STATEN ISLAND, NY, August 4 — Hundreds of black, white, Asian and Latino workers, students and their families marched and rallied here against the more than 17 known racist attacks against undocumented workers from Latin America. This multi-racial protest was organized by workers from a group that fights for immigrants’ rights, along with PLP. PL’s years of work in a mostly black church united black workers and Latino workers here, in the face of anti-immigrant racism and police terror.

Carrying signs like “fight racist attacks” and “unite against racism,” PL’ers expanded the struggle to more than a narrow fight against violence or solely a citizenship issue that can be “solved” by the liberal bosses’ nightmarish immigration reform (see CHALLENGE July and August). PLP’s leadership sharpened the line of the protest to directly confront racism. Hundreds of CHALLENGES were distributed and were read by onlookers and virtually all the marchers.

Multi-racial Unity is Key

The recent racist attacks in Staten Island by black youth on undocumented workers is an example of how racism divides the working class. Black workers attacking and nearly killing Latino workers reflects the efforts of the bosses to pit workers against workers, and prevent a united multi-racial fight against capitalism. But PL can win workers to communist-led unity against racism.

The racism of the liberal left is highlighted by the mass organization at the forefront of the struggle pushing this solely as a “Latino issue.” This idea is dangerous, as organizing a group of workers based on race only further pits one group against another. Workers must see themselves as part of the working-class, not one “nationality” or “race,” more similar to other workers of the world than to their national bosses. Only with this understanding can workers unite to smash those capitalist bosses. At the rally, our chants, “Asian, Latin, black, and white — to smash racism, we must unite!” and “Las luchas obreras no tienen fronteras” were taken up by many marchers.

The city is also increasing its police presence as a response to these attacks; the same NYPD KKKops who attack, jail and kill our class on a regular basis. The NYPD has set up 24-hour surveillance of the neighborhood with a Nazi-style mobile Skywatch tower and a Mobile Command Center truck. These are not measures taken to protect workers — this is part of the ramping up of fascist terror to keep workers, black and Latino, documented and undocumented, in line to be able to maintain the U.S.’s imperialist war needs.

Grow Through Struggle

Workers and students from across the country attending PLP’s Summer Project the following week held another rally in Staten Island. Hundreds more CHALLENGES were taken by black and Latino workers on the street. Bus drivers, steeled by their transit strike of a few years ago and the racism they faced, honked thunderously in support of our anti-racist signs.

Hundreds of leaflets were handed out, stating that the most vicious attack on immigrant workers is coming from Obama and the liberal Democrats who are deporting record numbers of our sisters and brothers. As the bosses dig us deeper into this economic crisis we face more unemployment, budget cuts, fare/tuition hikes, etc. Their media blames immigrants and promotes anti-immigrant lies, but the real culprit for this crisis is the profit system, capitalism.

PLP will continue to work and grow in the struggle. One student who attended the first rally joined the Party on the way home. Marches like this illustrate how by working patiently in a mass organization, PLP can lead workers to struggle against capitalism. By linking our work in these organizations together, a quantity of protests like this can lead to a qualitative shift where PLP eventually leads millions of workers into conflict with the state itself. Capitalists need racism to maintain their system, but the working class has absolutely no need for this destructive ideology. Through a communist revolution, we can build a world where one group of workers doesn’t attack other workers, but works together to meet their needs. (See page 4 article on black and Latino workers' unity in a pharmaceutical plant)