Federal Prisons

Hundreds of people gathered in downtown Oakland to mourn Oscar Grant and express outrage at the light sentence given to his murderer, Johannes Mehserle. Mehserle shot Grant in the back while he lay face down on the ground. For this execution-style murder, he got 2 years in prison with credit for time served on an involuntary manslaughter charge. The judge gave the jury incorrect instructions for how to apply the gun enhancement, and decided to just drop it, thus lowering Mehserle’s maximum possible sentence to 4 instead of 14 years, rather than retry the case. According to those inside the courthouse at the time of sentencing, the judge openly blamed Grant and his friends for the murder.

We didn’t expect justice from the system, but the whole struggle did bring advances in revolutionary organizing in the region. The November 5 demonstration looked like others from the movement for justice for Oscar Grant, but missing were the non-profits trying to run the show and divide the protesters. It was refreshing to hear consistent messages that encouraged people to get organized, stressed the need for nation-based organizing (while uniting Black and Brown), refused to work with the government and denounced the outside agitator line.

The city-sanctioned demo ended with a live performance of “Operation Verdict (Fuck Dat)” by local artists Unity, Sinista Z, & Ras Ceylon. Here’s the last verse:

Revolutionaries speak with clarity
and overstand
an injury to one affects us all
like Oscar Grant.
Cuz I am we
and we are he
So you will see us in the streets
Yellin “Fuck da Police!”
No justice, no peace
these non-profits is weak
tryin’ to water down the movement
and cut off free speech
gettin paid by the beast
to calm the rage of our seeds
that are sick of the oppression that
they daily gotta see
and live with.
You idiot
ain’t no outside agitators
’cept these murderous pigs
with the gun, badge and a taser
so see ya later
if you tryin to claim that leadership
you ain’t nothing but a snitch
and a politician’s bitch
Fuck dat!
Police out here knockin brothers down
Fuck dat!
Trying to move the cats to somewhere out of town
Fuck dat!
You know the state wanna water this shit down
Fuck dat!

Revolutionary Greetings,

…I would have responded much sooner to give notice to the fellow comrades at MIM(Prisons) that I received ULK 16. However, at the time I was forced to remain in solitary confinement for organizing an intellectual study group, which included members affiliated with organizations such as Bloods, 5 Percenters and Latin Kings. This oppressive institution of confinement and confusion charged me with “group demonstration.” I am currently housed in Administrative Segregation for that charge and serving a 365 day sanction. But in any event, I received the ULK 16 and wish to be added to your mailing list.

Thank you very much!

The basis for unity among lumpen is class. The lumpen are the disenfranchised who derive from the economically depressed areas - the Barrios and ghetto projects - and are for the most part oppressed nations people. The lumpen are known to the oppressor nation as the ‘criminal element’ which is code word for persyn of color. The lumpen usually come from a lumpen organization that the oppressors call a ‘gang,’ or survive as some type of parasitic hustler. Although we do make choices, often times in imperialist society our choice to engage in crime is a logical one due to the national oppression we endure.

As communists it is our job to fully understand the laws of social development, and the lumpen are an essential part of these laws today, especially here in the imperialist stronghold. In Marx’s theory of ‘social relations of production’ lies the question of ownership, that is what ‘class’ owns the tools and what ‘class’ uses the tools. In this imperialist society the lumpen neither own nor use the tools. We are excluded from production and live under the heel of capitalist relations of production. The propertied class has monopolized the productive forces. The lumpen play a crucial role in Amerika in the creation of new productive forces that will come into contradiction with the decaying social relations of production. The current economic crisis is helping to streamline this process.

The lumpen is a class, regardless of what nationality one comes from; we all have similar relations to the tools of society and the distribution of society’s wealth. It is a group that experiences the same oppression and is fighting the same imperialist monster.

It is understood that as national oppression exists it is thus only natural for there to also be national liberation struggles to combat the unevenness in this society, and for revolutionary national struggles to work to bring safety to the people who live in a constant police state in areas of the oppressed nations. This is the correct stance in the face of any oppression. But we can’t get caught playing the same dog-eat-dog game that the imperialists play on us and our fellow lumpen. We need an Aztlán Liberation Front that is in unity with the lumpen.

The lumpen in Amerika must begin to realize that we are a class and lumpen fighting lumpen does nothing to liberate any oppressed nation. On the contrary, lumpen-on-lumpen crime will only strengthen the imperialist vice grip on our necks! This is why unity amongst the lumpen is the first step to liberation of all oppressed nations in the United $tates. We don’t have to agree on everything, but we must have unity and work together with the full realization that we are up against not just the same monster but one that happens to run the world militarily.

It is essential for the lumpen to come together in a united front in order for liberation to ever be a reality on these shores. Without the critical element of the united front, liberation struggles of any kind are simply idle talk and will not produce. The function of the united front for the oppressed nations and ULK should be 1) to practice peoples’ power within the prison system and thoroughly politicize the U.$. prison system, and 2) to practice peoples’ power within the Barrios and ghetto projects out in society and thoroughly politicize these oppressed nation areas. These functions should be done with the idea of preparing these grounds for future insurrection.

