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Calif. grocery workers approve new contract with raises, retirement protections, improved scheduling

Special to PeoplesWorld.org — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 15:00:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES - Today grocery workers across Central and Southern California approved a contract with the companies which own Ralphs, Vons, and Albertsons stores, according to a statement from the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW). The new contract affects around 47,000 workers.

The contract contains raises of nearly a dollar an hour over three years, retirement security, and improved notice of scheduling. "Just in time" scheduling has been a recent trend that means workers can't control their schedules, and often don't know whether they must work a shift until they show up for work that day.

"This contract represents a significant victory for our members, and secures their wages, retirement security, and control over their schedules," said Rick Icaza, President of UFCW Local 770.

The union said the contract, negotiated with Kroger Company and Cerberus Capital, the corporation and hedge fund owners of Ralphs and Vons/Albertsons, was overwhelmingly approved by grocery union members during two days of voting. Though exact numbers were not yet available, the union told the San Diego Union Tribune that it would have vote totals later this week.

The deal goes into effect immediately.

"Thanks to the support of our members, community allies and consumers, we were able to stand strong and deliver for our members," said John Grant, Secretary-Treasurer of UFCW Local 770.

Photo: UFCW Local 770 members assemble picket signs, which now, fortunately for grocery workers, won't be needed. | SCPR.org

Actors union lines up political support for Telemundo organizing drive

PAI — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 14:52:00 +0000

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (PAI) - SAG-AFTRA, the top union for actors, is lining up political and community support for its organizing drive at Miami-based Telemundo, one of the nation's leading Spanish-language networks.

The local political advisory committee includes Miami-Dade County Commissioner Jose Diaz and new United Teachers of Dade President Karla Hernandez-Mats. UT-Dade is a joint AFT-NEA affiliate. SAG-AFTRA launched its drive several months ago.

At issue, a very basic difference: NBC-Universal owns Telemundo and the union's contract with the large conglomerate for its NBC workers, most if not all English-speakers, includes such basics as network residuals payments to the actors, and health care coverage.

But the unorganized actors at Telemundo don't get either residuals or health care. They also don't get guaranteed wage minimums or meal breaks. And they don't get respect on the job. SAG-AFTRA calls the differences "a double standard for Spanish-language television." Thus the organizing drive, #SAGAFTRAUNIDOS.

"NBC-Universal-owned Telemundo is the largest employer of Spanish-language talent in the United States, producing television content for audiences around the world," the union explains on its Telemundo campaign website. "Telemundo Studios in Florida produces scripted programming, including some of the most watched telenovelas in recent years.

"Unfortunately, NBC-Universal is perpetuating a double standard for performers between its English-language programming produced for NBC and its Spanish-language programming for Telemundo.

"While performers for NBC enjoy the benefits of working under a SAG-AFTRA contract, performers for Telemundo are subjected to a much lower standard, lacking in many of the basics that are standard in English-language television," due to no union contract.

"Despite Telemundo's bravado as a champion of diversity, inclusion and empowerment for the Hispanic American community, the company's actions behind the scenes tell a much different story," SAG-AFTRA president Gabrielle Carteris said on August 3 in unveiling the union's political advisory committee at an event in the Miami suburb of Coral Gables.

"In addition to treating its Spanish-language talent as second-class citizens, Telemundo has actively employed tactics to dissuade talent from obtaining union protections. SAG-AFTRA strongly opposes such tactics, and I speak for concerned performers and citizens across the country when I say that we stand with Telemundo performers facing this injustice."

"If Telemundo hopes to position itself as the empowering voice of the U.S. Hispanic community for years to come, the unfair double standard must end," added SAG-AFTRA Executive Director David White. A Telemundo spokesperson claimed their salaries and working conditions - omitting benefits-are competitive with other Hispanic media.

Commissioner Diaz wants to see Telemundo keep growing, but it must cover "all elements of the industry," including workers. "I see myself as a bridge between all parties so that together this industry becomes even more prosperous for our local economy," he explained.

Latin American actors come to Miami to act in Telemundo productions, but the low pay, long hours and lack of residuals make it difficult for them to thrive there, the union says. "We are actors because we have a passion and a love for the craft, but the current environment does not allow us to grow in this space," Christian de la Campa, who starred in recent Telemundo productions, told the union. "As such, we think it's important to provide a solid platform from which future generations of professional Spanish-language actors can successfully build from and succeed in the United States."

The same day as the kickoff rally, the AFL-CIO announced Carteris as the newest member of the labor federation's executive council. She's the second performing arts union chief on the council, joining IATSE's Matthew Loeb. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka lauded Carteris as "a long-time union activist who is not afraid to stand up and fight for what's best for her fellow actors." Carteris fills the vacant seat held by her predecessor, Ken Howard, who died in March.

Photo: SAG-AFTRA

Chicago alderman Rosa, community, activists denounce ICE raids on day laborers

Michelle Zacarias, Earchiel Johnson — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 14:45:00 +0000

CHICAGO -- Activists, community residents and laborers gathered on the corner of Milwaukee and Belmont in the heavily Latinx neighborhood of West Avondale August 9 to denounce the recent increase in ICE raids taking place on the north west side of the city. Government agents had raided a neighborhood location where immigrant workers gather on Friday August 5 at around noon, forcing a group of laborers to to submit to illegal searches and mobile fingerprint scanners.

Aristides Banegas was one of the laborers who came face to face with ICE agents that day. He recalled details of the incident. He said that in the 23 years he's been living in the U.S., the last couple of years have exposed the type of energy and effort being directed at targeting immigrant communities. [Ed. note: Mr. Banegas' remarks are translated from Spanish.] "I came to this country for a better life and for change, and not to be mistreated." He stated that Friday around noon a blue Ford Explorer pulled up to the Shell gas station parking lot where day laborers and other subcontractors normally station themselves to be recruited for jobs. Banegas said several men jumped out of the vehicle and shouted at the laborers not to move. He said one of the men grabbed Banegas by the arm and demanded that he show them his papers. While Banegas was able to provide the agents with his state ID, ICE ended up detaining 3 of his peers. One was later released, but the other two remain in detention as of this writing. (story continues after video)

This form of racial profiling in Latinx and immigrant communities is not only a violation of civil rights, but is an example of the racism that drives this country's immigration policies. For years, anti-immigration legislation, like Arizona's infamous SB 1070 law, has provided 'loopholes' for government agents to ask local police to determine the immigration status of someone arrested or detained when there is "reasonable suspicion." Many have argued that SB1070 and similar laws set a dangerous precedent for racial profiling of brown and black individuals across the nation.

On a local level, immigrants' rights groups such as Organized Communities Against Deportations and Not One More have been outspoken about the the injustices that plague Chicago's communities. In response to the recent raids in Chicago, they have taken several steps to challenge the legality of ICE orders. They have filed an official request and are demanding an investigation to the civil rights violations that are occurring in various immigrant- heavy neighborhoods around the city. The groups also filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request that may also help expose whether local police played any role in providing information to help execute last Friday's raid.

Alderman Carlos Rosa, of the 35th ward, was present at the rally representing the Logan Square neighborhood. He told the People's World that he came out to show his support of undocumented communities and condemned the racial profiling of ICE practices. "Isn't it funny," he said, "that these searches don't occur downtown to men in business suits?" Rosa emphasized the need to pass ordinances that strengthen the city's sanctuary policy. A sanctuary city is one with policies designed to not prosecute people solely for being an undocumented immigrant. Despite Chicago being on the list, it seems that federal agents have found other means of systematically targeting and imprisoning undocumented workers. It is estimated that in the last several years the Obama administration has invested 18 billion dollars on immigration enforcement, an amount that Rosa says could have gone to better use. "[This is money] that could have gone to schools, to healthcare - but instead it went to destroying working families."

While the legal paperwork is being processed to get the detainees released, community members and allies continue to demand transparency and accountability. "We want to send a strong message to ICE- you are not welcome here," said Rosa. "This is a war on working people and we won't stand for it."

Photo: Michelle Zacarias/PW

Video: Earchiel Johnson/PW

Survey: 36 percent of U.S. “financially desperate” or barely getting by

Mark Gruenberg — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 13:16:00 +0000

Some 36 percent of all U.S. residents are either financially desperate - meaning they don't earn enough to pay basic bills - or barely getting by, a new international survey says.

The study by the International Trades Union Congress, the world's top global union federation, adds that 7 percent of U.S. respondents are financially desperate, but the proportion is higher among women, people aged 16-24 and those with less education.

The U.S. share of the truly desperate is tied for the lowest proportion among the nine countries ITUC canvassed, with the United Kingdom and China. South Korea has the highest share of the truly desperate: 22 percent of its people fall into that category.

On the other end of the scale, the ITUC reports, almost three-fourths of Chinese respondents (72 percent) say they earn enough to pay for basic essentials and can save a little money as well. India (65 percent) is next among the nine and the U.S. (60 percent) is third.

The nine nations combined account for 45 percent of world population and more than half of its output. But in them, one of every nine people (11 percent) can't pay for the basics and another third (34 percent) earn just enough to do so, ITUC said. "This represents a social and economic disaster," said ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow.

The survey did not delve into why respondents feel they can't get by, but Burrow laid the blame on "corporate greed that captured the wealth of workers' contribution through a model of global trade that relies on low wages, insecure and unsafe work that is destroying the lives of working families and ironically undermining global corporations-which are facing shrinking markets." ITUC released its survey in advance of a global economic summit next month.

And "failure of governments to reign in corporate greed and corruption has broken trust in our democracies," Burrow warned.

"The world needs a lift in income share for the 99 percent, with a social protection floor, a minimum wage on which people can live with dignity and strengthened collective bargaining. Nothing else will tackle inequality, kick-start economies and reassert a measure of social justice," she stated.

U.S. workers and their allies cite several causes for financial desperation. They include:

Corporate export of high-paying U.S. jobs to low-paying nations overseas - aided and abetted by so-called "free trade" pacts
Deliberate legislation to increase income inequality, such as tax cuts skewed to the rich and cuts in programs designed to benefit the middle class and the poor.
The decline of worker power and the right to organize.

