Spirit of revolutionary resistance comes North
Haitians, Venezuelans unite against U.S. war
By Minnie Bruce Pratt
New York
The spirit of revolutionary resistance rising
in the Caribbean, Central and Latin America came to the streets
of New York on May 8. Gathering in Times Square, Haitians and
Venezuelans united to oppose the U.S. war in Iraq and
intervention in their countries. They were joined by workers
from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Cuba and
Mexico, and by African Americans, Palestinians and activists
from other nationalities.
The U.S. Northeast was represented--from Lavalas of
Connecticut to the All-People's Congress of Baltimore, from
young members of New York's SLAM! (Student Liberation Action
Movement) to organizers from the International Action Center in
Philadelphia.
More than 300 protestors chanted in Creole, English and
Spanish: "Chavez, Fidel, Aristide!" and "Bush, assassin!"
They marched to the statue of Simon Bolivar in Central Park.
Bolivar, "the Liberator," won independence for Bolivia, Panama,
Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela in his victories over the
Spanish in the early 19th century. In 1816, at a difficult
moment in his struggle against colonialism, he traveled to
Haiti. That country, newly self-liberated from slavery, gave
him refuge and military and material help.
Johnnie Stevens of People's Video Network, just returned
from a labor solidarity trip to Haiti, noted the militancy and
depth of the protest: "The coming together of the Haitian and
Venezuelan communities is very promising for struggle in Latin
America, especially at the time of the U.S. occupation of Haiti
and continued threat of a coup in Venezuela."
He also commented that New York police were hostile and
intimidating toward the demonstrators, who did not cede an
inch.
United against U.S. racism and aggression
The rally was called by Circulo Bolivariano Alberto Lovera
New York--named for a comrade of the Communist Party of
Venezuela (PCV) who was tortured and assassinated by the state
in 1957--and by the Coalition to Resist the Feb. 29 Coup in
Haiti.
The Bolivarian circles, begun in 2000, are the mass
organizing structure of an ongoing revolutionary process. Over
a million Venezuelans participate in the circles, building
housing, literacy campaigns, food programs and cultural
development. Springing up around the world in support of
Venezuela are other Bolivarian circles, such as the Martin
Luther King Bolivarian Circle of Boston, present at the
rally.
The Coalition to Resist the Feb. 29th Coup in Haiti had
recently gathered a multinational crowd of 2,000, mainly people
from Haiti and the English-speaking Caribbean, for a vibrant
evening Brooklyn rally entitled "The truth behind the Haiti
coup." Coalition members include Ajoupa, Haiti Action Com mit
tee, Inter national Action Center, Inter na tion al ANSWER,
Komite Beton, Lavalas Fan-mi, Leve Kanpe, OBNH, Pati san
Jezikri and PPN Support Committee.
Speaking for the coalition at the May 8 rally, Serge
Lilavois denounced the U.S. war in the Middle East and spoke
out strongly for Palestinian self-determination. William
Camacaro of Circulo Alberto Lovero drew a parallel between the
torture of prisoners in Iraq and the racist torments of slavery
and apartheid-like segregation in the U.S. South.
Teresa Gutierrez, co-director of the International Action
Center, praised the revolutionary regional unity embodied in
the rally, especially in light of the recent hostility of the
Mexican government of Vicente Fox toward Cuba. That socialist
country has sent hundreds of doctors to Haiti. Since 1999 Cuba
has assisted peasant associations there with energy and
agriculture projects, including the opening of a sugar mill
that provided 250 full-time and 2,000 part-time jobs.
Gutierrez emphasized the necessity to re-double efforts to
end the Bush administration's war on Iraq, saying that stopping
U.S. intervention in Latin America and the Caribbean was tied
to stopping it now in the Middle East.
Speaking for labor were Vice President Norman Taylor of
AFSCME Local 215, DC 1707, and Sharon Black from the United
Food and Commercial Workers. A Local 27 steward and Maryland
organizer for the ANSWER coalition, Black appealed to the
rally: "Let's march on to Washington, D.C., on June 5th! No to
U.S. and French occupation in Haiti! No to U.S. intervention in
Venezuela! End the occupation in Iraq!"
Reprinted from the May 20, 2004, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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