T.O. 137: Class Struggle Emerges in Final Weeks of Election Campaign

The ORGANIZER
October 2, 2024 – Issue No. 137
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IN THIS ISSUE:

• Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine… Imperialism’s Crimes – Statement by the Organizing Committee for the Reconstitution of the Fourth International (OCRFI)

• Editorial: Israel Expands War in the Middle East –  Stop U.S. Arms Shipments to Israel Now! (updated)

• United States: Class Struggle Emerges in Final Weeks of Election Campaign – by D.F.

• Solidarity with the Striking Boeing Workers! – Introduction and Interview with IAM 1725 President Chris Barrett

• Who We are and What We Stand For

• UC Santa Cruz: Drop All the Charges Against ASTU and Striking Student Antiwar Activists

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Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine… Imperialism’s Crimes

Statement by the Organizing Committee for the Reconstitution of the Fourth International (OCRFI)

October 1, 2024

For a year now, Netanyahu and Israel have been engaged in the genocide of the Palestinian people. Today, Israel wants to inflict the same fate on the Lebanese people. Netanyahu is multiplying his provocations to push Iran into war.

 Admittedly, Biden and others are pretending to protest. Certainly, Netanyahu – in his genocidal madness – is simply pushing the logic of Zionism to the extremes. But who can believe that he is acting on his own initiative?

 Who can believe that this state is acting against those who have supported it at arm’s length and enabled it to exist by providing economic, political and military aid for 76 years?

 The same people who talk about ‘democracy’ and ‘international law’ only when it suits them, are deliberately allowing Netanyahu to turn the Middle East into a vast mass grave. And this for a reason given by Senator Joe Biden in June 1986: The State of Israel “is the best investment that we are making – $3 billion [per year – editor’s note]. If there were no Israel, the United States would have to invent it to protect its interests in the region”.

 The war of extermination in Palestine and Lebanon is a war of imperialism. It is a war to terrorize people and show them tht this is what awaits anyone who dares to resist the iron heel of imperialism.

 One and the same imperialist war

  The war in the Middle East – which will not spare the Jewish populations of Palestine who have been misled and duped by Zionism – and the war which pits the Ukrainian and Russian peoples against each other in a fratricidal confrontation, … these are one and the same imperialist war.

 The war in Ukraine has already caused a million deaths and injuries among Ukrainian and Russian soldiers, not to mention the civilian population. It is an imperialist war to divide up the zones of influence between Western capitalists and their armed wing, NATO, and the regime of mafia-like oligarchs in the Kremlin.

 It cannot be separated from the bloodbath in the Middle East. Nor can it be separated from the preparations for a US war against China, the avowed aim which is to bring down State ownership of the economy, an obstacle to the plundering of the Chinese market.

 Biden, better than anyone else, established this link when, on April 20, he pushed through – in a single vote – an additional $95 billion in military spending (on top of the record military budget): $26 billion for Israel, $61 billion for the war in Ukraine and $8 billion for preparations for war against China. And a few days ago, Biden announced yet again, in the same move, an additional $7.9 billion for Zelensky and $8.7 billion for Netanyahu.

 As always, this considerable military spending is plundered from public budgets, depriving workers of even more hospitals, schools and public services… It is swallowed up by the arms industry, whose profits broke all records in 2024.

 This accelerates the development of the destructive forces generated by the breakdown of the capitalist system based on private ownership of the means of production.

 The only position in the interests of the workers and peoples of the world is the following:

 – Down with imperialist war, from Gaza to Lebanon, from Ukraine to China!
– Down with war warmongering governments! – Withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon!
– Withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine!
– Withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Russia!
– Withdrawal from NATO!
– Not one penny, not one weapon, not one man or woman for their dirty war!
– Requisition military expenditures and redirect the funds to meet the needs of the people!
– Down with 21st century social-chauvinism!

 These should be the slogans of any organization claiming to be for workers, for peace, for social justice and for democracy, standing united against the warmongering governments.

 But while the vast majority of workers and young people in the imperialist countries reject the war, it is clear that this is not the case at the higher levels of their parties and organizations.

 It’s a fact: On April 20, two members of the United States Congress, members of the Democratic Socialists of America (and Biden’s party), voted in favor of the war in Ukraine and preparations for war against China.

