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The Michigan Socialist | News |
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Defend the right to vote!
AFTER THE 2000 theft of the presidential election,
many American citizens began to realize that, under capitalism,
democratic rights are not eternal, and will be violated if it suits
the needs of the ruling class.
This year, that lesson is once again coming
into sharp focus, as talk about “postponing” the election increases,
and evidence of possible Republican-sponsored attacks on Black and
working-class voters mounts.
Below is the text of a call issued by the
Detroit
Socialist Party and
Socialist
Party of Michigan on this issue. The purpose of this call was to
help bring together organizations and individuals interested in
defending the right to vote.
Throughout the month of August, members of the
DSP and SPMI have been contacting as many groups and people as we
can, in the hope that a sufficient number will come together around
this issue.
This voter defense project is one of several
being done by grassroots and radical-left currents.
Election Protection, a collaboration of the AFL-CIO, NAACP,
People for the American Way and a number of other groups, is
organizing poll watchers to make sure that there are no disruptions.
The radical-liberal
Citizens for
Legitimate Government organization has also been organizing
around what to do if the Republicans try to steal this election.
We encourage all readers of the Michigan
Socialist to get involved in the efforts to preserve and defend
the right to vote.
EMERGENCY!
Your right to vote is under attack!
The Bush regime and Republican activists are
planning to intimidate working class and minority Americans at
polling places in the 2004 elections!
The Bush/Cheney campaign has set aside at least
$750,000 to hire professional thugs from Vance International and
Securitas (formerly the Pinkertons), better known for breaking
strikes and busting unions.
Evidence suggests that they are seeking to rouse
their ultra-rightwing base to go to polling places in working class
neighborhoods, particularly in minority areas, in order to
intimidate and threaten people to keep them from voting.
Democratic Party rallies have already been
disrupted and broken up by rightwing fanatics in Iowa and South
Carolina. Everyone should remember that police were used to harass
voters in working class and minority areas in the 2000 and 2002
elections.
When you add all this up along with the PATRIOT
and Homeland Security acts, the basis for a police state has been
laid.
One indication of the way the GOP is thinking was
clearly expressed by Michigan State Representative John Pappageorge
(R-Troy): “If we do not suppress the Detroit vote, we're
going to have a tough time in this election cycle.” (Detroit Free
Press, July 16, 2004; emphasis ours.)
They are also floating the idea of postponing or
canceling the election altogether under the guise of hyped hysteria
about a supposed “terrorist attack.” Never in American history has
an election been canceled — not during the Civil War, not during the
War of 1812 (when Washington was burned to the ground!), never!
In this context, the message is clear: the
Bush/neocon clique is prepared to keep power by any means necessary!
What must be done? We call on all who want to
defend democratic rights to come together to make sure that everyone
can vote without fear of intimidation, and make sure everyone's vote
is counted. It will take a mass mobilization in the streets and at
the polling places to do this.
Regardless of whom you plan to vote for you have
stake in defending this right. The broadest possible united front
coalition must be created nationally, especially within the targeted
communities.
First, everyone should pass on this call to anyone
they can. Everyone needs to be an organizer. We need to have as many
people involved in defending the right to vote as possible.
Second, we need to start meeting together on a
local, statewide and national level, in order to develop a
coordinated and unified response to threats to our right to vote.
Third, contact as many organizations — unions,
community groups, block clubs, student organizations, etc. — and
individuals as possible, so that everyone can be fully informed and
prepared for what might happen.
Fourth, begin to pull together information that
can be used to educate and inform voters of their rights, so that
threats and attempts at intimidation can be successfully defeated.
Fifth, prepare to mobilize people to meet at the
polls on Election Day in order to counter the actions of the GOP’s
paid thugs and preserve the right to vote.
Sixth, if they actually do move to cancel or
postpone the election, it should be met with continual mass protests
in the streets that would effectively shut down the country until
democracy is restored. Finally, we must be prepared to rely on
ourselves and our own actions to defend democracy. As the 2000
“election” showed, we cannot rely on others to preserve our rights.
If you or your organization would be interested in
joining in the fight to defend the right to vote, please contact us
as soon as possible. There are only about three months until the
election, and we will need every moment of that time if we are to
succeed.
This is a time of great threat to American working
people ... from homegrown rightwing political terrorists! We must
not let them get away with any of it!
Spread the word — communicate among yourselves!
Unite, organize, mobilize and fight back!
Now is the time! |
