****************************************************************** People's Tribune (Online Edition) Vol. 20 No. 26 / June 28, 1993 P.O. Box 3524, Chicago, IL 60654 Email: jdav@igc.org ****************************************************************** +----------------------------------------------------------------+ POLICE TURN POOR COMMUNITIES INTO WAR ZONES HOW WILL WE FIGHT? LOS ANGELES -- All across the country the police have turned poor communities into war zones. They are slaughtering young people in the streets like animals. They have turned our neighborhoods into jails without bars. And we can't count on the courts. Cops who kill walk free. But the poor and innocent die in the streets and on Death Row. In L.A., the most pro-cop, anti-people candidate, Richard Riordan, won the mayor's race. He did it by pumping up the fear of crime and violence against the middle class. Across the country, there is a propaganda war blaming crime and violence on poor youth. But the real target of crime and violence is the poor themselves, especially the young men. There are no jobs because computers are replacing people. There is no profit in providing housing, education, or health care for people who don't work. So the system is out to kill us. And the cops and the courts are doing it for them. But we are fighting back. For our lives. Across the country we are protesting, demanding our rights. But what will it take to succeed? It'll take a huge movement that can stop the police, the courts and the prisons and put human happiness first in our country. "WE'RE ALL TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY" LOS ANGELES -- Marisol Garcia, sister of Sergio Garcia, who was killed by the Los Angeles police on May 24: "With the police, it's always 'You're a project bitch. You're a welfare bitch.' Just because we're poor, that doesn't make us animals. We're trying to get somewhere in life, but it's hard. There's no jobs. They're cutting all the funds. What are our kids going to have to look forward to? A police officer to kill them? "We're all together as a community. It ain't no color or race thing. We're together to fight back because we all feel that we get harassed and treated like animals. "We have to get the word out, get together with victims of the same crime from different areas. Other people can come and protest with us and we can support them, so we can make it bigger and fight back together for our rights." +----------------------------------------------------------------+ INDEX to the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE (Online Edition) Vol. 20 No. 26 / June 28, 1993 Editorial 1. ATLANTA MAN WRITES MOVING PLEA FOR GARY GRAHAM'S LIFE News 2. INJUSTICE OF DEATH PENALTY UNITES VICTIM'S FAMILIES, INMATES 3. CURE CONFERENCE COMES AT HISTORIC JUNCTURE (LETTER OF GREETINGS) 4. UCLA HUNGER STRIKE REKINDLES FLAME 5. THERE IS NO BUDGET DEFICIT IN MAINE 6. SOUTHERN LEADERS REACT TO CLINTON'S BETRAYAL OF LANI GUINIER Focus on Detroit 7. DETROIT REMEMBERS MALCOLM X AND THE LEAGUE OF REVOLUTIONARY BLACK WORKERS: CONFERENCE CALL -- July 23, 24, 25 8. VOTE FOR A CHANGE: PAUL L. HUBBARD FOR MAYOR OF DETROIT 9. DETROIT SCHOOL CRISIS SOLUTION: GRADUATED INCOME TAX Columns and features 10. DEADLY FORCE: LOS ANGELES POLICE HARASS HARBOR COMMUNITY 11. GHETTO GOSPEL 12. OPEN LETTER ON PUBLIC EDUCATION 13. ABOUT THE PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE ****************************************************************** 1. EDITORIAL: ATLANTA MAN WRITES MOVING PLEA FOR GARY GRAHAM'S LIFE Troy Fox Member, Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles 8610 Shoal Creek Blvd. Austin, Texas 78711 Dear Mr. Fox: I am writing to you and every member of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles because I want to help stop the upcoming execution of Gary Graham. If you have already decided in favor of Gary, then I apologize to you for the tone of this letter, as you do not deserve to be addressed in this manner. But I am angry about what the state of Texas is set to do, and I don't know how else to express myself, except with honesty. I am a 41 year old white man, born and raised in the South. I have been working in domestic violence and child abuse prevention agencies for nearly 15 years, thereby doing my part to fight against violent crime. My current job takes me all over the region, mostly through Texas and Oklahoma. As the date of Gary's scheduled execution gets closer, I find that his case fills me with hatred towards the institutions that I have been working in for so long. If _I_ am this angry, then you should be able to figure out where the execution of Gary Graham is leading us to in terms of hatred and violence in our communities. You should know that I have done my homework on this case, more than reading what is in the newspapers. Why I have involved myself to this extent, I can't really say. But since the Rodney King beating and verdict last year, and the subsequent riots in L.A., I decided that I better find out what is happening in our criminal justice system. In Gary's case, I have asked for and received copies of the clemency petition and other evidence that is before the Board. I now know what the jury, the courts and the Board have based their decisions on. I am not fooled about justice being served in this case. Among the things that