 It’s a fact: On more than 30 occasions in the European ‘Parliament’, most of the ‘left’ MEPs [Members of European Parliament] have voted in favor of war credits for NATO.

 It’s a fact: In the Russian Duma, so-called ‘communists’ support the war policy of the oligarchs’ regime.

 It is a fact: So-called ‘revolutionaries’ – some of whom dare to call themselves members of the 4th International – cover up the vote on war credits by the leaders. They denounce the massacres in Gaza and Lebanon, but in so doing they become accomplices in NATO’s war in Ukraine or in the preparations for war against China.

 This policy is what Lenin was fighting against 110 years ago: the ‘social-chauvinism’ of those who, while ‘socialists’ in word, in fact supported the imperialist war and the chauvinism of their government. Then as now: Down with social-chauvinism!

 The only position that is in the interests of the workers and peoples of the world is:

 – Stop voting for war credits, break with war warmongering governments!
 – Not for Israel, not for Ukraine, not a penny, not a weapon for their dirty war!
– In every imperialist country: The main enemy is our own government!

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• Israel Expands War in the Middle East:
• Stop U.S. Arms Shipments to Israel Now!
• Follow the Example of the Spanish Unionists!

Posted on October 1, 2024

Editorial by Mya Shone

“The biggest action we can take as trade unions is a general strike,” stated Carmen Arnaiz, secretary of Social Activities at the General Confederation of Labor (CGT) in Spain. Arnaiz was addressing reporters Friday, September 27, as a 24-hour general strike was underway “against the genocide and occupation in Palestine”.

The nationwide work stoppage was the concerted effort of more than 200 trade unions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). It was accompanied by demonstrations in front of factories that produce military equipment as well as at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Madrid. Universities suspended classes after students walked out in solidarity.

“We organized this action,” Arnaiz explained, “to respond to the demands of Palestinian workers. … The message we want to send to the Spanish government and the world,” she noted, is “cut all relations with Israel” — which means specifically severing all diplomatic, commercial, and military relations.

Biden’s silence is agreement

That was Friday. By Saturday, Israel had expanded and intensified its war in the Middle East. Benjamin Netanyahu had fully taken the measure of Biden and Harris. While on U.S. soil in New York to address the United Nations, Netanyahu posted a photo of himself giving the go ahead for the IDF to drop many bunker buster and incendiary bombs on four apartment buildings in Beirut. The attack, now exposed as years in the making, not only killed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s longtime political leader, but wiped out hundreds of Lebanese children, women, and men. A U.S. Department of Defense official told The Washington Post that he had never seen so many bombs used against a single target as in the Nasrallah strike.

“His (Nasrallah’s) death from an Israeli airstrike is a measure of justice for his many victims,” was Biden’s only comment. Not a recrimination or in any way a signal to lay off Lebanese sovereign territory.

By Sunday, Israel stepped up its carnage with massive bombing raids on Beirut and throughout areas of the south. The number dead, as has occurred in Gaza, is rising rapidly along with one million Lebanese displaced already from their homes. On a roll and with no opposition coming so far from the U.S., the IDF bombed power stations and a port in Yemen.

Shock and awe to lay waste to these countries is not where it ends. The IDF called up two brigades last week as part of preparations for a ground offensive into southern Lebanon. On Monday, the ground attack and Anschluss attempt on southern Lebanon had begun once again. IDF chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi sent a clear message to his troops: “You go in, destroy the enemy there and decisively destroy their infrastructure.”

Israeli bombs rained down on Damascus, Syria, killing a Syrian TV anchor, the latest in the relentless Israeli attack on press freedom and exposure of its war crimes. (More journalists have been killed in Gaza alone in the last 12 months than in the 20-year Vietnam War.)

What can these Biblically inspired settler-colonists be thinking except for the extermination of the indigenous peoples of Palestine and surrounding nations and annexation of their land? No Lebanese adult can forget the 18-year occupation which gave rise to the formation of Hezbollah, as the impoverished Shia of the south fought to defend their homes, nor will the Palestinian people ever abandon their struggle.

