Grenada: One year of U.S. rule

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‚Antiwar activists unite Panel of speakers addressing Emergency National Conference in Cleveland, Ohio. From left to right are Joe Lindenmuth, president USWA Local 2265; lone Biggs, vice president Women Speak Out for Peace and Justice; Jerry Gordon, international representative UFCW and one of the conference coordinators; and Norma By KWAME M.A. SOMBURU and ZAKIYA SOMBURU One year ago, on Oct. 25, 1983, the United States launched an invasion of the small Black nation of Grenada that cost the lives of several hundred Grenadians, Cubans, and U.S. Marines. Both the Democratic and Republican parties supported the invasion, and it received only a few squeaks of protest from some of the "progressive" members of the Congressional Black Caucus.

According to Kendrick Radix, a former minister in the revolutionary government and a supporter of murdered prime minister Maurice Bishop, a large proportion of Grenadians initially also welcomed the invasion. They believed the U.S. troops might free them from the terror imposed by the reactionary coup led by Deputy Prime Minister Bernard Coard.

In an interview in the Cuban weekly Granma (July 8, 1984), Radix pointed out that "The early pictures that showed smiling people and waving hands welcoming the invaders are to be seen in the psychological climate that existed then. As a matter of fact, this doesn't exist anymore-it's a thing of the past—as people feel the occupation and control, the unemployment, the lack of social facilities, the sense of despair and collapse, the lack of true democracy."

The presence of some 350 U.S.

(continued from page voice, vote, the right to submit resolutions.

A Friday evening panel on "Strategy Questions Before the Anti-Intervention Movement" reflected the variety of concerns discussed throughout the conference. Ron Weisen said, 'It's a rich man's war against the people of Central America. We'll say no—we already gave in Vietnam."

Speaking about the failure of top union leaders to lead a fightback against concessions, Weisen said, "We have to stop shaking hands with management and start shaking our fists."

Jane Slaughter, a Labor Notes staff writer, spoke on the bipartisan nature of the war drive. "Vietnam didn't become an issue to either party until a mass movement developed....No matter what happens on Nov. 6, there'll be a war on in 1985. ...Our job is to organize a movement...to stop the war in Central America."

Eugene Carroll, labor coordinator of the National Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign, reflected the other side of the debate on the elections when he said, "I'm supporting Mondale in order to get rid of Reagan.... The election of Mondale will at least buy a little time for the dying people in El Salvador and Nicaragua."

However, Carroil and other individual Mondale supporters like Al Lannon also firmly stated their belief that the action proposals should remain non-partisan in order to preserve the unity in action of the whole anti-intervention In fact, the conference rejected a proposal to endorse the Midwest Illinois Nuclear Weapons Freeze-initiated Oct. 13 rally in Chicago because of its stated purpose "to highlight the issue of peace in the upcoming elections."

"Vote for Peace, we'll remember in November" is prominently featured in all the rally publicity, in addition to the slogans of "Nuclear Freeze now, "Meet troops on the island has enabled the ruling Interim Advisory Council to dismantle many of the social services, popular organizations, and progressive measures that working people had won during the revolution. Private employers have been emboldened by the rollback of pro-labor laws. Trade union militants have been singled out for special victimization.

"Our people for the first time in four-and-a-half years are really hungry,' Radix says. "Unemployment is somewhat over 40 percent as opposed to 12 percent previously."

The rationale of racism Radix charges the occupation authorities with attempting to recreate Grenada's former semicolonial state of dependence. "Racism is a very important element in analyzing this"" he comments. "In the same way that they have invaded tiny Grenada with impunity, the international community could in fact— using the same rationale-tell them to invade South Africa, where millions of Black people are being killed every day by racists and economically exploited by apartheid."

There have been confrontations between Grenadians and the occupying troops, resulting in arrests and several killings. Nevertheless, trade union activity has revived, and a section of the population has begun to openly express interest in politics. At a public rally on human and nams."

Instead, the conference majority inserted wording into the major fall and spring action program which restated the fact that "our action proposal is non-partisan in nature and calls for actions which are independent of the election process."

