k illin g o f
hundreds o f thousands o f th e ir
ow n class, in such obscene terms.
Isaac Deutscher in a 1965 speech
said, “ Socialism w ill n o t e lim in a te
a ll o f o u r problem s, b u t i t w ill
solve the m ost basic ones.” There,
no doubt, are people w h o w o u ld
n o t be content in any system, no
m a tte r h ow b e n e ficia l i t m ay be.
B u t socialism does n o t necessarily
have to be an end onto its e lf, in ­
stead i t could be a p re lim in a ry
I f you en jo y rea d in g T h e M ilit a n t and are in terested in
w h a t th e young socialist m ovem ent is th in k in g and doing,
you w ill w a n t to subscribe to A m e ric a’s lead in g young so­
c ia lis t m agazine
THE YOUNG SOCIALIST
$1 a y e a r (s ix issues)
Send y o u r d o lla r to
P.O. Box 471, Cooper Station, New York, N. T . 10003
I
Name......................................................... .......................................................
S tre e t...................................................
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step tow ards the a b o litio n o f a ll
“ isms,” and the beginning o f a
new w o rld w here hum an beings
w ill fo r the fir s t tim e in th e ir
long savage h is to ry begin to be
human.
The U n ite d States advertises
its e lf as the co u n try w h ic h has the
m ost p o litic a l freedom in the
w o rld , and to a certain e x te n t th is
is true, b u t over the years, the
opposition to the o lig a rch y has
been allow ed to dissent o n ly as
long as i t was n o t too excessive,
and as long as Nthe ru lin g class
deemed i t “ h e a lth y” (fo r th e ir
ow n health no do u b t) fo r the na­
tio n a l interest.
B u t as m ore people are aw ak­
ened fro m th e ir apathy and be­
come socially, m o ra lly and p o liti­
c a lly aroused, the m ore severe
w ill be the measures taken b y the
o lig a rch y to te rro rize them m en­
ta lly and physically. These mea­
sures are in te n sified w hen capi­
ta lis m enters another phase in its
usual periodic crisis. The V ietnam
w a r is the c u rre n t one.
I t w ill be in te re stin g to see
w h ic h methods the oppressed w ill
use to e ffe c tu a lly counter th e ir
-------------
Thought fo r the W eek
-------------
W A S H IN G T O N , N ov. 13 ( U P I) — The U nited States m ay have
to send up to tw o m illio n troops to V ie tn a m i f i t w ants to w in the
w a r there in as little as fiv e years, according to the Defense De­
p a rtm en t's new g u e rrilla w a rfa re director.
oppressors in the forthcom ing
days, m onths and years.
C arl Moskowitz
Cuban Refugees
San Diego, C alif.
There are a num ber o f U nited
States n e u tra lity violations by
Cuban refugees. The Register
(A m erica n atio nal C atholic news­
paper) stated on Oct. 9 th a t in
A ugust, 80 sm all boats a rriv e d
here fro m Cuba. Im m ig ra tio n and
customs o fficia ls tu rn th e ir atten­
tio n aw ay fro m these violations
u n til there is a tragedy.
A s tric t surveillance o f sm all
boats on the east coast o f F lo rid a
should be in effect. Sea tragedies
such as th e recent d ro w n in g of
Cuban refugees should n o t hap­
pen. The skipper, w ho was getting
p aid a thousand dollars a head fo r
the voyage fro m Cuba, should be
jtried fo r m urder.
M illio n s fo r “ Cuban refugees"
($10 m illio n in loans since Feb­
ru a ry , 1961), loans th a t w il l never
be paid back. Y e t Congress has n o t
appropriated one cent to purchase
ground fo r b u ria l o f ou r heroes
w ho come home fro m V ie tn a m In
coffins. T hey have seen f i t to a p *
p ro p ria te money to escalate thé
w a r in V ietnam . B u t the s u rv iv in g
w idow s are now being exp lo ited
to b u y b u ria l plots fo r th e ir herd
husbands.
Some o f these w idow s w ill lose
th e ir homes fo r la ck o f funds.