I understand is that the Board of Pardons and Paroles has a special duty to perform in cases where justice has been denied through the courts. The Supreme Court just said so in the Leonel Herrera case. Try as you might, as a member of the Board of Pardons and Paroles, there is no avoiding your responsibility. As a responsible citizen doing my job, I am not asking you to do very much in the Graham case. I am simply asking you to do your job. I have done something else recently which I am sure that most members of the board would not be able to do: I visited with Gary's family and community in Houston while I was there on business. I wanted to know how local people felt about Gary's case. As I sat with Gary's family in church, I listened to his parents, his siblings and their children as they spoke of their hopes and dreams. While there, I gained a sense of the love that they feel, not only for Gary, but for their community. If you do your job to ensure justice in Gary's case, then you will have done much more than save the life of an innocent man. You will have preserved the love and spirit of the members of his family and community. If you allow him to be executed, then God help us all, for we are all guilty of murder, and deserving of the destructive consequences of Gary's death on the hopes and dreams of people in his community. Gary deserves more than a commutation of his sentence to life in prison; he deserves his freedom. I believe that the Board must take a courageous stand and give this to Gary. You can trust that there are many people out here working to prevent violence in many ways, but we need to feel that the institutions of government are working with us. Thank you for reading and responding to this letter. Which ever way the Board votes, you can be sure that I will write again. My hope is that my next letter will be filled with praise for the courage of the Board for seeing that justice was done in the case of Gary graham. Sincerely, Wayne Dow ****************************************************************** 2. INJUSTICE OF DEATH PENALTY UNITES VICTIM'S FAMILIES, INMATES By Anthony D. Prince (Reported by Chris Mahin and Richard Capalbo) CHICAGO -- "I want to salute you" said Ashanti Chimurenga, addressing members of Murder Victims Families For Reconciliation. "I thank you on behalf of all the men on Death Row, on behalf of all the oppressed. Keep fighting, we need you." Chimurenga and almost 100 others joined the "Journey of Hope" in Chicago June 12, the midway point in a two-week series of rallies against the death penalty in America. Sponsored by the Murder Victims Families for Reconciliation (MVFR), the Journey began last week in Michigan City, Indiana to the cheers of inmates at Indiana State Prison. A leading member of Amnesty International and a Chicago attorney, Chimurenga had recently returned from Texas where she is part of the mass movement to save Gary Graham, an innocent man on death row. (See Guest Editorial, Page 2) Delbert Tibbs, another who spoke at the rally, knows how Gary Graham feels. He spent over three years wrongfully incarcerated on Florida's Death Row before being released in 1977. Tibbs commended MVFR, a national organization of those who have lost loved ones to violent crimes and who oppose the death penalty. "I'm so proud of [Journey of Hope organizer] Bill Pelke and the members of MVFR," says Tibbs whose strategy to stop the wave of executions is "to get a hard-core group who have what amounts to a messianic zeal and send them out to organize." In an emotional moment, Jeanne Bishop and Jennifer Jones described the murder of their sister and brother-in-law and how, despite their pain, they could not condone the death penalty. "It's indisputable that it [the death penalty] is not a deterrent," Jones told the People's Tribune. "It's indisputable that it disproportionately affects people of color and the poor. It's indisputable that it's less expensive to jail people for life than to execute them. _Now _what we're saying is that it doesn't make the victims' families feel better." Next week, the People's Tribune will conclude its coverage of the Journey of Hope as it makes its final stop in Indianapolis. For further information, call 219-982-7751. ****************************************************************** 3. CURE CONFERENCE COMES AT HISTORIC JUNCTURE 'We now have the technology to eliminate the social inequities that cause crime and violence' A letter of greetings to the 4th Annual Conference of Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants Dear Sisters and Brothers, We in the National Organizing Committee are with you in this fight. While the rulers would have our sons and daughters rot in prison, the high and mighty in this country (and those paid to protect them) literally get away with murder on a daily basis. Ask the widows of coal miners killed on the job. Ask the parents of children poisoned by toxic waste or shot down in the streets by the police. Arising as it did, out of a battle for humane conditions in Texas prisons 20 years ago, CURE now stands at the same historic crossroads faced by all poor and downtrodden, far and away the majority of the 1.1 million Americans behind bars today. They are called "errants," but in fact, it is the_ system _ that has erred. Unwilling and unable to adequately provide the necessities of