No internationalism at No Kings protest

There were several No Kings Day protests in North Carolina ‘s Raleigh-Durham, and Chapel Hill metro areas. There was a small Progressive Labor Party (PLP) presence  at suburban Apex’s Beaver Creek Commons Shopping Center. There were 1,500 workers and students total!

Protestors were on both sides of the street outside the shopping center. It was multiracial, but it had glaring political weaknesses. The chant about “Democracy” was reformist, and had no class content. There were many protestors waving American flags. It was the American capitalist system that made Trump possible, so the bosses’  capitalist “democracy” is rotten! Only CHALLENGE and PLP can help workers, students, and soldiers understand the class nature of the bosses’ flag which symbolizes all class unity with the bosses. The rulers, while claiming the reformist Democratic Party (who helped organize No Kings protests) as the workers’ ‘friends’, push  misleaders like Bernie Sanders on the working class. 

The other problem with the Apex protest was that there was a lack of political understanding  that U.S. violence against brown workers domestically (an increasing number of white workers are being hurt and killed like Renee Good and Alex Pretti as American fascism expands) is linked to killing brown workers and students globally, in the name of oil profits. Not one sign was about the Iranian school mass murder by the U.S. Tomahawk missiles of the students and teachers. That was a serious weakness. PLP has a small presence in North Carolina, but we will try to make inroads because only a collective communist revolution can free the working class!  In addition to No Kings Day  where a modest number of CHALLENGEs and Party leaflets  were handed out,  the following weekend, CHALLENGE was also distributed at the North Hills Neighborhood in Raleigh to Black and Latin workers. One Black worker said he ‘’appreciated people opposing the war.’’ CHALLENGE’s opposition to fascist ICE was mentioned to workers who took papers. Self critically, more work needs to be done organizing better  distribution. 
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Students learn: fear divides, unity wins

I went to an event led by Progressive Labor Party (PLP) members. In truth, I was there to support a friend. I was there to listen. I heard a friend discuss the time I went to Minneapolis with her and other PL’ers during the general strike. We went to not just support but also spread the word of what our fellow class siblings and friends and fighters are doing here, learning about communism, when our shackles are broken, we are no longer ruled by capitalism. I listened as she went on to say that the people in Minneapolis protected each other as we saw an understanding that there was no (us vs. them) mindset in the community but (us vs. ICE) as they stood together. There was solidarity that would need to be shown more here in New York, which I agreed with while listening.  Another person at the event shared an interesting point, which was that we have a fear, a fear that makes our enemies comfortable, as they turn a blind eye to our suffering while they fill their bellies with our blood and the blood of our children. When we strike and create minor uproar, we are nothing more than flies. But if we put aside that fear that makes us content and slaves to the feeling, we can truly come together and start a revolution that they truly fear. After all, they’re justflesh and bone as us. The only difference is that they made themselves out of “reach”, but they are not because we put them there with their so-called power and we can take that power back. We can be that power. 
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Need to learn AND fight genocide system

Three members from the PLP club joined about two dozen members and friends of Al-Aqsa Swim Club (AASC). We listened, shared, and discussed ongoing campaigns and actions accomplished in the past year, as well as proposed operations designed to eventually permanently eliminate genocidal companies operating in Maryland.

AASC presented insights into ELTA North America, a subsidiary of the Israeli military. ELTA is headquartered in Maryland, where they design and produce weapons tech, surveillance tools, and radar for the U.S. government and Israel, which are used in occupied Palestine and at the U.S.-Mexico border.

One of the presenters started the event with three questions for the attendees to discuss. I do not remember the exact wording of the questions but according to my notes, my answers to the questions were about collecting as much information as possible, educating ourselves, and a revolution.

The presentation gave us basic info about ELTA and some more specific information, such as bosses’ names and addresses. The speakers pinpointed Merritt Properties and Capital One, which work closely with ELTA, by renting out their properties and financing the subsidiary. There was also a short talk about the BDS movement (boycott, divestment and sanctions), to discourage workers in Maryland from buying products and services from companies that do business with Israel and instead find a product or service which is not related to the genocidal regime. The next speaker talked about Elbit systems (Advanced Defence Technology), but failed to directly explain actions and circumstances, which happened back in Britain in August 2024 by the “Filton 6” group or Palestine action.

The information shared was surface level, strictly focusing on the business aspect. Politics, the capitalist system, the military industry and how we can combat them were either ignored or intentionally left out of the discussion.

We ended by sharing ideas on how to combat these weapons-producing companies. The group consensus was to agitate and disrupt anyone who is closely associated with ELTA and Merritt properties. We also agreed that capitalism needs to be destroyed, but one of the participants at my table did not quite agree to transition directly into communism.
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