Charles Mitchell, 1942-2001
A Detroit auto worker who fought capitalism
By Jerry Goldberg
Detroit
Charles Mitchell, a beloved comrade in the Detroit branch of
Workers World Party for over 20 years, died Nov. 1 at 59.
Although he was very ill for the last year, Comrade Charles
continued his party activities until his death--attending
meetings and demonstrations, staffing tables, and watching out
for the security of the party headquarters and all the
members--even as he carried his oxygen tank beside him.
Charles's life had been similar to that of many male African
American Detroiters of his generation. He grew up under
difficult circumstances and spent much of his youth in juvenile
centers. In the late 1960s, however, he became an auto worker
at Ford and later at Chrysler assembly plants. When Chrysler
carried out its massive restructuring from 1979 to 1982,
eliminating 35,000 jobs in the city of Detroit, Charles became
unemployed.
Like so many others, he suffered from the effects of the
economic boycott big business placed on Detroit to weaken the
dynamic Black liberation struggle in the city. This boycott
meant that no new jobs were brought into Detroit for
approximately 15 years. As a result, like thousands of others,
Charles remained essentially unemployed and scrambling to
survive economically for most of the rest of his life. He was a
hard worker who could not find a decent job under
capitalism.
Charles met Workers World around 1980 and became a member in
1981 when the party helped build the All-Peoples Congress to
overturn Reaganism. Despite the economic hardship in his life,
Charles thrived in the party. He was the ultimate worker
comrade. He was the one who set up the hall before meetings,
made sure everyone was signed in and gave their donations, and
then volunteered to clean up when the meeting was over.
He was on every literature table, at every demonstration,
every fundraiser, and worked equally hard for the Cuba
coalition and any other formation with which the party was
affiliated. Everyone in the progressive movement knew, loved
and relied on Comrade Charles.
Charles had great pride in his membership in Workers World
Party. He always wore several buttons to display that
membership for all to see. He looked forward to every new issue
of Workers World newspaper, read it every week and took copies
with him to distribute around the city.
Comrade Charles was permanently on security, watching out
for the well being of all the members and ready to intervene at
the sight of any problems. He was extremely proud that at every
national party conference when Sam Marcy, chairperson and
founder of WWP, was alive, Charles would be on his security
team.
When Michigan Gov. John Engler eliminated the meager general
assistance program in 1990, which left Charles and tens of
thousands of others without their only source of income,
Charles became a leader in a dynamic struggle initiated by the
party for an emergency moratorium on evictions.
This campaign prevented the evictions of thousands during
that period, and kept the building Charles lived in open and
rent-free for several years as a result of the many picket
lines and rallies that he helped organize.
Charles had a deep-seated hatred for the cops, the courts
and the state apparatus. He was fearless on all demonstrations,
and exhibited revolutionary defiance every time he was dragged
into the courts.
Comrade Charles was deeply loved and will truly be missed.
He had a great sense of humor and abiding love for all his
comrades. We will remember him every day as we fight for a
world where unemployment, poverty, racism and war become
distant memories along with the capitalist system that causes
them.
Reprinted from the Nov. 15, 2001, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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Email: ww@workers.org
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