Red Flag Letters

*My experience marching was unforgettable; I am glad that I was in this year’s march. I have been learning so much about communism and would actually like to learn more. I felt good marching for a cause that
benefits the world. I also would like a world
without racism, sexism, and borders but we need to fight and stand strong to make it possible. For these reasons I have decided to join the International Communist Workers’ Party.
*When I was informed of the march I was skeptical because I was unfamiliar with the event. Communism is something that in the past I thought was a bad thing because that’s what I had been taught. But over time I have learned so much. I’m not going to say that I am a communist but I will say that I share some of its ideals and agree with them. But on the other hand I have my doubts. Over-all I feel I should support communism because the small doubts I may have do not compare to the great change communism can bring to our world. During the march I saw many people who were fighting for something that they believe in and that inspired me.
*When I was told about the May Day march I thought it was going to be boring. I thought to myself. “Let me give it a try.” When I got to the march I saw that there were so many people. While I was marching, I found it pretty fun. I used to think communism was bad. But now with the experience I had, I think that we should support the working class and make a difference in the world. I think some ideas communism offers are great and others may not work out. I believe we should all get together and make a world without any borders.
*I enjoyed going to the march and seeing all those people supporting the workers. It was pretty cool seeing young and old people having fun and doing what they feel is right. This march has helped me change my mind about communism and made me realize how it can be a good thing for the world. Although I think it’s a good idea I feel that there are going to be some problems like what will happen when people don’t want to work or contribute. Although I have these doubts I still think that communism should happen and that more people should be involved and become aware of what communism really is and not what they have made us believe since we were little.
*This May Day march was my first march for the working class. I went to support communism. It was great chanting the communist chants and representing was fun. I really enjoyed myself. I have decided to join the party. But at the same time I want to be on the down low, because I am joining the military. I will be with you all the way on your side fighting with you.

Today was a day when our outrage was energized by the warmth of the masses. That made us aware of the work that remains to be done, that now capitalism also feeds itself with the leftist electoral parties. In my opinion, they do great harm to class consciousness and the class struggle.
We met on our way to the march, organized, united, with the workers’ convictions illuminating our steps. It was the largest printing of Red Flag that I had seen. To this, we added a considerable number of leaflets. Shirts, banners that identified our presence through those streets and squares, to which one day we shall return inflamed. ICWP had taken those streets and squares. We were all there, yeah, you too.
The workers’ reception was better than ever, Red Flag and flyers were vanishing, just like the days of capitalism will be vanishing, if we continue at this pace toward communism. There were times that I didn’t have to give out the paper, the workers surrounded me asking me for a copy. It wasn’t even necessary to extend my arm, they took it as if they knew it was of them and for them, and yes, it is, it is for them and for us.
And I return to the beginning. It was a different May Day, passive, perhaps. The Leftist Party focused its forces on the administrative transfer of the municipal and legislative governments. They did not mobilize, they didn’t make noise. They even dared to say that these acts in some municipalities, were more important and historic than May Day. They said that the marchers were called by right wing unions to wear down the leftist government, so they claim.
Their aim is to kill the hunger for revolution. They propose resignation. That the struggle of the workers be limited to electoral politics. Well, what can you expect when they say that “ideologies harm us,” that these “are different times.” I mention this so that we prepare to do battle in that field. They have the media to spread this toxic message.
But, after this day of observing the development of our work, the progress of ICWP raising the Red Flag, I know it will be possible, without stopping, advancing with intractable steps toward communism, and that happens in order to destroy capitalism. To destroy fears, for us to join this struggle of all. Forever in struggle.
--Red Poet

I almost all the time read in Red Flag a phrase that says that capitalism doesn’t meet the needs of the workers. Of course not. When you buy a car you have to change the oil, fill up the gas tank, in order to use it—not to meet the needs of the car.
In the same way, when the capitalist buys labor power, he has to use that labor power for eight hours to extract as much surplus as possible. In the process, the capitalist will surrender a fraction of his surplus to the worker as a wage. Is he trying to meet the need of the worker? Not at all. He wants the worker to sustain his life and propagate the next generation of workers. He also wants the worker to come the next day and make more surplus value for him. Then the surplus value will be converted to capital and used to buy more labor to continue its exploitation.
This vicious cycle will keep the worker as worker and the capitalist as capitalist. This is the antagonistic relationship of labor and capital which can be resolved by communist revolution when the proletariat wrests power from the capitalists.
It is true that only communism meets the needs of the masses of workers, because we will socialize the means of production and produce whatever we want to meet our needs. We will change the mode of production and production relations. We will produce collectively and use collectively. Society will have the responsibility to the individual and the individual will have responsibility to the society. That is called communism.
--Internationalist Comrade

