Vol. 79/No. 20      June 1, 2015

John Hawkins and two other fighters against police brutality drove from Chicago to Madison, Wisconsin, May 14, two days after the district attorney’s decision not to indict the cop who killed Tony Robinson March 6.

“We went to the neighborhood where the shooting took place to hear what people had to say,” Hawkins reported. “A large banner carried in the protest march the day of the DA’s decision was draped on the building where Robinson was shot.”

While the three stood looking at the banner, Sharon Irwin, Robinson’s grandmother, passed by. Hawkins recognized her from TV coverage and they talked for half an hour.

“Then we went door to door in the area,” he said. “It’s a predominantly Caucasian neighborhood. The three of us are Black. Overall we got a good response. Those who weren’t interested or didn’t agree with what we said were by and large polite.” Two residents signed up for Militant subscriptions and three got single copies of the paper.

“Remember me? I got a copy the last time you were here. Now I want to subscribe,” Matthew Carter, a worker at the Ford assembly plant in Chicago and member of United Auto Workers Local 551, told Dan Fein in the parking lot outside the plant. He was one of five Ford workers who subscribed last week. Another 31 bought single copies.

Communist workers have gone to the plant gate several times recently. Articles about the discussion on how to end two-tier wages in the upcoming UAW contract and the protests against police brutality in Baltimore have led about a dozen Ford workers to subscribe.

“There have been many actions against police brutality in Omaha,” reported Jacquie Henderson May 19. “We’ve joined them and met people, then met them again at the next action and continued the discussion where we left off. This is ongoing. Over time we have won several new subscribers.”

Three of the new readers attended a May 9 Militant Labor Forum where Frank Forrestal, a leader of the Socialist Workers Party, spoke on “Ukraine: The Fight for Workers’ Rights and the Example of Cuba’s Internationalism.”

Forrestal, a former coal miner and packinghouse worker, visited both Ukraine and Cuba last year reporting for the Militant. He and editor John Studer will leave for Ukraine again May 28.

Nebraskans for Peace held a forum on U.S.-Cuba relations April 26 in Grand Island, a city of 50,000 west of Omaha. Going door to door there to build the meeting, Militant supporters met Lisa Goff, who suffered a brain injury in 2013 when she fell while working for Pizza Hut. The company fired her.

“No one will hire me because of the ongoing treatment for my injury,” she said. “I need a job that is safe and pays enough to live on. We have to stand up, because what will our kids face if we don’t do something.” Goff subscribed and came to the program on Cuba.

During the last week new subscribers in Nebraska got 19 Pathfinder books offered at half price, ranging from titles by Malcolm X to The Jewish Question by Abram Leon and New International no. 10, featuring the article “Imperialism’s March Toward Fascism and War.”

Contributions to the Militant Fighting Fund picked up pace considerably last week with $20,000 collected. Oakland rose on the chart with $4,695 sent in last week. Pledges are $4,540 short of the $115,000 goal, so increases are needed.

Join in the campaign to win new readers and please make a generous contribution to the fund. Contact a distributor listed on page 8.
 
 
Related articles:
‘Militant’ part of working-class actions, discussions
Sign up 2,000 subscribers! April 11 – June 2 (week 5) (chart)
Militant Fighting Fund April 11 – June 2 (Week 5) (chart)
 
 
 
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