Solidarity runs deeper than borders
I am a long-time comrade, avid runner, and, for the past 4 years, have been an active member of a large running group within my neighborhood. This “run crew” as we call it, has approximately 500 members and 200 of them are consistently active throughout the year, participating in group runs, weekly races, and community events. While running remains a predominately ‘white’ sport, this organization is one of the most integrated ‘run crews’ in the city. While not a communist organization, the group illustrates what athletics could look like under communism. It demonstrates a somewhat egalitarian leadership, inclusion of all fitness levels, collective encouragement and solidarity, and health promotion without shaming.
The leadership is also integrated and positions women in a variety of necessary and important roles. For many of us, this group provides a sense of community and friendships so powerful that many of us call this group our ‘run fam’ (short for family).
Since the increase in fascist attacks on immigrant workers (e.g., ICE raids, deportations, etc.), and inspiring struggles of my fellow Progressive Labor Party (PLP) club members these past few years, I have begun to speak more openly about Progressive Labor Party within my “run fam” and the need to organize a communist revolution. As a result, I currently distribute CHALLENGE to five members within our running group. One person within the leadership of our “run crew” distributes approximately five copies to her co-workers and friends. Recently, she and I attended a “birthday run” held for a member of another “run crew” who was deported two months ago. The campaign to defend this runner surged across social media, mobilizing solidarity runs, community events, and almost $50,000 in legal support. Yet the leadership of corporate-sponsored running groups, including our own, chose not to publicly stand behind this fightback led by various run-crew members. Bound by multiple agreements with Nike, these sponsored running groups operate under tight restrictions regarding what they may publicly promote or speak about.
That restriction extended to publicly backing the campaign to bring our fellow runner home. Just before Thanksgiving, our fellow runner was allowed back into the U.S., but the struggle continues. Hundreds of workers face deportation daily under this capitalist system, and our running group members are no exception to ICE’s reach. I’ve connected with a few members from other running groups, and together we’re planning a “defense committee” so that when the time comes, we’ll be prepared to strike back. Until then, with the support of my club, I will continue engaging CHALLENGE readers in my running group and other “run crews” in conversations about how we can collectively confront these racist and fascist attacks and, in time, resist the passivity that corporate sponsorships enforce on working-class runners.
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NYC: down with imperialism & chavismo
After the U.S. bosses bombed Venezuela and arrested Maduro, a group of comrades and I went to a protest in Manhattan. Our contingent marched from a few blocks away to join the rally, chanting “Abajo, abajo, abajo el imperialismo, arriba, arriba, arriba, el comunismo!” and “Asian, Latin, Black, and White, To smash imperialism, we must unite!” as well as “1,2,3,4 we won’t fight your oil wars, 5,6,7,8 smash the bosses and their state!” I believe we distributed around 100 copies of Challenge and a few copies of the Venezuela editorial from the 12/10 issue. Some of the other groups there leafleting and/or giving speeches rightly criticized US imperialism but did so without acknowledging the dangers of all forms of nationalism. It is important that our Party was out here rejecting US imperialism, Chinese imperialism, and nationalism of any kind all at the same time.
A week later, PLP hosted a study group with 3 comrades and 9 people who have not yet joined the Party. Seven of these base members have attended May Day in the past. We discussed “Chavismo” from the 12/10 issue of Challenge and also part of our key document “Road to Revolution IV.” Our conversation largely centered around the difference between socialism and communism. We also discussed nationalism and the idea of self-determination. Workers asked questions like “How do we get people to stop caring about material gains ?” and “How do we stop the pendulum [swinging back and forth between liberal democracy and open fascism]?” It was a rich discussion and a reminder of the need to learn from the mistakes in previous movements.
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NC: No Maduro, no Trump, no bosses
We participated in a recent peace protest/ candlelight vigil in Bull Park, Durham, in North Carolina, of over 100 workers and students. This came after Trump’ s overnight sneak attack on Venezuela. The main speaker condemned U.S. aggression against Venezuela. Imperialist rivalries are sharpening globally. For example, Saudi Arabia versus UAE just last week over control of Yemen. This protest, while multiracial, had glaring weaknesses. Waving a Venezulan flag for example. While it’s wrong for American bosses to bomb Venezuelan workers, the Venezuelan flag symbolizes Venezuelan bosses led by Maduro. No boss, be it Trump or Maduro, have ANY worker’s best interests, as bosses are exploiters.
Also, waving a white peace flag with a dove at a protest is bad too. Workers should not want peace at all costs, as that flag hides the class nature of imperialism. Progressive Labor Party (PLP) had a limited presence there, but 10 papers were distributed, plus one protester took another additional five CHALLENGEs after a PL comrade explained why communist revolution is the only way out of this imperialist hell caused by capitalism and its thirst for profits. U.S. bosses have long desired Venezuelan oil. The imperialist bosses are going on the offensive, and so must the international working class, and the PLP must lead the fight back!
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$tarbucks strike: scabs will not be victorious
Saturday December 20th and Wednesday 24th PLP Progressive Labor Party (PLP) members from our Baltimore local club joined the Starbucks workers on the picket line, supporting the strike, standing shoulder to shoulder with the workers. Two courageous striking workers out of 12 who are working at the store were also supported by a number of local union members. We distributed a few copies of CHALLENGE and flyers to the workers and local union representatives.
Both days, the target was a Starbucks store located in the Rotunda nestled in north Baltimore’s eclectic Hampden Community. The first day of the strike, striking workers ended up being threatened by corporate private security calling the police on them to be arrested because they were picketing in the front of the Starbucks store. The striking workers and their union leadership opted out of being arrested, so they changed the location to the entrance area of the Rotunda at 41st street.
Two of the rank and file workers are mainly concerned with ULPs (unfair labor practices), such as erratic scheduling times for their working shifts and times for breaks, which can severely limit and disturb their family and free time scheduling, while bosses enjoy their fruits of labor in their citadels. For exactly that matter, it is important that PLP members are out there with the striking workers to educate the workers about revolutionary communism and the challenges in front of us to smash this decaying capitalist system and rebuild it with a more just and egalitarian society - communism!
One of the local union labor daughters with a sign in her hands chanted repeatedly “no contract, no coffee” with the rest echoing the chant and adding “what’s disgusting, union busting” “understaffing, lousy pay! This is how your coffee is made.” Many honks from passing by cars on 41st street and fists in the air came in support for the picketers. On that note, let us not forget that the leadership of unions in the U.S. ignores the international working class (brutal assault on workers by the U.S. government on occupied Palestinian territories, workers in Africa, Asia) while pretending that they are fighting for the workers in the U.S. We at PLP encourage rank and file union workers to join our revolutionary communist organization and to fight against adherents of this current regime.
One of the important aspects for us PLP members is to be on the picket lines in support of workers and to draw a line to differentiate ourselves from other political parties and organizations that deceive workers with their reform approach of the capitalist system. These reformers try to use the same institutions under the current capitalist regime to better the lives of the working class. We in the Progressive Labor Party fight for the majority (working class) and will skip the negotiating part with the minority (capitalists) for those few more $$ and shinier cars. We are fighting for democracy for the working class and dictatorship against the ruling class (capitalists). We are fighting for communism!
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