****************************************************************** People's Tribune (Online Edition) Vol. 19 No. 49 / December 7, 1992 P.O. Box 3524, Chicago, IL 60654 Email: jdav@igc.org ****************************************************************** +----------------------------------------------------------------+ JUDGE SAYS HOMELESS HAVE RIGHTS, TOO! Like all American cities, Miami is hard on the homeless. Thousands of people there are forced to live without a roof over their heads in places like Bicentennial Park and the "Mud Flats" under Interstate 395. The police arrest the homeless daily just because they are living as homeless must in this failing economy. Now a federal judge in Miami has come up with a new way for the city to handle the crisis. Judge C. Clyde Atkins recently ordered Miami to set up "safe zones" where the homeless can go without fear of arrest. Some say this may lead other cities and states to stop hounding the homeless with vagrancy, begging and curfew laws. Some say Atkins is the first judge to say the homeless should be left alone by the authorities. Safe zones are a step in the right direction from the standpoint of defending the constitutional rights of the homeless. But our efforts should continue to house the homeless in the 11 million empty houses. For more, see our editorial, story 1. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ INDEX to the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE (Online Edition) Vol. 19 No. 49 / December 7, 1992 Editorial 1. WE HAVE A RIGHT TO HOUSING News 2. LAPD: JUDGE, JURY, EXECUTIONER! COPS SLAUGHTER 18-YEAR-OLD 3. CONVICTION OF MALICE GREEN'S KILLERS IS A MUST! 4. STOP THE PERSECUTION OF YVETTE SMITH! LET HER GO! 5. WOMEN FIGHT FOR THEIR FAMILIES, PROTEST BUDGET CUTS 6. MOM STANDS UP TO GOVERNMENT LIES 7. FLINT, MICHIGAN'S TENT CITY NO. 3 SALUTES THE VETERANS Focus on Money 8. WHERE IS THE MONEY? WHO'S GOT THE MONEY? HOW DO WE GET IT? Culture 9. ZOOM BLACK MAGIC RADIO DEMANDS SUPPORT FOR NAPOLEON WILLIAMS Columns and features 10. DEADLY FORCE: MIDNIGHT ENCOUNTER #2 11. WHY ARE WE POOR? THE REAL UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION II 12. PT AWARDS: THANKS FOR YOUR BEST! 13. ABOUT THE PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE ****************************************************************** 1. EDITORIAL: WE HAVE A RIGHT TO HOUSING If we needed more proof that this system is used up and has to be replaced, Federal District Court Judge C. Clyde Atkins gave it to us the other day. On November 16, Atkins ruled that the city of Miami must create "safe zones" where Miami's estimated 6,000 homeless can eat, sleep, bathe and cook without fear of arrest. There were some positive things in Atkins' ruling. He criticized city officials for the "custom and practice of driving the homeless from public places," and he said that "arresting the homeless for harmless, involuntary, life-sustaining acts" violated the Constitution. But the judge's ruling was more significant for what it _couldn't_ say. He _didn't_ say that the homeless _have a right to have homes!_ He didn't ask the obvious question: Why are these people homeless? After all, how could he? As a federal judge, his job is to defend the system. And in the past year or so, the ruling class that runs this system has been laying workers off their jobs at the rate of about 1,500 to 2,500 a day. Most of these layoffs are permanent. U.S. companies are getting "leaner and meaner" so they can compete. And workers without jobs can't buy or rent housing. Thus millions are homeless, while more than 11 million housing units stand vacant. So Atkins couldn't very well declare that the homeless have a right to housing. Such a ruling would threaten the very foundations of the system he is sworn to defend. For the judge to simply call for "safe zones" does two things: it legitimizes homelessness, and it effectively creates outdoor prisons (the zones) for the homeless, since they would remain subject to police harassment outside the zones. The crime is not simply police harassment of the homeless, but homelessness itself. While the billionaires wallow in wealth, the workers who created the wealth sleep in the streets. For those who are in the streets and those who are one step behind them -- and that includes millions of us -- there is only one acceptable outcome to the struggle: housing for all who need it, regardless of ability to pay. ****************************************************************** 2. LAPD: JUDGE, JURY, EXECUTIONER! Cops slaughter Efrain Santos Lopez, 18 PACOIMA, California -- "They didn't have to shoot him. You don't do a dog like that," said Willie Thorns, a resident of the Pacoima neighborhood where 18-year-old Efrain Santos Lopez was shot to death by the LAPD on November 11. Once again that well-oiled "killing machine", the Los Angeles Police Department claimed yet another victim. What was