Lumpen Unite with the International Proletariat!

The basis for unity between the lumpen and the international proletariat is again class-based. The lumpen are connected to the international proletariat by their common oppression by the imperialists and their popular resistance to this oppression. What we must keep in mind is the imperialists think and act on a global scale so we must do the same. Just as many have used the saying “don’t show up at a gun battle with a knife,” we don’t want to show up with a “not in my backyard” mentality when the imperialists show up with an international colonization mentality. We must think of the big picture and on a grand scale of things. Of course we must first work in a particular area, as MIM(Prisons) works primarily with the prison population, to start from one area and eventually expand to include larger or multiple fronts of struggle. All our efforts should be with the intention of chipping away at imperialism.

Regardless of one’s oppressed nation, it really is the same struggle against the same opponent. Currently this is seen unabashed by the imperialists’ mega-prison system housing millions of Brown, Black, Red and Yellow people. It is seen in people of color hunted down in urban communities by the police and shot dead as if there were safaris in the inner cities. It is seen in the unequal treatment that has been festering in Amerika for over 500 years, the lynching of the body and the lynching of the mind. Therefore, it is not just understandable or justified but damn right necessary for these oppressed peoples to struggle for national liberation. Until New Democracy is achieved, as Mao spoke of, and we finally achieve equality for all in all aspects, the oppressed nations should continue to struggle for self-determination.

As communists we should always maintain focus on our goal of international communism rather than degenerating to simply Brown capitalism or Black capitalism, etc. This is why our unity must be with the international proletariat in mind as this will be our moral compass. Some may say or think “If I can liberate my people in this or that country why would I care about countries in another part of the world?” Well, as I’ve said before, we are all up against the same monster that cannot be defeated by one group of people, and even if one could somehow liberate one group of people, the imperialists worldwide would smash this isolated nation. We saw it happen in Grenada.

When Marx and Engels put together the theory of communism, it was with internationalism in mind as they saw even back then that the bourgeoisie would not sit back and allow the people to begin liberating themselves. We must always work in unity with the international proletariat in order to rise from lumpen to true revolutionary. Only then will we liberate our people.

La Lucha Continua!

MIM(Prisons) responds: This comrade did a good job of stressing the importance of internationalism in the united front, and in particular pointing out that the international proletariat must be our moral compass. The question we need to ask though is to what degree the imperialist country lumpen’s interests are united with the international proletariat, and therefore how they fit into the united front as a class. What this comrade wrote about the need to support everyone’s national liberation is true for any oppressed nation in the world, but we face particular challenges due to our material conditions.

MIM(Prisons) sees the lumpen in the United $tates as a bourgeoisified lumpen, in that the whole country benefits from imperialism in the form of basic needs like food, clean water, electricity, etc. as well as in the form of cheap consumer goods. The latter allows the lumpen to own small amounts of capital, creating a spectrum of wealth where a minority in the lumpen organizations are at the level of national bourgeoisie due to their relations to production, distribution and ownership. Even for the relatively poor majority of the lumpen class, a combination of state welfare and the drug game have allowed for access to the material benefits of imperialism the proletariat do not have.

We are watching closely the efforts of the white nation to take away welfare and local drug markets from the lumpen, as well as jobs from the undocumented. Even if these trends are successful, we see compradors among the lumpen and a popular desire for and belief in the Amerikan dream. While the lumpen are a class forced into criminality, there is a class consciousness and culture that derives from this criminality that is individualistic and parasitic. As this comrade alludes to, there is a transformation that must occur to replace the lumpen mentality (in particular its capitalistic elements) with a proletarian one. No national liberation struggles can succeed in this country without tackling this great challenge.

In addition, a growing lumpen class due to imperialist crisis will also touch the white nation. As we wrote about in ULK 14, a declassed white population is the makings of fascist foot soldiers. History has shown this to be the case for oppressor nations. So we agree with the author’s alternating use of lumpen and oppressed nations in most cases, but disagree when s/he says the lumpen have the same interests regardless of nationality. Only if the oppressor nation lets go of its white privilege would this be true. This is an even stronger reason why a thesis that the lumpen in general in the U.$. are a progressive force does not hold true.

Sergeant S. S. Crandell, Yega, S. Motto, S. Byers, and Fish victimized me on 15 October. They stole my television and lied, saying it had wires sticking out.

Guard Yega handcuffed me and took me to the program office over a 602 [grievance] for indigent envelopes I never received. When I returned to the cell, all my legal materials were in a large pile on the floor, covered with shampoo, coffee, hair styling gel and baby powder. My television was gone. Officer S. Motto threatened to kick my ass if I 602ed it.

Can you please help? My aunt has cancer, and my family is sick living on a fixed income.

