Challenge Newspaper Browse by Category Industrial Work D.C. Bus Drivers’ Slowdown Speeds Fight vs. Bosses’ Attacks
| D.C. Bus Drivers’ Slowdown Speeds Fight vs. Bosses’ Attacks |
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| Tuesday, 03 November 2009 14:39 | ||||
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WASHINGTON, D.C., October 13 — Metro bus drivers launched a work-to-rule action last week against growing disciplinary attacks. Workers — overwhelmingly black and Latino — are being written up, suspended, and fired by racist bosses determined to soften up workers for the coming cutbacks in health care, pensions and jobs. But Metro workers let management know they’re not taking this increased harassment lying down. With communist leadership from PLP members, they will sharpen this fight-back even further! The weak union leaders presented this action as simply “following company rules.” Roland Jeter, union vice-president, publicly declared, “We wouldn’t advocate a work slowdown.” But rank-and-file workers who launched this movement see it as the beginning of resistance to management’s attacks. On the key North-South lines, on 14th and 16th Streets and Georgia Avenue, buses backed up in rows of six, seven and even more as they headed downtown during the morning rush hour, often with delays of 30 minutes or more. This bold rank-and-file action gave workers a sense of their real power, overcoming the union leadership’s lie that we workers would not stick together. We saw who talked the talk and who walked the walk! At Northern Division, many younger workers indicated they were ready to provide more leadership in this class struggle, to meet fire with fire! But to do this, we must be prepared to clash with the bosses’ whole system. That means more workers must become revolutionaries, not just militants. They must join with the PLP group and plan to fight not only the Metro bosses, but join with workers globally against the whole system of capitalism that destroys the lives of countless workers, both here and worldwide.
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What We Fight For
Progressive Labor Party (PLP) fights to smash capitalism -- wage slavery. While the bosses and their mouthpieces claim "communism is dead:" capitalism is the real failure for billions all over the world. Capitalism returned to the Soviet Union and China because socialism failed to wipe out many aspects of the profit system, like wages and division of labor.
Capitalism inevitably leads to wars. PLP organizes workers, students and soldiers to turn these wars into a revolution for communism -- the dictatorship of the proletariat. This fight requires a mass Red Army led by the communist PLP.
Communism means working collectively to build a society where sharing is based on need. We will abolish work for wages, money and profits. Everyone will share in society's benefits and burdens.
Communism means abolishing racism and the concept of race.
Communism means abolishing the special oppression of women workers.
Communism means abolishing nations and nationalism. One International working class, one world, one Party.
Communism means the Party leads every aspect of society. For this to work, millions of workers -- eventually everyone -- must become communist organizers. Join Us!
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