On the AFL-CIO Convention

by George Meyers

This article was reprinted from the November, 25, 1995 issue of the People's Weekly World. For subscription information see below. All rights reserved - may be used with PWW credits.

(The Communist Party USA will hold its 26th National Convention in Cleveland on March 1-3. During this period of preconvention discussion -- Nov. 15-March 1 -- the People's Weekly World and Political Affairs, the theoretical journal of the CPUSA, will be publishing articles submitted by Party members and our readers.

Anyone who would like to contribute is encouraged to write, fax or e-mail articles, letters and questions to us. (See page 16 for addresses and numbers). The pages of the People's Weekly World will provide a forum for readers to exchange views on the many issues confronting the American people. The following article by George Meyers, chair, CPUSA Labor Department, is excerpted from Political Affairs.)

The 21st convention of the AFL-CIO in New York City on Oct. 23-26 was an event of historic importance. For the first time, the right-wing leadership which dominated its 40-year existence suffered a crushing defeat.

A slate headed by John Sweeney, president of the million- plus member Service Employees Union, was elected behind a militant program whose implementation can affect our entire nation for many years to come. With 84 percent of U.S. workers unorganized, the program issued by Sweeney and the unions supporting him called organizing "the most critical challenge facing unions" and made a series of proposals that would allow organizing to go forward "at a pace and scale that is unprecedented."

A goal has been set for training and organizing 1,000 new union organizers, "with special emphasis on women and minorities," by the next AFL-CIO convention in two years. It calls for making the summer of 1996 a "Union Summer" and recruiting 1,000 college volunteers for a massive national organizing blitz.

Support for affirmative action was a central feature of this 21st AFL-CIO Convention -- a far cry from George Meany's racist slander of "reverse discrimination." The progressive tone of the convention was stimulated by a packed "diversity" conference held on the Saturday prior to its opening.

The Sweeney slate recognized the importance of this question in relation to the future of organized labor. "In order to accomplish our goals we need to create a labor movement that speaks for and looks like today's workforce. We need to open up opportunities for women, minorities and young people."

The seemingly narrow victory of 56 percent of the delegates in no way reflected the widespread support for the Sweeney ticket in the ranks of labor. A much more accurate picture can be seen in the vote of central labor council delegates with only one vote each. Out of a total of 488 delegates from state feds and central labor councils (an unprecedented turnout) with one vote each, 76 percent voted for the Sweeney slate.

The AFL-CIO fully committed to support the reelection of President Clinton in 1996 in a determined effort to prevent right-wing Republicans from capturing the presidency. But Sweeney is committed to greater labor independence from the Democratic Party. His program calls for building "a new and progressive political movement of working people." It calls for creating a political action center to "develop political campaign organizers and campaign managers, recruit and train candidates, and develop community organizing support for labor's political agenda."

The decisive role of the U.S. multinational conglomerates in the rapid globalization of production and finance makes a complete reversal of AFL-CIO foreign policy necessary if the advanced program adopted by the Sweeney leadership is to succeed. The disgraceful ties of the top AFL-CIO leadership and its International Affairs Department with the CIA, that notorious tool of the U.S. multinationals, has blocked the organization of an effective international organization of labor. In turn, this has badly damaged the ability to fight the multinationals here at home.

The Sweeney program said, "We must renew and refocus our commitment to labor around the world." It calls for the setting up of a Transnational Corporate Monitoring Project to "further the struggle to protect the jobs and living standards of U.S. workers in an increasingly globalized economy."

As head of SEIU, Sweeney has a record of action which is a far cry from the "armchair generals" of the past. In his acceptance speech, addressed not only to the AFL-CIO's 13 million members but to the millions of workers who still lack union representation, he said, "when you struggle for justice, you will not struggle alone.

In 1992, the Communist Party noted the growth of militant grass roots coalitions around such issues as strike support, organizing drives, forced overtime and privatization. They were based in the local unions, and in working class communities. Some coalitions were initiated by members of the Communist Party. In others, Communists participated as equals.

As such, grassroots coalitions of the "left and center" laid the groundwork for building the CIO in the 1930s, so, too, today they have laid the groundwork for the historic defeat of the entrenched right-wing leadership of the AFL-CIO.

How should the Communist Party react to this tremendous victory? As sure as night follows day, the ruling class and its stooges in and around labor began scheming to reverse it. For the stooges, it would mean millions in bribes. For the ruling class, it would mean hundreds of billions in super profits.

The only guarantee to prevent such a disaster is to expand the "left-center" coalitions at every level of labor from the grass roots on up, with coalitions in the local unions and central labor councils providing the base.

Building coalitions for militant struggle has long been the bedrock of the Communist Party's labor policy. Building the Party among workers is decisive to building strong "left- center" coalitions. Without a strong left, the center will inevitably collapse under the attacks of the right wing. Experience has proven over and over that the stronger the Party, the stronger the entire trade union movement.

At present, redbaiting has lost its effectiveness in the country generally. This is particularly true in labor as many workers remember or have learned from their parents, the way it was used to damage the entire trade union movement in the cold war. Our paper, the People's Weekly World, gets a warm reception at every labor demonstration and at shop gates.

Almost 1,500 copies along with the Party's labor program were distributed at the AFL-CIO convention. For the first time in 40 years, Communist trade unionists were elected delegates and spoke at an AFL-CIO convention. FBI and corporate attempts to inject redbaiting in a number of situations has fallen flat.

We Communists ask nothing more in labor than to be treated as equals. We expect to be elected to union office on our ability and nothing more. Yet, an unconstitutional and undemocratic anti-Communist clause remains in the constitution of the AFL-CIO, contrary to the practice of trade unions in virtually every other country.