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   Vol. 69/No. 23           June 13, 2005  
 
 
25 and 50 years ago
 
June 13, 1980
MANAGUA—Thousands of people turned out in Nicaragua’s main cities May 23 to protest the cold-blooded murder of a young teacher in the literacy campaign, Gregorio Andrade. “Against every aggression, more revolution!” was their chant.

Former National Guardsmen of ex-dictator Anastasio Somoza slipped across the Honduran border to carry out the assassination. The Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) called for mass mobilizations to answer the outrage, and in less than forty-eight hours there were close to 100,000 marchers here in Managua.

The literacy workers, despite the counterrevolutionary terrorism aimed at them, have a higher morale than ever. Six brigadistas from the People's Literacy Army (EPA) who were with Gregorio Andrade when he was kidnapped and murdered were in the grandstand at the Managua demonstration. They vowed to continue with their work in the literacy campaign—known here as the second people’s insurrection.

Andrade was savagely tortured and stabbed more than fifteen times by the counterrevolutionaries. But the brigadistas—youths of thirteen and fourteen years old—reflect the inexhaustible will to struggle of the Nicaraguan people.

Popular anger at Andrade's brutal murder was indicated in the demonstration with shouts of “To the wall! To the wall!”

A law introduced by the July 19 Sandinista Youth, and approved by the Council of State, has fixed penalties at double the normal ones for anyone attacking brigadistas.  
 
June 13, 1955
Confronted by growing popular opposition to its witch-hunting measures, the Newark City Council last week tabled indefinitely a motion to investigate “Communist” activity among city employees.

At the June 1 Council meeting speakers representing the CIO, the Americans for Democratic Action and the Newark Teachers Union (AFL) opposed the probe as well as provisions for loyalty questionnaires and oaths. The latter two measures were adopted by the Council two weeks ago.

Ever since the middle of May, when the House Un-American Activities Committee conducted a probe in Newark, witch-hunters and opponents of the witch-hunt have been engaged in open battle.

The witch-hunters sought to continue attacks on civil liberties in Newark which were started by the Un-American Committee. Mayor Leo P. Carlin and Board of Education President William C. Ricigliano teamed up to suspend three teachers—Dr. Robert Lowenstein, Perry Zimmerman and Miss Estelle Laba—because they invoked the Fifth Amendment before the Un-American Committee. And the City Council Committee voted to institute oaths, questionnaires and probes.

Civil liberties defenders, on the other hand, took courage from the spirited opposition waged against the Un-American Activities Committee at its hearings. At that time, 1,500 United Electrical Workers members picketed the committee on the first day of hearings and nearly 1,000 people attended a protest meeting sponsored by the Emergency Civil Liberties Committee two days later.  
 
 
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