From: Montyneill-AT-aol.com
Date: Mon, 17 Feb 2003 21:21:02 EST
Subject: Re: AUT: Fisk on class/language/antiwar movt



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I don't hang around with many college profs etc so I cannot say. That there 
is a lot of patonizing bs is probably true.

I live in Boston and did not get down to NYC. Some folks in my neighborhood - 
Jamaica Plain - called for a stand in on the main drag from 11- 1 on 
Saturday. It was nasty cold for standing still out doors, but more than 100 
people showed up, lots of signs of various sorts (Peace with Justice, Answer, 
No blood, simply No War on Iraq, hand made of various sorts) and a few 
banners. Occasional chanting. Most of us holding the signs etc were of 
primarily European descent - a few people of color. That is not 
representative of JP. But the cars that drove by were much more so, folks of 
all colors, old beat up cars and new fancy ones, working trucks, SUVs, etc. 
And many - perhaps a third, surely a quarter, actively honked their horns, 
gave thumbs up, etc. Many of the most active at doing so were people of color 
- certainly cannot say this definitively, but if anything they were more 
likely to be visibly supportive. So were many people driving working trucks 
and two of the 3 bus drivers who were visible - two honking and one waving, 
one very enthusiastic (african american woman) and one giving us thumbs down. 


My simple point is that lots of folks clearly oppose the looming war, that 
many are  less-well-waged workers and many are people of color. 

That does not bring them to meetings or anything, but it shows they are 
paying attention and are not necessarily buying the line being sold hard by 
George II and his regime. I don't know if getting folks to meetings matters a 
whole lot, but it would be great if more folks who were at the rally were 
other than white folks (not always as easy to spot class, but relatively 
better waged and desk-oriented would probably be true of who was picketing). 

How to do that is a good question, and I don't have the answer. Even if one 
is not condescending or does not speaks in unintelligible academic language 
to non-academics, that does not bridge the real gulfs of race and class. 
There have been events in Boston against the war where the majority of folks 
were of color, say in black churches, which is great. Boston I am often told 
is worse than many cities in the US when it comes to inter-racial political 
activity. Anyone from the NYC rally have a sense of race and class at that 
one? 

The answer is long term shared work among folks so messages cross the 
boundaries. The looming war may promote more of that. 

Monty Neill 

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