Tue 7 Jan 2020, 04:25 AM | Posted by editor
LETTER from Richard Mellor in California
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortes is right, but it’s not just Joe Biden; it’s most of them in the Democratic Party. Also, if there were one, there will be plenty of opportunity for ‘left’ Democrats to enter it and hold back the working class elements. Here is a link where we give some historical context as to why the leadership of the American trade unions does what it does. Work with Capitalism Not Against Itis the prevailing attitude of Democratic leaders.
We have no opposition party here in the USA and certainly no party of the working class. I agree with a comment made about this article on Facebook that while supporting this statement we pointed out that she could go a long way to making that happen.
But there’s more. AOC is in the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). The DSA has rocketed from about 6000 to 60,000 members. This is not small resource. But the leadership of DSA has chosen to support Bernie Sanders and calls for him to be the presidential choice for this Wall Street Party.
We have seen numerous movements in opposition to the capitalist offensive and Facts For Working People has explained that DSA’s resources should be used to build and assist that movement and DSA members and independents, where the resources exist, can run for office out of this movement as they condemn both the Democratic and Republican parties as the enemies of working people as they have shown time after time. The disgust with these parties is reflected in the fact that 100 million US workers did not vote in the last election. In addition, Labor Notes, an organization closely connected to the left wing of the labour bureaucracy which is an obstacle, has proven that it can organize conferences and meetings of thousands of rank and file members of organized labour.
Despite the leadership of Labor Notes’ tradition of refusing to openly confront the class-collaborationist policies of the labour hierarchy both DSA and Labor Notes also have as much if not more opportunity to provide a real alternative to workers and the middle class in the US. Unfortunately, the DA leadership has contracted out its union workers to Labor Notes and those with as similar approach in the trade unions.
From the US socialist website, Facts for Working people. The original, with additional articles on the DSA and Labor Notes, see here.
