Date: Mon, 17 Mar 1997 18:25:36 -0500 (EST)
Subject: M-TH: Re: M-I: fellow zubatovists!




On Sat, 15 Mar 1997, Scott McLemee wrote:

> 
> Comrades!  Our efforts to spread the poison of revisionism are failing! 
> Until now the counterrevolutionary Zubatovists have had the upper hand, 
> but alas! the iron discipline of these proletarian internationalists is 
> too much for us.  They are building a list through which we will be 
> unable to continue our wrecking operations.  Curses! 
> 
> > "Known Zubatovists, agent provocateurs, and professional denigrators of the
> > proletariat, communism, and socialist and democratic revolution need not
> > apply. All genuinely progressive people need not fear discrimination on
> > account of any genuine discrepancies."
> 
> (PS.  But you know, it's the *unknown* Zubatovists you've gotta watch out 
> for).
> 

Let us go back in time and examine one of your OWN concrete actions
which can be considered to be falling into the camp of reaction.

In 1995 (summer?), you wrote an article "In These Times" slandering
the supporters of Mumia Abu-Jamal calling them something like the
"Mumia Machine" (please correct if I am wrong). For all those who
do not know, Mumia Abu-Jamal is an African American political prisoner
on death row falsely accused of killing a white police officer (according
to quite convincing recent testimony, the officer was killed by some
one else). In that article, besides casting aspersions on the solidarity
movement growing up in support of Mumia's appeal against his death
penalty, you also implied that according to you, Mumia probably killed
the cop WITHOUT examining any corroborating or countervailing evidence.
This was pointed out to you in a subsequent letter by the solidarity
organization "Equal Justice" to the next issue of "In These Times".

One should note that your designation of Mumia also agrees fully
with those of police and security organizations who uniformly want
to send him to the electric chair for his outspokenness against the
death penalty and its racist use against African-Americans. One of them
had the phrase "Cop Killer" transcribed on a floating balloon and
stationed it above the publishing house that had brought out Mumia's
first book "Live from Death Row".

During that summer, due to the signing of Mumia's death warrant by
the republican governor Thomas Ridge of Pennsylvania, there was
extremely high tension in the solidarity camp of whether the ruling
class would execute Mumia. This was subsequently prevented by
mass protests, many of them occurring internationally. In that kind
of atmosphere, writing the type of article you did, especially in
a so-called left magazine "In These Times", was to tell you the truth,
shocking - that is, in your zeal, you were one with counter-revolution
whether you realized it or not. 

I also see praise of you and your intellectual endevors from others
in this list (which points to your being a scholar) - but for some
reason, this incident always sticks in the mind when I read your
posts. So when you make fun of the word "zubatovist", one wonders
whether you have made any serious analysis or self-criticism of
your past ACTUAL (as opposed to fictional which you so flippantly
imply) reactionary action. Or maybe, it was all a harmless mistake.

Sid   




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