>Here's my question: Why not make the MWM a movement to generate a true MWM?
>Why not spend a year or two recruiting enough people to actually put a
>million workers in the street?
Because one suspects the organizers wanted to be able to say: "see how in bed big labor is with the Dems!" So when the march turns out to be a trickle, they can justify it with a "told you so!" It's almost the definition of sectarianism.
Doug ___________________________________
I suspect this is stretching the definition of sectarianism too far. It's a word that's used too indiscriminately, too often also applying to the good guys who are trying to do good things. Too often, 'Sectarian' (or sometimes 'divisive') is used to label those with legitimate grievances or honest political differences or alternative tactics. Using 'sectarian' as intollerance, destructiveness, loyalty to another body, etc. is a useful definition and likely applies to some organizers of the MWM. I think I even know some. They're irrationally pissed off and unable-to-cooperate types who have expressed themselves in earlier organizational work. But then I also know of MWM organizers for whom I have a lot of respect. They have an honorable left-labor history, and were progressive spark plugs in their unions, community, or academy. They formed U.S. Labor Against the War. They helped form the Labor Party and were LP activists until the party's decline about 1999. Matter of fact, I attended the national USLAW meeting in Chicago last year and found a prounced overlap of progressive unionism, USLAW, and the Labor Party among the delegates. Clearly I don't know what the MWM attendance will be, but it likely will be light. Not sure that matters too much. I'm pleased that the word 'worker' has gotten into the million march lexicon, and that progressive, social movement unionism will have its day. The November elections are of some importance and those who stay home from the MWM march to work for the Democrats can't be put down too hard. But left unionists in alliance with progressives from the community seems to me to be the mix that must jell after the elections. Join the workplace with the homeplace. My hunch is that the MWM will be such an expression.
Bob Mast Detroit -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <../attachments/20040926/2abc7691/attachment.htm>