Another reason is the rise of the service economy, particularly both in part-time work and in its lowest-paying sectors such as health care, temps, and at bars and restaurants.

Surveyors questioned between 1,004 respondents (U.S.) and 1,034 (UK) in each of the nine G20 economies polled: Argentina, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the U.S. The surveys did not provide margins of error.

Overall, one third of all respondents said they're barely able to pay for their essential needs - housing food and electricity - and 11 percent more said they can't even manage that. The latter figure "has barely changed since 2012, when ITUC first begin asking this question."

"This leaves almost half the population with no buffer for the future, and with no ability to engage with the market as consumers," ITUC commented.

In the U.S., the West has the highest share of truly desperate people (10 percent), while the Northeast (6 percent) has the lowest. In three of the four U.S. regions, 61 percent of respondents said they had enough not just to pay for essentials, but to save a little as well. The South lagged in that, at 57 percent. The South led in people who could pay for essentials, but nothing else (31 percent). The Northeast, Midwest and West each were at 27 or 28 percent.

Photo: Marchers take part in a Martin Luther King Day march and rally to the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. John Froschauer | AP

Sofitel hotel workers in L.A. invisible no more

Eric A. Gordon — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 12:46:00 +0000

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - "We consistently find needles, bloody sheets, and bodily fluids on the towels," said Sofitel housekeeper Altagracia García at an open testimony Monday night about working conditions at the hotel. One time she got pricked by a needle, and a coworker sprayed Windex on her wound. Management, she said, would not send her to a doctor to be examined. "For months I worried about being infected with hepatitis or even worse, HIV."

Garcia and several other workers from the tony Beverly Hills-adjacent hotel offered dramatic testimony at an "Invisible No More" panel before four experts on different aspects of labor. Temple Emanuel, a nearby Reform Jewish congregation, opened its chapel for the occasion.

Other workers echoed the theme of the needles and bloody sheets. Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills sits right across the street from Cedars-Sinai, a prestigious private hospital, also with a well known anti-union policy. Some of the workers referred to "patient dumping." Patients discharged from serious operations register at the hotel for their recuperation and continuing care. But there is no special training for hotel workers on handling medical clientele, which can be dangerous.

Sofitel L.A. is part of the Paris-based Accor Group, which has worldwide interests also in the Novotel, Pullman, Ibis, Mercure and Fairmont chains. The Sofitel-branded L.A. hotel is 75 percent owned by a firm called Gem, and 25 percent by Accor. The average percentage globally is more like 80 to 20 percent. Panelists pointed to a split between the ownership and the brand. Poor labor practices, or other problems, can hurt business, but the owners will often blame the brand, while the brand says it's the owner's fault. In either case, union organizers say, employees lose out, unless they have a strong and vibrant union.

The four-person panel, sponsored by the hotel workers' union UNITE-HERE and CLUE (Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice), included:

Los Angeles City Councilmember Paul Koretz represents the district in which the hotel sits, and is one of the most consistently pro-labor Council members. Rabbi Dr. Aryeh Cohen, a faculty member at American Jewish University, is the rabbi in residence at the progressive human rights organization Bend the Arc, and is on the CLUE executive board. Peter Rosenblum is a professor of International Law and Human Rights at Bard College. Ron Oswald, visiting Los Angeles from his home in Geneva, Switzerland, expressly to participate in these hearings and discussions about unionizing the Sofitel, is General Secretary of the IUF (International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations).

The panelists were asked to consider the questions: "Are these conditions acceptable? What is a reasonable solution?"

In April 2016, in response to the "patient dumping" problems at the hotel, workers filed a formal complaint to California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), citing the high risk of contamination. Even under those conditions, workers say, the hotel did not supply workers with disposable gloves. In the rush to complete her daily tasks, García said she slipped and fell in a bathroom, and has not been able to return to her job.

Hotel workers speak out

One after another, workers cited other problems at Sofitel. Each housekeeper is assigned to clean 13 rooms per shift. But, unlike other hotel chains, Sofitel does not provide carts for the workers to wheel their supplies down the corridors. Mirna Saavedra testified that they have to hand carry all the equipment they need - a bucket with five different cleaning liquids in one hand, and bags for the toiletries and trash in the other. For each room they clean, they have to make three to five visits to the storeroom at the end of the hall, to pick up fresh bedding, towels and supplies. That means anywhere from 39 to 65 trips to the storeroom per shift, which not only wastes employees' time, but places greater physical burdens on them with all the walking and the carrying. One day, Ms. Saavedra decided to take a cart out of the storeroom for her rounds, and the next day her supervisor gave her a reprimand. "Who do you think you are?" she said her boss asked her. "I'm here giving this testimony because I want to be treated with respect," Saavedra added.

Francisco Montoya, a kitchen worker, spoke of Lupe Cruz, the anti-union human resources person the hotel hired, who showed the staff videos of workers getting arrested by the police. "Is that what you want?" Cruz asked, according to employees who said they were forced to attend his session.

Victoria Tapid, a server in the hotel bar, told of flagrant sexual harassment, not only on the part of management but also by the paying guests. She said employees are told to "suck it up" when patrons molest them. She cited an instance when an inebriated patron actually buried her head into the employee's cleavage, and the manager instructed her to go back and flirt and see if she could sell the party another bottle of champagne. "I'll be pleasant and smile," Tapid declared, "but there's a line I won't cross."

Employee of the Month Roman Cabrera in guest services had his picture posted in the hotel, but said that once he participated in an April 25th delegation of workers to management to discuss working conditions, his picture was taken down. He reported hearing managers literally screaming at housekeepers and humiliating them to the point where the worker was unable to defend herself. He also commented on the failure of the hotel to pay minimum wage, which for hotel employees in L.A. was supposed to reach $15 an hour as of July 2015. Workers were paid not much more than a third of that. What is more, he said, understaffing means it's hard to take your required break during your shift.

The panel responds

The panel listened, heard, and responded. Council member Koretz confirmed that "wage theft is pretty common" in L.A., with some $25 million being stolen from employees each week. It comes in several forms, such as failure to pay minimum wage and denying workers their break time. He was well aware of union-busting companies coming in to scare and discourage workers - he's seen it across the street where Cedars-Sinai spent millions of dollars trying to stop the nurses from forming a union, and so far the hospital has been successful. But most uncommon, said Koretz, is not to use carts for the housekeepers. That only results in added time and injuries; "It's stupid management practice, a lose-lose proposition." Also he was shocked by the unusual occupancy at the hotel by Cedars-Sinai patients and their medical waste. "The City will do whatever we can to correct it."

Rabbi Cohen said he was overwhelmed by the "total disregard for humanity" that he heard. If visitors to L.A. expect a warm welcome, how can it be that an upscale hotel like the Sofitel treats its employees with such little respect? "The good news is that Pharaoh never believed that Egypt would be destroyed." There is hope, he added, and the people of faith in CLUE are willing to walk that road with the union.

Prof. Rosenblum admitted he was "humbled in your presence, by your willingness to tell these stories.... It's about workers in this country." Earlier in his career he said he worked in places he called dictatorships, where companies showed one face to the public to hide the reality they practiced in-house. But eventually, violations of the law, of best practices, and against the very reputation of the company, will be exposed. "What you have described are symptoms; the real issues are respect and the right to establish a process to make things better, knowing that concerns will be addressed."

Ron Oswald from the IUF stated that Sofitel does not work this way in any other country. It's only here in the U.S. that they think they can get away with it. Corporate headquarters in Paris has no explanation for why conditions are so terrible here. He did say, however, that based on IUF complaints, the union-buster Lupe Cruz has been fired. "You're being denied your fundamental human right to form a union. U.S. law is behind you, the IUF is behind you, and the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights is behind you. Where there's a union in place you make sure that problems get fixed. It's not a question of if, it's just a question of when, and as long as it takes, you will have our support."

The IUF has 420 affiliates in 127 countries. UNITE-HERE is one - it's the largest hotel workers union in the world - and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) is another. In fact, these are the two single largest entities within the IUF, which formally represents 2.3 million workers, and informally as many as 10 or 11 million, because in many poor countries even the $3 per capita dues to the national union is too burdensome to impose.

The evening closed with some hearty union handclapping and a rousing chant of "Sí se puede!" Participants in the event also signed a letter to the general manager of Sofitel seeking a way forward toward union representation.

Photo: Hotel wokers of Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills rallying for dignity and a union. Altagracia García, featured in the poster, is standing center in black and red. | Eric Gordon/PW

Trump's assassination talk sends Republicans running; creates opening for progressives

C.J. Atkins — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 12:38:00 +0000

As the familiar refrain now goes, the Donald Trump campaign has had a "tough two weeks." From the controversy with Gold Star parents to the Paul Ryan endorsement commotion and the Iranian cash airplane video, more and more Republicans have started to join a growing chorus questioning whether their nominee has what it takes to be president.

Trump's economic speech in Detroit Monday was supposed to be the turnaround. Read straight from the teleprompter, it was a perfect fit with the traditional GOP program of the last few decades: tax cuts tilted toward the upper end of the wealth spectrum and deregulation. But of course, it's not a Trump speech without a few disingenuous jabs against free trade thrown in for good measure. The word "workers" was sprinkled in here and there. Some took it as a sign that perhaps the Donald had turned the corner. Maybe this guy could actually be kept on point.

But then, less than 24 hours later, it all fell apart. At a rally in North Carolina, the Republican nominee said that if Hillary Clinton is elected president, it may fall to "the Second Amendment people" to stop her from appointing Supreme Court justices. His remarks, which plunged his campaign into a fresh crisis, were seen by many as musings about assassination or an armed rebellion.

Though his campaign immediately went into damage control and tried to explain it away as simply a call for gun-owner unity at the polls, the likely result is that the already steady stream of Republicans abandoning Trump will now turn into a deluge. Many long-time GOP leaders are starting to see that Trump may be a sinking ship beyond repair.