1 November 2010, The San Francisco Giants won the World Series, and in addition to the tens of thousands of fans in the stadium, an estimated 12 million people watched the game on TV (not counting the millions watching in sports bars, restaurants and other public venues). As in other winning cities in years past, the city of the winning team erupted into “joyful mayhem,” as the San Francisco Chronicle calls it, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets in drunken celebration that included property destruction, traffic disruption, and violence.

In classic bourgeois press form, pretending neutrality, the SF Chronicle’s headline article today was titled “SF Giants Series Celebration is Joyful Mayhem” and stated: “On Market Street, the celebration quickly turned wild and unruly, with an estimated 7,000 revelers in the streets, some jumping on cars, rocking Muni buses, tossing beer bottles, lighting fireworks and blocking traffic at Seventh Street.” A much smaller article, hidden on the Chronicle website, also mentioned “In the Mission, there have been reports of fires, broken windows and an alleged stabbing.” Compare this with the same newspaper’s January 8, 2009 report on the Oscar Grant protests. The article was titled “Protests Over BART Shooting Turn Violent” and gave a negative review of the protest which “mushroomed into several hours of violence Wednesday night as demonstrators smashed storefronts and cars, set several cars ablaze and blocked streets.”

We see that the same street violence is condoned when it’s in the name of professional sports. Police wandering the streets after the World Series were friendly, often clapping and cheering, and shutting down streets to help out traffic while enabling the celebration. During the Oscar Grant protest the cops showed up in riot gear and attacked the crowd.

While we’re no fans of imperialist elections, the World Series victory happened the night before election day and begs the comparison: people are more passionate about baseball than they are about the political future of their country/state/city. This is no surprise to those of us familiar with the decadence of Amerikan imperialism. Amerikans don’t need to worry about politics – the government is working in their interests to secure resources at the expense of Third World peoples to maintain wealth at home.

Sports passion includes a remarkable number of fans cheering “we did it!” and “we won!” as if they had anything to do with the team that won the game. In reality the SF Giants, like all professional sports teams, are made up of players from across the country, who are paid a ridiculous amount of money to wear a jersey for this team. Their allegiance to the city lasts only as long as the paycheck continues. In fact people point to statistics about the Giants’ last World Series victory 56 years ago when they were based in New York as if that team had something more in common with the SF Giants than the font they use for their logo.

MIM(Prisons) would like to take all the sports passion in Amerika and turn it against imperialist violence or world hunger. We’d even call it progress if people get off the couch and play sports rather than get drunk watching millionaires play. Perhaps the improved circulation would help people think a bit more rationally about politics and the relative importance of professional sports.

<img src=“<a href=”https://www.prisoncensorship.info/art/fb.jpg““>https://www.prisoncensorship.info/art/fb.jpg”

[img=“<a href=”https://www.prisoncensorship.info/art/quick/fb2.jpg““>https://www.prisoncensorship.info/art/quick/fb2.jpg” alt=Flattbush bassist]

Flattbush’s newest album Otomatik Attak (Koolarrow Records) is a prime example of form meeting content to create a superior piece of cultural art. A metal/grind band out of Los Angeles founded by two members originally from the Philippines, Flattbush keeps a “fuck the system” tradition alive with themes of atheism, revolt, and anti-capitalism. These comrades scream for liberation in English, Tagalog, and Kapampangan, accompanied by guest vocals in Spanish. They go the distance lyrically by focusing on U.$. fascism and imperialism in the Philippines, calling on the people to stand up against the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo dictatorship in people’s war.

From “Dear Uncle Sam,”

the sadistic american imperialists
they are always at war and they always dictate
so they can maintain their self interests
but uncle sam we are not afraid of your high tech warfare and atomic bombs
uncle sam
fuck you uncle sam
it is necessary to take action
it is necessary to oust the u.s. gloria fascist regime
if not now
then when?

And from “Otomatik Attak,”

automatic attack
on the people
the strike of the fascist
to wipe out
the solution to their attack is to counter attack
people’s war

Flattbush hopes to expand their cultural work to the Philippines in the near future, live! To show solidarity with the peasant masses, the lead vocalist often performs in a conical straw hat and plain jacket, similar to a Mao suit. Supporting his powerful and compelling vocals, the bassist, guitarist, and drummer are all phenomenal players. On stage they are humble, not pausing for applause between songs. This album would satisfy anyone into metal for the music, or anyone who is fighting intensely for revolution. Get more info about Flattbush from [url=http://www.flattbush.com.]www.flattbush.com.

I want to tell my story about what’s happening to me and others like me. I’m labeled a Security Risk Group Threat Member (SRGTM) because I fight against oppression. Me and other members of groups are being targeted. We are being punished, and the form of punishment being use is violating the United States Constitution 8th Amendment. During our legally mandated meaningful hour recreation in outside air, I and other SRGTM prisoners are being handcuffed behind the back, and we can’t properly get exercise while handcuffed in this painful way. After a half hour with my hands cuffed behind my back my wrists and shoulders are in pain, and this pain continues even after the cuffs are removed. And all SRGTM have been going through this for 5 to 6 months, maybe more. I believe this is cruel and unusual punishment.

