"We all need to support these papers," Pedro Jimenez a laundry worker in Rome, Georgia, told participants in a fund drive meeting in Atlanta. "They are the arms of the people. If we support the effort to get them out, more workers will understand the exploitation that is taking place. That is the way we are going to triumph. It's a primary task of the Socialist Workers Party and all fighting workers everywhere to maintain the printing and publication of the Militant and Perspectiva Mundial."

Jimenez, originally from Oaxaca, Mexico, shared the platform with Militant Editor Martin Koppel and Jeff Rogers, a meat packer at Hormel Foods and member of United Food and Commercial Workers union. Rogers described the interest in the publications among his co-workers and among strikers he worked along side at Earthgrains bakery during a recent strike. "For example," said Rogers, "union members at Earthgrains made Xerox copies of the Militant coverage of their strike and distributed it on the job when they returned to work." Rogers made an appeal for funds at the meeting which brought in $797 including a new pledge for $100.

In Chicago, five young members of Casa Guatemala, a human rights organization based in Chicago, attended the fund drive event there. The meeting featured a presentation by Hilda Cuzco, a staff writer for the Militant and PM, on political developments in Ecuador. The activists said they will be using Perspectiva Mundial as a source of news for a radio show they produce. The talk by Cuzco was taped for broadcast the next weekend.

More than $2,500 was collected at the meeting and in the days just before and after. "As a result of the expanded mailing we sent out we received over $400. We also got an additional $700 in new pledges," said Cappy Kidd. "Since we didn't have time to call everyone who got the mailing before the meeting, we are continuing to organize the follow up calling to get more new pledges."

A team of coal miners who traveled to Kemmerer, Wyoming to continue discussions with miners who carried out a successful strike against Pittsburg and Midway Coal Company (P&M) also found Militant readers there willing to join in the fund raising effort. Over two days of discussions the team raised $74 for the fund from three contributors and report others are considering how much they might be able to send in.

Fund drive supporters in New York organized a meeting in the Garment District and were able to keep themselves ahead of schedule from the money collected. "In addition, over $200 in new pledges were made at the event," said Laura Anderson, one of the organizers of the fund collection. Militant staff writer Greg McCartan spoke on the growing interconnection of the class struggle in the United States and political developments in Cuba.

Also speaking was Nelson Montoya, a native of Columbia who recently met socialists at a literature table they had set up at Union Square. He bought six month subscriptions to both the Militant and Perspectiva Mundial and has been reading them ever since. He spoke about his appreciation for the professional caliber of the publications and the value of their coverage of the history of the workers movement as well as political events of the day. "Our pledges now total $5,400," Anderson said. "So we'll definitely be raising our goal next week."

San Francisco supporters became the first to raise their fund goal, going from $10,000 to $11,000. Steps like this will be necessary in a number of cities now as the drive heads into the final five weeks. The overall pledges still remain almost $4,000 short of the total goal.

The special mailings, outreach on the job and among workers and farmers in struggle, and successful meetings are helping to pick up momentum in the drive. Many of the newest readers can be among the most eager to see the drive be a success.

In Atlanta, according to Fund Drive Director Lea Bockman, "Now that some of the bigger pledges are in, we will be focusing on getting contributions from among new readers of the paper, especially from co-workers."

To make a pledge or a contribution, write a check to the Militant and send it to 410 West St., New York, NY 10014.  
 
 
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