GOP: A party already divided

The important thing to understand from the start is that Trump was never the guy that the GOP wanted. By cravenly using the racism and reactionary politics stirred up by Tea Party resentment over the years, they did, however, create the conditions which gave rise to his right-wing populist campaign. As long as that kind of message was winning elections and their candidates came out on top, the party didn't mind giving a wink and a nod to the birther movement, indulging in anti-immigrant policies, or opportunistically using the Evangelical community. But with Trump, they finally lost control of the tiger they had been riding.

The recent splits that appearing in the Republican Party - such as 50 GOP national security officials denouncing their nominee, Maine Senator Susan Collins refusing to vote for him, or Joe Scarborough calling on the party to "dump Trump" - are all public manifestations of a trend that was already evident under the surface even during the primaries.

Campaign contribution data from the Center for Responsive Politics shows that candidates like Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz, and Marco Rubio were far and away the preferred standard-bearers of the big money industrial sectors that back the Republican Party, especially oil and gas, real estate, insurance, tobacco, agribusiness, construction, and transportation. For all of these groups, Trump was far down on their recipient list.

Since he achieved victory in the primaries, though, there has been a period of wait-and-see for many Republicans and their corporate backers. It was still hoped that perhaps Trump's right-wing populism could be controlled and channeled. Maybe the worst could be avoided.

The panic that now appears to be sending GOPers running for the lifeboats, however, is a signal that such hopes are fading fast. Trump has proven that he just can't be relied upon to stick to the script they've tried to write for him. Electoral self-interest is now forcing a reconsideration.

To be fair of course, you also cannot discount the common sense and decency angle in some of this. Trump's reckless rhetoric goes far beyond even the right-wing norm of Republican politics. The further he ventures out on the extremist limb, the more that some Republicans - especially Republican voters - are going to be questioning their conscience.

Clinton and the Democrats should seize the populist agenda

But none of this means the Clinton campaign can count on smooth sailing ahead or that progressives can just wait for the votes to come rolling in. Even if Trump flames out, his populist base in the industrial and rural heartland is still going to be angry and desperate. Their concerns about the the crushing realities of an economic "recovery" which has yet to come their way, the unresponsiveness of the political system, and the fact that "Washington elites" continue to ignore them are not going to go away.

The self-inflicted crippling of Trump's campaign presents both dangers and opportunities for the left and labor.

It means it is time to pay even more attention to down-ticket races for Congress and state offices. As its chances at the presidency become more untenable, the Republican Party is going to focus more of its efforts and resources to hold onto Congress. If the cash of the Koch brothers and others is not flowing to Trump, you can bet that it will be pouring into right-wing campaigns at all other levels even more.

That's the danger part.

The potential opportunity part comes from the fact that Trump is going to be under increased pressure to stick to the teleprompter. GOP leaders will keep trying (perhaps in vain) to tape their traditional policy book over Trump's mouth in an effort at damage control. This could leave an opening for progressives to open discussions with some of the working class Trump voters who feel their troubadour is abandoning them for the establishment.

If Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party are smart, they will seize the populist agenda. Right now they should be putting forward even stronger proposals for expanding Social Security, moving toward single-payer healthcare, and implementing stronger family leave and other policies. Rooting the campaign in strong left populist measures such as these is the best route to not only ensuring a landslide victory in November but also expanding the democratic coalition to include even more of those left out by globalization and the uneven economic recovery. It can help shift the balance in Congress and set the stage for real advances for the majority of the American people after the elections.

This is the opportunity to speak to the real concerns of those who feel abandoned and forgotten. It is the chance to speak to the concerns of the 99 percent with a message that works. This opening should not be squandered by turning to the right or simply gloating while Trump self-immolates.

Photo: Donald Trump campaign signs are swept up with the garbage after a cancelled event at the University of Illinois-Chicago on Friday, March 11, 2016. | Charles Rex Arbogast / AP

Hiroshima Day message: Abolish nuclear weapons, build lasting world peace

Joelle Fishman — Wed, 10 Aug 2016 10:10:00 +0000

NEW HAVEN - "...Slicing through the clear blue sky, a previously unknown absolute evil is unleashed on Hiroshima, instantly searing the entire city. Koreans, Chinese, Southeast Asians, American prisoners of war, children, the elderly and other innocent people are slaughtered. By the end of the year, 140,00 are dead." - from the Hiroshima Peace Declaration.

Around the world, peace vigils and actions on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9 commemorated the 71st year since the first atomic bombs were dropped, destroying Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. In the United States gatherings and petitions called for an end to nuclear weapons.

On the New Haven Green in Connecticut, the 8:15 am gathering listened as church bells tolled to mark the exact time it took the bombs to rain from the sky. The Peace Declaration issued by Matsui Kazumi, Mayor of Hiroshima was read. It paid recognition to the visit by President Obama to Hiroshima earlier this year and then asked, "Is it not time to honor the spirit of Hiroshima and clear the path toward a world free from that "absolute evil," that ultimate inhumanity? Is it not time to unify and manifest our passion in action?"

Before leaving for their daily appointments, those present signed letters to Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut asking that he vote and take leadership in the fight for abolition of nuclear weapons, and use those resources for human needs.

The full text of the Hiroshima Peace Declaration follows:

"1945, August 6, 8:15 a.m. Slicing through the clear blue sky, a previously unknown "absolute evil" is unleashed on Hiroshima, instantly searing the entire city. Koreans, Chinese, Southeast Asians, American prisoners of war, children, the elderly and other innocent people are slaughtered. By the end of the year, 140,000 are dead.

"Those who managed to survive suffered the after-effects of radiation, encountered discrimination in work and marriage, and still carry deep scars in their minds and bodies. From utter obliteration, Hiroshima was reborn a beautiful city of peace; but familiar scenes from our riversides, patterns of daily life, and cultural traditions nurtured through centuries of history vanished in that "absolute evil," never to return.

"He was a boy of 17. Today he recalls, "Charred corpses blocked the road. An eerie stench filled my nose. A sea of fire spread as far as I could see. Hiroshima was a living hell." She was a girl of 18. "I was covered in blood. Around me were people with skin flayed from their backs hanging all the way to their feet-crying, screaming, begging for water."

"Seventy-one years later, over 15,000 nuclear weapons remain, individually much more destructive than the one that inflicted Hiroshima's tragedy, collectively enough to destroy the Earth itself. We now know of numerous accidents and incidents that brought us to the brink of nuclear explosions or war; today we even fear their use by terrorists.

"Given this reality, we must heed the hibakusha. The man who described a living hell says, "For the future of humanity, we need to help each other live in peace and happiness with reverence for all life." The woman who was covered in blood appeals to coming generations, "To make the most of the life we've been given, please, everyone, shout loudly that we don't need nuclear weapons." If we accept these appeals, we must do far more than we have been doing. We must respect diverse values and strive persistently toward a world where all people are truly "living together."

"When President Obama visited Hiroshima in May, he became the first sitting president of the country that dropped the atomic bomb to do so. Declaring, "... among those nations like my own that hold nuclear stockpiles, we must have the courage to escape the logic of fear, and pursue a world without them," he expressed acceptance of the hibakusha's heartfelt plea that "no one else should ever suffer as we have." Demonstrating to the people of the U.S. and the world a passion to fight to eliminate all remaining nuclear weapons, the President's words showed that he was touched by the spirit of Hiroshima, which refuses to accept the "absolute evil."

"Is it not time to honor the spirit of Hiroshima and clear the path toward a world free from that "absolute evil," that ultimate inhumanity? Is it not time to unify and manifest our passion in action? This year, for the first time ever, the G7 foreign ministers gathered in Hiroshima. Transcending the differences between countries with and without nuclear weapons, their declaration called for political leaders to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki, for early entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, and fulfillment of the obligation to negotiate nuclear disarmament mandated by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. This declaration was unquestionably a step toward unity.

"We need to fill our policymakers with the passion to solidify this unity and create a security system based on trust and dialogue. To that end, I once again urge the leaders of all nations to visit the A-bombed cities. As President Obama confirmed in Hiroshima, such visits will surely etch the reality of the atomic bombings in each heart. Along with conveying the pain and suffering of the hibakusha, I am convinced they will elicit manifestations of determination.

"The average age of the hibakusha has exceeded 80. Our time to hear their experiences face to face grows short. Looking toward the future, we will need our youth to help convey the words and feelings of the hibakusha. Mayors for Peace, now with over 7,000 city members worldwide, will work regionally, through more than 20 lead cities, and globally, led by Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to promote youth exchange. We will help young people cultivate a shared determination to stand together and initiate concrete action for the abolition of nuclear weapons.

"Here in Hiroshima, Prime Minister Abe expressed determination "to realize a world free of nuclear weapons." I expect him to join with President Obama and display leadership in this endeavor. A nuclear-weapon-free-world would manifest the noble pacifism of the Japanese Constitution, and to ensure progress, a legal framework banning nuclear weapons is indispensable. In addition, I demand that the Japanese government expand the "black rain areas" and improve assistance to the hibakusha, whose average age is over 80, and the many others who suffer the mental and physical effects of radiation.

"Today, we renew our determination, offer heartfelt consolation to the souls of the A-bomb victims, and pledge to do everything in our power, working with the A-bombed city of Nagasaki and millions around the world, to abolish nuclear weapons and build lasting world peace."

Photo: The 'ultimate evil' (right) is what the demonstrators in New Haven (left) said must never happen again. | Left image by Art Perlo; right image by Stanley Troutman/AP

Don’t fall for it: Trump’s economic plan a fraud

Teresa Albano — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 15:04:00 +0000

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump tried to change the conversation yesterday away from his campaign's self-inflicted wounds of the last two weeks with a major speech on the economy. After attacking the Khans, Gold Star parents who spoke at the Democratic National Convention, and comparing running a business to the sacrifice military families make when they lose a loved one, Trump continued his habit of boldly telling lies and offering nothing but coded America First rhetoric instead of serious proposals that could make a positive impact on the lives of working people -- of all backgrounds, races and ethnicities. In fact-check after fact-check, experts agreed that Trump plays fast and loose with the truth.

In its fact check story, The Associated Press reported, "Donald Trump changed some of his facts to fit his agenda Monday, pitching shades of truth and misconceptions in what was billed as a major economic policy speech." Whether on Hillary Clinton's record as senator from New York, or President Barack Obama's economic record, or on taxes, trade, regulations, infrastructure, the auto industry and jobs, Trump created his own reality show where he calls the shots and packages himself as some savior of workers.

Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest union federation, unmasked the New York real estate mogul's speech as "deceitful" and "offensive."

Trumka said, "Donald Trump will say he speaks for all Americans, but his all white, all male, Wall Street banker economic team proves his intentions. Trump has chosen to get his real advice from people just like him - people who have made millions off the backs of hardworking families."

After he "has spent his life getting rich by hurting working people. Now he returns to Michigan for an economic speech almost one year to the day after he suggested automakers move production from Michigan to states with lower wages. It's ironic, deceitful, and simply offensive," Trumka said in his Aug. 8 statement.

Trumka was referring to an interview Trump gave to the Detroit News last year, which "notoriously revealed his ideas for assaulting the wages of supposedly overpaid autoworkers by closing and re-locating plants: 'You can go to different parts of the United States and then ultimately you'd do full-circle-you'll come back to Michigan because those guys are going to want their jobs back even if it is less. We can do rotation in the United States-it doesn't have to be in Mexico,'" wrote Tim Libretti in his Feb. 2 story Union workers ... for Trump?.

In his speech yesterday, Trump never mentioned raising the minimum wage or the crucial role of unions and collective bargaining in winning higher wages for America's working people. Instead Trump wrapped Republican establishment economic policies of tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations, as well as deregulation giveaways to auto, Big Oil and Wall Street into his coded-coated divisive brand of populism. Like all good pickpockets, he distracts with fabricated arguments while pinching your wallet.

"Trade has big benefits, and I am in favor of trade. But I want great trade deals for our country that create more jobs and higher wages for American workers. Isolation is not an option, only great and well-crafted trade deals are," he said.

This is the man whose "line of ties is produced in China, and his signature line of menswear is manufactured in Mexico," wrote Libretti, suggesting that Trump be judged by his actions.

"Even as he rails against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Trump's own behavior undermines U.S. workers by exploiting cheaper labor abroad."

Trump apparently believes that working people cannot spot a con when they see one. On taxes, he figures by inserting the word "workers" or "jobs" that people will be fooled. He promised to repeal the so-called "death tax."

"American workers have paid taxes their whole lives, and they should not be taxed again at death and it's just plain wrong and most people agree with that. We will repeal it," he said.

In reality, the "death tax" is called the "estate tax" because it affects millionaires and billionaires, and in general, workers do not fall into that category of taxpayers.

The New York Times fact check on Trump's speech said, "Only a very few American workers are subject to estate taxes, and those subject to the tax are usually not termed "workers." Under current law, a married couple can shield up to $10.9 million of their estate from any federal taxation."

In an obvious play for working women's attention, Trump also announced a tax deduction for child care costs. The slight of hand here is a tax deduction is not the same as a tax credit and therefore will not be of use for most working families.

"On surface, this sounds like a good idea. Since the cost of daycare can be a huge cost for many families, the plan has the potential to help many Americans. But Trump is proposing a tax deduction, not a tax credit-and that's a problem. A deduction subtracts from a person's taxable income while a credit reduces the amount of taxes a person owes. These tax expenditures, as they are known, are the same as spending but they happen through the tax code. Congress has grown very fond of spending through the tax code; in the last fiscal year, tax expenditures totaled around $1 trillion," writes Politico's Danny Vinik.

Clinton responded to Trump's speech in real time. "His tax plans will give super big tax breaks to large corporations and the really wealthy, just like him and the guys who wrote the speech, right?" she said. "He wants to roll back regulations on Wall Street. He wants to eliminate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which has saved billions of dollars for Americans. He wants to basically just repackage trickle down economics."

Clinton will unveil her own economic program Thursday, also in Detroit, but is expected to emphasize progressive policies based on the Democratic program, including infrastructure investment, debt free college education, $15 an hour minimum wage, union and worker rights and trade deals that create jobs, raise wages and protect the environment.

Photo: Even Trump didn't seem too happy with his speech at the Detroit Economic Club as he left the podium. | Evan Vucci/AP

At a critical moment, labor’s cause is racial, economic justice

Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 14:42:00 +0000

Last month, the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation established its own local Commission on Racial and Economic Justice, modeled on the AFL-CIO commission that has toured the country for more than a year, holding hearings on those issues. Here, the local president explains why her federation acted:

We are at a critical moment in the history of our unions. We are facing the rise of the on-demand economy, a widening income gap, and a surge in dangerous discriminatory rhetoric, fueled by Donald Trump's campaign. From Brexit, to Brazil to right here in the United States, the very values we share as workers are under attack.

If this wasn't enough, we are facing tragedy, after tragedy in our very own communities, places where we are supposed to feel safe. This month we were rocked again by the death of an African-American male involved in a tragic police incident.

And this time, the news hit close to home, as one of our own union members was the victim. The story of (Teamster) Philando Castile and the live video of the aftermath of his shooting captured the attention of the entire country.

The events that surrounded Philando Castile's death and the subsequent calls for justice are not for our entertainment.

The names, the hashtags - they represent people, real people in our very own community. They have jobs. They work alongside us. They have families. They were our high school classmates.

These events are the result of a system set up with broken rules and biases both recognized and unrecognized.

As union members, we are on the front lines. We see the effects of these tragedies and the subsequent fight for racial justice playing out in our classrooms, hospitals, worksites and streets.

While we struggle to address the challenges we face, more violence, especially against first responders and the police is equally tragic and absolutely NOT the answer. Union members believe in safety on the job for all workers.

In times like these, it is more important than ever that we in the labor movement stand in solidarity with the entire community and do our part to advance the changes necessary to stop the senseless violence. We know all too well that union members are not immune to these inequalities.

We cannot continue to simply grapple with how to respond to tragic events; we need to put forth a bold agenda for justice for all workers.

Even in the face of these great challenges, I am very optimistic.

I am optimistic because our movement and the grassroots movement organizing in the streets is brimming with new leaders, leaders who not only want to see justice in the streets, but also in their workplaces.

I am optimistic because we at the MRLF have kicked-off our own Labor Commission on Racial and Economic Justice to start tackling these very issues and to chart a positive path forward in our own unions (see story in August 5 edition).

I am optimistic because our unions have shown a commitment to fighting for improved workplace standards for not only union members, but for all workers.

And, I am optimistic because our unions are committed to growing. Growing the labor movement is a strategy for addressing racial and economic inequality. A renewed emphasis on stronger community and labor partnerships will help make that growth a reality.

I am asking our affiliated unions to commit to being a part of the conversation to explore how workers can address the systemic injustices we face and to help develop and implement a bold agenda for justice for all workers.

And, I am asking our affiliated unions to take action in partnership with our community to grow the labor movement as a strategy for addressing our community's inequalities.

Throughout history, the labor movement - at its best - has grown by bringing together workers of all races, faiths and nationalities to work together in our unions in common cause for social and economic justice.

In 2016, this historic cause remains our highest calling.

Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou is President, Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation.

Photo: Union members advocating for the creation of the MRLF's Labor Commission on Racial and Economic Justice (left to right): JoAnn Campbell-Sudduth, Education Minnesota retiree; Cathy Jones, NALC Branch 9 member; Mary Turner, president, Minnesota Nurses Association; Marie Dino, AFSCME Local 3800 member. MELF

Unionists, protesters, fact-checkers, economists pan Trump economics address

Mark Gruenberg — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 14:14:00 +0000

DETROIT (PAI) - Unionists outside, protesters inside, fact-checkers at The Wall Street Journal and other media and even some conservative economists all panned Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's major economics address, given August 8 in Detroit.

Trump gave the speech at the Detroit Economic Club, a frequent venue for major political and economic addresses. The conservative business owners in the audience sometimes applauded him, especially when Trump's security guards ejected 17 female protesters from the room.

The women protested Trump's anti-woman stands - and his outsourcing.

"You want to close Michigan plants and outsource our jobs!" one autoworker from Grosse Pointe Woods shouted. As she stood on her chair, she added: "How are we supposed to raise our families without good jobs? Is that what you call 'winning'?" She was then tossed.

Trump's speech itself had few clues about what his policies would be towards workers, other than his promise to renegotiate trade treaties and a flat ban on federal regulations, including pro-worker rules. He also declared "our education reforms will help parents send their kids to a school of their choice," code words for supporting private - not public - schools.

And Trump promised to "immediately cancel all illegal and overreaching executive orders," without specifying which ones. Several Obama administration orders aid workers, notably low-income workers.

"Nothing would make our foreign adversaries happier than for our country to tax and regulate our companies and our jobs out of existence," the business mogul stated - before announcing he would propose cutting the federal corporate tax rate to 15 percent, if elected.

The stated federal corporate tax rate is now 35 percent, but businesses use deductions, exclusions and income-shifting overseas to pay an average of 12.6 percent, Wall Street Journal fact-checkers noted. That's lower than the rate imposed on most individual taxpayers.

Unionists outside the hall-where 1,500 corporate executives and guests paid $45-$55 each to listen to Trump-gave his speech failing grades.

Trump "spent his life getting rich by hurting working people," said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. "Now he returns to Michigan for an economic speech almost one year to the day after he suggested automakers move production from Michigan to states with lower wages. It's ironic, deceitful, and simply offensive.

"Trump will say he speaks for all Americans, but his all-white, all-male, Wall Street banker economic team proves his intentions. Trump has chosen to get his real advice from people just like him - people who have made millions off the backs of hardworking families.

The Auto Workers led on-site protesters outside the hall, and both UAW and the Michigan AFL-CIO lambasted Trump's promises as empty or worse.

"Trump would be an absolute disaster for working people in Michigan," the UAW said. "This is the same guy who said 'our wages are too high.'

"And Trump said he would close 'a couple of plants' and send Michigan auto jobs to other states as a way to cut the wages of Michigan autoworkers. That kind of thinking is downright dangerous, and will kill Michigan jobs."

State Fed President Ron Bieber called Trump's plant-closing schemes and plans to cut workers' wages "just nuts" and "downright dangerous." He added Trump would send the state economy "right down the drain."