Some w ill pro b a b ly have to go on
re lie f to survive, as m any survive
in g w idow s o f W o rld W a r I I have
to do. Johnson’s G reat Society is
n o t fo r w a r heroes and th e ir
w idow s. Cuban refugees come
firs t. Why????
Pauline V . Z eller
It Was Reported in the Press
W hat Price Nationalization —
T iffa n y ’s catalogue contains this
somber news: “ Eleven years ago,
th e w aters o f the G u lf o f M a rta ­
ban started to y ie ld the largest,
m ost b e a u tifu l and now the rarest
o f cu ltu re d pearls. These Burmese
cu ltu re d pearls. . . are the re su lt
o f an unusual e n viro n m e n t found
o n ly in th is area. In the spring
o f 1963, B u rm a nationalized these
pe a rl fisheries. I t is o u r b e lie f
th a t Burm ese cu ltu re d pearls o f
th is q u a lity w il l be alm ost unob­
ta inable in the fu tu re . ” B u t i f you
act q u ic k ly , you can o rder a B u r­
mese matched pearl necklace fo r
$93,000.
The W ar for Freedom — The
U n ite d States In fo rm a tio n A gen­
cy lib ra r y in Saigon has several
books c ritic a l o f the U . S. role
there, b u t th e y’re k e p t in a special
section and n o t liste d in the lib ra r y
catalogue. Journalists and other
“ responsible citizens” can a p p ly to
the d ire c to r to read these books,
provided th e y can dem onstrate “a
serious interest. ” Sounds lik e the
pornography section in some lib ra ­
ries.
N ot Color B lind — W illia m
Wade, a b lin d Negro resident o f
N ew ark, has file d a bias com­
p la in t against the N ew Jersey
B lin d M en’s Association and the
office rs o f its Cam p Happiness.
He charged his a p p lica tio n to
spend a weekend a t the camp had
been tu rned
down on ra cia l
grounds.
A Real A m erican Boy — In case
you’re lo o kin g fo r a nice N ew Y o rk
b a r to re la x in , you m ig h t con­
sider a place called C h u rc h ill’s.
The fin a n c ia l section o f the Nov.
12 N ew Y o rk Times featured a
g lo w in g account o f how an enter­
p ris in g 27-year-old fe llo w made a
b ig success o f it. The a rtic le
opened: “ W hen Charles Potyala
ta lk s to the m in is k irte d waitresses
at C h u rc h ill’s. . . he u su a lly ta lks
tough. H e’s a p ro p rie to r and i f the
g irls don’t keep m oving, he loses
business. Recently, one o f the g irls
. . . asked h im , ‘W hy are you down
on me? ’ He replied, ‘I t ’s because
I w a n t to be a m illio n a ire b y the
tim e I ’m 35.’ ”
P la in -T a lk Dep’t. — A dm en are
com plaining th a t Nicholas Samstag’s book on th e ir in d u s try ,
Bamboozled, is a gyp because i t
costs $5.50 and contains b u t 161
pages, w ith m any illu s tra tio n s .
A lso, the book says i t is n o t pos­
sible fo r a adman to have in te ­
g rity and adds: “ Business is the
m odem
e q uivalen t
of
th e
ju n g le . . . A n d i t ’s about tim e th a t
a dvertising (and business, too, fo r
th a t m a tte r)
stopped s trik in g
phony attitudes lik e school c h il­
dren in a charade pretend ing th a t
th e y are F aith , Hope and C h a rity . ”
For Contrast — C hauffeurs U n ­
lim ite d does a b ris k business in
p ro v id in g tem porary, u nifo rm ed
d rive rs. M a n y specify the type of
ch a u ffe u r they w ant. The requests
are varied, a company spokesman
said. Some w a n t a ta ll, im posing
man. Others, he said, “ ask fo r a
s k in n y m an. ”
A rt of Communication — “ This
you could ca ll the Age o f In fo rm a ­
tio n . , . The age o f the specialist
is over, b u t th a t’s a ll we ta lk about
because we see i t in the rear-view
w in d ow . The m an o f to ta l aware­
ness is here, b u t in vis ib le , because
i t is e nviron m enta l. . . The globe
w ill be a lit tle round schoolhouse,
a th in k in g machine, a program m ed
e nvironm ent. ” — E x tra c t fro m a
speech to the P u b lic R elations So­
cie ty o f A m e rica b y D r. M arsha ll
M cLuhan, head o f the Center fo r
C u ltu re and Technology at the
U n iv e rs ity o f Toronto.