Here’s what I wrote to the unit manager captain Marinelly. I also wrote to Deputy Warden Faucher, Warden Angel Quiros, and Commissioner Leo Arnone. These people, these pigs of oppression, don’t have morals or principles.

Mr. Marinelly,

I am hereby addressing this policy that the administration has put into effect. This is my second complaint, since early this year about this condition where security risk group threat members have to be handcuffed behind the back. This in fact is a violation of my 8th amendment, the right to be free “cruel and unusual punishment”, as guaranteed by the eighth amendment of the United States constitution…

I am an A.S./Phase 2 prisoner, I am also labeled as a Security Risk Group Threat Member and due to that label I am forced to be handcuffed with my hands behind my back if I want to go outside to exercise for my entitled one hour recreation. I already have pain in my wrist and shoulders being cuffed from the back for an hour. How can I exercise like that?

Sir, if you take a look at the “Connecticut prisoners right handbook” and look at chapter 8 page 66, “Exercise and Recreation,” you’ll in fact see how serious and severe this violation is.

Paragraph 2 explains this: Prison officials cannot take a prisoners’ “exercise privileges for a substantial amount of time without a good reason. Restrictions on exercise must be limited to ‘unusual circumstances in which exercise is impossible because of disciplinary needs.’”

Indeed, the fact that a prisoner is violent may justify segregating him or her from general prison population, but does not necessarily justify prison failure to make other exercise arrangements. In addition, prison may not invoke cost consideration in denying prisoners the opportunity to exercise.

Prisoners’ right to exercise does not require prisons to provide games or weight equipment for indoor or outdoor exercise areas since reliance on running, calisthenics, and isometric and aerobic exercise satisfies the exercise requirements of the 8th amendment. Prison need only provide time and space.

Sir, how can one do any of the above mentioned exercises that satisfies the requirements of the 8th amendment with his hands cuffed behind his back. This situation isn’t for a week or two weeks, but for however long it takes for those who are “SRGTM” to get to 2 East, those of us have to do 4 months as phase 1 with our hands cuffed behind our back. So a month in AS/phase 2 and 4 months in phase 1 of the SRGTM equals 5 months or more. I believe that is a substantial amount of time, wouldn’t you agree?

This violation not only deprives me of my adequate exercise. May I remind you that’s protected by our 8th amendment of the United States constitution. It also puts me in danger, how can one defend himself if someone slips his cuffs off and attacks me while my hands are cuffed behind my back. I am asking, Sir. Marinelly that this violation be investigated and corrected immediately.

MIM(Prisons) adds:
This is yet another example of the brutality of the Amerikan criminal injustice system which barely pays lip service to even following their own rules and regulations. Because these are not just individual cases, MIM(Prisons) focuses on fighting the entire system. We know that we can’t win until imperialism is defeated. But exposing the injustice system and organizing prisoners in a United Front are important for developing the anti-imperialist struggle here in the belly of the beast.

Fronteras Unidas es la teoría de unir grupos diferentes por líneas de clase para un objetivo común y interés, mientras manteniendo la independencia cuando estos grupos no están de acuerdo. La aplicación de la teoría de la frontera unida es como el reconocer de las diferentes contradicciones en la sociedad y utilizarlas en el interés del proletariado internacional. La primera frontera unida es la Frontera Unida del Anti-imperialista, la cual está formada por la mayoría de las personas quienes intereses materiales se basan en el fracaso del imperialismo. Esta es una frontera unida estratégica basada en la principal contradicción.

En este artículo hablaremos de un par de asuntos contemporáneos en los E.U. y analizaremos su potencial para el trabajo de la frontera unida. Veremos que muchos de los conflictos grandes en un país del Primer Mundo están entre las clases enemigas, pero eso no quiere decir que siempre vamos a sentarnos en el banquillo. Algunas formas de las Fronteras Unidas son tácticas y requieren una acción inmediata basada en conocimiento a fondo. Para navegar exitosamente la potencial de las Fronteras Unidas en el Primer Mundo que sirve a los intereses del Tercer Mundo proletariado, debemos tener un análisis correcto de nuestras condiciones. La primera sección de este artículo se proporciona un fondo rápida de hacernos comenzar.