"All we heard from Donald Trump today was a lot of hot air," Bieber added. "Trump doesn't give a rip about helping working people in Michigan. If he did, he'd hire Michigan workers to make his clothes, instead of producing his ties in China and his suits in Mexico. The truth is Trump only cares about making more money for himself.

And given Trump's past denunciations of women, Hispanics, Muslims, veterans and others, Bieber called on top Michigan Republican officeholders to withdraw their support from the controversial nominee.

"Michigan can't afford Trump's reckless ideas. That's why I'm calling on Republican leaders like Attorney General Bill Schuette, Lieut. Gov. Brian Calley, Congresswoman Candice Miller, Congressman Tim Walberg, and House Speaker Kevin Cotter to do what's right for Michigan and withdraw their support for Donald Trump," Bieber said.

Cotter and Calley did not attend Trump's speech, though Calley stumped with Trump's running mate in late July. Nor did right wing GOP Gov. Rick Snyder, who announced in June he would not endorse Trump.

Former GOP Michigan Gov. William Milliken, a moderate, is backing Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. Former GOP Gov. John Engler, now head of a top D.C.-based business lobby, has been silent so far, but supports "free trade" pacts that Trump denounced.

Photo: Demonstrators protest during Trump's economics address in Detroit. | Paul Sancya/AP

Desperation in Chicago and other cities while Trump talks estate tax

Jesse Jackson — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 12:49:00 +0000

Chicago is one of America's greatest cities. Yet many of its residents live in terror in what is virtually a war zone. When a demented killer slew 49 in a gun rampage in Orlando, there was national attention. Presidential candidates called for escalating the fight against the Islamic State in the Middle East, even though the killer seems to have been a homegrown terrorist.

But in Chicago, 404 have died in gun violence this year. According to the Congressional Research Service, the murder rate averaged 16.0 per 100,000 a year from 2010-2014. That is nearly four times the national average of 4.6 per 100,000 and nearly three times the Illinois state average (5.8).

These killings are not randomly distributed. African Americans constitute about one-third of Chicago's residents, but they account for 80 percent of its murder victims.

The killings are concentrated in endangered communities, communities burdened with abject poverty and deplorable conditions. Desperation and murder are segregated in Chicago.

In West Garfield Park, the average per capita income is $10,951. More than 40 percent of the residents live below the poverty line, with an unemployment rate greater than 25 percent.

In Englewood, the average per capita household income is $11,993. Forty-two percent of households live below the poverty line, with an unemployment rate over 21 percent.

In Fuller Park, per capita household income is $9,016, with a majority - 55.5 percent - of households living below the poverty line. The unemployment rate is 40 percent. Washington Park, North Lawndale, Austin, Greater Grand Crossing, East Garfield Park...the list goes on.

During the height of the Great Depression, the unemployment rate hovered at roughly 20 percent. These neighborhoods are suffering levels twice that now, six years into the supposed recovery.

These are disaster zones in a supposedly world-class city. They look like they are under siege, and to some extent they are. Drugs, guns, violence, and despair mark lives condemned to live in these zones.

The war in Iraq - the one the Bush administration chose to launch - will end up costing us more than $3 trillion. And of course, the wars go on - in Afghanistan, in Syria, in Iraq, in Yemen, and now the U.S. is beginning to bomb Libya.

But the right now disaster zones in Chicago are ignored. The everyday violence is decried but nothing is done. The poverty is regretted but there is no plan to attack it.

In fact, national policy does more to expand the divide between endangered communities and affluent ones, between those living in the disaster zone and those living uptown.

A new report by the Institute for Policy Studies and the Center for Enterprise Development details the growing racial wealth gap in America. They find that without a drastic change in policy, by 2043, when people of color are projected to account for more than half of the U.S. population, the racial wealth divide between white households and African American and Latino households will have doubled from about $500,000 in 2013 to more than $1 million.

The gap reflects the impact of historic inequities - from federally-sanctioned housing discrimination to private redlining - but its expansion is fueled in part by tax policies that aid the highest earners while providing the lowest income families with virtually nothing.

Over the past 20 years alone, the report finds, the federal government spent more than $8 trillion through tax programs to assist families in building long-term wealth, including saving for retirement, purchasing a home, starting a business or paying for college. But the impact of these expenditures has been "upside down." With typical millionaires pocketing about $145,000 in public tax benefits each year to increase their wealth while working families receive a total of $174 on average.

More of the same won't help. Adding benefits to the wealthy few - like Donald Trump's call to end the estate tax - will add to the inequity and contribute to the despair. If nothing changes, the desperate zones will get worse. Surely this crisis is worthy of debate in the presidential campaign, and action from the White House and Congress.

Rev. Jesse Jackson is the founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. He was a leader in the civil rights movement alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and was twice a candidate for President of the United States.

This article originally appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times. It is reprinted here with the permission of Rainbow PUSH.

Photo: In this May 30, 2016, photo, police work the scene where a man was fatally shot in the chest in Chicago's Washington Park neighborhood. | E. Jason Wambsgans/AP

“Blueprint for Paradise”: A polished drama about Nazis for our time

Eric A. Gordon — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 12:38:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES - The ruins of the Murphy Ranch, an abandoned pre-WWII Nazi compound in Pacific Palisades, a stony area of L.A. north of Santa Monica on the route toward Malibu, have inspired a new play, now enjoying its world premiere in Hollywood. Blueprint for Paradise by Laurel M. Wetzork reconfirms that L.A. is a magnificent town for great theatre. Every one of its seven actors has a long list of credits in film, TV, and video - which likely accounts for why they're here.

Blueprint for Paradise was a semi-finalist in both the national Eugene O'Neill playwriting competition and the HUMANITAS/Center Theatre Group playwriting competition (2015).

Set in late 1941 during the weeks leading up to Pearl Harbor, and inspired by true events, Wetzork imagines the relationship between African-American architect Paul Revere Williams (designer of landmark L.A. buildings including Saks Fifth Ave and the Los Angeles County Courthouse, as well as private residences for a number of well known movie stars) and a wealthy American couple (he's a fishing magnate) who employed him to design a compound and training ground for Nazi sympathizers - keeping from him, of course, the true nature of the project.

There was in fact a couple, Winona and Norman Stephens, sympathizers of American pro-Nazi groups, who purchased fifty acres of land intended to be a self-sufficient base for Nazi activities in the U.S., complete with its own water storage and fuel tanks, bomb shelter, a four-story, 22-bedroom mansion, and various outbuildings and bunkers. In the play the couple are Clara and Herbert Taylor.

The abandoned site, currently in a state of disrepair and covered in graffiti, is owned by the City of Los Angeles and has become a popular hiking destination. In February, 2016, many of the structures were demolished due to safety concerns, but some of Williams' architectural work is still extant.

Rooting her play in historical events, Wetzork places special emphasis on race relations and the subjugation of women in the larger context of Nazi thinking, especially the sterilization movement. The American eugenics movement, represented by the Human Betterment Foundation, based in Pasadena, attracted support from many "leading citizens," including the president of the University of Southern California, board chairman of the California Institute of Technology, the publisher of the Los Angeles Times, university professors, pastors, medical and scientific professionals and other private individuals. The objective was to "improve" society by weeding out "defectives," the "feeble-minded," "mentally diseased," and poor people on public charity - in other words, a whiter America with "fewer or none of everyone else." The German Nazi movement picked up much of this ideology from America.

Members of Clara Taylor's (Meredith Thomas) household include her loyal and insightful, though not English-fluent Chinese maid Fenny Gao (Ann Hu) and an Italian valet Alessandro "Alex" Farnase (Alex Best). They get the "intersectionality" of oppression - of themselves as immigrants with accents, and of their mistress who is squashed under her husband Herbert's (David Jahn) thumb.

When the highly recommended Paul Williams (Regi Davis) appears - to Clara's shock he turns out to be a Black man! - she is initially reluctant to engage him, but Wetzork weaves a subtle fabric of mutually discovered interests that bond Clara and Williams closer. "I wanted to examine the wife's journey," the playwright says, "to discover how Williams' achievements and personality might have shaken her preconceived notions of the way the world should work."

The Human Betterment Foundation, the ultra-conservative Mothers of America, the fascist Silver Legion of America, the America First moment, all formed part of a vast network of corporate-sponsored pro-German groups that opposed U.S. involvement in the war all the way up to December 7, 1941. Among the other pillars of their undemocratic ideology, Wetzork also shows this crowd as intensely anti-Communist and anti-union (no surprise there). If fascism is an extreme form of capitalism as a corporate state that governs in the absence of democratic, egalitarian rights, Wetzork completely nails how a certain sector of American industrialists were prepared to encourage a Nazi victory in Europe and the spread of such a system to the Americas. The compound in Pacific Palisades would have been its HQ for the Western U.S.

Two other characters fill out the cast of seven, the sinister Nazi agent Wolfgang Schreiber (Peter McGlynn) whose promises to Herbert Taylor of corporate monopoly in the fishing sector after the Nazi takeover lead the American industrialist into a relationship of pathetic dependency; and a Southerner, improbably named Ludwig Gottschalk (Steve Marvel), who is a homegrown Nazi leader. His was the only character whose backstory needed more exposition to be completely believable.

Laura Steinroeder directs this expert crew of actors. Some of these characters, although fully developed, are standard-issue "types" from the Forties, like the German Nazi and the Chinese maid. The fragile but surprisingly resilient Clara and Paul Williams (who reminds me of a younger James Earl Jones) stand out as the most original and evolved. In fact, the Forties esthetic dominates here as Wetzork's homage to the era. If we didn't know otherwise, we could easily imagine this as a stage version of a classic noir film, except perhaps for some allusions to Nazi philosophy that sound purposefully contemporary. The author has lovingly constructed a polished "well-made play" à la Lillian Hellman of The Little Foxes and Watch on the Rhine.

That once almost obligatory style of drama subsequently came under criticism, if not attack and ridicule, for taking no account of experimental techniques, for wrapping up all the problems and ambiguities in a neat bow at the end. It became "dated" and "passé," but here it works just fine: The tip of the hat to that era is noted and appreciated. If the "well-made play" happens to be your thing, then from that point of view alone, not to mention the politics and the pure theatre of Blueprint for Paradise, this is your ticket.