Building Among Industrial Workers In Texas

“Long live May Day! Long live the workers!” said a group of my fellow workers the week before May Day.
In a factory where we make windows, I have developed friendships with my fellow workers based on constant political discussions, distribution of Red Flag, and struggle against the bosses’ pressure to speed up production.
“May Day is our day and we should celebrate it,” I told a group of three fellow workers. At least we can organize a luncheon where we talk about our brothers and sisters that fought for the eight hour day.
“Yes, we can each bring a dish,” said one of the women.
The idea was to do it in the factory and invite all twenty plus workers on the line.
“It would be better to do it outside the factory,” I said. “The bosses won’t be happy with our celebration.”
“There’s nothing wrong with it. May Day is celebrated all over the world,” said another woman. We decided, for our own job security, not to do it inside the factory this time.
Then I talked individually with four more workers, two of whom read Red Flag and with whom I have talked about communist ideas. One of them is from the Middle East and I talked to him about the May Day celebration and the idea of an activity outside the factory. Our relationship is strong and serious since he started to read Red Flag. He always greets me with revolutionary gestures and calls me his brother.
The day of the activity, only two people came from the factory, but other friends from outside the factory joined us. We talked about May Day and we had delicious food. Afterwards, we made plans for some of the fellow workers to write to Red Flag and to get more involved with ICWP. This action gave me more confidence in the communist struggle. The potential to mobilize the masses for communism exists wherever there is one worker.

--Comrade in Texas

MAY 19 – Thousands of seattle teachers staged a oneday strike demanding more funding for schools and less standardized testing of students. After rallies outside several high schools, students, teachers and other school workers converged downtown. At one school, teacher friends gladly took copies of Red Flag.
Teachers’ pay is set by the state Legislature and they haven’t received a cost-of-living increase in 15 years. “It’s like the police shootings,” said a seattle comrade. “everyone knows it’s wrong, everyone knows it’s against the law, and they still get away with it. The question is what to do about it.”
The answer is communist revolution to end this capitalist dictatorship. schools in capitalist society, whether fully funded or not, prepare young people for a future of wage-slavery and imperialist war. Communist education, in contrast, prepares us to build a future of collective production for our collective needs. Read our pamphlet “Communist education for Classless society,” available at https://icwpredflag.org/EDU/EdPamE.pdf.

Dear Red Flag,
A New Jersey teacher has been fired after having her students write “get well” cards to a man convicted of killing a Philadelphia police officer in 1981. Marilyn Zuñiga, a third-grade
teacher in Orange, New Jersey was first suspended and then fired after her students wrote letters to Mumia Abu Jamal. Mumia, a former Black Panther, is serving a life sentence for the 1981 murder of a Philadelphia cop and was in the hospital for complications of diabetes.
Also, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett signed a bill Tuesday designed to prevent people convicted of crimes from causing victims “mental anguish.” The bill was written in response to Mumia’s taped speech at the Goddard College commencement last October. He had attended the college and the graduating students decided they wanted Mumia to give the speech. He did, as cops demonstrated outside the commencement.
These are clear indications that the war against the Black Panther Party and its supporters continues.
While ICWP does not project the BPP as a vanguard group that would lead to communist revolution, the organization did develop strong ties with the Black masses, promote revolution, internationalism, and self defense. Many African-Americans in their 40’s and 50’s today developed their radical ideas and engaged in activism as a result of the work of the BPP.
Additionally, there are dozens of BPP members still incarcerated in US prisons and jails, and many living abroad openly or in secret. This is a direct result of the dirty-war against the BPP that was and is waged by the police agencies, secret police networks, and federal agencies.
The firing of Marylin Zuñiga is an abomination. This also indicates that, if the article is true, monitoring of Twitter accounts of supporters of Abu Jamal occurs (or the reporting of activity that appears on social media related to his case occurs from spies or from metadata collection).
The reason given in the press statement by the school district for the firing indicates that Zuñiga’s allegedly having students in her Grade 3 class write letters wishing Mumia good health was not aligned to the curriculum of the class. Let’s say that was true. Does this mean the teacher should be fired? No, it does not. The real reason for the firing is for the teacher’s eliciting support for Mumia among the youth of her classroom and for putting the history of Black Liberation in their eyes and in their hands. For this, she is to be commended and held up as a role model for teachers anywhere and everywhere!
The teacher needs all the support she can gain to not only regain her position as an educator, but because she is now a marked woman, someone that the secret police, federal agencies, and law enforcement will watch, harass, and demonize in the coming months and years. This is a certainty! Perhaps it would be best for her to be recruited to join the ICWP as she is certainly a teacher with the insight to reach the youth with the ideas and the ideals of struggle!
Thank you.
--A Red Flag Reader

Thank you for your letter. While we condemn Zuñiga’s firing, ICWP fights for the liberation of the whole working class through communist revolution. Nationalism and internationalism are opposites. The liberation of black workers and youth can only be achieved with the
liberation of the whole working class by destroying capitalism and building communism. Black workers and youth can and should give key leadership to all workers to mobilize for communism. We invite any one who wants to fight for communism to join ICWP
--Red Flag Editorial Collective

The articles on May Day are excellent, as it demonstrates you have workers internationally on the front lines. I thought the headline, “Beware of Imperialists Bearing Gifts,” told the entire story well. I also liked the article on Baltimore and the comments throughout the paper.

--Red Reader

FIGHT FOR COMMUNISM!

International Communist Workers Party

Letters to Red Flag

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