Shrewd M ove — A T oronto resi­
d ent w h o is e xistin g on a w e lfa re
a llo tm e n t o f $69 a m o nth is seek­
in g to have his status changed
fro m hum an to anim al. H e made
the m ove a fte r stud ying the code
fo r tre a tm e n t o f anim als and
found i t fa r superior in protectin g
w ell-being.
Suddenly They’re Color B lind —
The Boston School C om m ittee fig *
ured out a shrew d w a y to reduce
ra c ia l im balance in the p u b lic
school system. The com m ittee
classified 671 Chinese students as
“ w h ite . ”
T his
rem oved
tw o
schools in the Chinese section of
the city, fro m the “ ra c ia lly im ­
balanced” category. H ow ever, thé
state board o f education reversed
the decision.
Touché — R eview ing The N ew
Bohem ia in the N ew Y o rk Tim es,
c ritic Elenore Lester concluded
th a t the author, John Gruen,
“ notes th a t one o f the basic tenets
o f the N ew Bohem ia is th at’ in ­
sanity offe rs a path to w a rd healing'
the w o rld ’s sickness. I f th is is a ll
th e y’ve got fo r us w e’re sunk. T h£
E stablishm ent has been m aking
th a t scene fo r a long tim e.”
Reverse
Procedure — R o y
O’Nan, w ho describes h im se lf as
fo rm e r “ bagm an” fo r M ia m i-a re a
racketeers p aying fo r police p ro r
tection, is th in k in g about ru n n in g
fo r m a yo r o f M ia m i S prings on
a re fo rm tic k e t. He says th e place
has become a “ sin c ity ” and he’s
the m an to clean i t up because
he know s the set-up fro m th e in ­
side.
— H a rry Ring-
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MILITANT
A PARTICIPANT'S REPORT
An Int'l Antiwar Action
By
M a r y -A lic e
W aters
[M a ry -A lic e W aters recently re­
turned from Europe. W hile there,
she represented the Am erican
Young Socialist A lliance at an
an tiw ar youth demonstration in
Liege, Belgium , on Oct. IS. M is i
W aters is the editor of the Young
.S ocialist. ]
I : jo in e d the dem onstration in
a big, open square in Liege,
where thousands o f socialist yo u th
fro m various European countries
w ere congregating before th e y
m arched th roug h the c ity . Re­
sponding to the ca ll o f the B elgian
Y oung S ocialist Guards, the dele­
gations fro m m any countries made
this the fir s t European-wide dem­
o nstration against the w a r in V ie t­
nam and the N o rth A tla n tic
T re a ty O rganization (N A T O ).
Large delegations o f several
hundred w ere sent b y the E nglish
Y oung Socialists, the French Rev­
o lu tio n a ry
C om m unist
Y o u th
(J C R ), th e French yo u th around
thè magazine “ Revoltes,” the G er­
m an S ocialist Students (S D S ),
M id Of course the B elgian organ­
izers o f the dem onstration. In ad­
d itio n , there w ere alm ost 100 fro m
D enm ark,
and
representatives
fro m Ita ly , Spain, H o lla n d , Canada
and th e U n ite d States. The organ­
izers o f th e m arch estim ate 4,000
yo u th participate d.
The tim e and place o f the dem­
onstration w ere p a rtic u la rly signi­
fic a n t, as N A T O has ju s t been ex­
pelled fro m France and is in the
process o f settin g up headquarters
in B elgium . The yo u th in Liege
w ere n o t o n ly dem anding th a t the
U.S. get o u t o f V ietn am ; th e y w ere
also dem anding th a t the W estern
European countries get o u t of
N A T O and stop suppo rtin g U . S.
im p e ria lism ’s w o rld -w id e m ilita r y
n etw ork.
