BY JOYA LONSDALE

BURLINGTON, Vermont - The campaign to place the Socialist Workers Party presidential ticket of James Harris and Laura Garza on the ballot in Vermont received a tremendous response around the state. As of September 8, over 1,600 signatures were collected toward the goal of 2,000. The required figure is 1,000 signers.

Supporters of the socialist campaign here, as well as from Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and Salt Lake City, set up literature tables throughout the state. Petitioners combed the streets of Brattleboro, Barre, Montpelier, Burlington, and other cities beginning September 2.

In the course of a week, socialist campaigners also sold nine Pathfinder books, one copy of the Marxist magazine New International, and six Militant subscriptions.

The socialists and their supporters found quite a bit of interest in campaigning against Washington's bombing of Iraq and the bipartisan assault on Social Security and in discussing how to build a movement to put an end to these evils bred by capitalism. In the first four days of petitioning, some 70 young people signed up for more information and many expressed interest in the Young Socialists. Some volunteered to help with petitioning, like Spring Cerise, 17, who joined the effort for an entire day.

A 19-year-old Middlebury College student stopped by a campaign table after hearing a radio program on WGDR, the Godard College radio station in Plainfield. Abby Tilsner, Socialist Workers candidate for U.S. Congress in New York had spoken on that program about her campaign and her recent trip to Cuba with the U.S./Cuba Youth Exchange. The student bought the Second Declaration of Havana and continued the discussion with socialists at a local cafe where he explained his plans to form a political group on campus.

Petitioners also initiated an emergency speakout against the U.S. bombing of Iraq on September 7 at Billings Student Center on the University of Vermont (UVM) campus. Thirty-two people came, many after seeing flyers posted on campus and downtown Burlington. Members of several local groups attended. They included the Student Political Awareness and Response Collective (SPARC), the radical student newspaper Gadfly, Native Forest Network, Green Veterans for Peace, Industrial Workers of the World, and the Vermont Chiapas Action Network.

Will Miller, a philosophy professor at UVM, and Brock Satter of the New York chapter of the Young Socialists spoke. The presentations were followed by a lively discussion. Marc Dixon, a first-year student at UVM, said that as the U.S. government attacks Iraq it also tries "to create a disposable cheap labor force based on a third-world model in the U.S. The attacks abroad give us a chance to see what they're doing to us at home."

As several people pointed to the importance of demonstrating in the streets, a member of the Native Forest Network proposed organizing a protest at the federal building. All the organizations present endorsed an antiwar action for September 10. Some 30 people turned out for the demonstration that day. The action also received wide coverage on local television and radio stations.

During the September 7 speakout, a member of SPARC said he is interested in starting a coalition on campus to organize youth to go to Cuba for the world youth festival next summer. He later spent hours in discussing politics with YS members.

The Young Socialists have called a meeting here for September 12 to form a local chapter of the organization. YSers and other supporters of the SWP election campaign are also gearing up for the visit of Laura Garza, who will come to Vermont September 19 to file the petitions to get on the ballot. A press conference has been scheduled for Garza in the capital city of Montpelier.

To help with the last leg of petitioning call (617) 247-6772.

Joya Lonsdale is a member of the Young Socialists in Vermont. Brock Satter and Amanda Ulman contributed to this article.  
 
 
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