La Tierra, Vivienda y la Nación de Colonos

Un argumento contra la tesis trabajo del aristocrática es que las corporaciones no tienen el interés en sacrificar sus ganancias para pagar más a los trabajadores de países del Primer Mundo, y no hay una conspiración corporativa para hacer cumplir esta conducta. Esto se basa en la teoría de mercado libre capitalista, o solo por leer los primeros capítulos de El Capital por Marx y aplicándolos como un modelo de realidad específico en todos lugares por todo el mundo. Como una clase, los capitalistas depende en la aristocracia del trabajo no sólo políticamente sino económicamente como los consumidores y engranajes de su sistema de pirámide de crecimiento de capital financiero. Y hay un lugar, al menos, donde los imperialistas EEUU pueden ejercer su voluntad como una clase social (mucho más estos días) - se llama el gobierno EEUU La promoción de propiedades domésticas por los federales es uno de los mayores ejemplos del imperialistas conscientemente construyendo una aristocracia del trabajo en el corazón del imperio.

La propiedad doméstica en la América ha sido un elemento básico de la riqueza de América desde que los colonos le robaron la tierra de la Primeras Naciones y construyeron sus hogares en ella. El valor neto de las familias americanas comparado con las primera nación y los descendientes de esclavos en los EEUU es una herencia de esta forma primitiva de acumulación. Mientras la propiedad de la tierra entre los invasores europeos los más tempranos era 100% (este es porque vinieron a las Américas), por la Guerra de Independencia de 1776, la propiedad de la tierra era todavía a 70% para la nación euro-americana.(1) Arghiri Emmanuel señaló que los salarios americanos fueron capaces de permanecer tan altos en el periodo temprano del desarrollo capitalista, aunque la propiedad de la tierra cesó de ser universal, porque la abundancia de tierra “gratis” - robada de las Primeras Naciones presentaba un plan alternativa para los colonos europeos.(2) Esta primitiva acumulación a través del genocidio fue la base de la riqueza que las trabajadores aristocráticas americanas disfrutaron mientras la industrialización transformó más de los colonos a trabajadores asalariados.

Siguiendo la lucha inter-imperialista de WWI, los EEUU han llegado a ser el podar imperialista dominante. La afluencia de riqueza que vino con esto permitió la integración de la parte de inmigrantes del sur y del este de Europea a la nación blanca conducía a la Gran Depresión.(1) Desde 1900 hasta 1950 el promedio de la propiedad domestica en los EEUU era casí un 45%, con los precios lo más bajo en la cinturón negro del sur y el más alto en los estados del Norte que eran dominados por Europeos.(3) Después de la recuperación económica que comenzó después de WWII, los EEUU se embarcó en la sub-urbanización de América con incentivos numerosos del gobierno federal para traer la propiedad domestica encima del 60% de nuevo.

Desde 1960, la propiedades doméstic se mantenido encima del 60% para los ciudadanos de los EEUU en su conjunto.(4) Esta tasa fue superior al 70% de los estadounidenses blancos en los últimos años, pero el censo no cuenta con estadísticas comparables por la raza que se remonta muy lejos. La tasa de propiedad de la vivienda por los negros y los latinos es poco menos del 50%, a pesar de la opresión nacional ha asegurado que actualmente se enfrentan la ejecución hipotecaria en forma desproporcionada.

Las teorías de Emmanuel en el “Cambio Desigual” demuestran que como los salarios significantemente más altos de las personas del primer mundo en realidad transfieren las riquezas desde el Tercer Mundo a los países imperialistas, reforzando sus ventajas económicas. Del mismo modo, la nación opresora tiene la equidad, y es capaz de aumentar la riqueza de una manera que las semi-colonias internas no son capaces de hacer a pesar de acceso a empleos de nivel explotador. Todo esto encaja con la tendencia general del capitalismo, que es la acumulación de capital. Cuanto más se tiene, más se tiende a obtener.

La Caída del Mercado Domiciliario en US

El ala izquierda del nacionalismo blanco (si se describan anarquistas, socialistas, Maoístas o democráticos) ha estado diciendo que el incremento en la reposesión de domicilios es una indicación de las contradicciones aumentados entre el proletariado americano y el capitalismo. Estas personas defienden la tierra robada que ha sido la base de riquezas para los colonos de América y la esquema pirámide moderna de propiedad domestica que es la base del sueño Americano hoy.

No solo han perdido millones de gente su domicilio por reposesión en años recientes, sino los traficantes del miedo señalan que en el “mercado hipotecario de alto riesgo resultó en la desaparición de 13 trillones de dólares en la riqueza domiciliario americano entre el medio-año de 2007 y marzo 2009. . . en el promedio, el domiciliario estadounidense ha perdido un cuarto de su riqueza en ese periodo.”(5) Tantas alarmistas ignoran que estadounidenses ganaron 10 millones de dólares desde 2006 a 2007 llegar a un nivel alto más alto, y que el valor neto de los ciudadanos del país ha generalmente ha amentado a tasas incrementando desde WWII.(6) Las subidas y bajadas más grandes en todos los mercados financieras son seguramente señales de crisis, pero para actuar como los americanos se han estado hundidos a condiciones del Tercer Mundo en el 2010, es ridículo. ¡Si solamente esas activistas gritaran tan fuerte para ellos que realmente tienen que vivir en condiciones del Tercer Mundo por toda sus vidas y generaciones!