The long m arch th ro u g h the
c ity, w h ic h began in the la te a fte r­
noon, was c o lo rfu l and sp irite d . I t
was p a rtic u la rly im pressive to me,
Coming fro m the U n ite d States,
w here such a congregation o f so­
c ia lis t yo u th has n o t been seen in
m any years. There w ere flags and
posters and dozens o f huge ban­
ners w h ic h stretched across the
streets. In French, Flem ish, G er­
man; D utch, Spanish, Ita lia n ,
D anish and E nglish, the banners
called fo r s o lid a rity w ith the
Vietnamese re vo lu tio n , demanded
th a t thè U . S. get out o f V ietnam ,
dem anded an end to N A T O , and
called fo r u n ity in the w o rld -w id e
struggle against U . S. aggression.
In addition to chants such as
“ U . S. Assassins — L ib e rty fo r
Vietnam ,” “ U . S. G et O u t o f V ie t­
nam” and “ K ic k N A T O O u t o f
B elgium , ” the tra d itio n a l songs of
the W orld w o rk in g class and so­
cia list movem ent w ere sung, in ­
c lu d in g the “ In te rn a tio n a le ” and
“ B andiera Rossa.”
As w e reached the end o f the
m arch, one group o f students set
40% in Dearborn Vote
Favor Viet Withdrawal
One im pressive resu lt of
th e recent elections was th a t
40 percent o f voters o f D e a r­
born, M ic h ., voted in fa v o r
of w ith d ra w in g U.S. forces
fro m V ie tn a m .
T h e b a llo t question asked:
“A re you in fa v o r of an im ­
m ed iate cease-fire and w ith ­
d ra w a l o f U.S. forces fro m
V ie tn a m so V ietnam ese peo­
p le can settle th e ir o w n p ro b ­
lems? ”
T h e fin a l vote was 20,667
against w ith d ra w a l and 14, ­
124 in fa v o r o f it. T h e m ayo r
said those against w ith d ra w ­
a l should vo lu n teer fo r d uty
in V ie tn a m .
M a r y -A lic e W aters
fir e to an A m erican fla g th e y had
been dragging though the streets
to sym bolize th e ir hatred fo r the
policies o f the U . S. governm ent.
Everyone congregated in a large
h a ll in the h e a rt o f Liege where
representatives o f a ll the delega­
tions spoke fo r a fe w m inutes,
b rin g in g greetings and messages
o f so lid a rity. A m ong the organiza­
tions represented — in ad d ition to
those already m entioned — w ere
the Ita lia n magazine “ Falcem arte llo , ” the Ita lia n S ocialist P a rty
o f P ro le ta ria n U n ity , the D anish
S ocialist A c tio n League and the
Spanish C om m unist A ction.
I spoke fo r the A m erican Y oung
Socialist A llia n ce , and also read
special greetings w h ic h had been
sent b y the B erkeley V ietnam Day
Com m ittee. O ther telegram s came
fro m the “ B rin g the Troops Home
N o w N ew sletter, ” the U n iv e rs ity
o f T oronto Com m ittee to End the
W a r in V ie tn a m and th e Canadian
“ Y oung S ocialist F o ru m . ”
The B elgian Y oung Guards had
arranged fo r cots, blankets, food
and refreshm ents fo r a ll the dele­
gations except the B ritis h w h o had
to leave e a rly S aturday night.
M ost o f the delegations rem ained
in Liege u n til Sunday afternoon
to p a rticip a te in discussions on
how to im p ro ve coordination of
the fig h t against the w a r in V ie t­
nam, and explore the possibilities
o f setting up — as a beginning —
a W estern European com m ittee to
coordinate th is w o rk.
U n fo rtu n a te ly , there w ere also
one o r tw o sour notes s tru c k d u r­
in g the course o f the weekend.