Meaning for us

What does that mean for us, here in the United States? We know that every bomb, 500-pound or 2,000-pound bunker buster, that every F-16 and F-35 fighter jet that carries them as well as other military weaponry is not only manufactured in the United States but is bought by Israel with our U.S. taxpayer funds.

On July 21, seven national unions, representing more than 6 million workers, called upon President Joe Biden “to halt all military aid to Israel”. That letter was signed by the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA), the American Postal Workers Union (APWU), the International Union of Painters (IUPAT), the National Educational Association (NEA), the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the United Autoworkers (UAW), and the United Electrical Workers (UE).

The NEA and SEIU are respectively, the two largest unions in the U.S. by membership. The NEA alone has 3 million members across the United States while SEIU has 2 million members working in healthcare, the public sector and property services. While the UAW members work primarily in the auto industry, the union’s reach is far and wide with members who build helicopters, firearms, industrial equipment, handle child care, make food products and beverages, are casino dealers, workers in assisted living centers as well as homecare workers and have other jobs in the healthcare industry, graduate employees and postdoctoral researchers in universities (particularly California), are legal services attorneys and staff in many states, canine trainers at a Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind, municipal and state workers and librarians.

We’re sure that you agree. There is no time to lose for these unions to put substance into their sentiments and, like the workers in Spain, demonstrate the strength of their resolve. It need not start with a general strike to get the message across. There are many workplace opportunities and the reach of these unions into U.S. daily life is broad. By law, for instance, every worker must have two 15-minute breaks which would create a massive work stoppage if taken simultaneously.

In the Bay Area workers and students are planning actions, such as walkouts, for Tuesday, October 8. Their actions vary with the conditions they confront in their particular situations. Across the country there will be demonstrations on the weekend of October 5. Union locals, at the minimum, could participate marching along with their banners.

Let the action begin!

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U.S.: Class Struggle Emerges in Final Weeks of Election Campaign

While Biden’s policies, dictated by the most powerful capitalist class in the world, are unleashing death and destruction upon workers and oppressed people across the globe, class struggle is entering the electoral election campaign.

In the United States, it’s unusual for strikes to break out four weeks before a presidential election, when all social attention is supposed to be focused on the duel between the two major bourgeois parties, Democrat and Republican. This is particularly the case when these strikes pit workers against the capitalists with their demands (wages, pensions, health insurance) as a “class against class” confrontation.

Yet this is exactly what is happening. After the Boeing strike, on October 1, the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) held one-day national Day of Action in support of their bargaining demands. Then the 33,000 strikers at Boeing once again rejected the draft collective bargaining agreement reached by management and union negotiators. Soon after, it was the turn of the East Coast longshore workers.

The leadership of the powerful International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA, 85,000 members) called a historic strike, paralyzing 36 ports because their demands have not been met.

Already, the JPMorgan Chase bank is panicking: This strike, “unprecedented in half a century”, could cost American capitalists $5 billion a day. It could also seriously undermine a presidential campaign featuring two candidates serving the same capitalist class.

Spurred on by the discontent of union members “down below”, Harold Daggett, president of the ILA – a union whose leadership is usually more inclined toward class collaboration – heeded the call from the rank-and-file.

To survive, in the U.S. and around the world, workers have no choice but to take the path of class struggle.

“Strikes are never easy,” commented ILA’s vice-president. But in today’s world, where labor laws are against us and corporate greed knows no bounds, it remains one of the most powerful tools we have in our fight for justice.

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Solidarity with the Striking Boeing Workers!

Introduction

Thirty-three thousand Boeing workers, members of IAM 751, have been on strike since September 13 for much-needed wage increases and reinstatement of their defined-benefit pension. With its production workers out, Boeing stopped production of its 737 Max Jet, delivery of other models, too, and has started to furlough other workers. The union seeks pay raises and reinstatement of the defined-benefit pension. Rather than bargain in good faith, Boeing released its latest offer to the press. The vast majority of IAM 751 members rejected this maneuver and negotiations are stalled.

Interview with IAM Local 1725 President Chris Barrett

interview conducted by Sarah Walker) 

Interviewer: I’m a union organizer and a shop steward for a unionized restaurant in NYC and I’m so glad to get to talk to you. First of all, please tell us about the contract talks between the International Association of Machine and Aerospace Workers (IAM) and Boeing. The media reported that last Friday the union rejected the final offer proposed by Boeing on the grounds that it fell short of what the workers have been demanding.

