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   Vol.65/No.5            February 5, 2001 
 
 
Meeting in Los Angeles celebrates life of Judy White
 
BY NAN BAILEY  
LOS ANGELES--More than 100 people met here January 21 to celebrate the life and political contributions of Judy White, a longtime member and supporter of the Socialist Workers Party.

In addition to political collaborators and friends of White from the Los Angeles area, people arrived from a number of cities to attend the event, including San Francisco, Fresno, San Diego, and Santa Cruz, California; Seattle; Tucson, Arizona; Grand Junction, Colorado; and Vancouver, Canada.

Speakers at the meeting were Mary-Alice Waters, on behalf of the Political Committee of the Socialist Workers Party; Wendy Lyons, for the Los Angeles branch of the SWP; Ana Ramírez, organizer of the Los Angeles chapter of the Young Socialists; and SWP National Committee member Norton Sandler. John Benson, a leader of the SWP in Fresno and a member of the party's United Food and Commercial Workers national fraction steering committee, chaired the event.

Messages to the meeting were received from more than a dozen comrades and friends who knew and worked with White politically, including from a few who explained that she had been instrumental in recruiting them to the communist movement. Several of the messages were read to the meeting.

The event opened with a reception where participants were able to meet each other and enjoy a fine spread of refreshments prepared by party supporters in Los Angeles. One special feature was a display of White's life and the many tumultuous events she was part of as a member of the SWP for more than three decades. These included the Cuban revolution, the civil rights movement, the anti-Vietnam War movement, the women's liberation movement, the work of the U.S. Committee for Justice for Latin American Political Prisoners, which White helped to found, the rise and fall of the Nicaraguan revolution, and the important role of the Militant, the Spanish-language magazine Perspectiva Mundial, and Pathfinder books in the party-building work that Judy White contributed to. A team of volunteers, which included the entire chapter of the Los Angeles Young Socialists, prepared the displays.

Some $3,500 was raised at the event for the Judy White Party-Building Fund. Those interested in contributing to this fund can send contributions to the SWP at 406 West Street, New York, NY 10014-2570. A fuller report on the meeting will appear in a coming issue of the Militant.  
 
 
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