The B ritis h Y oung Socialists car­
rie d a banner p ro cla im in g “ Long
L iv e the 1956 H un g aria n R evolu­
tio n . ” A contingent o f about 150
B elgian C om m unist Y o u th seized
upon th is banner as a convenient
p re te x t fo r w a lk in g o ff the line.
The leaders o f the B ritis h Y oung
Socialists, instead o f recognizing
th a t the banner was an unneces­
sary obstacle to b u ild in g a unitedfro n t dem onstration in defense of
the V ietnam re v o lu tio n , and in ­
stead o f seeing the w a lk o u t o f
the C om m unist Y o u th as a defeat
fo r such a u n ite d fro n t, saw the
w hole episode as a v ic to ry fo r
themselves.
A
second sectarian episode
m a rred the end o f the r a lly w hen
the Revoltes group shouted down
several resolutions o f support to
the A m e rica n a n tiw a r m ovem ent,
to the A m erican G Is w h o refuse
to fig h t in V ie tn a m and to the
fig h te rs o f the N a tio n al L ib e ra tio n
F ro n t, and attem pted to b re a k up
the ra lly .
A side fro m these occurances,
however, the Liege weekend re p ­
resented a step fo rw a rd fo r the
u n ity o f European re v o lu tio n a ry
socialist youth, and fo r b u ild in g
an e ffe ctive opposition to U . S. ag­
gression in V ietnam .
D u rin g the course o f the tw o
days o f a c tiv ity , speakers re fe rre d
fre q u e n tly to the im portance o f
the A m e rica n a n tiw a r movem ent
and the in s p ira tio n p ro vid e d b y
the existence o f an opposition to
the w a r w ith in the U nited States
its e lf. A s one o f the Belgian stu­
dents to ld me, “ F o r the fir s t tim e
in m any years, we feel there is
a movem ent in the U n ite d States
th a t w e can id e n tify w ith . ”
M onday, N ovem ber 21, 1966
Minutemen Had Weighed
A Cyanide Attack on UN
N ew details about the plans and
a c tiv itie s o f the M inutem en have
been revealed in the Kansas C ity,
Mo., tr ia l o f R obert B. DePugh,
the “ na tio n a l coordinator” o f the
rig h t-w in g organization, and tw o
others. F o r one th in g , the M in u te ­
men considered p u ttin g cyanide in
the air-co nditionin g system o f the
U nited N ations b u ild in g in New
Y o rk C ity.
T hey also discussed the idea of
assassinating Senator J. W. Fulb rig h t, chairm an o f the Senate
fo re ig n re lations com m ittee. These
tw o b arb aric plans among others
came o u t in the six-day tr ia l w h ich
ended Nov. 14 w ith the convic­
tio n o f DePugh, W a lte r P a tric k
Peyson and T ro y H oughton fo r
conspiracy.
The m a xim u m sentences could
be 15 years fo r DePugh and Pey­
ton and fiv e years fo r H oughton.
The defendants w ere given 30 days
in w h ic h to file fo r a new tr ia l
and w ere continued free on bond.
A s in the case o f the sensa­
tio n a l arrests o f the M inutem en in
N ew Y o rk Oct. 30, emphasis in
the press has centered on the note­
w o rth y gun collections o f these
“ p a trio tic b u t m isguided” citizens.
(T he ep ithe t is Nelson Rockefel­
le r’s.)
Three Arsenals
M entioned in the M issouri tr ia l
w ere arsenals in Independence and
in T rip le tt, in the n o rth central
p a rt o f the state, and one some­
w here in o r near San Diego, C a lif.
In e v ita b ly , the sources o f these
guns rem ained som ewhat vague.
One witness had possessed a.22
c a lib er sem i-autom atic pistol, the
silencer fo r w h ich was stolen fro m
the “ U n ited States G overnm ent. ”
A n A ir Force cook was supposed
to have helped to b u ry the arsenal
at T rip le tt.
H o w eve r the actual details on
how the M inutem en end up w ith
num erous.45 caliber M3 subma­
chine guns (th e “ grease gun” ),
80-mm. m ortars; hand-grenades;
rocket launchers; bazookas, and
the lik e , rem ains to ta lly obscure.