Chris Barrett: I am the president of Local 1725 of the IAM. I don’t work for Boeing, but we do travel with them, and our job is to load and unload them, but from what I’m hearing from my IAM brothers and sisters in the Pacific Northwest (I am based in Charlotte, North Carolina), the contract offer was inadequate.

IAM District 751 members are solid. They voted overwhelmingly to strike: Their last contract had been negotiated 16 years ago. Over the past six years, they have only seen a 2% raise in a region [Pacific Northwest] where the cost of living has skyrocketed.

The members of District 751 have spoken: They want their negotiating team to go back to the table and get it right. They want a better contract.

Interviewer: From your perspective, what will it take to win the strike at Boeing?

Chris Barrett: Working together. It will take workers in solidarity working together for the contract they deserve.

Interviewer: From your vantage point in North Carolina, do you see the rest of the labor movement supporting Boeing workers?
Chris Barrett: Oh absolutely. I have seen strong solidarity across the labor movement. If workers can win their battle with Boeing, it will lift us all.

Interviewer: North Carolina is a “right-to-work-state,” with laws that are very anti-worker. Workers at Boeing in South Carolina voted not to join a union. What will it take to unionize the South?
Chris Barrett: Working together, it will take all of us to make it work. It will take working together to combat the lack of education about unions. A lot of workers don’t know what a union is, and I hear a lot of workers say things like, “unions aren’t good for us,” or “oh we don’t need a go-between between us and management,” when in reality unions are good for workers and can help you.

Interviewer: Yes, I come up against misinformation about unions a lot, too, I work in a restaurant, and private sector union membership is very low so I hear a lot of “oh we don’t need a union,” or “unions don’t work in this industry.”

Chris Barrett: Being a union president and a shop steward for a short time has given me a perspective. We in the labor movement need to work together for a better tomorrow.

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UC Santa Cruz: Drop All the Charges Against ASTU and Striking Student Antiwar Activists!

Dear Editors,

I just read The Organizer’s article on the Spanish general strike for Palestine and your organization’s call for concrete labor action here.  In that spirit, I am forwarding a motion adopted by the Adult Education Teachers Union in defense of the UC UAW workers who actually struck for over two weeks in defense of Palestine and free speech and free assembly rights.  Hopefully, your publications can spread this call for solidarity far and wide.

In solidarity,

Bob M.

Whereas  ASTU [Adult School Teachers United] has received a request for solidarity from UAW 4811 UC Santa Cruz  stating that “in the wake of the 2024 University of California UAW 4811 workers’ strike for Palestine, UC Santa Cruz’s administration is taking drastic retaliatory measures.  Thus far, the UC’s retaliation to the strike has included disciplinary letters to hundreds of workers, wage garnishment of these workers, and, just several weeks ago, an “intent to fire” four workers—which would effectively bar them from completing their degrees. As the UC attempts to divide and scare workers through individual disciplinary action, we resolve to stand united.”

And whereas on June 8, 2024 ASTU’s Executive Board adopted the following motion:

   “Consistent with our [membership] resolution of Jan 27 calling for a permanent ceasefire and the equal right of Palestinians and Jews to live on the lands of Palestine-Israel,
 ASTU supports the UC UAW Academic Workers ULP strike protesting the attacks on and arrests of peaceful pro-Palestine encampments.  University policy directly threatens worker and student rights of free speech and assembly and aids the continuation of Israel’s attack on Rafah in violation of the International Court of Justice order.  b) We strongly oppose the Temporary Restraining Order (TRO/Injunction) issued by an Orange County Superior Court judge trying to break the strike by ordering the strikers back to work after PERB twice refused such an injunction.  Such government actions to illegalize a strike can be defeated, as shown by the Red for Ed teacher strikes.”

Be it resolved:  That ASTU demands of the UCSC administration and of the entire UC system statewide that all disciplinary proceedings be dropped against UAW workers who went on strike in defense of the pro-Palestine encampments and for worker and student rights of free speech and assembly.  Any further attempt to fire the two UCSC workers still facing termination must cease immediately.

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