La mayoría, si no toda, la pérdida del valor neto americano es contada por carteras de acciones y valores de domicilios (las cuales se vende y se compra como acciones hoy) en otras palabras pérdidas del capital financiera. Tradicionalmente, la pequeña burguesía marxista no fue explotado, ni tampoco ha significantemente explotado de ningún otro. Para decir que ellos que ganan de inversión de capital financiera son algo menor que los miembros de la pequeña burguesía es un rechazo a la definición marxista. Con la propiedad doméstica alrededor de 68% en años reciente, eso es un sólido dos tercios de las gente en los Estados Unidos que ciertamente cae en la categoría de la clase media, o más alto, incluye 50% de Negros y Latinos (mínimo). Este grupo tiene 210 millones de gente, o solo 3% de la población mundial en 2010, pero ellos tienen más riqueza neta de la capitalización total del mercado de todas compañías que cotizan en bolsa en el mundo.(7)

Nuestros críticos señalan a las iniquidades grandes de riqueza en los Estados Unidos como una razón de organizar americanos para la revolución. Entonces déjemos mirar sólo al 80% inferiores de los americanos, quienes eran dueñods de 15% (un insignificante arañazo de la mása) de la riqueza neta en los E.U. en 2007 (y esta fue un mínimo de 15 años para ellos).(8) Mientras su parte ha bajado unos pocos porcentajes desde 1983, un total de la riqueza neta en los E.U. se ha incrementado por cinco veces. Por eso lo más inferior 80% de americanos fueron acerca de $2.2 trillones de riqueza neta en 1983 hasta casi $10 trillones en 2007.(9) La clase media en América tiene activos que superan el Producto Interno Bruto de China(10), la potencia industrial del mundo que representa casi 20% de la población mundial. Eso se compara solo las clases americanas “media” y “pobre” a toda la nación de China, incluye su clase capitalista muy desarrollada.

Puesto que el proletariado, por definición, tiene un valor neto insignificante en forma de activos, dejemos a mirar a sus ingresos.(11) El ingreso generalmente crece proporcionalmente con la riqueza neta alrededor del mundo.(12) Casi una mitad de la población mundial vive en menos de $1000 al año. Eso es 3.14 billones de la gente vive en menos de $3 trillones en un año.(13) Ahora, antes de condenar los activos grandes americanas, hay que estar seguro que ellos son mejores en el ahorro y también el invierto de su dinero que el proletariado. En 2005 el 20% del mundo lo más rico contaba con 76.6% de todo del consumo privado de bienes. el 50% lo más pobre contaba con sólo 7.2% de consumo(13) Una estimación conservativa nos deja con los americanos consumiendo al menos de 27 veces más que la persona promedia en la mitad del mundo lo más pobre.(14) Entonces las habilidades de administrar el dinero no pueden explicar la riqueza neta americana grande.

Una sociedad humana justo y sostenible requiere que la aristocrática obrera americana se reduzca a los niveles de consumo mucho más cercanos a los del Tercer Mundo. Pero este ejercicio demuestra que esto está muy lejos de pasar, peso a los gritos de los alarmistas.

Últimamente, la contradicción que estamos describiendo está entre la aristocracia obrera y el imperialismo. Los imperialistas, en particular el capital financiero, son un clase oportunista dinámica. En contraste, las obreras aristocráticas se benefician de la estabilidad del estado actual de los asuntos.

Los capitalistas financieras eran capaces de hacer unas ganancias rápidas por la venta en corto de la aristocracia obrera, entonces los americanos están disgustados. Aunque tal vez empuja la aristocracia obrera hacia el fascismo, los capitalistas financieros están malvendiendo al consumismo de los americanos en lo que su sistema depende tanto. Lo que estamos presenciando es una contradicción interno en el sistema capitalista llevando a cabo. Los dos grupos controlan trillones de dólares en riquezas del Tercer Mundo, y anti-imperialista Frontera Unidas no tiene un interés en uno de ellos teniendo más que el otro. Hay que mantenernos sentados fuera de nosotros.

La Migración a los EEUU

Como discutido arriba, altos salarios y crecientes valores domiciliarios se reafirman en nuestro sistema económico actual, haciendo el rico más rico. Sin embargo, no podría mantenerse sin levantar una frontera afuera de lo que estas dos cosas no puede fluir. Entonces mantener los salarios y el valor domiciliario de alto está directamente relacionado con la lucha por la creciente represión de trabajadores migrantes en las fronteras de los EEUU. La contradicción en esta lucha es entre las naciones

oprimidas que están tratando de acceder a puestos de trabajo en los EEUU y la nación opresora que está intentando de mantenerlos afuera. Esta desafío a los privilegios de los países imperialistas indica que la lucha por los derechos del inmigrante es parte de la lucha anti-imperialista.

