Overproduction Attacks Garment Workers Worldwide

"LOS ANGELES—"They've lowered the number of orders and there are rumors of layoffs. We have to take care of what we have." That's what a garment factory worker said to her co-worker.
"It seems that it's because in Europe they raised the taxes on denim jeans 26%…I'm mad, with these bosses' fight for markets, we garment workers have to compete with other garment workers, speeding up to complete more production so they won't fire us," answered another worker. Here they pay by the piece, causing workers to be part of their own exploitation. Many times workers don't even get up to go to the bathroom so they don't lose time.
In this factory, the cost of making a pair of pants is between $2 and $3. In stores, the pants sell for over $100 a pair. Around the world, from Bangladesh to Los Angeles, millions of pieces of clothing are produced. Such uncontrolled production means that more clothing is produced than can be sold for a profit.
As a consequence of their competition for markets, bosses must start commercial "wars" and lay off workers to try to save on costs and wages. This is a capitalist crisis of overproduction and the basis of all the problems that we workers suffer.
On May 1st, the European Union (EU) raised its import taxes on women's high-end denim jeans from 12% to 38%. This tariff, which will take effect in April 2014, will be an obstacle for US companies. US production represents 22% of world wide production of women's high-end denim jeans, those that are sold for over $75 each pair. This sector had sales of $1.4 billion last year.
The EU tariff will especially affect California producers who make over 3/4 of the high-end women's denim jeans produced in the US and exported to Europe and elsewhere.
We garment workers in Los Angeles, Mexico, Bangladesh, or China must see and understand that capitalists are only interested in their profits, not the wellbeing of workers anywhere.
Only in a communist society can we produce the pants and other things to meet the needs of the working class, not to make any boss rich. In communism, if 30,000 workers live in a city, clothes will be produced in a collective calculated way based on how many changes of clothes everyone needs for a certain time period while their other needs are also met. This clothing could be recycled to design new styles with varieties of colors, without having to keep the same clothes for long periods.
Help to organize ICWP and distribute Red Flag, to destroy this capitalist society of competition and robbery and to build a world of cooperation and creativity, where we will resolve problems collectively.
--Comrade from ICWP and exgarment worker

We continue Advancing with Red Flag in Mexico

On May Day, ICWP comrades went to talk with workers who marched in Mexico City. We comrades decided the most effective action for our communist struggle would be to distribute Red Flag and spend time talking to workers.
One worker, even though it was the first time that he had heard about ICWP, became so interested that he asked for all the previous editions of Red Flag and ICWP’s manifesto Mobilize the Masses for Communism.
Another marcher became interested and said she would read Red Flag to learn about communist struggle. She promised to review ICWP’s website and become a Red Flag reader. She also said that she would contact us to clear up her questions and continue to talk.
Our May Day work was successful. We sold and distributed many Red Flags and manifestos.
In mid-May, an ICWP group went to a University campus to pass out Red Flag. Some comrades had been distributing Red Flag frequently at the University, so many students and workers already know us. They asked for the newspaper and gave small donations to help reproduce it.
The university authorities also knew about our paper and didn’t want us to distribute it because they are afraid that readers might become critical of capitalism. This does not suit their class interests.
The authorities’ security guards came to run us off from the area where we were distributing Red Flag. They claimed that the University authorities’ policy was that no unauthorized activity was allowed in this area called “social services.”
A comrade offered one of these security guards a Red Flag to read instead of following his superiors’ orders. After all, we were only distributing our newspaper and not breaking any capitalist laws. The security guard did not accept Red Flag but became less rigid.
We moved from the area and continued to pass out our newspaper until we finished. We had distributed and sold over 250 Red Flags.
A worker took Red Flag and told a comrade that the authorities were imposing repressive rules in the university and we should be careful. The worker helpfully pointed out places where video cameras were installed to spy on students and workers and advised us to forget the “social services” area. He told us of other areas where we could continue to distribute the paper.
The authorities believe they are “bosses” and they support capitalism which is why they don’t want students and workers to read Red Flag. They want to continue imposing their repressive rules without protest.
However, the working class and students have no other way out. The way out is to build communism in all corners of the planet. The comrades of ICWP will continue to distribute Red Flag. We invite everyone to read, write for, and distribute Red Flag, and to join ICWP. Together we will start to destroy capitalism and build communism.
--Comrade in Mexico

