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Yes We Can End US-Backed Mili
Intervention From Palestine to LibyaThe Challenge of Building a
Left AlterA POLITICAL STATEMENT BY MEMBERS OF SOLIDARIT
Roughly our years ago, Israel launched abrutal military assault
known as Operation
Cast Lead on Palestinian communities inGaza, killing
approximately 1,400 Palestin-ians, including more than 700
civilians. Inan important moment o truth, then in-coming President
Barack Obama chose toremain mostly silent throughout the
crisis.
Since his election, Obama has contin-ued or expanded many o the
hallmarks o
oreign policy under George Bush, includ-
ing extraordinary rendition, inde nite de-tention and torture,
drone attacks, and ag-gressive military actions, including
regimechange, that have been carried out in thename o national
security or justi ed as hu-manitarian intervention.
Te damaging, hypocritical role o the United States in North A
rica is clear.While imperialist powers responded the
Qadda regimes brutality with interven-tion and ultimately helped
topple the gov-
ernment, they remain silent about the eth-nic cleansing o Black
Libyans. oday, theerment sweeping the region has been used
as a pretext or sending more US troops.Despite Obamas record o
pursuing US
interests throughout the world at the ex-pense o all but the
most elite in the GlobalNorth, many in the Black community,
withsome basis, continue to see in Obamas
Presidency a symbol o the hope or A ri-can Americans to achieve
sel -determina-tion and respect. Tis has to be understoodin the
context o the seemingly hopelessconditions aced by many Black
people, in-cluding economic devastation within innercities, police
murder, and prison-industrialcomplex lockdown. Te partial weaknesso
the Black liberation movement, result-
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ing rom its di culty in regrouping rom the state repres-sion and
its own internal contradictions since the 60s and70s, has opened up
space or a mass sentiment that seesObama as a continuation o the
legacy o Martin LutherKing and Malcolm X.
Even some who do not see Obama in this positivelight will still
support him on election day, i only toshow their opposition to the
reactionary Romney-Ryanticket. Its understandable that A rican
American and La-tino voters, women, working people and progressives
eelthat the overriding imperative is to de eat the RepublicanPartys
appalling racism, its anti-immigrant policies, andits assault on
womens rights. Yet, nothing would strikea stronger blow against the
right and do more or work-ing people and all o the oppressed than
building a massmovement and a new progressive political
alternative.
An important task or the broad le , antiwar, and Black
liberation movements is to build a real political alternative to
Obama and the Democrats that speaksto peoples current consciousness
and immediate needs. Although there is no orce now which
represents the mass movement we need, the campaigns o theGreen
Party and Peace and Freedom Party are important efortsto construct
a le alternative worthy o support. We urther support constructive
dialogue with those orces in the Black liberation movement seeking
to engage with this task, such as the Arican Peoples Socialist
Party, Malcolm X Grassroots Movement
Ujima Peoples Progress Party, the New York Freedom Party,
andothers.Even in instances where these eforts do not represent a
ull
break rom the Democratic Party and ruling-class orces, we
believe much can be gained by seekinto learn rom the experiences o
others, as well as rom engagement in principled dialogue, debatand
common struggle. In this respect, we recognize the political space
that the Black Is Back Coali-tion is seeking to create as an
important one at a critical time.
To communicate with the authors of this statement, email
Thano Paris at [email protected] and Nick Davenport at
[email protected]. The authors are members of Solidarity.
Solidarity is a revolutionary socialist, feminist, and
anti-racist organization with branches across the UnitedStates. We
are a multi-tendency organization, seekingto promote regroupment of
socialists and non-sectari-an united work to rebuild the left and
the movements.
SOLIDARITY www.solidarity-us.org 313-841-0160
We recognize the politi-cal space that the Black IsBack
Coalition is seekingto create as an importantone at a critical
time.