Lopez' crime? Clad only in socks, underwear and a bloody tank top, Lopez was confronted by two LAPD officers who had been called to his residence due to a domestic dispute. Lopez was acting strangely, according to his mother, so she had decided to call the police to help subdue him. Instead, they murdered him and she regrets making the call. The police claim the shooting was justified due to the fact that Lopez was wielding a "deadly weapon" -- and what was this weapon? A common, ordinary household broom. Swinging the broomstick like a baseball bat, Lopez was confronted by two officers from the notorious Foothill Division -- the same division responsible for the Rodney King beating. Lopez kept yelling, "Shoot me. Kill me." Obviously, this young man was in need of some professional mental health intervention. Instead, the police, armed with mace, metal billyclubs and guns decided to be Lopez' judge, jury and executioner and pumped nine bullets into his body, five in the chest. Audry Daigle, a 25-year resident of the neighborhood where the shooting took place put this incident in its proper perspective when she said, "If they shoot somebody with a stick, next thing they could shoot somebody who had nothing." The investigation into the shooting could take up to a maximum of two months. Will Los Angeles' new police chief, Willie Williams, who has promised reform, justify this recent shooting? If he does, then it will be a clear signal that it is still "business as usual" for the LAPD. ****************************************************************** 3. CONVICTION OF MALICE GREEN'S KILLERS IS A MUST! But is it enough? DETROIT -- The Detroit Police officer officers involved in the brutal murder of Malice Green should be given a fair and speedy trial and get the maximum sentence and punishment. However, is it enough? Will the citizens of Detroit let Mayor Coleman Young and the local power structure claim victory by leading us to believe that the judicial system works and they are in control? The force behind the need to bring justice is the power of many people to create a thundering resolution of their demands. It is against this background that Mayor Young and Police Chief Stanley Knox denounced the police officers and suspended them without pay. In addition, some city leaders and the press are propagandizing that Detroit is more progressive than Los Angeles and that the public's belief in Detroit's leaders stymies any L.A. type of motion. For example, the media is putting out stories of harmonious police-community relations. There are cynical attempts to focus attention on the Detroit Police Officers Association's defense of the police officers. The DPOA claims the killer cops can't get a fair trial in Detroit. It has led to the funeral being held in a large church outside Malice Green's neighborhood, attended by "city leaders" and where the call of racism and fair trial dominated the speeches. These actions attempt to lull the Detroiters to sleep while attempting to reassure them that the city leadership and police department have everything under control. What does the murder of Malice Green really signify? It shows that the role of the police is to protect private property and especially to keep the growing numbers of unemployed and restless workers under control. Mr. Green was an unemployed worker who was murdered by white officers, not a sound was heard from the Mayor's office or city leadership when another unemployed black man was shot in the head by black officers while lying face-down on the ground. In addition, there have been countless numbers of police brutality cases throughout the city's areas of joblessness and propertylessness. The development of electronics has forced businesses and industries to cut back their work forces in order to maintain profits. This has caused thousands of workers to become permanent victims. In addition, in Michigan under Governor John Engler and across the United States under presidents Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George Bush welfare and unemployment benefits were cut and General Assistance was eliminated. If this was not enough, employers and health care providers began to eliminate many plans while increasing the cost one would have to pay for the remaining services. This form of oppression and exploitation has left millions of people in disarray and without resources. The ruling leaders use the police to occupy areas and attempt to beat down any form of resistance. Consequently, the same Mayor Young, Chief Knox and local ruling leaders who are so outraged about Mr. Green's killing are the very same people who ordered the assault on homeless, unemployed workers who tried to set up tents in which to live. It is the same Mayor and city administration that adamantly and forcefully told its city workers they would have to take concessions as well as the layoffs. It is the same administration that yielded to the