Socialist workers living in the South organized sales trips to three different regions during the first half of September. Teams from Alabama went to North Carolina and Valdosta, Georgia. A carload from Houston headed for Bryan, Texas.
These efforts are helping to give shape to the campaign to sell Capitalism's World Disorder: Working-Class Politics at the Millennium, and place it in libraries and stores. The book contains five speeches by SWP national secretary Jack Barnes that address the changes in world politics over the last decade and a half. It serve as a guide to those in city, town, and country, who are reacting against the increasing exploitation and brutality served up by the capitalist system (see front-page ad and excerpt from the book on page 13).
Two of the southern teams took part in important political events. Arlene Rubenstein, a member of the International Association of Machinists (IAM) in Atlanta, told the Militant that she and three other Pathfinder supporters joined a rally of 350 people in Valdosta on September 2 to protest the killing of Willie James Williams by the police. The Peoples Tribunal organized the event as part of an ongoing campaign. Afterwards the team sold a number of copies of the Militant. A rally participant bought a copy of the Communist Manifesto, and then invited the team to visit his barber shop.
Earlier the team met a store owner who is a member of the People's Tribunal. His record store had stocked books for a period, but low sales had convinced him to concentrate on music. "This opened up a discussion on what has changed in politics," said Rubenstein. "He asked someone on our team that he knows what she would recommend, and she urged him to order Women and the Cuban Revolution, which she is reading, and Capitalism's World Disorder. He ended up writing a future order of nine titles, including Capitalism's World Disorder."
During day two of the North Carolina trip, members of United Steelworkers of America (USWA) Local 850, on strike against Continental General Tire, led Charlotte's first ever Labor Day parade. Among the 3,000 people who marched, 3 workers bought a copy of Capitalism's World Disorder at the special price of $20, more than 100 bought copies of the Militant, and 7 people bought subscriptions to the newsweekly. One person subscribed to the Spanish-language Perspectiva Mundial, and another renewed his Militant subscription and bought a copy of New International no. 11 featuring "U.S. Imperialism Has Lost the Cold War."
The Charlotte Labor Day march also proved to be a springboard for promoting Pathfinder titles, and Capitalism's World Disorder in particular. "Socialists who were there asked workers where they get their books, and if they had any suggestions for outlets for us to visit," said Fein. "One of our leads was a store in Chapel Hill. When we visited there, we found Pathfinder's Struggle for a Proletarian Party by James P. Cannon displayed prominently on their 'New Arrivals' shelf. The manager took two copies of Capitalism's World Disorder, and said he would order many more titles at the end of the month when he did his orders."
"We found out about a bookstore in the Black community in Durham from a worker at the rally too," said Fein. "They ordered around $400 worth of books."
The team had already visited bookstores serving campuses in Greensboro and Chapel Hill. One store took two copies immediately, and ordered 12 other titles. The team visited campus libraries as well. A Chapel Hill library ordered New International no. 11 and a copy of Capitalism's World Disorder. "The Greensboro librarian said he would consult with his colleagues and thought it would be a good counterbalance to the Patrick Buchanan books they had," Fein stated.
The team also set up a table stocked with socialist periodicals and Pathfinder books at the Chapel Hill campus. They sold a number of Militants, and a copy of Episodes of the Cuban Revolutionary War by Ernesto Che Guevara. "We met two women campus workers who stopped and told us of their efforts to unionize public employees," said Fein.
The North Carolina team also organized sales of the Militant, Perspectiva Mundial, and the books to workers during shift changes at the U.S. Airways maintenance base at the Charlotte airport, the Fieldcrest Cannon textile mill in Kannapolis, and the Cone textile plant in Greensboro.
"The 700 or so members of the IAM at U.S. Air are in the middle of a 'cooling off' period, and may go on strike September 26," reported Fein. "Twenty to thirty of them marched on Labor Day. We sold six Militants, as some workers told us how they are looking forward to September 26.
"At the Fieldcrest Cannon mill we sold a Perspectiva Mundial along with nine Militants at two shift changes. The 5,000 workers there recently voted for UNITE — the Union of Needleworkers and Textile Employees — to represent them," added Fein.
"After our visit, these airline and textile workers — along with working people and young people in the same area — can now read and buy Capitalism's World Disorder at stores in Greensboro and Charlotte."
Phil Duzinski and Lea Sherman from Houston began their one-day trip on September 8 with a plant gate sale. They sold to workers at Sanderson Farms in Bryan Texas. This is a poultry packing plant, recently organized by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.
The 800 workers there are majority Black or Latino, Duzinski told the Militant. "We sold four Militants, two Perspectiva Mundials and handed out 100 flyers advertising the election campaign of Socialist Workers candidate Dave Ferguson for Houston City Council." he reported.
"Afterward we went to a big university store for an appointment. Using the catalogue, the buyer circled at least 40 individual titles that he thought various professors and others, including himself, would be interested in."
Socialist activists organized in the industrial union fractions of the Socialist Workers Party and the Young Socialists have led these teams from the front. Supporters of Pathfinder who are in the IAM in Los Angeles are setting the pace in the campaign as well.
"We have taken responsibility for distribution of Pathfinder books, especially Capitalism's World Disorder, at the airport, at surrounding bookstores, campuses, and libraries," Mark Friedman, an airline worker in Los Angeles, told the Militant September 12. "We also organize a weekly plant gate sale to dockworkers in San Pedro. Sales of the Militant average 20-35 weekly at the docks, and we've sold two copies of Capitalism's World Disorder. Ali, a worker who is Black, bought the book after buying the Militant for several weeks. He gave us the address of the bookstore he visits for us to place Pathfinder titles in," continued Friedman.
Pathfinder supporters who work at the airport met the book buyer for three airport bookstores on September 10. "The buyer ordered five copies of Capitalism's World Disorder for each store, and other books by Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, Evelyn Reed, Leon Trotsky, and multiple copies of several issues of New International," said Friedman. "For the multilingual bookstore in the international terminal he ordered more than a dozen titles in English, Spanish, and French."
Join teams to sell 'Capitalism's World Disorder'
Three regional teams will be fielded during the last week of September. These teams will build on the successes of our initial experiences in carrying out the campaign to place Capitalism's World Disorder in bookstores and libraries where workers, farmers, and youth in struggle buy and read books. These experiences were discussed at the Atlanta conference of socialist workers organized in national trade union fractions, and more recent accomplishments along these lines are also been reported in the Militant.
In addition to continuing to place Capitalism's World Disorder and other Pathfinder books, the teams will also visit plant gates, campuses, and farms in the regions they travel to get the Militant and Pathfinder books into the hands of interested toilers in the factories and rural areas, as well as students on campuses nearby.
Volunteers are needed to participate in the teams. Young Socialist members, friends and members of the Socialist Workers Party, and supporters of Perspectiva Mundial, the Militant, and Pathfinder books are all welcome to join these teams. They will be coordinated by the SWP Trade Union Committee, organized by Nan Bailey.
The teams planned are:
Tidewater, Virginia Team from September 21 to September 30.
Western Coal Team from September 25 to October 2.
Southern Georgia Team tentative dates from September 25 to October 1.
To volunteer for one of these teams, contact the supporters of this campaign nearest you listed on page 12.
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