FBI condones bombings at abortion clinics
1985Ann Menasche 1985-01Read it in the scan (PDF at ETOL), page 4 →
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women and men demonstrated at the provincial legislature to protest the arrests of Drs. Henry Morgenthaler and Robert Scott. The two physicians were charged with "conspiracy to procure a miscarriage,, the same charges from which they, along with Dr. Lesley Smolted that they had performed abortions outside this law, current system does not serve the majority of women (most hospitals in Canada do not do abortions). And even when a woman's abortion is approved, there is often a six to eight week delay that raises the risk factor substantially. Many women are forced to go either to the United States or to Quebec, where the provincial Gauche Socialiste C.P. 152, succ. N Montreal H2X 3N4 Socialist Action Collective 96 Maryland Ave.
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3G1 Socialist Action Collective 1762 East 3rd Ave.
Vancouver, B.C.
Socialist Challenge P.O. Box 69756, Station Edmonton, Atla.
Socialist Workers Collective 412A College St.
Toronto, Ontario 4 SOCIALIST ACTION With the complicity of the FBI and the Reagan administration, foes of a woman's right to choose abortion have been conducting a campaign of violence, terror, and intimidation directed against abortion clinics and the women who use their services.
Officials of Planned Parenthood report that in 1984 there were 24 fires or explosions at abortion facilities compared to four in 1983. These attacks include three firebombings in less than one year at the Feminist Women's Health Center in Everett, Wash., forcing them to close their doors.
In November the Metropolitan Medical and Women's Clinic and Planned Parenthood offices in Wheaton, Md., were also victims of firebombings, and there were explosions last July at the National Abortion Federation headquarters. It is simply happenstance that no one has yet been killed or injured.
In response, FBI director William Webster declared on Dec. 4 that the bombings of abortion clinics did not constitute "terrorism" and would thus get a lower priority in investigation than, for example, politically motivated bank bombings. This administration policy is reflected in the fact that out of the 24 bombing incidents, only five people have been arrested.
One of the most notorious incidents to date was the kidnapping of Dr. Hector Levallos, director of the Hope Clinic for Women in Granite City, Ill., and his wife, Jean, for eight days in 1982. They were threatened with death if they did not denounce abortion.
The fact that they were finally released unharmed was seen by anti-abortion groups as evidence that "real" anti-abortionists could not have been involved. Mark Drogan of Catholics United for Life told The St. Louis Dispatch that if an anti-abortion group had done the kidnapping, "he might have been released without a hand or something."
The Levallos are not alone. Countless other staff members and administrators of abortion clinics have had their tires slashed, their homes vandalized, and threats of violence made against them. Supreme Court Justice BlackTORONTO-On Dec. 20, 500 angry, chanting Wing, had been acquitted on Nov. 8.
In Canada, abortion is only legal restricted conditions. The abortion must hospital and the woman must prove that life is in danger.
In their earlier trial, while the doctors freely admitthey based their defense on the plea of necessity. In the course of the trial it was made clear that the JANUARY 1985 under very be done in a her health or
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Memorial set for slain oil worker Mourning OCAW strikers lay black armbands on company fence last January in honor of Greg Goobic, who was killed by a scab truck driver.
RODEO, Calif.—The officers and membership of Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Union Local 1-326 and the Contra Costa Central Labor Council (AFL-CIO) have announced plans for a memorial march and rally to commemorate the death of Greg Goobic. The 20-year-old, Local 1-326 member was run down by a scab-driven truck while on picket duty at the Union "We think it's important that workers in the Bay Area not forget the sacrifice that Greg made so that we could have a decent contract," said Hank Miller, president of Local 1-326. "And we also think it's important that Union Oil see that we haven't forgotten their responsibility for Greg's murOn Saturday, Jan. 19, at 1 p.m., the march will start from the headquarters of Local 1-326 and will proceed to the site of Goobic's murder, where a wreath will be laid and memorial services will be conducted.
Speakers at the subsequent rally include Jack Henning, secretary-treasurer, California Labor Federation; James Herman, international president, International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union; and Joseph M. Misbrener, international president, Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Union.
Next?! HUMAN HUSBANI SOCIALIST ACTION JANUARY 1985 5 By CARL PETERSON SAN FRANCISCO—The two-and-ahalf month strike of 2000 restaurant workers ended on Dec. I with a concessionary agreement ratified by an 80 percent vote of the workers.
The new contract between Local 2 of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees and Bartenders Union and the Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA) is essentially the last proposal of the employers prior to the strike and the proposal that was again voted down in October.
The new contract has a two-tier wage scale for new hires. It includes changes that work to the detriment of the union in seniority, overtime pay, sick pay, craft rules, and combination work whereby people work at all classifications for the same pay. It also allows the scabs to keep working. To sweeten the deal more the union has agreed to give the GGRA up to $100,000 to help with problems of "overstaffing" due to strikers and scabs working side by side.
The restaurant employers demonstrated that they were prepared for war with the 19,000-member union. In August, prior to the strike, articles appeared in The San Francisco Chronicle about corruption in the Restaurant Workers union. Alongside of these articles were one-quarter page advertisements placed by the employers calling for Local 2 members to ratify the GGRA's final offer. The ads announced that permanent replacements would be hired if the union went on strike.
Local 2, on the other hand, did the bare minimum to prepare the membership for a strike. There were token efforts to involve the membership. But steps which would have demonstrated the power of the union-establishing strong stewards systems, shop-by-shop explanations of the likelihood of a strike, and preparations to close all of By ANNE ZUKOWSKI MINNEAPOLIS—Last summer two trains on the Burlington Northern Railroad in Minnesota crashed head-on, killing the engineer, the fireman, and a third man. The two trains were routed in opposite directions on the same track. The engineer was powerless to avert the crash.