life to some 70 million people, those in power are resorting to a police state, including a prison system that is fast rejecting any concept of rehabilitation. There are already 36 "super-maximum" security prisons in this country, with more on the way. Controlled by a class of billionaires which profits directly from its expansion and maintenance, the prison system today exists to terrorize, control, and warehouse the growing ranks of unemployed, hungry and homeless Americans. We are at an historic juncture. We have the technological capacity to feed, clothe and shelter everyone in this country. We have the means _to eliminate_ the social inequity that is at the root of crime and violence. But for this to happen it will require sweeping, revolutionary change and the unity of all of us in the fight. This conference is a major step in that direction. We wish you every success. National Organizing Committee (For further information write to the NOC at P.O. Box 477113, Chicago, Illinois 60647. Phone 312-486-0028.) ****************************************************************** 4. UCLA HUNGER STRIKE REKINDLES FLAME By Steve Teixeira LOS ANGELES -- VICTORY! The Raza at UCLA shouted that sweet word on June 7 as they ended their 14-day hunger strike. The university agreed to hire six Chicano Studies professors and drop charges against 84 students whose May 11 sit-in had started the struggle. Although UCLA refused to make Chicana/Chicano Studies an official department, they agreed that the newly named Cesar Chavez Center would have some full-time teachers. But this was more than a student victory. By refusing all food until they either won or died, the nine hunger strikers rekindled the city's Mexican People's Movement. It sparked the rebirth of a struggle that had seemed leaderless and in retreat. And they did it from the bottom up, forcing even Chicano elected officials to threaten to hold up the entire state budget unless UCLA gave in. "The changes that need to occur in institutions like this have to come about through direct confrontation," explained hunger striker Uexilixtlitiuh. It was this message that attracted students from across L.A. to pitch tents alongside the UCLA students. It called 16-year-old Norma Montan~ez, who left her high school and joined the fast. It called Loyola Marymount students to march the miles from their school to UCLA. And then the students did even more. They reached into the base of the Mexican People's Movement, to the poor who are the Raza's heart and soul. Housing project residents and homeboys began making the pilgrimage to the tent camp. "We want to fight for the future of all our children," said Maria Torres, a grandmother and leader from the Pico-Aliso projects. "Today it was these students, tomorrow it could be any of them who need us!" On June 5, 1,000 people marched 14 miles in the rain, from the city's first barrio on Olvera Street to UCLA. Among them were parents like Ana Lopez, from the Watts Century Latino Organization, who summed it up best: "This is how we have to fight against budget cuts and other problems -- in one united struggle!" ****************************************************************** 5. THERE IS NO BUDGET DEFICIT IN MAINE By Jan Lightfoot HINCKLEY, Maine -- There is no budget deficit in Maine! So why is Governor McKernan acting as if there is a shortfall and cutting the budget? At last official count the actual income was 2.4 percent over budget. Last December, Maine newspapers were informed of this by Hospitality House Inc. If the budget is on target halfway through the year, or a trifle above, there should not be any shortfall. Logically there should not be a need to cut any programs. Morally, and by the right of the First Amendment, the media should inform the public that the governor is calling out the financial "National Guard" against the poor. In July, after people have gone without, after some have died, the governor will say, "We figured wrong, there is a slight surplus in the budget." But what will undo the harm that 250,000 people needlessly suffered? Freedom of the press was granted to eliminate governmental oppression. So the governmental wrongs could be told to the public without the fear of being jailed or executed. Today the press is afraid of losing access to government, thus losing profits. So the press does not use common sense. They do not check out what they are being told by the government. Maine press is a puppet of the government. As such there is no free press. For more information contact Hospitality House Inc., Box 62, Hinckley, Maine, 04944, or call (207) 453-2986. ****************************************************************** 6. SOUTHERN LEADERS REACT TO CLINTON'S BETRAYAL OF LANI GUINIER By R. Lee Lewis Pitts, executive director of the Southern Justice Institute, Durham, North Carolina: I was very disappointed, because of the work she [Guinier] has been doing, attempting to make democracy more meaningful in the very limited two-party system we have presently. I'm convinced most of the people criticizing or attacking her are not familiar with her work and the broader work of trying to increase electoral participation. I'm also very disappointed that President Clinton, even if he only recently became familiar with her explorations of new electoral systems, didn't support those efforts....Her ideas about increasing voter participation and allowing people to vote according to like minds rather than like bodies are critically necessary to address the racial divisions we have in this country....