BY ELYSE HATHAWAY
MT. VERNON, Illinois - A team of socialist workers and
young socialists traveled through the coal fields of southern
Illinois, southern Indiana, and western Kentucky for a week
selling the Militant and other socialist literature at 11
different coal mines and in working-class communities. The
team sold a total of 162 papers, 127 of them to miners at the
portals.
We sold 55 Militants at one portal in Kentucky the afternoon of April 23. The lead Militant headline, "Working class is target of U.S.-NATO assault on Yugoslavia," really attracted miners' attention. Team members also helped make the connection between the war at home and the war abroad by explaining that "the government that is attacking workers here is not going to defend the workers in Yugoslavia." During the three-hour sale, six miners also bought the newly reissued pamphlet Coal Miners on Strike, which contains Militant coverage from the United Mine Workers strikes in 1977-78.
Close to a dozen miners hung around to talk to the team about the war in Yugoslavia and the need for solidarity with workers in struggle. Some workers were interested in who we are and who puts out the Militant. They are attracted to the Militant because it's a workers' paper and there is a growing sense of class solidarity, not just union solidarity.
The team received this type of response at the other portals. At several portals close to St. Louis, a number of workers were glad to see the Militant again and buy the new issue. One worker bought Capitalism's World Disorder, while another renewed his subscription and bought a pamphlet. In total, the team sold 13 copies of the Coal Miners on Strike pamphlet.