BY SHIRLEY PEŅA
DES MOINES, Iowa - Twenty-seven supporters of Mark Curtis' fight against imprisonment on framed-up rape and burglary charges met at the Pathfinder bookstore here August 10 to celebrate the victory of his release on parole. Included in the crowd were seven current or recent packinghouse workers.

The meeting was opened by Bill Kalman, a rail worker and chairperson of the Socialist Workers Party in Des Moines. Kalman, explained, "During the time of Mark's imprisonment, we probably held a few dozen meetings on the `Curtis case.' But tonight's meeting is different. Tonight we're celebrating the fact that our eight year fight has paid off, because tonight Mark Curtis is back among us, back among his class as an active participant in working-class politics."

The meeting's theme, welcoming a working-class fighter back to the struggle, was echoed in the message sent to the meeting by Matt Morrison, a supporter of the Irish freedom struggle who resides in St. Louis. Morrison is currently fighting against efforts by the Clinton administration to deport him back to prison in Northern Ireland. "Your celebration tonight is a celebration for the individual and also for the struggle of which he is, of which you are, an integral part of," he wrote.

The speakers platform included several Iowa activists who had been partisans of the fight to free Curtis from prison since the early stages of the defense campaign. Hazel Zimmerman, a member of the Mark Curtis Defense Committee since its founding in the days following Curtis's arrest in 1988, said, "When the defense committee was first formed, those that you might think would support him couldn't bring themselves to acknowledge that frame- ups and cop beatings occur. But workers and fighters, especially in Cuba and in the ANC [African National Congress], understood. And they never flinched throughout the eight years."

Following Zimmerman's presentation, Kalman introduced several in the audience who had actively supported Curtis throughout his fight. These included Roxanne Gould, a Native American activist from Sioux City; UAW Local 270 president Harold Ruggless; and Cleve Andrew Pulley, a steward in UFCW Local 1149 and member of the Iowa Network on Cuba.

As Larry Ginter, a hog farmer and long-time political activist got up to address the crowd of trade unionists, youth, and immigrant workers he commented, "It makes me feel good to just come into this room - into a room of fighters. This room reflects what Mark is all about." He described his recent victory over an attempt by state officials to force him to tear down a sign protesting factory hog farms.

Another farm activist, Merle Hansen, sent a message saying, "If our government is able to get away with framing one person, we are all in peril of getting framed."

Don Barrell, a former Des Moines Firestone striker, now back at work in the plant wrote, "I believe what gave Mark strength was the supporters around him. I believe Mark is a people person and will continue to fight for people's rights whether it's against the government or a large corporation. I'm glad Mark is out."

Former packing house worker David Ochoa, who had traveled to Ft. Madison to greet Curtis on his release from prison, also addressed the crowd.

Young Socialist member Gabe Siert, from Sioux City, conveyed greetings from another Iowa YS member, Charlton Pulley, who was unable to attend because he was in New York helping the Socialist Workers candidates get on the ballot. At the end of Pulley's message, which encourage other young fighters to see the lessons of the Curtis fight as a tool for winning young people to political struggle, Siert explained to the audience, "I haven't had the chance to meet Mark yet, but I feel that his struggle both inside and out of prison is inspiration to us."

The meeting ended with a presentation by Norton Sandler, a member of the Socialist Workers Party National Committee. Sandler, a leader of the Mark Curtis Defense Committee for several years, began by reading a message from Curtis that painted a picture of his return to political life in Chicago as a worker and political activist.

Sandler confirmed that it was not some "ultra-left, wild adventure" that landed Curtis in prison. Instead, this was a case of a communist worker being "early" in understanding the fighting potential of other workers in standing up for the rights of the Swift 17, as they came to be known, following their arrest by the immigration cops on March 1, 1988.

Sandler concluded his remarks by offering a salute to the fighters in Iowa who "were the roots of the Curtis defense effort - roots which the rulers, their judicial system and its supporters could never break."

Shirley Peņa is a member of UAW Local 997 in Newton, Iowa.  
 
 
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