Mientras la gente del Tercer Mundo y algunos jóvenes americanos enfrentaron las obreras aristocráticas americanas en la calle, fue el Tribunal del Distrito de los E.U. quien puso en marcha una orden judicial contra la mayoría de lo dispuesto en el proyecto de ley del senado del estado de Arizona 1070 (SB1070) a la luz de una demanda presentada por el departamento de justicia (DOJ) contra el estado de Arizona. El DOJ sostuvo que la inmigración es de la jurisdicción federal y que el DOJ tenía un plan para todo el país para equilibrar sus diversos intereses relacionados con la inmigración que Arizona no se le permitiría echar a perder.

El interés de los miembros de la clase media internacionalista esta en teniendo acceso gratis a los mercados y trabajadores, no mencionar que también relaciones internacionales. Este campo incluye el gobierno federal y sus capitalistas financieros como también los negocios pequeños que solo operan en los EEUU pero dependen en el trabajo de inmigrantes. Su conflicto es con los intereses de otros miembros de la clase media y la mayoría de de la clase media americanos cuya posición de privilegio viene del elitismo de quienes son permitidos entrar a sus fuentes riquezas.

Entonces hay una frontera unida efectiva entre el internacionalismo de los más resistentes a SB1070 en ambos lados de la frontera con Méjico y el gobierno de EEUU que actua a favor de los miembros de la clase media internacional. Y por ahora, son los imperialistas quienes son los que realmente lanzan una llave en el trabajo de los americanos, aunque la contradicción es básicamente entre naciones oprimidas y naciones opresoras.

Una mayoría de los americanos, en una serie de encuestas, apoyo a SB1070, o una ley similar. El mayor porcentaje que figura en un artículo, 79% no estuvieron de acuerdo que los “inmigrantes ilegales tienen derecho a los mismos derechos las libertades fundamentales como un ciudadano de los EEUU.”(15) Esta es la definición del chovinismo estadunidense. A lo mejor, un quinto de ciudadanos americanos no piensan que ellos merecen más que otras personas humanas por la virtud de haber sido nacidos en EEUU. Eso es porque nosotros dejamos de buscar un rayo de luz en el imperialismo del primer mundo.

Con los latinos, nosotros podemos ver rápidamente esta consciencia desarrollar por siguir el porcentaje de coco en la población. Una encuesta de decisiones latinas que encontró que un 12% de la población latina de votantes de la segunda generación en Arizona estaban de acuerdo con SB1070. Por la cuarta generación ha incrementado a 30% de acuerdo con la posición de coco (16) El americanismo es una creciente enfermedad que ha aclamado proporciones significantes de las semi-colonias internas de los EEUU.

Une a todos los que puedan unirse

Mientras muchos dogmáticos todavía critican a Mao por aliarse a los comunistas chinos con la clase media nacional, podemos tomar la teoría de Fronteras Unidas aún más y llegar a ejemplos de fuerzas progresivas aliándose con el gobierno de los superpoderes imperialistas del mundo contra una nación opresora. Esto nos enseña que no podemos dejar que las ideas de extrema izquierds de la pureza prevenirnos aliarse con aquellos que podrían ayudar a nuestra causa.

Los errores de la derecha en aplicar la teoría de Fronteras Unidas sucede cuando tenemos líneas incorrectas en otras partes. No reconocer que la Frontera Unida trabaja con una clase enemiga, ni llegando a ser convencida que otras contradicciones han sido resueltas y no empujada a una posición secundaria son la formas principales del derechismo para protegerse. Mao tuvo que luchar el derechismo con otros comunistas quienes pensaban que los comunistas y la clase media nacional deberían fundirse en uno, donde inevitablemente la clase media reaccionaria llevaría a causa de su poder relativo. El derechismo en los EEUU se ve como gente que se encontró con batallas legislativas sobre los derechos de obreros migrantes. Sin la liberación nacional no hay libertad para las naciones oprimidas bajo al imperialismo. Y los imperialistas siempre se oponen eso, como las nacionalistas se fajaron con los comunistas en una guerra civil cuando los Japoneses fueron forzados afuera.

No buscamos unidad por el privilegio de estar unidos. Buscamos la unidad que usa todas las fuerzas posible para parar la principal contradicción, o las batallas que empujan la contradicción principal adelante. Cuando encontramos grupos en los cuales podemos unirnos estratégicamente, las Fronteras Unidas también ofrecen un base para la unidad - crítica - unidad la cual avanza la lucha y depende de unidades revolucionarias y toda gente oprimida por un futuro mejor.

By aligning Amerikans’ immediate interests with their long-term interests, the militarization of the U.$./Mexico border has become a machine that will not likely slow down on its own. This machine is propelled by the imperialist politicians, imperialist businessmen (often the same people), and the Amerikan labor aristocracy. This collusion of interests at a time when Amerikan hegemony is fragile spells danger for the oppressed nations, in particular for Aztlán.