[Clinton's action was] out of sync with what I was at least hoping this administration was about -- new and different ways of doing things, including how we elect the government. Albert Turner, Perry County, Alabama, commissioner and long-time voting rights activist: I was pretty disappointed, and particularly disappointed in the reasoning for it. Anybody who believes in affirmative action would believe in what she supposedly had been turned down for. Lani was one of the few people who understood what her job was supposed to be....[Clinton] was trying to make himself look better to conservatives....He used her as a sacrifice; he was grandstanding, trying to get a few votes for his economic program.... She was one of the lead lawyers in the vote "fraud" cases. [Editor's note: These were the cases where Turner and others who were mobilizing African-American voters in Alabama were indicted for alleged vote "fraud" in the mid-1980s.] If I told the real truth, that was maybe the real reason she had such a hard time. We saw those cases as a second Reconstruction, where they were trying to take away the right to vote. Lani stood up for us down here; once that got out, that may have been part of the problem. You need to let Clinton know that those eight votes that passed his economic program [in the House] came as a result of Lani Guinier's activity down here, the result of giving the black man a chance to get elected. In fact he would have had serious trouble getting himself elected if it hadn't been for the efforts of Lani Guinier. Margaret Carey, director of the Center for Constitutional Rights' Voting Rights Project, Greenville, Mississippi: I was very disappointed. Lani was eminently qualified and would have brought a type of commitment and innovation to that position that many of us had been hoping for a long time. I was quite shocked by his withdrawal of her, especially for him to say it was on the basis of her writings. It would have been more honest for him to say he didn't want to buck the Senate and take his chances. I call it wimping out.... Those of who know Lani know she has done ground-breaking work, but I don't think many of us would say she is a radical of the type they had tried to paint her. I can't help but believe her ideas were deliberately distorted to kill the chances of having someone honest, forthright and really principled about how they would handle the responsibilities of that position. And a lot of us are asking ourselves, if that is what they're doing to her, what are they going to do with the rest of us? State Sen. Hank Sanders, Selma, Alabama: I think it was a sad day, not only for Lani Guinier but for all African-Americans and all progressives, regardless of color. It wasn't an act on one individual, but rather a symbolic retreat from taking a position of putting progressive people into office. Simultaneous with withdrawing Lani Guinier, he [Clinton] was advancing David Gergen [who was named White House communications director], a Republican who has been most critical of him. This means that progressive people do not have a friend in the White House; whatever we're going to do, we're going to have to do in spite of him, not because of him. It's important that this withdrawal not go unaddressed. I think he withdrew her because he decided to make a shift to the right. She was simply a sacrifice; he wasn't willing to fight for a progressive person. He is remaking his image and redefining his position. ****************************************************************** 7. DETROIT REMEMBERS MALCOLM X AND THE LEAGUE OF REVOLUTIONARY BLACK WORKERS: CONFERENCE CALL -- JULY 23, 24, 25 Malcolm X has been proclaimed the main political symbol of Black radicalism in the 1990s. We stand in unity with the revolutionary impact of Malcolm X and, on this basis, we call for unity to rebuild a strong movement for Black liberation. THIS IS A CALL TO ACTION! There is an economic revolution that is replacing us with new technology. The places where we used to work are now filled with computers and robots while we are thrown out to the streets forced to fight four our very survival. If not now, then we are all fearful of this happening in the near future. Our people are being brutalized by hunger and homelessness, an inadequate and declining welfare system, concentration camp public housing, a poor health care system, but an expanding police force and prison system. WE'RE CATCHING HELL! Therefore, we are calling for a new movement, one that takes seriously the fighting spirit of our great revolutionary hero Malcolm X. We are calling this conference to commemorate the 25th anniversary of DRUM (Dodge Revolutionary Union Movement) and the League of Revolutionary Black Workers. This is how the Black workers of Detroit carried forward the legacy of Malcolm X! We intend to honor Malcolm X on the basis of his legacy, the experience of what actually happened. This includes many organizations such as the Black Panther Party, Black Student United Front, Motor City Labor League, Republic of New Africa, Congress of African People, the United Black Brothers of New Jersey, the CTA Black Caucus of