BY GREG McCARTAN
NEWARK, New Jersey—Socialists who are members of the Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers (OCAW) met here June 1-2. They decided to put two campaigns at the center of their work over the coming weeks: Organizing to defend the Cuban revolution by building the U.S.-Cuba Youth Exchange, and selling at least 48 Pathfmder books a month on the job along with meeting their goal of selling 35 subscriptions to the Militant to co-workers.

"This will take a concentrated effort that is carefully organized," said Jerry Freiwirth, an OCAW member from Houston who presented a report on these campaigns to the meeting. "We have found over the last several months the space is there to sell revolutionary literature on the job, discuss the Cuban revolution, and increase the readership of the Militant among members of our union."

Communist workers will also lead their branches in carrying out a battle plan to meet the international goal of selling 1,100 subscriptions to the Militant by June 16. This effort, by getting out with literature tables, selling door-to-door in working class communities, participating in political events, and keeping Pathfinder Bookstores open more hours will also increase sales of books and pamphlets distributed by Pathfmder.

With Pathfmder sales figures in for May, socialists in Stockholm led the way by selling 123 percent of their goal of books sold through the Pathfinder Bookshops. Socialists in New Zealand organized to meet 109 percent of their goal of selling 93 books.

Socialists in the OCAW discussed the impact among coworkers of three members of their union from Houston participating in a delegation of workers from the United States to the 17th congress of the Cuban workers federation.

This work has widened possibilities for distributing books on Cuba and other revolutionary struggles to OCAW members, Freiwirth explained. By building the July youth brigade and responding to new assaults by Washington, such as stepping up enforcement of the economic embargo of Cuba, socialists can find workers interested in reading books such as To Speak the Truth, which contain speeches by Fidel Castro and Emesto Che Guevara.

Freiwirth noted that after getting off to a strong start earlier in the year, sales of Pathfinder titles by socialists in the OCAW to their co-workers had lagged, and the subscription drive for the Militant got off to a slow start. This is true of the overall book and Militant sales drive. "We need to organize to campaign like we did with Episodes of the Cuban Revolutionary War: 1956-58," said Freiwirth, noting that some 50 copies of the book had been purchased by co-workers earlier in the year."

Socialists discussed that events in the Mideast, with the continued struggle of the Palestinian people, the Israeli bombardment of Lebanon, and the recent elections in Israel can translate into sales of books and pamphlets by Pathfinder along with the Militant.

Unionists are also discussing what road the labor movement should take in the 1996 elections. One manifestation is the June 6-9 founding convention of the "U.S. Labor Party," a formation backed by a wing of the AFL-CIO officialdom. The new formation does not represent a break from the framework of capitalist politics, but aims primarily to reverse the declining influence of the labor tops in the Democratic Party.

Socialists can utilize a range of literature to point to how relying on organized strength and mobilizations of the vast majority, the labor movement can break from political subordination to the parties of the wealthy minority and chart an independent working-class political course to fight for power. The lessons of earlier attempts to take such a road can be found in Teamster Rebellion and Revolutionary Continuity by Farrell Dobbs; Trade Unions in the Epoch of Imperialist Decay with writings by Leon Trotsky and Karl Marx; the Transitional Program for Socialist Revolution by Trotsky; and two Education for Socialist Bulletins, Independent Black Political Action and The National Black Independent Political Party.

Protests by workers in Europe for a shorter workweek in face of growing unemployment make The Action Program to Confront the Coming Economic Crisis and New International no. 10 especially good weapons in socialists' political arsenal. This is also true for books and pamphlets by revolutionary leaders Thomas Sankara and Nelson Mandela in light of continued turmoil in Africa.

In addition, the "cultural war," as ultrarightist Patrick Buchanan has dubbed it, continues to be at the center of political debate in bourgeois politics. Pathfinder titles that take up these issues, such as those on women's liberation and defendin abortion rights, The Changing Face of U.S. Politics: Working Class Politics and the Trade Unions, and the Politics of Chicano Liberation, which discuss the central place of the fight for affirmative action in uniting the working class.

Bob Bruce from Houston described a good response from people attending a June 1 AFL-CIO sponsored event, "America Needs a Raise." Some 300 people attended the program. After the meeting, workers purchased Teamster Rebellion, Mother Jones Speaks, The Eastern Airlines Strike; and Eugene V. Debs Speaks. One person bought a subscription to the Militant.

In Atlanta, unionists bought seven subscriptions and 11 single copies of the Militant at a regional conference of the Union of Needletrades, Industrial, and Textile Workers Employees (UNITE). Seven books and pamphlets were sold as well, reports UNITE member Arlene Rubinstein, with the most popular title being the Action Program.  
 
 
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