Even m ore im p o rta n t is the ques­
tio n o f w h a t the M inute m en in-
ténd to do w ith these m urderous
weapons.
T h a t is w h a t is m ost s ig n ific a n t­
ly absent, p a rtic u la rly fro m the
reported testim ony in the M is­
souri tr ia l. In N ew Y o rk , we
learned th a t the M in utem en had
plans to attack fo u r le ft-w in g
camps o r headquarters and th a t
they planned to k i ll i f necessary,
(see The M ilita n t, N ov. 14).
I t is n o th in g sho rt o f police and
c o u rt c o m p lic ity to le t the M in u te ­
men o ff on charges th a t don’t go
beyond possession o f guns o r “ con­
spiracy. ” These men are danger­
ous. We w ould lik e to k n o w how
they get th e ir weapons, w h a t the y
in tend to do w ith them , and w h a t
they already have done. I t w ould
be a grave m istake to loo k to the
c a p ita list governm ent fo r protec­
tio n fro m attacks b y rig h tists. I t
w ill be necessary at a ll tim es and
circumstances fo r the m ovem ent to
lo o k to its ow n resources fo r de­
fense fro m such attacks.
Women’s Rights
Group Formed
B y D e lla Rossa
As wom en across the co u n try
fig h t in fla tio n , w h ic h is one o f the
effects o f the g ro w in g w a r in Viet-1nam, and fig h tin g i t w ith w o rk in g *
class m ethods o f p icke t lines and
superm arket boycotts, a n a tio n ­
w ide organization to fig h t fò t
wom en’s rig h ts has been form ed in
W a sh in g to n D.C.
Called the N atio n al O rganization
fo r Women (N O W ), the group,
w ith 300 cha rter members, an*
nounced i t w ill w o rk fo r “ tru e
e q u a lity fo r a ll w om en in A m e r­
ica.”
The organization said i t w o u ld
w o rk fo r “ a fu lly equal p a rtn e r­
ship o f the sexes, as p a rt o f thè
w o rld -w id e re vo lu tio n o f hum an
rig h ts. ”
Top o ffic ia ls o f the organization
are D r. K a th ry n C larènbach o f the
U n iv e rs ity o f W isconsin and B e tty
Freidan, au th o r o f The Fem inine
M ystique.
Phila. Cops Again Harass Rights Fighters
B y Joel A b e r
P H IL A D E L P H IA , N ov. 12 —
O ve r th e past th ree days, th e policé
here have pursued w ith renewed
v ig o r th e ir attem pts to in tim id a te
leaders o f the b la ck freedom strug­
gle. The present w ave o f harass­
m ent culm inated w ith the arrest
and assault upon tw o members of
the Y oung M ilita n ts and a SNCC
w o rk e r b y police in N o rth P h ila ­
delphia F rid a y n ig h t.
These arrests fo llo w e d the police
beating o f R obert B rosw ell, a th ird
m em ber o f the Y oung M ilita n ts ,
as he re tu rn e d home la te T hurs­
day night.
F irs t arrested was B a rry D aw ­
son o f SNCC, on charges o f dis­
o rd e rly conduct, breach o f the
peace and resisting arrest, a fte r
a w h ite w om an had allegedly
com plained to police th a t he had
blocked h e r w a y and used obscene
language. The w om an declined,
how ever, to sign a com plaint.
Police Signed the co m p la in t in ­
stead.
Members o f the Y oung M ilita n ts ,
w ho w ere w ith Dawson at the
tim e o f th is arrest, accompanied
h im to the police station because
th e y w ere concerned about his
health. Dawson had been arrest­
ed in A ugust in connection w ith
the SNCC “ d ynam ite case” fram eup o f SNCC w o rke rs here. W h ile
being held in prison u n d e r $50,000
bond, Dawson had become sick and
been denied m edical treatm ent.
Freedom George, leader o f the
Y oung M ilita n ts , had also been a r­
rested and la te r released in thè
“ dyn a m ite ” case.