blackmail demands of tax breaks from Chrysler, Strohs, Hudson's Wonder Bakery, etc. These companies received tax breaks and left the city anyway, leaving behind thousands of unemployed workers and homeless. There have been and will be more Malice Greens if we do not attack the fundamental problems giving rise to these conditions. The Police Department has always been an occupying force in minority communities. However the difference is that the fight for reforms such as better housing, schools, jobs, etc., sees the police department being utilized to quell unrest regarding these fights for reforms. Today, the economic crisis is forcing minorities in particular, and millions of whites in general into the streets. The struggle today is for survival and against the conditions giving rise to this state of affairs. This has been a far more revealing concern for the power structure and they must be stopped. It is imperative that the development of an independent organization ready to fight against conditions that are forcing most of us in a struggle for survival. An organization that takes the lead in combating the supporters of a system that allows a few to get wealthier while the broad majority are further impoverished. Our first call is to understand that we must not be lulled to sleep in spite of a conviction and sentencing and punishment of these police officers. However, the more difficult battle is against the conditions that exist and they must be met with resolute and forthright struggle to place the tools that will guarantee food, shelter, clothing in the hands of the toiling masses. ****************************************************************** 4. STOP THE PERSECUTION OF YVETTE SMITH! LET HER GO! Tell it to the judge! SAN FRANCISCO -- [The following letter was submitted and signed by six Bay Area organizations.] Dear People's Tribune: We are writing to ask your readers to come to the defense of Yvette Smith, an African-American mother of five who is facing time in a California state prison for welfare fraud. She is the first San Francisco welfare recipient accused of welfare fraud in 13 years to take her case to trial. She has endured two trials (the first resulted in a hung jury) and constant harassment from the District Attorney's office and the Department of Social Service's fraud investigators. They have threatened her neighbors, watched her house, followed her children to school, and, before any conviction, they told her children's teachers, her mother's and her husband's employers that Smith, "has stolen money from the government." On December 4, 1992, she is to appear before Judge Paul Alvarado in Superior Court for sentencing. This case is not only about Yvette. It is about justice for the thousands of women who are today being prosecuted in the same way, whose rights are being violated, who are denied the right of due process. It is about justice for all poor people, who are being blamed and persecuted for what is now the "crime" of being poor. It is about all of us, struggling to keep our lives and families together, who oppose jail cells and more police as the solution to poverty. We demand justice! We need jobs that pay a decent wage, affordable housing, child care, education, and health care. We demand an end to welfare fraud prosecutions and the open terror against those on the streets. There isn't much time. Please write to Judge Paul Alvarado, Department #19, Superior Court, City Hall, San Francisco, California 94102 or FAX (415) 554-7278. Tell him to send the county a message that it can no longer use the police and the courts as a solution to the homelessness, hunger and family dissolution that we face everyday in our struggle just to survive. Demand that the judgment be thrown out and that Yvette be released from any financial liability. Letters and faxes should be received by the court no later than December 3. Sincerely, SF Low-Income Support Network, Victims No More, Women's Economic Agenda Project, SF Homeless Task Force, Coalition on Homelessness and the Homeless Veterans Action Committee. For more information, call the SF Low-Income Support Network at 415-661-3771. ****************************************************************** 5. LATINA, AFRICAN-AMERICAN, ANGLO WOMEN FIGHT FOR THEIR FAMILIES, PROTEST BUDGET CUTS By Carmen Alvarez EAST LOS ANGELES, California -- Last October 19, a group of Latina, African-American and Anglo women gathered at the Public Social Services building in East Los Angeles to protest the budget cuts proposed by California Governor Pete Wilson. Contrary to what the media machine is telling us about the racial conflicts that exist between Latinos and Blacks, this group of women has staged protests in different parts of the city, united like sisters suffering from the same injustice and the same poverty. Black women, Latina women, walking arm-in-arm to fight against those who make decisions without considering