Chicago and the many chapters of the ALSC (African Liberation Support Committee) from throughout the USA and Canada. This is a time to remember, to rethink, to recommit. Only if we dare to struggle can we win and build societies of peace and justice, respect and honor. The Conference is scheduled for July 23, 24 and 25, 1993 at Wayne State University in Detroit. ****************************************************************** 8. VOTE FOR A CHANGE: PAUL L. HUBBARD FOR MAYOR OF DETROIT By Deena Guice DETROIT -- This fall, Detroiters will have an opportunity to choose a mayoral candidate whose platform includes the interests of many of the poor of the city. Paul L. Hubbard, former president of New Detroit, has presented a program to the citizens which includes the slogan, "People and Neighborhoods First." Many Detroiters are disappointed and angry with the present administration headed by Mayor Coleman Young. The past decades have seen deterioration of jobs, city services and neighborhoods, while General Motors and other big businesses continue to receive subsidies and tax exemptions without putting their "fair share" into city coffers, or creating new jobs. While Young continued to rub shoulders with the Max Fishers and Ford Motor presidents, Paul Hubbard served as an activist for senior citizens, the homeless and youth in the area. In the winter of 1992, during the police siege and destruction of the tent cities, organized by the homeless in Detroit, (at the Jefferies Housing Project and in the Cass Corridor) Hubbard initiated community support in clear opposition to Mayor Young. We know that this government cannot be changed by one man, and that the victims of poverty must organize to obtain control of this system. However, when it is clear that a candidate does influence and educate a vast number of people about the inequities of government through action and deed, this needs to be recognized. No other mayoral candidate has shown the support for the victims of poverty more than Paul L. Hubbard. Get out for the September Primary and vote for change! ****************************************************************** 9. DETROIT: WE _DO_ MIND DYING By R.N. [Registered Nurse] X DETROIT -- I call upon the world to witness the insanity we RN's work with on a daily basis in this "not for profit" health care system. As it has been pointed out in the People's Tribune, upwards of 40 percent of all angioplasty is unwarranted. How about coronary bypass graft surgery that is contraindicated? Check the facts: The population is generally elderly, and therefore covered by Medicare. People are subjected to abuse -- it happens every day, in every hospital and clinic. The people are never empowered to make intelligent decisions. They are led to the operating room like the cattle are led to the slaughter. One person had a history of lung problems that dated back 20 years. The bottom portion of one lung did not function. The thoracic surgeon knew this and mentioned it to his wife. They go ahead with the procedure, never offering a second opinion or alternative therapy. The person spends two months in the hospital. Medicare is billed over $60,000. The person spends three weeks on a ventilator. He comes home and is in worse shape than before the procedure. His left lower lobe (lung) remains dysfunctional. We must organize and deal with the issue of health care. We are all aware that every time we come in contact with this "not for profit" health system, we are placing our lives in the hands of some profiteers. I say to you, Detroit, we do mind dying and we are committed to fight sight by side by anyone who desires to do the same. ****************************************************************** 9. DETROIT SCHOOL CRISIS SOLUTION: GRADUATED INCOME TAX By Duane Cook [Duane Cook is a teacher in the Detroit public school system.] The majority of Michigan voters rejected the latest in a series of legislative ballot issues (read: scams) supposedly aimed at getting public school funding from local property tax dependence. We workers, especially in Detroit, want so much for our children to have equal quality education. But we were not, and will not, be conned by Governor John Engler, the legislature or the teachers' unions, into voting for a constitutional change that would forever raise sales tax 50 percent to fund schools, forever cut business property taxes by 35 percent, but only _temporarily_ slow down the rate of school operating tax on our own homes. Many of us pay more in taxes than in principal on our property now. The defeat of Proposal A was really a victory for the working class. What's next? Already, elected officials are back in Lansing planning for the next round in the school finance battle. School closings, layoffs, and pressure from the people for tax relief and quality schools will not stop. "New" proposals will soon come out of Lansing. You can bet your life that none of these "new" proposals will place the burden of funding on the rich and the business community. In fact, the state constitution currently prohibits a graduated income tax -- the only kind of tax that would make those with the most pay the most. Therefore it's up to those of us in Michigan, who want and expect so much for our children, to make a graduated income tax part of the solution to the public school crisis as we move toward the 1994 elections. ****************************************************************** 10. DEADLY FORCE: LOS ANGELES POLICE HARASS HARBOR COMMUNITY +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "Deadly Force" is a weekly column dedicated to exposing the scope of police terror in the United States. We open our pages to you, the front line fighters against brutality and deadly force. Send us eyewitness accounts, clippings, press releases, appeals for support, letters, photos, opinions and all other information relating to this life and death fight. Send them to People's Tribune, P.O. Box 3524, Chicago, Ill. 60654, or call (312) 486- 3551. