From Nathan to Max:
> >That's the worst part. Whoever loses will be the odds-on
>>favorite to get the nomination next time. So in 2004 we'll
>>be looking at the same two nimrods!!!
>
>Which is a good reason to want Gore to win, since we are more likely to
>build a primary opposition to him screwing up in the next four years as
>President than as the "noble loss" candidate he will be if Bush wins.
>
>And there is the Supreme Court, lower courts and executive agencies - yada
>yada yada. But that's only of interest to those fighting discrimination
>before the courts and EEOC and those fighting union busting in the courts
>and NLRB.
Perhaps, we will never be able to rebuild the Left if we think of the courts as the first (as opposed to the last) line of the defense of the working class. Court appointments should not be the top concern when it comes to building a left-wing political party or movement. I say this even though I think court battles matter a lot in the defense of past gains.
A couple of days ago, I forwarded the following post to the e-lists for my department & all faculty in the humanities:
>Date: Sat, 11 Nov 2000 22:17:10 -0500 (EST)
>From: Maria H Lima <lima at geneseo.edu>
>To: mlg-ics at andrew.cmu.edu
>Subject: URGENT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION ALERT (fwd)
>
>draft of letter included!
>
>--
>Maria Helena Lima
>Associate Professor
>Department of English
>SUNY Geneseo
>Geneseo, NY 14454-1401
>office #(716) 245-5242
>fax 5181
>main 5273
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Sat, 11 Nov 2000 22:12:22 -0500 (EST)
>From: Maria H Lima <lima at geneseo.edu>
>To: Maria H Lima <lima at geneseo.edu>
>Subject: URGENT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION ALERT
>
>Date: Sat, 11 Nov 2000 12:10:52 EST
>From: DefendAffAction at aol.com
>Reply-To: postcolonial at lists.village.virginia.edu
>To: DefendAffAction at aol.com
>Subject: URGENT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION ALERT
>
>** URGENT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION ALERT **
>~
>Affirmative action is under attack at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
>The two lawsuits attacking affirmative action at the University are very
>likely headed for the US Supreme Court. Gratz v. Bollinger and Grutter v.
>Bollinger are historic cases that will determine the future of integration
>in higher education.
>
>These two cases are the FIRST affirmative action cases in higher education
>in which minority and women students are full defending parties in the
>lawsuits.
>
>Having previously removed the case from the scheduling docket, District
>Court Judge Patrick Duggan, unexpectedly announced to all the parties that
>the trial in the undergraduate case would be scheduled for the beginning of
>December.This high-handed decision puts the case in the interval between the
>Thanksgiving and the Hanukkah/Christmas holiday - a time, which, because of
>final examinations, makes this critical case LEAST ACCESSIBLE TO STUDENTS.
>In addition, he has scheduled the trial to take place in Detroit, not Ann
>Arbor - reducing the possibility even further that University of Michigan
>students will be able to attend the trial. If he can use shenanigans to
>keep minority students out of his courtroom, he will almost certainly make a
>ruling, which bars black, Latina/o and Native American students from
>universities like Michigan.
>
>Duggan's decision to rush this critical and complicated case to trial not
>only denies the parties in the case adequate time to complete pre-trial
>preparations but also limits the court's ability to get the fully
>well-prepared and comprehensive presentation of the complex issues at hand.
>This case deserves thorough, deliberate consideration, the fate of
>integration lies in the balance. By rushing this case to trial, Judge
>Duggan is showing complete disrespect and disregard for the parties and
>historic issues involved.
>
>We, students from the University of Michigan, need your help.
>
>We need you to email, fax, write and call Judge Duggan; tell him that
>students whose education and whose University will be most directly and
>profoundly affected must have the opportunity to observe as the outcome of
>these cases is decided. Tell him that rushing a case this important is a big
>mistake. Below is a draft of a letter that you can use and Judge Duggan's
>contact information. Please blind carbon copy the University of Michigan
>administration (leecb at umich.edu) and BAMN (letters at bamn.com).
>
>Please send your letter in more than one manner. To make sure he receives
>your message, please fax, email, call and write.
>
>In addition, attend the November 16th Summary Judgement Hearing in the
>Hon. Patrick J. Duggan
>United States District Court
>231 W. Lafayette Boulevard Detroit, MI 48226
>phone: 313 234 5145
>fax: 313 234 5353
>office email: morem at ck6.uscourts.gov
>
>
>
>Hon. Patrick J. Duggan:
>
>The Gratz v. Bollinger case deserves thorough, deliberate consideration as
>the case that will determine the fate of equality of opportunity in higher
>education. This case will almost certainly be appealed, whatever its
>outcome. We object to its being thrown into the time between the
>Thanksgiving and Hanukkah/Christmas holiday. This arrangement places an
>unexpected burden on the defendants to prepare for trial on such short
>notice and in the midst of the holidays. This guarantees a
>less-than-adequate development of this historic case.
>
>We object to the trial being held at a time and location that makes it LEAST
>ACCESSIBLE to University of Michigan students. The Gratz v. Bollinger
>trial should be held in Ann Arbor, Michigan and after the holidays. Only
>this arrangement will allow for a complete and fair hearing of the case,
>and only this arrangement will allow real access for the people whose
>lives and education will be most directly affected by the outcome of this
>case.
>
>
>---------------------------------------------------
>Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action and Integration and Fight for Equality
>By Any Means Necessary (BAMN)
>Website: www.bamn.com
>Hotline/Voicemail: (510) 895-3068
>E-Mail: DefendAffAction at aol.com
>
>---------------------------------------------------
>If you would like to be removed from or added to the BAMN mailing list,
>please write to DefendAffAction at aol.com with "remove [your e-mail address]"
>or "add [your e-mail address]" in the subject field.
>
>Write to DefendAffAction at aol.com to place yourself on one specific mailing
>list if you haven't already!
>To be on a specific mailing list (in which you don't receive e-mails applying
>strictly to a distant local area), send an e-mail with "add [city and state,
>or school] [your e-mail address]" in the subject line.
The forwarded post generated very little interest among my colleagues, except that a few piped up & complained of their in-boxes being clogged by "political spam."
Whether union-busting or affirmative action or anything else, court battles have been mainly defensive, unable to generate solidarity beyond the individuals who are directly & immediately affected by the outcome. As it happens, if the University of Michigan loses the above lawsuits, affirmative action at the OSU, too, will go down, but most OSU faculty (even those who are ostensibly in favor of it) & students have shown very little willingness to fight in public to preserve it.
Yoshie