The effective single neocolonial living-room set design is by Gary Lee Reed; moody lighting is by Matthew Gorka; sound by Cricket S. Myers with timely news broadcasts about military events in Europe; and stylish costumes by Michael Mullen.

Any theatergoer will have a highly satisfying experience with this play. More than that, it is also a cautionary tale about what was going on under our noses just a few miles from where it's being staged, and what, without vigilance, could happen again in the country we live in.

Blueprint for Paradise plays through Sept. 4, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 3 pm, at the Hudson Theatres, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles 90038. For information and tickets, please contact (323) 960-4412 or www.BlueprintForParadise.com.

Photo: Meredith Thomas and Regi Davis / Ed Krieger

Turkey: HDP’s Eyyup Doru – “What we need is democracy and freedom”

F. Régibier — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 11:42:00 +0000

(l'Humanite | English) Eyyup Doru is the European representative of the Kurdish HDP, the People's Democratic Party. For Doru, the solution to the crisis in Turkey is not in a state of emergency, but rather the return to democracy.

How do you interpret the coup attempt in Turkey and the large-scale crackdown that has followed?

Eyyup Doru: I think this is a power struggle within the Turkish state between regime of Erdogan and its former key ally, the Gülen group (the powerful movement of the Muslim preacher exiled in the United States, Fethullah Gulen, who is very active in the police and justice system). They were united against the Kurdish people. 10,000 people have been arrested because of this alliance between the Gülen group and the regime of Erdogan. Subsequently Erdogan and Gulen faced internal problems over the control of the state apparatus. There were political clashes between the two groups, but until recent years, Erdogan considered Gülen as his spiritual leader and all his ministers, looking at statements made in the last few years, named the Gülen regime as a democratic regime, as the savior of Turkey, the savior of democracy etc . Today they at odds, and Erdogan describes the Gülen movement as a terrorist group.

It's true that there was a military coup but it is also true that Erdogan has profited from the coup's failure in order to arrest any person or group that could one way or another represent a danger for his dream of an empire built in the Ottoman fashion, a total presidential system. There have been mass arrests. There are virtually no judges left; they have all been arrested. The technical staff of the army have also arrested, which will put the army in difficulty on the ground. But we also seen huge number of academics and teachers dismissed. The heads of universities have been deposed, replaced by people close to Erdogan and the AKP (the party of Recep Erdogan). All academic bodies are under the control of a regime that has also taken control of the press and justice system. The police were already controlled by the regime, but now the military police and army who were not, are now fully under his control. Now we can really say that it is a dictatorial regime, the regime of one person, who will decide the future of Turkey.

The HDP rejects this anti-democratic system which has resulted from the declaration of martial law, which will strengthen the dictatorship. We voted against this state of siege. The only way out of this crisis is democracy, is the participation of all political forces in the country's political life.

But can the Turkish Parliament still play a role in the current situation?

Eyyup Doru: Parliament cannot really play an important role because the government will make laws without parliament. Martial law was established by decree. The decrees will only be discussed between the president and the council of state; this means that the parliament is virtually ruled out of any decision.

Everyone still wonders whether the coup was genuine, when we see today how it has allowed Erdogan to better consolidate his dictatorial regime. Finally, the coup served his aims. How do you interpret thing on your side?

Eyyup Doru: Yes it is true that this military coup favors the dictatorial regime of Erdogan, I confirm that. But I think that there was indeed a military coup. And what is also important is that it had an impact on public opinion. Public opinion is totally against the military coup. Erdogan has already used this public opinion to prohibit pro-democracy demonstrations in the Kurdistan region, but also in Istanbul and elsewhere, including the activities of major labor unions. Unfortunately, after the coup and the declaration of the state of siege that is the consequence; Erdogan will be able to further strengthen his presidential power over Turkey.

How can the current situation change?

Eyyup Doru: I think the only solution is the restoration of democracy and freedoms. There has been no democratic elections, the AKP (Justice and Development Party, the party of Erdogan) is confident of electoral fraud, there is also a fascist party that will ally with the AKP to gain a majority in parliament. In the current state, there is not much that can be done at this level. We need a mobilization of civil society, its representatives and also of all MPs who believe that out of this crisis must come the restoration of democracy and peace. What we need is democracy and freedom. I believe we must create an alliance against this dictatorship, unite political forces for the creation of a large front for democracy and propose solutions in order to advance the democratic system in Turkey, and also to solve the Kurdish problem which is one reason for the malfunction of the current system. The leader of the Kurdish people. Abdullah Ocalan [the PKK leader who has in jail for 17 years in Turkey] already predicted that if the Turkish system is not democratized, there will be military coups and that is what has happened. For now, it should be recalled that Ocalan is in total isolation; even his lawyers cannot have any contact with him and our MP (HDP) that during the peace process had the opportunity to get close to him, cannot anymore. It is also one of the reasons for the tension in the Kurdistan region.

Erdogan appears to want to use this failed coup to distance Turkey from Europe. What do you think?

Eyyup Doru: I think that even if Erdogan wants to distance Turkey from Europe, it is very difficult for him. Turkey's relationship with Russia is in crisis, it has very poor relations with Iran, but also with Syria and with the Greeks. Will he seek other alliances? I think he has no alternative but to move closer to Europe and accept the march towards an process of integration of Turkey with the EU. Turkey is a NATO member, member of the Council of Europe. If it moves away from these institutions, I don't think it can survive in this region of the Near and Middle East, because Turkey still enjoys all the benefits of NATO and the Council of Europe. The application to be a member of the EU also benefits Turkey and I do not think Erdogan will forgo it.

ORIGINAL FRENCH ARTICLE: Turquie. Eyyup Doru « Ce dont nous avons besoin, c'est de démocratie et de liberté »

Translated by Tom Gill

Photo: Eyyup Doru by Gael Le Ny, l'Humanité,fr

From #FeelTheBern to #ImWithHer: A young activist takes the long view

Jim Roberts — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 10:30:00 +0000

As of the start of August, it should be clear to voters that either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton will be the 45^th President of the United States. As a former supporter of Bernie Sanders' campaign, this fact has proved difficult to digest.

No doubt, Bernie Sanders served as the best representative for the movement towards a more just and democratic society. In spite of that, following Senator Sanders' failure to secure the Democratic nomination, I have come to the conclusion that the most effective means of furthering the movement he represented is to ensure Hillary Clinton thoroughly defeats Donald Trump by a landslide in the upcoming general election.

By no means has the movement with Bernie at its head dissipated or been co-opted; far from it. Politics, much like physics, demonstrates the conservation of momentum. Many of my fellow leftists and ex-Bernie supporters fear that backing Clinton will result in a neoliberal usurpation and expenditure of the progressive energy and hopes that Bernie tapped. Others treat the issue with a profound ambivalence, as though no essential difference exists between a Clinton or Trump administration.

This line of thinking holds that progressive and left political groups would better serve their constituents and causes by refusing to enter into the incipient Clinton coalition. This self-fashioned third bloc of leftism sees itself confronting the same monster in either a Trump or Clinton presidency. They bolster their forces for what is predicted to be the same fight, regardless of electoral results.

The former concern merits response; the latter, a thorough, thought-out, and unequivocal rejection.

Clinton = Trump?

First, the claim that no essential difference can be found between the prospects of a Trump or Clinton presidency does not stand to even superficial examination. For starters, think about what a Trump presidency might look like. His insurgent attempt to steal the White House has failed to offer any concrete political program outside of his particular blend of Nativism and resentment.

Whatever its problems, Clinton's campaign regularly releases detailed policy proposals, subjecting the candidate to our ruthless criticisms. For all the bluster regarding Clinton's abhorrence of transparency, in this instance, there is no question as to which candidate gives the left the room it needs to form a programmatic response. "Better the devil you know," so they say.

But more than the issue of familiarity, a Trump presidency stands as a categorically worse situation. In spite its lack of density, the tenor of Trump's rhetoric offers a glimpse into the crushing defeat his presidency would represent for the left and for democratic movements generally. He willingly stirs up the divisive emotions of racism, xenophobic nationalism, and Islamophobia.

Race, nationality, and religion have all been tools historically utilized by the bourgeoisie to divide and conquer working people. To a large degree, this pattern defines the social history of our nation. Time and again, the capitalist class devastates working class solidarity by fanning these same flames.

A victory for Trump would legitimize these divisive forces in truly unprecedented ways. A Trump presidency would further the division between the white working class and 'the rest.' A Clinton presidency, by contrast, could offer an initial chance at rekindling solidarity within our fractured working class.

A landslide victory is needed

What, then, is essentially at stake on November 8, 2016? Nothing less than the cohesiveness of our working class. History proves that without cohesive solidarity among the members of the working class, social change and progress halts. A Trump victory would destroy the possibility of social change and progress by cementing the division of the working class for the foreseeable future.

For this reason, Hillary Clinton must not only win the election, but utterly destroy Trump's attempts to divide the working class against itself. A landslide victory by Clinton would delegitimize and destroy divisive 'Trumpist' politics.

In light of these considerations, anyone who considers themselves a part of the left must ensure Hillary Clinton defeats Donald Trump in the upcoming general election. Ambivalence has no place this time around.

No doubt, a degree of ambivalent feeling is to be expected when a candidate the caliber of Bernie Sanders comes up short in the leadership contest. This leads to some of those genuine concerns considered earlier.

Many progressives - millennials in particular it seems - distrust Clinton. They fear she is not only pandering to Sanders' former supporters, but outright misleading them. Some cast her as the neoliberal rube of the neoconservatives. Surely, Clinton's politics leave much to be desired.

The question becomes one, however, of how the insurgent forces Sanders unleashed can maintain their progressive energy when in coalition with an established Democrat the likes of Clinton.

The bulk of those asking such questions do not call for an outright rejection of Clinton as a candidate (like the aforementioned bloc of puritans), but instead wonder about how to maintain the vitality of an emergent practical and effective left. These are legitimate concerns, but they are largely of a theoretical nature in the current situation.