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ By Dianne Flowers SAN PEDRO, California -- Tyris Hatchett grew up across the street from Rancho San Pedro park in this Los Angeles Harbor community. But he and his friends can't use the park in their community. They can't walk down the street to visit friends and family without being chased, harassed, arrested beaten and even killed by the Los Angeles Police Department. "Lately they [LAPD] been announcing with their car loudspeaker, 'Exit the park,'" says Tyris. "They drive up real fast into the park with little kids there ... to see who they could get to run out of the park so they can arrest you. This could be any time of day." This happens every day. Tyris was arrested late in May after two LAPD officers chased him out of the park and dragged him to his home. ****************************************************************** 11. GHETTO GOSPEL By Dottie Stevens "I will mention the Loving Kindness of the Lord and Praise God for All I Have." Isaiah 63:7 "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." Hebrews 12:1 We hear or read in the Bible words like wisdom and revelation, what does that mean to us? All it means is seeing the total overview, and then knowing what to do about it, or having the solution to problems. Life as we know it is the race, it is an unpredictable, time limited, use of our body, but this life is not all there is. We are on a special journey, a mission and we possess eternal souls. There are forces in this world some call the devil or evil that are out to get us: wars, violence, hatred, poverty, starvation, homelessness, sickness, death, are but some of the enemies of our lives. According to the Bible our mission in this world is to feed God's sheep, heal the sick, house the homeless, free the captive, set the oppressed free. This is not an easy job. In the Lord's Prayer are the words, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." Have you ever wondered where is this Kingdom? How do we get there? It all sounds so vague and complicated, when in fact it is very simple. The Kingdom of God is right inside our own hearts. It's how we live and treat other people. John 3:3 says: Jesus answered and said unto him, verily, verily I say unto thee. Except a man/woman be born again they cannot see the Kingdom of God. This doesn't mean literally reborn of a woman, but a new way of seeing life, a new attitude of being our brother and sisters' keeper. To do unto others as you would like them to do unto you, only we should do the good things first. We have the promise of love, joy, and a sound mind. This is good news for the poor! We can resist these forces of evil. We need to be hopeful not helpless. A formula for success is to stand up and speak about injustice, about homelessness, hunger, poverty and all the related horrors we live through on a daily basis. This is called testifying for the Lord. An example for success is to get the political process to work for us (the people) through expanding voter registration, running for and winning political offices at all levels from dog catcher (in some states) all the way to Congress and President and Vice- President of this country. The Bible states in Revelation 11:15: The Kingdom of the world has become that of our Lord and of His Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever. This says to me that coming into the kingdom of God is realizing we're already there and then working on bringing all people to this realization. Where we are all equal and have enough to live a happy and productive life. God created this planet for all of us to share in the resources and wealth. So let's get to work and be about our business with a cheerful heart knowing in the end we will win back what is rightfully ours. Amen. ****************************************************************** 12. OPEN LETTER ON PUBLIC EDUCATION By the National Education Committee of the National Organizing Committee Parents, educators and students -- we stand on the brink together. While every state in the country is encouraging teachers and parents to improve their schools by "restructuring," funds for public education are being cut back. You don't have to be able to add two and two to know that people are going to be left out. A look at our history reveals who will make the decisions about which children will get educated. The United States was the first country in the world to establish free public education. It is now in the process of becoming the first to dismantle it. The reason for each step is the same: education is restructured every time a leap in technology transforms work and the job market. Public education first began in the last half of the 