Despite this, Burlington management attempted to put the responsibility for the accident on the engineer and fireman. They said that autopsies indicated a high level of alcohol in their bodies. Burlington used an incomplete and preliminary coroner's report to proclaim that the two men were drunk on duty. They brushed aside protests by the men's families and friends that the men never drank. The men were drunk and contributed to the accident, management asserted in widely circulated newspaper stories.
Then came the coroner's complete report. The alcohol in the men's bodies was due to decomposition. There was no alcohol in their urine, proving that the victims were absolutely sober while running the train. Severe damage has been done to the workers' reputations. Thousands have seen the story about the drunk engineer who wrecked a train. Far fewer will read the follow-up that exonerated two innocent railroad workers.
This attempt to blame workers for management's mistakes has boomeranged. But Burlington Northern is still the restaurants in the city-were not taken. The leadership was hoping for peace with the employers.
The strike itself, when called, was designed to be minimally effective. Only a few of the union restaurants in the city were struck. Injunctions placed on the right to picket were enforced by the police and at some restaurants by newly hired employees. And, though a few small token protests were quietly called, the San Francisco trade union movement refused to organize any official demonstrations to defend the right to picket.
The negotiations were basically carried out by the international and the union leadership, not by the elected rank-and-file negotiators.
On Nov. 20, Local 2 unanimously voted to call upon the San Francisco labor movement to call a one-day general strike after the GGRA announced that it would not rehire 200 striking workers.
Although it had done nothing to effectively defend the striking workers, the San Francisco Labor Council suddenly considered the possibility of a general strike. The California Federation of Labor leader, John Henning, organized a meeting of about 50 labor leaders for a "council of war."
The purpose of this "war council, however, was to pressure Mayor Dianne Feinstein and the Democratic Party politicians to secure a peace with the employers. When the employers agreed to rehire the striking workers, the labor leaders claimed it was a result of the strike threat. Their stance, though, enabled the employers to sell their concessionary contract.
With the general lack of leadership, the pressure of the international union, and the demoralizing effect of selective strikes, the membership voted to ratify the agreement.
As of this writing the Montobbio group of restaurants (an offshoot of the GGRA that includes 17 of San Francisco's most famous restaurants) is still on trying. They claim that railroad workers sniff cocaine, smoke pot, and operate the trains while spaced out. To make the public believe railroad workers are a bunch of drunks and hopheads, management has rented a pair of dogs to sniff out dope in the workers' cars.
On the dogs' first tour of the company parking lot they sniffed suspiciously at eight cars. When six of the cars were searched, no dope was found in any of them. So much for the reliability of the sniffer dogs! The owners of the other two cars refused to submit to the illegal search. They were suspended on the spot.
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers invoked the Railroad Labor Act, pointing out that the sniffer dog program constituted a "major change in conditions of employment."
Oil Refinery here last Jan. 19.
der."
Other speakers will be announced later.
Rally organizers are asking all union members to their jackets to the march. In addition, church and invited to help build and attend the event.
..Meatpackers (continued from page 1: “Meatpackers mobilize to save plant”)
Local union officials have decided against a walkout to protest the company's takeaways. The UFCW international leadership has refused to support the Austin workers. Local union leaders and members know that the internaSocialist Action/Anne Zukowski Such changes are subject to the entire collective-bargaining process, up to and including strike action if needed.
The sniffer dog issue made the local papers, with two cartoons ridiculing the role of the dogs in sniffing nonexistent pot. Someone pointed out that there is plenty of pot for the dogs to sniff growing wild along the right of way of Burlington Northern.
A more decisive blow was struck at the sniffer dogs when the union filed suit in federal court. On Oct. 5, U.S. District Judge Paul G. Hatfield granted a preliminary injunction forbidding management to search employees' cars, lockers, or other property. So for now Burlington management's campaign of intimidation has been halted, but they are certain to try again.
Socialist Action/ Joe Ryan bring banners and wear peace groups have been - JOE RYAN tional would strongly oppose a strike.
Instead, Jim Guyette, the president of Local P-9, told the Dec. 9 rally that the union would begin a "corporate campaign, which would have as its centerpiece the threat to withdraw funds from banks that lend money to the Hormel company. Ray Rogers, a well-heeled attorney who was hired by the union, announced that a 1000-car caravan protest would be formed in April when the Minneapolis-based First Bank System, Inc. has its annual meeting.
Meatpackers have a proud history The proposed boycott, which the local union leaders have felt compelled to adopt to try to beat back the company's attacks, is in contrast to tactics that Local P-9 used earlier in its proud history. The local organized the Hormel plant in 1933 during one of the first sit-down strikes in the country. Strikers picked up Mr. Hormel bodily, set him down in the street, and refused to let him back into the plant until he agreed to recognize their union.
The union was able to use the strength of the workers to close the plant down, cut off their profits, and force them to settle. They were able to gather support from the Teamsters and other unions and returned that support during the 1934 Teamster strike that shook Minneapolis. Militant unionists from Local P-9 were the main leaders in the international union for many years.
In sorry contrast, the present international leadership of the Food and Commercial Workers Union has gone so far as to convince union leaders at six other Hormel plants to refuse any aid to their sister local, although workers at those plants had their wages similarly lowered to $9 an hour.
But support for the packinghouse workers remains high in Austin. Practically everything in town is unionized, largely as a result of the meatpackers' organizing drive in the 1930s. Local businessmen, shopkeepers, and even the mayor-who works as a steam engineer at the plant-have protested Hormel's plan to lower the standard of living of the workers and to gut their community.
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Local 2 strikers return weaker
Rail co. unleash sniffer dogs
Dadis Dead! RD Who's RNERS VES
UNSAFI FOR ALTH FATHE