The Chicago event was one of a series of special forums to build support for the fight by the Militant, the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), and coal miners who fought to win UMWA representation at the Co-Op mine in Huntington, Utah, to defeat a harassment lawsuit by C.W. Mining—the owner of the Co-Op mine (see article below). Kennedy, a former Co-Op miner and a defendant in the C.W. Mining suit, is one of the organizers of the Militant Labor Forum in Price.

The forum hall in Price is located, along with other offices, on the second floor of a building managed by the Far West Bank in downtown Price, Kennedy said. One of the best-attended events its organizers hosted recently was a forum in January on the explosion at the Sago Mine in West Virginia when 12 miners were killed on the job. Another was held February 18, the day after a court hearing in Salt Lake City on the C.W. Mining suit to discuss the outcome of the hearing and the next steps in this labor defense case, Kennedy noted. Militant editor Argiris Malapanis was a featured speaker at that forum.

Three days later, she said, a manager of the Far West Bank told volunteers who help organize the forums that they have to get out of the hall by the end of the month. He said the bank has a lot of customers it does business with that “you are against,” adding, “You can go somewhere else to peddle your poison.”

“Right away,” Kennedy said, “we hired a lawyer, Don Torgerson, of the law firm Bailey & Torgerson. Our attorney was subsequently informed by the lawyer representing the bank that his client is taking steps to evict us at any cost. This is an attack on the right of working people to come together at the Militant Labor Forums to exchange experiences and discuss how to organize to defend workers and farmers from attacks by the bosses and the government, including Washington’s imperialist wars. We will fight this attack on freedom of speech.”

Torgerson agreed. “This is a free-speech issue, not a lease issue,” he told the Militant. “It’s clear the landlord wants them out for political reasons.”
 

Kennedy was joined by other speakers on the panel of the Chicago forum. Among them was Mary Johnson, a long-time organizer for prisoners’ rights and fighter against police brutality and racism. Prisoners need newspapers like the Militant and books published by Pathfinder Press to find their self-worth, Johnson said. “The Militant is important because it tells the truth,” she continued. “Anytime you take the truth to the people you are a threat.” Other speakers included Ben Rasmach, a student at the University of Chicago who has been getting support on campus for the Militant Fighting Fund (see front-page article), and María Moreano of the Young Socialists in the Twin Cities, Minnesota.

After a fund appeal by Dennis Richter from the Socialist Workers Party, those present contributed $611 to help the Militant continue fielding reporting teams and meet other operating costs.

Forums like that in Chicago have also been held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, New York, Atlanta, Birmingham, Pittsburgh, Washington, and Newark, New Jersey. Contributions to the Militant at these meetings have so far exceeded $8,500. (See front-page ad for similar upcoming forums.)

Alyson Kennedy contributed to this article.
 
 
Related articles:
Mine workers strike in Mexico
Protest boss greed that killed 65
Demand safety measures to prevent other disasters
Miners’ union calls march in Alabama
Miners discuss Buffalo Creek disaster at film showing
Gas explosions prompt evacuation of Alabama’s Shoal Creek mine
Build UMWA march! Back Mexican strikers!
An appeal to our readers
San Francisco: Militant Labor Forum fights frame-up  
 
 
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