19th century to provide the skilled craftsmen who were the backbone of industrialization. Schools through the 8th grade provided the basic training for the apprentices who would then specialize in a skilled trade. In the first decades of this century, the development of large- scale, assembly-line mass production again transformed the job market. High schools were popularized to provide the vast numbers of unskilled and semi-skilled workers to work in these factories. The work force had to trained to follow directions, to be flexible enough to move from industry to industry and to quickly learn new tasks in each factory. The rapid expansion of the economy and its infrastructure after World War II led to the growth of state and community colleges to meet the need for trained managers, technicians and educators. Computers, electronics and high technology are now transforming our age. Public education is again being restructured to meet the demands of a different labor market in the post-industrial age. This is how the Bank of America describes it: "Manufacturing jobs in the future will require that employees have greater proficiency in computers and electronics, and more adaptability to changing tasks and responsibilities. ... The average labor force participant will be retrained 7 times in his or her working years. Therefore, a thorough grounding in fundamental learning skills will be essential. ... It is not trained workers that are required, but trainable workers. To achieve a trainable labor pool, workers must have good basic skills in writing, reasoning and math." _(Economic and Business Outlook, September, 1989)_ What the corporate backers of restructuring fail to mention is that electronics eliminates the need for unskilled and much of semi-skilled labor. While a few of today's students will become highly paid high-tech engineers, the majority will be confined to low-wage, unskilled jobs, if they find work at all. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich has written that four-fifths of the current U.S. workforce contributes nothing to the economy. Electronics provides both the robots that eliminate the assembly line and the information management that replaces so many white-collar positions. Likewise the educational structures that created these workers are being replaced. A system based on profits will not long educate those who are not producing for it. Like the workforce it must serve, public education is being polarized into two distinct systems. In one, the "talented tenth" will receive a 21st century education richer than any the world has seen. In the other, the remaining 90 percent will at best go to schools that operate more like prisons. This reality is the undeniable driving force behind the myriad educational reforms being tried out today. In a system that does not feed, clothe and house its people, the denial of public education is a death sentence by permanent unemployment. Our children are already dying. The fastest growing section of the homeless are children. Our communities are flooded with drugs and alcohol. Those who cannot find jobs are criminalized and placed under government control. This reveals the future that is being prepared for the children that the public education system has already excluded. The withdrawal of the right to a public education is one of the elements of genocide. We choose life! There can be no further progress until the needs of this section of our population are met. We stand upon the historic demand of our people for equal, quality education for every child. Public education cannot go back! Its transformation must be part of a general program for jobs, for health care, for adequate and affordable housing. We do not intend to enter the darkness they have prepared for us. The future belongs to all of us! Parents, educators and students across the country are already taking up the challenge. We are fighting to keep our schools when funds run out, to oppose privatization, to oppose tracking and resegregation, to keep bilingual education, to teach a curriculum that reflects our history and diversity. Join us! Steven Miller Gloria Slaughter For the National Education Committee of the National Organizing Committee P.O. Box 28137 Oakland, California 94603 510-534-6948 ****************************************************************** 13. ABOUT THE PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE The PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE, published weekly in Chicago, is devoted to the proposition that an economic system which can't or won't feed, clothe and house its people ought to be and will be changed. To that end, this paper is a tribune of the people. It is the voice of the millions struggling for survival. It strives to educate politically those millions on the basis of their own experience. It is a tribune to bring them together, to create a vision of a better world, and a strategy to achieve it. Join us! Editor: Laura Garcia Publisher: Lenny Brody To help support the production and distribution of the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE, please send donations, letters, articles, photos, graphics and requests for information, subscriptions and bundles of papers to: PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE P.O. 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