Election season brings the usual blizzard of lies by corporate-backed politicians. But this year the truth is shining through, thanks to the Freedom Socialist Party (FSP) campaign of Stephen Durham for president and Christina López for vice president. The campaign is energizing supporters from Dominican immigrant neighborhoods in New York City to college campuses in Los Angeles.
Durham’s record is one of rank-and-file unionism, pioneering gay activism, and collaboration with other socialists internationally. López is a Chicana feminist leader and a crusader against budget cuts in Washington state.
These “un-millionaire” candidates have no stake in excusing the crimes of Wall Street or the war-makers!
Speaking at an Occupy movement protest, López pointed to a group with a huge banner showing how military spending could be better used. To approving laughter, she said, “We will put you guys in charge of figuring out how to spend all those Pentagon billions!”
López and Durham organize for pro-worker solutions to the economic crisis created by the banksters — like taxing corporate wealth to fund a massive public program of jobs and training at union wages.
The FSP team is proudly socialist feminist. They combine the fight for a future free of oppression and wage slavery with the fight right now to meet the needs of those most abused and deprived by the profit system — with answers like affirmative action on the job and elected civilian review boards over the police in the community.
The Democratic Party candidate, in this case Barack Obama, is supposedly the pragmatic, “lesser evil” choice for workers, the poor, and the middle class. But this is precisely the con game that traps us in a situation that keeps deteriorating: more war, more financial speculation and bailouts, more people of color in prison, more loss of women’s rights, more harm to the planet.
How can we expect this downward spiral to end unless we say no with a clear protest vote?
The Republicans and Democrats have erected outrageous obstacles to minor-party ballot access, so the FSP effort is a write-in campaign (except in California; see related story). However, although Durham and López would love to be on the ballot in all 50 states, their campaign is about more than just acquiring votes.
As Durham puts it, the campaign is helping to build “a movement for fundamental change in class relations that will put the working-class majority in power.” It’s doing this by putting socialist feminist ideas out there for discussion and talking about how we can get organized to fight for that basic change. After all, a revolution isn’t something you just throw together!
Elsewhere on this Web site you’ll find more info about the campaign and how to get involved. Read, enjoy, get in touch — and vote for what you really want in November.
Volunteer!
Baltimore: Email fspbaltimore@hotmail.com.
Los Angeles: 2122 W. Jefferson Blvd. Phone 323-732-6416. Email fspla@earthlink.net. Get out the primary vote, Sat., June 2, 2pm & Sun., June 3, 4pm. Call for more info.
Newark, NJ: Phone 973-643-0499.
New York City: 113 W. 128th St. Phone 212-222-0633. Email fsp@nyct.net. Organizing nights, 1st & 3rd Mondays, 7:30pm.
Port Angeles, WA: Phone 360-452-7534. Email lfdanks@yahoo.com.
Portland, OR: 6834 NE Glisan St. Phone 503-240-4462. Email fsp@igc.org. Organizing nights, 2nd & 4th Wednesdays, 7pm.
San Francisco: 747 Polk St. Phone 415-864-1278. Email bafsp@earthlink.net. Outreach mobilizations, Saturdays, 11am.
Seattle: 5018 Rainier Ave. S. Phone 206-722-2453. Email seattlefsp@socialism.com. Organizing nights, 2nd & 4th Wednesdays, 7pm.
Get in touch …
This people-powered effort needs you! There’s room for anything you can do, from making a banner or canvassing a neighborhood to contributing your ideas and talents as part of a local committee. And we’d like your endorsement! Contact a local campaign office, or reach national headquarters by emailing VoteSocialism@gmail.com or calling 206-985-4621.
Also read: Freedom Socialist Party platform
