Militant/Mary Martin

Diana Newberry, left, Socialist Workers candidate for Iowa governor, campaigns August 1 in Des Moines.

“We are urging workers, farmers, and young people to join public protests against the Israeli aggression and the U.S. government’s bipartisan support for this assault,” she said. Newberry is a meat packer who works at the Swift cut-and-kill plant in nearby Marshalltown.

Newberry said, “The main goal of Washington and its allies in their so-called war on terror is to increase their control over markets and natural resources—in the Mideast and around the world. It’s an extension of the assault they are carrying out against the living standards and rights of working people at home.”

The Socialist Workers Party campaign in Iowa has launched its effort to get on the ballot in the November elections. In addition to Newberry, the socialists are running Kevin Dwire for lieutenant governor, Frank Forrestal for secretary of agriculture, and Helen Meyers for U.S. Congress in the third district.

In the first weekend of petitioning in late July, some 1,200 people signed to put the working-class ticket on the Iowa ballot. The campaign is organizing to collect 2,500 signatures, twice the official requirement.

“The big majority of those who signed were workers. We had rubber workers, truck drivers, UPS employees, construction workers, roofers, landscapers, restaurant workers, meat packers, teachers, and many others sign,” Joe Swanson, organizer of the petitioning effort, told the Militant.

One aspect of the socialist election platform that has drawn support is the demand for immediate unconditional permanent residency for all undocumented workers.

“The fight for the legalization of immigrants strengthens the working class as a whole,” Newberry said. “The recent immigrant rights march in Chicago of 30,000 people and the projected actions over the coming weeks in support of legalization are actions we urge all workers and farmers to participate in.”

“I like what she had to say,” commented Stacy Howard after she signed Newberry’s petition. “It’s a good idea to have a campaign that stands up for working people. I also like what she said about not cutting Social Security. I was a restaurant worker and now I am fighting to get Social Security disability support due to work injuries.”

One couple, retired farmers, signed the petition and told socialist candidate Forrestal that their number one concern is the drought and that many farmers cannot afford crop insurance if they face losses.

“We call for government-funded affordable credit for working farmers and price supports to cover production costs. We also demand protection for working farmers who suffer losses from drought and floods,” said Forrestal, a meat packer who works on the kill floor at Tyson Foods, a pork processor in Perry, Iowa.

The party’s campaign focus on the need to use union power to defend workers was welcomed by many who face contract fights or layoffs. Several petition signers were workers who had recently lost their jobs at the Maytag plant in Newton, Iowa. The plant, in operation since 1893, will permanently close in 2007, laying off some 1,800 workers.

A number of workers from the Firestone Agricultural Tire plant in this city also signed the socialist petitions. These workers are operating under an old contract that expired July 22. Workers at the Steelworkers-organized plant told campaigners at the shift change that the company is pushing for across-the-board concessions, including contracted-out work, a two-tier wage system with lower pay for new employees, increased health insurance co-payments, and no retiree medical and pension coverage for new hires.

A couple dozen people attended a barbecue and meet-the-candidates event July 29, contributing more than $650 to the SWP campaign. Campaigners are carrying out another big week of activity to collect the remaining signatures by August 6.
 
 
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Socialists in Pennsylvania file for ballot status
Affirm victory against state ‘loyalty oath’
A victory for political rights
SWP launches California ticket  
 
 
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