A Clinton victory leaves open the path to progress

Coalition-building and the theory thereof must be developed if Clinton seeks partnership and cooperation with the left. Criticism must remain vibrant in order to ensure liberals do not coopt and redirect the excitement and possibility Sanders unleashed. Otherwise, upon Clinton's victory, the forces of the left will enter into opposition, a place all-too-familiar for those voices.

Until then, progressives, leftists, and former Sanders supporters face an essential task: It is up to them to ensure the possibility of current and future working class solidarity is preserved.

A Trump victory would steal the momentum unleashed by Sanders and crush it with an agenda of social, political, and economic retrenchment. A Clinton victory would leave that momentum up for grabs. It would remain a force still able to seize the opportunity for moving history along.

Jim Roberts, age 22, is a recent graduate of the University of Virginia. He formerly volunteered for the Bernie Sanders campaign in that state. Jim currently resides in Los Angeles and engages in free-lance writing.

Photo: Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. | AP

100,000 working people to go door-to-door to defeat Trump

Larry Rubin — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 14:55:00 +0000

WASHINGTON - If the plan works as designed - and there's every indication it will - some 100,000 volunteers will answer the call of the Working America Coalition to speak with working families across America about the need to support candidates who support them.

"We will work closely with the three million member Working America," Coalition leaders announced. We know that "when working people speak with a loud and strong voice, pro-worker candidates win."

A study done last year by Working America, which is affiliated with the AFL-CIO, found that "Face-to-face conversations are critical for breaking through reflex thinking on difficult issues;" thinking that leads some working people to support Donald Trump.

Working America canvassers went door to door in working class neighborhoods where Trump seems to have made inroads.

The study said that if canvassers did not belittle the opinions of workers and validated the reality of their fears, people were eager to discuss alternative ways to address today's economic issues.

"Working-class voters are hungry for an independent voice to deliver clear information and with whom they can discuss the issues," the report found. ... "For some [Trump supporters] ... our engagement - a combination of validation and information - gave them pause. The longer we spoke with people, the more opportunity there was to talk about issues vs. personalities.

"Without a countervailing pull of authentic engagement about issues and a progressive vision for the future of the country, the appeal of right-wing rhetoric will continue."

In their announcement, the Working America spokespersons said, "We will deploy nearly 100,000 volunteers and staff across the country to speak with working families about the importance of this election and ask them to support the candidates who will be their best advocates."

The volunteers will conduct nearly 1 million door-to-door conversations with swing voters in what are considered battleground states

In addition, every week, from now through election day, the spokespersons said, "union members will receive materials in their mailboxes about candidates at every level and where they stand on the issues that matter to working families.

The statement continued, "America's union members and progressive allies will pound the pavement and work the phones and have the meaningful conversations on front porches across the country for candidates who will work hard for working families.'

In a recent essay published in the National Catholic Reporter, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka defined what he means by candidates who are pro-working families.

"Any politician who wants the support of the AFL-CIO," Trumka wrote, "must answer a fundamental moral question: will you choose a world of scarcity or one of abundance?

"A vision of scarcity," he wrote, "leads to the building of walls, the turning away of refugees, and the denial of vital services to the most vulnerable among us. ...

On the other hand, a vision of abundance, Trunka wrote "leads to broadly shared prosperity," to "raising wages, investing in roads, bridges, schools and water systems."

In their announcement of their program to reach voters, the Working America Coalition said, "When our program is successful, when working people join together, it shifts the entire dynamic of the race. Working people will ensure Hillary Clinton-a proven leader who shares our values and who is committed to working families and workplace rights-will gain the White House.

"And we will continue to expose Donald Trump's empty promises and counter his divisive rhetoric and his radical right acolytes."

Photo: Working America canvasser (left). | Flickr (CC)

U.S. unions, lawmakers protest Rousseff overthrow in Brazil

PAI — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 14:37:00 +0000

On the eve of the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, four big unions, the AFL-CIO and 40 U.S. House Democrats are urging the U.S. government to cool relations with the new government there after what they called a "coup" against then-President Dilma Rousseff earlier this year.

The letter, crafted by Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., was co-signed by Reps. Keith Ellison, DFL-Minn., Jan Schakowsky, D-ill, and others as well as the labor federation, the Steelworkers, the Communications Workers, the Teachers, the Auto Workers and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. There has been no State Department response yet and its spokespeople routinely duck the issue in press conferences.

Rousseff's foes, mostly on the right wing, suspended her from office May 12 after an impeachment vote in the Brazilian House earlier this year, pending another vote in the Senate.

They said Rousseff allegedly illegally shifted funds to cover a budget shortfall.

Rousseff was in her second term and was the second consecutive elected president from the strongly pro-union Brazilian Workers Party. But her popularity fell as the economy slid into recession. Her backers, in the letter, question the motives of those who dumped her.

"What we're seeing in Brazil is a power-grab by politicians who weren't able to win at the ballot box," Conyers said upon the release of the letter. "Our government should speak out against the anti-democratic travesty taking place in Brazil."

"The interim authorities are rushing to replace the president's progressive administration with austerity and privatization, before the Senate even indicts her," Ellison added. "This is a serious threat to the democratic process in Brazil, and our administration should not support it."

Rousseff's vice president, Michael Temer, from a right-wing party, took over, announced austerity policies and cuts in social programs and fired Rousseff's representative cabinet in favor of a cabinet full of white men. Brazilian society is made up of descendants of the original Native Brazilians, Portuguese colonizers, Black African slaves, and recent European, Arab, and Japanese immigration.

That new cabinet also is pushing anti-worker public pension and labor "reforms" and social program cuts which hurt Brazil's most-vulnerable workers, the lawmakers' letter adds.

"These sharp reversals in government policy are conducted by a government with no popular mandate and which has come to power through extremely dubious means," it notes.

The letter urges the State Department to "refrain from statements or actions that might be interpreted as supportive of the impeachment campaign," and to be concerned about the impeachment's impact on Brazilian democracy.

"This is not a legal trial, but a political one, where a two-thirds majority vote by a Senate riddled with corruption can end President Rousseff's tenure," it says.

"The circumstances surrounding these impeachment proceedings and the recent actions taken by Brazil's interim government have generated enormous controversy both in Brazil and internationally. The impeachment process has come under fire for procedural irregularities, corruption, and political motivations from its beginning. The U.S. government should express concern about the threat to democratic institutions unfolding in a country that is one of our most important political and economic allies in the region."

The letter notes Temer and lawmakers who removed Rousseff are themselves subject to a wide-ranging political corruption investigation. Rousseff has also been implicated in the probe. It adds she's never been indicted or convicted on any charges, unlike her foes.

Photo: During a protest against the impeachment of Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff, demonstrators holds signs that reads in Portuguese "Coup," in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 10. Rousseff supporters displayed their frustration with rallies held in cities in more than a dozen states. Protesters occupied roads and highways, blocked university entrances and burned tires. Silvia Izquierdo | AP

Teachout’s Congressional campaign: “Score one for the political revolution”

Larry Rubin — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 13:45:00 +0000

HUDSON, New York -- If Zephyr Teachout wins the race for New York's 19th Congressional District, she will do more than add a seat to the Democratic column. She will help bring Bernie Sander's political revolution to the House.

Teachout, a Fordham University law professor, has been a leader in the Occupy movement and served as head of Mayday PAC, dedicated to campaign finance reform. She is also the former director of the Sunlight Foundation and the author of the widely-read book, Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens United.

She was among the first Congressional candidates to be endorsed by Sanders and won New York District 19's Democratic primary by 71 percent of the vote.

That primary attracted a much higher turnout than did the Republican balloting.

New York's 19th District is largely rural, includes parts of 11 Upstate New York Hudson valley counties and has a long history of swinging back and forth between Democratic and Republican representation. It once elected Franklin Delano Roosevelt to the New York State Senate. Since 2010, the area has been represented by conservative Republican Chris Gibson, who is now retiring.

Teachout faces right winger John Faso for Gibson's vacant seat.

Faso is a lobbyist for many conservative causes. As a member of the New York State legislature, He was the original sponsor of charter school legislation and was a leading figure in the passage of Governor Pataki's proposal to create charter schools in New York State in 1998.

Faso's Republican primary campaign was funded in large part by hedge fund manager Robert Mercer through a super PAC called New York Wins. He won the Republican primary by over two to one.

Faso is now being backed by billionaire hedge fund operators like Paul Singer who are pouring millions into super PACs aimed at helping candidates who support Donald Trump for president.

As quoted in The Nation magazine, Jim Dean, chair of Democracy for America, said "Wall Street is scared to death of being held accountable by Zephyr Teachout in the halls of Congress.

"Few candidates," Dean continued, are better prepared than [she is] to run and win the kind of aggressive, people-powered campaign [that is] needed."

In 2014, Teachout received 34 percent of the vote when she ran against incumbent Andrew Cuomo to become the Democratic Party's nominee for governor.

Her congressional campaign is being supported by small donors, not the super rich.

"Score one for the political revolution," Working Families Party New York State Director Bill Lipton told The Nation.

"Zephyr has been able to build a grassroots movement of activists and small dollar donors looking to take on the political and economic establishment. Voters in the 19th District now have a rare opportunity to elect a representative who will lift up their voices and be a national leader in taking on corruption and corporate influence in our politics. The choice for them in November could not be clearer, and eyes of the entire country will continue to be on this race."

Teachout says, "One of the original sins in modern thinking is the separation of thinking about economics and politics."

She advocates policies that respond "to the interests of the people [rather than] to the interests of individual, monopolistic companies."

She is one of the nation's leading advocates for campaign-finance and ethics reforms, breaking up big banks, net neutrality, and raising the national minimum wage to $15 an hour, which New York State has already done.

In her primary night victory speech, Teachout said "I am running for Congress to break down those doors in Washington, DC; the doors that are keeping the people of America-the real people, the citizens of America-locked out. I've been fighting well-paid lobbyists on behalf of working families my entire life.

"I will fight until we win-for the people of New York's 19^th and for the American people."

