[Marxism] An analysis of the DP convention that works better

[S. Artesian]

I would say yes to:

1. civil rights: in that the basis of the movement was the "plowing up" of
Southern agriculture by mechanization beginning with WW2, and increasing
industrialization, migration of African-Americans into cities and as part of
the working class.  At core, then,  the civil rights movement to achieve
emancipation of black Americans had to achieve the emancipation of black
labor; and in this era that meant a challenge to capitalism, to private
property.  Thus the theater of struggle moved North, moved into urban areas,
moved into industry with class demands for open housing, non-discriminatory
wage levels, achieving IMO its peak with the struggles of black workers in
the auto industry in and around Detroit and the strike of the Memphis
sanitation workers.

Encapsulation of this movement, confinement of this movement to the
Democratic party platforms and electioneering is a step backwards, and is, 
of course, accompanied by
increasing repression against those organizations not willing to be so
confined.  And as is always the case, once the radical section of the
movement is isolated and repressed, the great rollback begins-- and the
bourgeoisie, no fools them, begin the rollback on a class basis-- utilizing
unemployment, factory closings, reductions in benefits, to put the workers
back in their place, which is now out in the street.

Do you remember the invasion of the UAW goons into the Jefferson Ave (think
it was Jefferson Ave.) plant to break up the sit-down/no work strike led by
black workers? We all should.  Catapaulted old Doug Fraser up the heap of 
union bureaucrats struggling for a seat on the board of Chrysler.

The Congress sure did pass the voting laws.  The Supreme Court sure did
decide Brown vs. Board of Education.  But I think it would be enlightening 
to compare the current  average earnings  of African-Americans as a 
proportion of the earnings of white Americans with that ratio of 1970.  We 
should do similar comparisons of poverty rates, unemployment rates, infant 
mortality rates, and .. incarceration rates.  We would find not much to call 
progress, to say the least.

2.As for the anti Vietnam War movement, surely you jest.  This was the party 
of Johnson and Humphrey, nominating Humphrey despite the victories of 
McCarthy in the primaries.

What impact the anti-war movment it had on the war, it had outside the
Democratic Party.  When the Democratic led Congress finally did prohibit US
ground troops from direct combat, it saw fit in its wisdom to exempt air
support, artillery support, transport and logistics from the ban.   More 
Vietnamese died after the prohibition than before.

The anti-war movement dissipated-- collapsed with the candidacy of
McGovern while the war went on.

3. Unions:  We can do a similar analysis of the CIO.  The moderator has 
already
provided it in brief.  Democratic party recogniton and absorption of the
union movement was to contain it, control it, win its allegiance to
mediation as opposed to direct action-- to take the dispute off the
production floor.  Worked pretty well, no?

4. Women's suffrage:  Mark has provided you with the facts on that.