National Public Radio (NPR) released a report this week exposing financial and political connections between the Correctional Corporation of America (CCA) and those behind Arizona’s oppressive SB1070 law.(1) The law, which is still under judicial review after being put on hold, legalizes racial profiling and empowers state police to enforce federal immigration laws in the process. The scandal, now being denied by the bill’s sponsor Senator Russell Pearce and others, is that they passed the law to increase their income and the profits of their corporate backers.

Without SB1070, CCA was getting an estimated $117 million a year from the federal government for imprisoning migrants. Meanwhile, Wackenhut/G4S, the next largest private prison company, has a $76 million a year contract to bus migrants around the border for the U.$. government. Of course, both of these sums are chump change compared to the $3.6 billion budget for Border Patrol in 2010.(2) All of this is federal money going to the oppressor nation to do its thing – oppress.

The essence of what is going on is Amerikans getting paid a lot of money to make sure Amerikans get paid a lot of money. That’s why the border exists and why it must be militarized. If it is not, the masses whose labor value has been stolen and exported to the United $tates would come here to benefit from the fruits of their labor. Without closed borders, we can’t keep the wealth inside.

The NPR report exposes the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an organization of state legislators and powerful corporations that get together to draft and propose laws (see figure above). The companies pay tens of thousands of dollars to attend such meetings with those who make the law. And according to NPR, the number of legislators who sponsored SB1070 was almost unprecedented and 30 out of the 36 received contributions from prison companies or prison lobbyists in the 6 months following SB1070’s passage. Meanwhile, two of Arizona Governor Jan Brewer’s top advisers are former prison lobbyists.(1) All of this makes CCA’s and Sen. Pearce’s denials of corporate influence look silly.

None of this is new to CCA, which was founded in Nashville, Tennessee by former chairman of the state Republican Party, Tom Beasley and his former roomy from the U.$. Military Academy at West Point, Doc Crants. Initial investors included the governor’s wife, Honey Alexander, and the Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives, Ned McWherter.(3) Ever since then, their business model has relied on close political ties just as most military, defense and security business does. Apparently, CCA agrees with MIM(Prisons)’s assessment that migrants are and will continue to be the fastest growing prison population in the United $tates. But while we are fighting this trend, CCA is doing all they can to foster it.

When imperialism reaches the point where the arms of oppression are major sources of profiteering, and the people are dependent on these operations for their paychecks and standards of living (i.e. where oppression and the oppressors’ financial interests become one in the same), we will see the national contradictions within imperialism heighten rapidly. This leads to increased repression both in laws and in actions but also the opportunity for raising consciousness and resistance among the oppressed nations. Even those Latinos who supported imperialist politics had to think twice about the Arizona law as it could impact their persynal safety if they visit that state. The imperialists expose their blatantly chauvinistic goals with these reactionary laws and the alliances that create the laws and it is our responsibility to point out the contradictions and organize against imperialist national oppression.

Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the original Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, once taught that “the purpose of a vanguard group should be to raise the consciousness of the masses through
educational programs and certain physical activities the party will participate in.”

MIM(Prisons) is actively involved, along with several groups and leaders, in the building of a United Front among lumpen in the U$ and has asked the questions, “what makes up the basis for unity among the lumpen?” and “what is the basis for unity between the lumpen and the international proletariat?”

I believe that the basis of unity among prisoners and the lumpen in general is our common oppression. We are all catching hell from a common enemy, that we all come from oppressive conditions - that your community and mine, suffer from the same symptoms caused by U$ imperialism - poverty, despair, mis-education in inferior schools, addictions of various sorts, pigs killing us, etc. This is the premise that I work from in trying to unite, educate and organize with prisoners.

The unity between the lumpen and the international proletariat should be based upon the fact that we all suffer under conditions created by our principal enemy: U$ imperialism. U$ imperialism and the political economy of capitalism are at the root of all the social problems that U$ lumpen and the international proletariat suffer from.

We seek to unite with all poor and oppressed nations and the people who are willing to unite with us around the primary goal of the destruction of U$ imperialism: our principal enemy. It matters not if one is socialist or communist at this time.

The United Front has been seen throughout history to be effective strategically and tactically in revolutionary struggles. Membership in a United Front does not mean that a group loses its independence to pursue its political objectives. It means that we all agree that we should work together against our principal enemy and work with each other on projects which push development of the struggle ahead.

Our analysis should include each of these forces able to reach consensus on the above questions. We should check thoroughly each proposal and the efforts put forth to realize them by the respective forces, the extent to which resources are acquired and how allocated, the level of priority given by each force to the realization of the effort.

Without a United Front our enemies will be able to continue to defeat us and repress our organizing activities. United, our work becomes that much more effective. The more groups involved principally, the stronger our movement will become and the greater our efforts will be in combating national oppression and imperialism.

Let us push forward the struggle by pushing forward the development of the united front. Without struggle, there is no progress.