From: "Yoshie Furuhashi" <furuhashi.1 at osu.edu>
> John, have you attended USLAW meetings? (Or has anyone else here?) If so,
> what's your impression of the organization and people involved in it?
> What sort of unionists are predominantly involved? Mainly unionists from
> service-sector unions like SEIU, AFSCME, teachers' unions, etc.? A lot
> from unions in the industrial and transport sectors, too? Are
> participants more or less evenly divided among different sectors? To what
> extent can USLAW influence the rest of organized labor? Given the
> "appeal" (which is addressed to UFPJ and the like, rather than to unions),
> USLAW itself is not yet in the position to take the lead on mass actions
> that it calls for. What do you think about that?
I attended the USLAW national conference in Chicago in October '03 (USLAW was formed in January '03). Four months earlier (June '03), I attended the national meeting of United for Peace & Justice, also in Chicago. Thus, I could make some comparisons of anti-war groups. USLAW won hands down. USLAW speakers included (I believe) Clarence Thomas of west coast ILWU who had just returned from a trip to Iraq. (Thomas will be here in Detroit this weekend for a national meeting of the Million Worker March). I have high respect for the USLAW organization and people involved, including Michael Eisenscher of Oakland, CA who does staff work. The delegates at the Chicago meeting were true blue radical unionists, anti-imperialists, pro-working class. My guess is that delegates were more industrial, though service unions were represented. The meeting was in a big teamsters hall. You couldn't tell the difference of these delegates from those of earlier Labor Party (LP) meetings. In fact, many now-inactive LP leaders were at the USLAW meeting. And the written program/demands of both the LP & USLAW were quite similar, except the LP didn't come out with an anti-war statement until months later. Also, the program/demands of the Million Worker March are similar to those of the LP and USLAW. There's a big overlap in membership in these three labor bodies, and I would say they're some of the best of today's lot. UFPJ (very middle class) seems to have fallen on hard times, as has ANSWER (though Larry Holmes is scheduled to attend the MWM conference in Detroit this weekend.). I believe USLAW lists affiliating organizations on its site, and it's a very broad list (both unions & anti-war groups). USLAW has taken a big interest in the workers and their unions in Iraq. It's bringing a delegation of Iraqi labor leaders to the US for a tour next month (several will visit Detroit on June 19). USLAW has been influencing the rest of organized labor and likely will continue. I could only guess about when some kind of critical mass might appear. But I shouldn't think it will come very soon, and therefore USLAW won't be able to call mass actions anytime soon. But who knows for sure?
Bob Mast