LOS ANGELES—Three racist murders by the Los Angeles Police Department over the past six months were protested on the Venice boardwalk by 30 members of two Unitarian churches, along with members of Progressive Labor Party. The killings of Brendon Glenn, Jason Davis, and Jascent-Jamal Lee “Shakespeare” sparked chants of “Black, Latin, Asian, White! To Smash Racism We Must Unite!”
Now more than ever, we must publicly denounce the bosses’ racism and accelerating drive toward fascism, as the capitalist profit system moves inevitably toward broader inter-imperialist war. All of us must struggle with one another and within ourselves to become leaders in the class struggle.
From Marchers to Organizers
These protests are important not because we think reforms can fix the problems of capitalism, but because taking to the streets shows the power of a united, militant working class. During the pre-march rally, a comrade called on marchers to become organizers: “If everyone on the Westside of Los Angeles who agreed with us about racist cops were here today, we’d have 10,000 people marching.”
Another speaker reminded us how important it is to stand up and protest police murders and the other atrocities of capitalism and imperialism. Through multiracial unity and international workers’ solidarity, PLP is building a mass revolutionary communist movement to smash racist police terror and this entire racist capitalist system. Every time the working class has stood up and fought back, the capitalist ruling class trembles in fear. Now is the time for workers to rise again!
Communist Leaders Serve the Working Class
After the march, a member of one church said she had “never done anything like this before.” For years, PL’ers and friends have been inspired by this woman’s dedication to feeding homeless workers and her concern for fellow workers in the church. Today marked her first demonstration, a qualitative advance in her commitment to the class struggle. A comrade said, “If you can change, so can lots of other people. And you know some of them.” She smiled and nodded. The implication was clear: Through continued struggle we can win workers to become the leadership our international class needs, communist leaders to help build a movement of millions and liberate the working class from capitalism.
Our work is cut out for us: to create more organizers and more communists. We have invited several new people to our monthly PLP study group and added them to our CHALLENGE mailing list.    
We continue to struggle with our friends, coworkers, neighbors and fellow churchgoers to come out and protest. As the anniversary of Tamir Rice’s death and the non-indictment of Mike Brown’s killer kkkop approaches, there will be another rally followed by a “Protesters Potluck.” Stay tuned for more articles!