At the same time the action proposal applauded the aspirations of those who AMERICA Hannah, a representative from Cleveland CISPES.

will march on 13 for tice.

Unity was the major theme of the conference. In his opening remarks to the Saturday session, conference organizer Jerry Gordon, an international representative of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, stated that "the potential for a broad antiwar coalition is enormous, but we must be unified. The method of achieving unity is open discussion and debate within the

HERE

AND HERE May 27, a new party-the Maurice Bishop Patriotic Movement (MBPM)— was launched. It is led by Radix, George Louison, and other revolutionary leaders who survived the October 1983 massacre.

A 24-page manifesto issued by the MBPM calls for an independent and democratic nation; free education and medical care; the right to a job and housing for every Grenadian; strong mass organizations among women, youth, and other sectors of the population; maintenance of pro-labor laws and support to the trade union movement; and the building of a "mixed economy"' with state, cooperative, and private sectors.

Several organizations in the United States are planning activities this month to protest the U.S. invasion and the Beth Perry, national representative of the Coalition in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), and Leslie Cagan, program coordinator for the Mobilization for Survival, objected to the conference setting a date for a spring action. They indicated that several peace groups, not directly involved in the Emergency Conference, were also considering plans for a spring mobilization that would be discussed at a Sept. 25 meeting in Washington D.C. They offered an amendment to delete the April 20, 1985, date from the conference-approved action proposal.

Supporters of the April 20 date _ONFERENCE INTERVENTION HE CARIBBEAN CLEVELAND OHIO pointed out that no new coalition or separate organizations were being advocated to substitute for existing peace groups. But new forces, such as the unions, were coming into opposition to the war drive, and a broader, united coalition-bigger than anything currently organized—was required.

These activists didn't want to pass up the opportunity for the conference to register its commitment to a specific spring action date that could be urged YOU ARE • HERE HERE MIKE troc HERE - HERE HERE HERE Socialist Action/Carol McAllister murder of Maurice Bishop and the other revolutionary leaders. Grenada solidarity work will be discussed at the Sept. 29-30 conference of California chapters of the National Black Independent Political Party. The Emergency National Conference Against U.S. Intervention [see page 1] called for actions Oct. 20-28 to condemn the U.S. invasion of Grenada and to demand the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

It is imperative • to gather, discuss, and analyze the Grenadian revolution, the factors that led to its overthrow and the measures that can lead to the rejuvenation of a revolutionary movement. In addition, we in this country have a special obligation to demand that U.S. troops be withdrawn-so that Grenadians can once again determine their own destiny.

upon the whole movement. The April 20 spring action resolution was framed as a "call upon the movement against U.S. military intervention in Central America/the Caribbean to join together in united actions."

The delegates voted to reaffirm the April 20 date for massive national protests. Immediately following the vote, Mauricio Perez, official representative of the FMLN/FDR, gave greetings to the conference.

A broad show of unity was reflected in Sunday's panel with speakers Leslie Cagan, Beth Perry, Dave Dyson, and Al Lannon. Perry stated her "solidarity with this conference."

She said, "We stand united to build the biggest spring mobilization to get the United States out of Central America."

In similar fashion, Leslie Cagan said it was a "critical task to find the way to unify our movement."

Jerry Gordon then reported on plans to send a delegation from the elected continuations committee to attend the Sept. 25 meeting of peace groups to urge their support for the April 20 date. Although no one has yet objected to the date of April 20, the conference indicated its flexibility if a better date is suggested to unite the movement.

Gordon repeated the position of the delegates that it "was never our intention to set up a separate apparatus. We want one single, united structure with one single, overriding consideration of the continuations committee as it negotiates with other forces-that there will be one single, united spring mobilization."

In addition to its task of forging unity around a common date for a spring mobilization, the continuations committee was authorized to call another national antiwar conference sometime after the April 20 action.

As the last session ended and activists returned to their local areas to build coalitions in support of the fall and spring protests, the several hundred delegates cheered the prospect that a truly broad and united demonstration of opposition to the war danger was in the making.