BY JOHN STUDER
DES MOINES, Iowa - The Pathfinder bookstore here was the target of an arson attack in the early morning hours of December 18.
The bookstore has been open in Des Moines since 1987 as a source of political books that make available the ideas and writings of working-class and revolutionary leaders. Among the authors published by Pathfinder are Fidel Castro, Nelson Mandela, V.I. Lenin, Leon Trotsky and other leaders of the Russian revolution, Malcolm X, Farrell Dobbs, and Thomas Sankara.
"This arson attack is part of a pattern of one of the worst political crimes of our age - the burning of books," bookstore manager John Cox said in a fact sheet prepared after the attack and distributed to area bookstores, political organizations, and supporters of democratic rights.
The fire was set along the outside front wall. It damaged a section of wall, burning through to the inside of the bookstore beneath a large plate glass window. The books and other literature in the store suffered extensive smoke damage.
Firefighters responded quickly, preventing the blaze from consuming the building. A fire investigator determined that the incident was the result of arson, adding, "It looks like someone was trying to do you some damage."
The Pathfinder bookstore also rents space to the Mark Curtis Defense Committee and the Socialist Workers Party.
Two nights before the fire, the Militant Labor Forum, which holds weekly programs at the bookstore, had organized a panel discussion opposing the sending of U.S. troops to Yugoslavia.
The Mark Curtis Defense Committee (MCDC), which has been organizing an international fight for justice for Mark Curtis - a socialist and union activist imprisoned on frame- up charges of rape and burglary in 1988 - sponsored a highly publicized meeting at a downtown hotel the night before the attack. The event, held to celebrate the recent decision of the Iowa State Board of Parole to grant Curtis parole, was covered by Des Moines TV channel 13, the local NBC affiliate.
The bookstore and MCDC headquarters have been victimized by politically motivated vandalism in the past, including having a gunshot fired through one of the front windows and a physical assault that caused $2,000 in damage.
Pathfinder representatives arrived at the bookstore at 4:30 a.m. after hearing about the fire from a supporter of the bookstore who had been following calls over his police scanner. They immediately began notifying the press, and the three local television stations sent reporting teams to the store.
Police not keen to pursue investigation
Senior police investigator Dennis Morgan, the Des Moines
police officer who responded to the call, left before fire
authorities determined the blaze had been set on purpose.
When contacted later, Morgan said the police were convinced
that it was arson, but had decided to put the case on "hold"
unless bookstore or MCDC volunteers would provide them with
the name of someone to investigate.
"This cowardly act was clearly a politically motivated act, an attempt to close down the free exchange of books and ideas, a blow to free speech. The book burners hoped to shut down the bookstore and intimidate those who rent space there," bookstore manager Cox said in a statement released to the press that morning. He demanded that "the Des Moines police do all in their power to catch and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law those responsible for this attack."
Notice of the fire and efforts of bookstore supporters to press authorities to catch those responsible were carried by all the area television stations and the Des Moines Register, the only daily newspaper here.
"Store owner believes fire was politically motivated," read the headline on the front page of the Register's Metro section. "Des Moines Fire Investigator Robert Niffenegger said no arrests immediately were reported, but he verified that the fire was a case of arson. He said someone applied some kind of accelerant to the front of the building and ignited it."
Supporters of the free exchange of ideas and opponents of violent attacks against political groups organized a protest meeting and press conference at the Pathfinder bookstore December 19. Held amidst the fire-damaged store - which volunteers have kept open with a sign in the door reading "Excuse the fire, we are open for business" - local activists gathered and spoke out against the attack.
Many join protest meeting
"Join in a nonpartisan effort to protest this criminal
attempt to burn down the Pathfinder bookstore and to press
the authorities to act swiftly and with determination," Cox
told the 30 people present. "Send a message to John `Pat'
Dorrian, mayor of Des Moines, urging that city authorities
take decisive action to find those responsible and prosecute
them. This is the best way to send a clear message that book
burning will not go unpunished."
"We are here to talk about hate crimes," Tim Andrews, president and executive director of the Gay and Lesbian Resource Center, said. "Right-wing extremists should be opposed by every rational Iowan. They are being fueled by hate mongers on the radical fringe of the right wing. I call on every reasonable Iowan to oppose such acts and to work towards healing our society rather than destroying it."
Cox read from a message sent to the meeting by Ed Fallon, Iowa State Representative in the 70th District, who said, "I do not know whether the recent act of arson at the Pathfinder Bookstore was politically motivated or just another random act of senseless violence. Either way, it is highly condemnable, and the entire greater Des Moines community should speak with one voice against such violence, whenever and against whomever it may occur."
Larry Ginter, a family farmer and leader of the Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, told the meeting, "It is an outrage that the police have taken a blasé attitude towards the fire at the bookstore. Finally, I want the folks who run the bookstore to understand that I am in complete solidarity with them because damage to one is damage to all." Earl Simes, a farmer and member of the Iowa American Agriculture Movement, also spoke.
Jane Magers-Fionoff, a leader of the local chapter of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom; Bob Peters, a former striker at Firestone; and a number of other workers active in the United Auto Workers and United Food and Commercial Workers unions attended the meeting.
A statement from Rev. Gil Dawes, a leader of Prairiefire, an area group that aids farmers facing hard times, noted, "The Pathfinder bookstore has long proclaimed its point of view publicly, which is more than can be said for individuals who are only able to argue their point of view by private acts of terrorism.... None of us should remain silent, for such acts are a threat to all."
Harold Ruggless, president of United Auto Workers Local 270, said, "We cannot allow this kind of attack to go unanswered. No matter where it starts, ultra-right-wing violence always comes to roost against the labor movement. We must stop it in its tracks."
"This attack on the bookstore and our offices comes within weeks of our scoring a significant victory on Mark Curtis's behalf," Hazel Zimmerman, secretary-treasurer of the Mark Curtis Defense Committee, told the media. The attack came "only hours after we held a widely publicized meeting at the Best Western downtown to celebrate this victory and plan our next steps," she said (see article on page 16).
"Until those responsible for this crime are caught and prosecuted, we can't know who their target was - the political books in the Pathfinder bookstore or our defense committee. Either way, this form of cowardly attack must be condemned and brought to a halt."
Statements were also read from Rev. Ken Stuber; Mack C. Shelley, political science professor at Iowa State University; and Roxanne Gould, a Native American activist in Sioux City, Iowa.
Messages urging action to catch and prosecute those responsible for the arson attack can be sent to Mayor John Dorrian, 400 East First, Des Moines, Iowa 50309.