Photo: Zephyr Teachout | Mike Groll/AP

Unemployment would be 6.2 percent if it included discouraged jobseekers

PAI — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 13:02:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (PAI) - The U.S. unemployment rate stayed unchanged in July at 4.9 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said, even as a separate BLS survey showed firms claimed to create a net of 217,000 new jobs that month. Governments added another 38,000.

The number of jobless declined by 13,000, to 7.77 million, BLS said, but 420,000 more people joined the ranks of the employed, it added.

The pro-worker Economic Policy Institute added a "Yes, but..." comment to the numbers. Given the number of jobless, of discouraged workers who are jobless but looking and of those who have dropped out of the workforce entirely, "There are 2.3 million people who would be working or looking for work if the economy were stronger," EPI said. And official joblessness would be 6.2 percent, not 4.9 percent, EPI added.

The BLS data back that up. Together, the discouraged workers, those who dropped out and those toiling part-time when they really want full-time jobs made up one of every 10 workers (9.7 percent) in July, BLS reported. That's virtually unchanged since March.

As usual, employers in high-paying industries - such as factories and construction - said they added few jobs in July, while those in low-paying sectors - such as health care - added tens of thousands.

Factories claimed to add 9,000 jobs in July, rising to 12.305 million, with 6,700 of the new jobs in car and car part plants. Other factories showed small gains or losses. For example, primary metal firms claimed to add 300 jobs and fabricated metal plants lost 1,800. Construction firms claimed to add 14,000 new jobs in July, increasing to 6.652 million. Most of the new jobs (8,900) were at specialty trade contractors.

There were 669,000 jobless factory workers (4.3 percent) and 410,000 unemployed construction workers (4.5 percent) in July. But construction union leaders say that figure understates joblessness in their sector, since if a worker toils for one day during the survey week at the beginning of last month, he or she is counted as employed for the whole month.

Service firms claimed to create 201,000 new jobs in July, with low-paying sectors leading the way: Retail trade (+14,700 jobs, to 14.96 million), temps (+17,000 to 2.93 million), health care (+43,200, to 15.58 million) and bars and restaurants (+21,300 to 11.35 million). Trucking firms added 1,700 jobs, to 1.456 million, and mass transit added 4,400 jobs to 477,600. But air, rail and water transportation firms combined shed 600 jobs, to 748,200.

Schools accounted for the government job jump (+38,000), seasonally adjusted. Local schools added 21,600 jobs, rising to 7.85 million and state colleges and universities added another 5,100, to 2.453 million. Local governments also added 8,700 workers, to 6.41 million.

EPI noted state and local governments never hired back all the workers they fired in the Great Recession, also known as the Bush Crash, and there's been a resulting drag on the current recovery. "If it weren't for those cuts, the economy would have fully recovered by now," EPI economist Robert Scott said.

Photo: Lethbridge Transit (CC)

Pence heaps praise on ALEC

PAI — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 12:50:00 +0000

INDIANAPOLIS (PAI) - Well, now we know why Mike Pence went home to Indianapolis after last month's GOP convention, and it wasn't just for rallies for Donald Trump's ticket.

Instead, Indiana's governor, who became the business mogul's Republican running mate, addressed - and hailed - the American Legislative Exchange Council, disregarding worker protests out front of the secretive right-wing cabal's meeting in his state's capital city.

"I think everyone should be very weary and very leery, watching carefully to see where ALEC gets its resources and how it connects those resources to legislators," said Teresa Meredith, president of the Indiana State Teachers Association, at the July 27 rally. Meredith led more than 100 teachers in front of the hotel where the corporate-funded front group hosted lobbyists and state lawmakers from around the country, and, later, Pence.

"ALEC has driven the privatization of public education in Indiana," Meredith said. "Our state is a leader in funding private school vouchers and charter schools with taxpayer money to the detriment of the more than 90 percent of Hoosier kids attending public schools."

ALEC is known for its anti-worker, anti-minority "model legislation" which its corporate lobbyists draft and its right-wing politicians enact. If those right wingers, all Republicans, control state and local governments, the ALEC schemes - often adopted word-for-word - become law. ALEC also pushes so-called "voter ID" laws to disenfranchise workers, students, women and minorities who oppose its corporate agenda.

That corporate agenda includes so-called "right-to-work" and "paycheck protection" legislation, bans on project labor agreements, outlawing public worker unions and their contracts, taxpayer-paid vouchers for parents of private school kids - defunding public schools - abolition of teacher tenure and more.

Pence endorsed all of that. He promised the audience Trump would be "empowering states with resources and flexibility," right wing code for cuts in regulations and elimination of programs for low-income and minority people. "You are the model for Washington, D.C., after this election," Pence declared. Trump's running mate also reminded the right wing of the importance of presidential U.S. Supreme Court nominations.

"For the sake of the rule of law, for the sake of the sanctity of life, for the sake of our Second Amendment and all of our God-given liberties, we must assure the next president making appointments to the Supreme Court of the United States of America is President Donald Trump," Pence said, to enthusiastic applause.

The U.S. Constitution's 2^nd Amendment states that "a well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." "Sanctity of life" is the code for anti-abortionists.

ALEC first became notorious for its "concealed carry" gun laws. Florida's ALEC-drafted law let a neighborhood watch "volunteer" shoot and kill unarmed African-American teenager Trayvon Martin. His killing was the first in a long line of shootings that have galvanized national attention - including union attention-on African-Americans' problems with law enforcement, official and unofficial.

Photo: MediaMatters

This week in history: Sesquicentennial of African-American explorer Matthew Henson

Special to PeoplesWorld.org — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 12:34:00 +0000

One hundred and fifty years ago, on August 8, 1866, an African-American boy named Matthew Alexander Henson was born in Charles County, Md. He would grow up to become an explorer best known as the co-discoverer of the North Pole with Robert Edwin Peary in 1909.

Henson was the son of two freeborn black sharecroppers. He lost his mother at an early age. When Henson was four, his father moved the family to Washington, D.C., in search of work opportunities. The father died there a few years later, leaving Henson and his siblings in the care of other family members.

At the age of 11, Henson left home to find his own way. After walking all the way to Baltimore, he found work as a cabin boy on the ship Katie Hines. Its skipper, Capt. Childs, took Henson under his wing and saw to his education, which included instruction in the finer points of seamanship. During his time aboard the Katie Hines, Henson saw much of the world, traveling to Asia, Africa and Europe.

In 1884 Capt. Childs died, and Henson eventually made his way back to Washington, D.C., where he found work as a clerk in a hat shop. It was there that, in the late 1880s, he met Robert Edwin Peary, an explorer and officer in the U.S. Navy Corps of Civil Engineers. Impressed by Henson's seafaring credentials, Peary hired him as his valet for an upcoming expedition to Nicaragua.

After returning from Nicaragua, Peary found Henson work in Philadelphia, and in April 1891 Henson married Eva Flint. But shortly thereafter, Henson joined Peary again, for an expedition to Greenland. While there, Henson embraced the local Inuit culture, learning the language and the natives' Arctic survival skills over the course of the next year.

Their next trip to Greenland came in 1893, this time with a goal of charting the entire ice cap. The two-year journey almost ended in tragedy, with Peary's team on the brink of starvation; they managed to survive by eating all but one of their sled dogs. Despite this perilous trip, the explorers returned to Greenland in 1896 and 1897, to collect three large meteorites they had found during their earlier quests, ultimately selling them to the American Museum of Natural History and using the proceeds to help fund their future expeditions. However, by 1897 Henson's frequent absences had taken their toll on his marriage, and he and Eva divorced.

Over the next several years, Peary and Henson would make multiple attempts to reach the North Pole. Their 1902 attempt proved tragic, with six native team members perishing due to a lack of food and supplies. However, they made more progress during their 1905 trip: Backed by President Theodore Roosevelt and armed with a then state-of-the-art vessel that had the ability to cut through ice, the team was able to sail within 175 miles of the North Pole. Melted ice blocking the sea path thwarted the mission's completion, forcing them to turn back. Around this time, Henson fathered a son, Anauakaq, with an Inuit woman, but back at home in 1906 he married Lucy Ross.

The team's final attempt to reach the North Pole began in 1908. Henson proved an invaluable team member, building sledges and training others on their handling. Of Henson, expedition member Donald Macmillan once noted, "With years of experience equal to that of Peary himself, he was indispensable."

The expedition continued into the following year, and while other team members turned back, Peary and the ever-loyal Henson trudged on. Peary knew that the mission's success depended on his trusty companion, stating at the time, "Henson must go all the way. I can't make it there without him." Peary, Henson, four Inuit and 40 dogs (the trip had begun with 24 men, 19 sledges and 133 dogs) finally reached the North Pole - or at least they claimed to have.

"Peary shook my hand," Henson recorded, "and beamed at our four Eskimo dog drivers at 10:30 a.m., Eastern Standard Time, on April 6, 1909."

Triumphant when they returned, Peary received many accolades for his accomplishment, but in a sign of the times, as an African American, Henson was largely overlooked. Though Peary was lauded by many for his achievement, he and his team faced widespread skepticism. Peary had to testify before Congress about reaching the North Pole due to a lack of verifiable proof. The truth about Peary's and Henson's 1909 expedition still remains clouded.

Henson spent the next three decades working as a clerk in a New York federal customs house, but he never forgot his life as an explorer. He recorded his Arctic memoirs in 1912, in the book A Negro Explorer at the North Pole. In 1937, the 70-year-old Henson finally received the acknowledgment he deserved: The highly regarded Explorers Club in New York accepted him as an honorary member. He also received the Gold Medal of the Geographical Society of Chicago. In 1944 he and the other members of the expedition were awarded a Congressional Medal. He worked with Bradley Robinson to write his biography, Dark Companion, which was published in 1947.

Matthew Henson died in New York City on March 9, 1955, and was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery. His wife Lucy was buried beside him in 1968. To honor Henson, in 1987 President Reagan approved the transportation of both their remains for reinterment at Arlington National Cemetery, which is also the burial site of Peary and his wife Josephine.

In 1986 the United States issued a 22-cent postage stamp featuring the images of Peary and Henson together.

Adapted from The biography.com and Chase's Calendar of Events.

Photo: Wikipedia (CC)