Vol. 80/No. 21      May 30, 2016

 

25, 50, and 75 Years Ago

 

May 31, 1991

ST. LOUIS — In the last year, officials of the United Auto Workers union have been crying crocodile tears over the conditions of workers in the auto industry in Mexico. Their tears are becoming a flood as the U.S. government moves toward an agreement with Mexico that would break down many trade barriers between the two countries.

According to mouthpieces of the capitalists of both countries, the agreement would spur the Mexican economy, which is in deep crisis. Economic growth has declined; the minimum wage has dropped 50%; and unemployment has skyrocketed. One of the main culprits of the economic disaster is Mexico’s debt to the imperialist banks and governments. It rose to $107 billion in 1989.

May 30, 1966

An unidentified U.S. government “reliable source” admitted May 24 that a Cuban soldier had been killed at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantánamo Bay. However, he asserted the soldier had been inside the base.

Cuba charged the soldier, a sentry at the perimeter of the base, had been killed by gunfire from the base. At first there was a flat U.S. denial that any incident had occurred. Then there was a statement that an investigation was underway. The unnamed Washington source said the incident is still being investigated.

Following the shooting, angry citizens of Santiago and other Cuban cities organized demonstrations demanding the U.S. get out of Guantánamo.

May 31, 1941

San Francisco, May 26 — Striking AFL and CIO Bay Area shipyard machinists are still standing firmly on their feet despite the foul blows thrown at them by the phoniest collection of pie-cards, government strikebreakers and chairwarming admirals ever joined together to break a strike.

Every conceivable effort, from pleading and browbeating to open scab-herding and picket-line crashing has been used in the past week.

Nation’s No. 1 Fink, John Frey, backed by a small army of cops, marched a few score workers through the picket line. Most of them marched right out again. The first American convoys in the war were used not against Hitler and the Nazis but against striking shipyard workers.  
 
 
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