New Comrade Learns By Doing

I’ve known Red Flag for about eight months, ever since I met some great comrades who have supported us very much. They have also invited us to meet other communist members, and I have heard the opinions of each of them. But the more I hear and learn, in my mind new questions about communism arise, and I learn more about the evil deeds of capitalism worldwide, but especially in a part of Mexico.
I have seen the evil deeds against the working class. It’s like you observe what is happening around you, but if you don’t have sufficient basis to defend yourself, you feel so helpless, not being able to do anything. But you have to know how to wait for the time and the right moment in which there will be a great mobilization of workers, and there we will be present.
This year we continue to live in Mexico City, and to our good fortune, our comrades cordially invited us to participate with them on May Day, International Workers’ Day.
This day was so special for me since it was the first time I went to Mexico City and was able to see the reality of a May Day. Clearly it’s not the way they make it look on television. I saw several workers with different signs, different demands on the capitalist government,
and especially demands for better working conditions. However, I didn’t just observe, I also contributed by distributing Red Flag.
In reality it was something that was very important to me, both personally and for my political development. At that moment, having Red Flag in my hands, I felt very nervous, since I saw around me a big crowd of workers, and several security guards who gave a cold, arrogant look, maybe anticipating a confrontation.
At that moment, without waiting and thinking about it, I began to distribute Red Flag. Some maybe paid no attention. Perhaps because they didn’t know our newspaper, they avoided it.
Some people were friendly, voluntarily donating money and especially asking about Red Flag. For a moment I remained silent, and I was thinking about “my ignorance,” since it is still hard for me to express myself as a communist. But in order not to remain silent, I said that the workers’ disagreements and problems are being discussed in the pages of Red Flag…and that’s what I said at the time.
At the end of the day I felt very excited and happy with myself since I had been able to pass one more test (trial) in my life and especially as a one more member of communism.
I hope that this is not the first or the last time that I am encouraged to write to Red Flag. A well-deserved greeting to the whole working class that day in and day out strive and struggle to have equality in their daily activities.
--Comrade in Mexico

New Social System Will Bring Out Best in Human Nature

A few days ago, an acquaintance invited us for margaritas. We were upset when he told us that war was inevitable because killing was “human nature.” We argued back but I don’t think we convinced him.
When I told this to comrades, one said that she knew from people with connections in Bangladesh that people who went without being asked to rescue garment workers had to fight the police. The police had been ordered to stop rescue efforts so the rubble could be bulldozed so evidence of crimes by the owners would be obliterated.
This reminded us of Hurricane Katrina, when a military helicopter pilot was reprimanded for saving people stranded on rooftops. The reprimand was later rescinded after it was reported in the media. There were probably other pilots who didn’t stop because they knew they would be disciplined if they did. And, there was probably at least one other pilot who was disciplined for saving people that the media did not report.
Humans evolved to be part of social systems. We are capable of horrible atrocities and wonderful self-sacrifice. Which of these predominates depends on the social situation. That’s why we must fight for a social system that nourishes the positive side of our nature.

—Pasadena comrade

Take the struggle for communism to the masses!

I do not know where to begin, because my beginning is organizing against imperialism for communism. Part of that involves recruiting and bringing to the movement people who may be straight, gay, transgendered, etc. But I go to meetings where you are required to state your gender preference, as if that was the purpose of the struggle.
I view most of this an extension of identity politics, which divides and diverts the united struggle of the working class for a communist future. People are demanding that you get my gender straight, and I am saying, forget that noise, you get it straight and let’s get on with the struggle we have to make.
In other words, I don’t see any of it helping to build a movement we need. I see it derailing our movement and making us answer to a handful of people who demand that we adhere to their demands or interests.
We don’t need them. I run into them in movement circles, but they are not among the masses. You never see them there. They have their conferences, they have their meeting agendas, where you are required to state your gender preference. It makes no difference to the rulers, and it makes no difference to me, so don’t demand that of me.
I feel strongly that movement politics is a dead end because of this deepening crisis. I mean, it is silly and stupid and only serves its own narratives. I want revolutionary internationalist politics. We can address substantive issues of class oppression…how you see yourself is not an issue to me.
—In the struggle

Self-Criticism:Unions Go Wrong Way, Not Half Way

The Red Flag article about the 1934 general textile strike in the US south made the important point that unions (and trade-unionist ideology) are not “part of the solution.” They are part of the problem. Unfortunately, the frontpage headline “no half-way solutions” suggests the opposite: that unionization and legal reforms might get us part of the way to a solution.
The solution we need is communism, and the way to get there is to mobilize the masses for it. Popularizing this idea has been a main theme, and an important contribution, of Red Flag/ICWP.
In contrast, the mistaken idea that militant reform might get us “halfway” to revolution or communism has been a mainstay of past communist-led movements. Many groups today still promote or act on it. They don’t see how “reform now, revolution later” contributed to the catastrophic failures of the twentieth century.
So it’s really important that Red Flag constantly and consistently make it clear to our readers around the world that what’s wrong with unions isn’t just “sellout leaders.” As the 1934 strike article made clear, the main trouble with unions is that they tie workers to wage slavery– no matter who leads them.

--Red Flag Editorial Collective