In the latest series o f arrests, the
police a d m it th a t the Y oung M ili­
tants asked thè a rresting o ffic e r
w h e th e r th e y could o ffe r assistance
to Dawson and w ere to ld th a t th e y
Could accompany Dawson to the
station i f th e y desired.
T w o o f the Y oung M ilita n ts ,
in c lu d in g Freedom George and a
g ir l w ho gave h e r name as Jane
Doe, w ere placed u n der arrest
a fte r th e y v o lu n ta rily a rriv e d at
the station.
Freedom George was s tru ck in
the face w ith a n ig h ts tic k so hard
th a t he lo st tw o teeth and required
n ine stitches in his lip .
A p a trolm an te stifie d a t the
p re lim in a ry hearing th a t ’ B a rry
Dawson suddenly b ro ke aw ay fro m
police and ra n in to the station.
A ccording to police, Freedom
George and the- g irl, surrounded
b y a t least 12 cops w ith revolvers
and nightsticks, blocked the en­
trance to the station and began to
k ic k one patrolm an.
As th e y allegedly kic k e d the
patrolm an, police testim ony has i t
th a t Freedom George received his
m outh in ju r y by an unusual con­
to rtio n : “ He fe ll on his ow n foot, ”
th e re b y k ic k in g h im s e lf in the
m outh.
Freedom George was charged
w ith aggravated assault and b a t­
te ry On an o ffic e i, and both he
and the g ir l w ere charged w ith
a id ing a prisoner to escape, in te r­
fe rin g w ith an o ffic e r and con­
spiracy. A ll three w ere ieleased
on $500 bond apiece.
The present police action is even
brasher and m ore transparent
th a n the yet-to-be-tiled “ ille g a l
possession o f d ynam ite” case. I t
is apparent th a t the police ahd
the D . A . ’s o ffice d id n o t plan a
ca re fu l fram e-up th a t Would re su lt
in convictions and long prison
term s fo r the m ilita n t A fro A m erican leaders. For the mo­
m ent, thè c ity governm ent is t r y ­
in g to break the m ovem ent ap a rt
b y resorting to p e tty arrests, bru­
ta l beatings, and a m u ltitu d e o f ex­
pensive co u rt battles for the de­
fendants.
Montreal Police Stage Raid
On Socialist Headquarters
M O N T R E A L, Canada — A t 6:30
p.m., N ov. 10, fo u r plainclothes
cops w ith a search w a rra n t in ­
vaded the headquarters o f the
Lig u e Socialiste O u vriè re [S ocial­
is t W orkers League], The w a rra n t
states th a t the police w ere look­
in g fo r guns, explosives, e lectrical
devices,
dynam ite,
detonators,
clocks, documents and ru b b e r
stamps. The fo u n d the last three
item s only.
T hey took aw ay several card­
board boxes containing one clock,
the contents o f a garbage can, some
correspondence, some socialist l i t ­
erature, files, and a lis t o f sub­
scribers to L a L u tte O uvrière,
[T h e W o rke r’s S tru g g le ], a social­
is t p u b lica tio n available in book­
stores th ro u g h o u t M ontreal.
The League is engaged in pro­
m o tin g socialist ideas and actions
th roug h pub lica tio n o f lite ra tu re ,
the ho ld in g o f forum s and jo in in g
w ith o th e r groups in dem onstra­
tions against the w a r in V ietnam .
The president o f the League,
P a tricia M itc h e ll, stated on Nov.
11: “ T he ra id fo llo w s a p a tte rn of
harassment established in A ugust
w hen tw o members o f the League
w ere arrested and held incom ­
m unicado fo r 14 hours fo r dis­
trib u tin g leaflets a dvertising a
dem onstration against the A m e ri­
can actions in V ietnam . The ra id
yesterday occurs as th e League
prepared fo r p a rtic ip a tio n in the
S tudent Days o f P rotest on Nov.
11 and 12. I t is an obvious attem pt
to in tim id a te those w ho oppose
both the presence o f A m erican
troops in V ietnam and th e ro le of
the Canadian governm ent in sup­
p o rtin g A m erica n actions.”