that thousands of children will be left without milk and medical attention. At this protest, an older woman denounced what she was suffering from due to the cuts. "I don't have anyone else here," she said. "I'm 80 years old and I am very sick so I can't work. "My health and my life are threatened, because in a short while I won't be able to receive the medical attention I need, and the money they give me is not enough to pay my rent. "This means that I will be thrown out in the street. I ask and demand the Governor to respond: What is a poor old woman like me supposed to do?" ****************************************************************** 6. MOM STANDS UP TO GOVERNMENT LIES By Holly Goodwin CHICAGO -- I'm a former welfare mother, off-and-on for about 10 years. I want to try to break down the stereotyped, preconceived notions and propaganda about welfare women for those who don't know the real lowdown. Yes, we're low-income, but not low-life women as the government and news media would have the population believe. They would like everyone to believe that single mothers are loose women, women without morals or family values. So where does that leave the welfare mother? At the bottom of the totem pole, that's where, to be used as a scapegoat for the financial ills of the country. Why, don't you know that we're the cause of the Savings and Loan failure? The government uses women on welfare as an excuse for the budget deficit. Instead of blaming us, I say send some low-income welfare mothers to Washington to show the president and Congress how to balance a budget. Take an average single mom on welfare in the state of Illinois. She has two children and receives a grant of $367, monthly, and around $262 to $282 in food stamps. From this she must pay rent, utilities, laundry and pay for household items such as toilet paper, soap, shampoo, etc., plus clothe the children. You might ask, why not get a job? Well, where's the affordable child care? It's virtually impossible to find dependable child care or affordable child care, especially when you start a job at 5 or 6 in the morning or during split shifts or night shifts that are available for a minimum wage. Even if we could support ourselves and our children on $5 to $7 an hour, AFDC recipient lose their health benefits shortly after they become employed, so we can't afford to take our children to the doctor. All across the country thousands of women are finding themselves in the same situation. Pressed into job-training programs that are punitive and intrusive, they don't address the root problems of poverty. Once finished with these job-training programs, we often don't find jobs. States are spending millions of dollars on ineffective job-training, where there are no jobs. Why not take this money and put it into some kind of program that will help us and not hinder us? For example, if a welfare mother is working at a minimum wage job, instead of penalizing her and cutting off all monies and health benefits, subsidize her enough to at least bring her up to a poverty level income. As things stand now, we are way below the poverty level. That's one of the reasons I decided to join and help form with other low-income people the Chicago Welfare Rights Union. We don't need professional advocates to speak up for us, to say what needs to be done or to be our mouthpieces. There are thousands of women who are on welfare, women who can fight for their rights as single low-income mothers. Who better to represent us than we, ourselves, who are living this way day in and day out? ****************************************************************** 7. FLINT, MICHIGAN'S TENT CITY NO. 3 SALUTES THE VETERANS FLINT, Michigan -- On November 11, Tent City No. 3 in Flint saluted the veterans. Here is that message. We of Tent City are here to honor the veterans today. This gathering is to let one and all of you know that you are not forgotten by the people of this nation. Our organization represents the homeless. There are thousands of veterans who are poor as well as homeless. In fact, one-third of us who are homeless are veterans. We honor those here and pay homage to our veterans that are not able to join us today. To the families of veterans, we recall a portion of a song from the Isley Brothers, "Ballad for the Fallen Soldier." When I was much younger My mother and I wondered when My Daddy was coming home So we called our Congressman and he said "Don't worry, there is more than just your Daddy that is missing in the war..." Many of our families recall the fear and anxiety of waiting for loved ones to come home. Thousands of our Veterans put their lives on the line in a foreign land, the jungles of Vietnam or in a desert storm only to come home to a "death sentence" through poverty and police terror. We of Tent City No. 3 are committed to build a society worthy of your service. One free of unemployment, homelessness, and lack of health care. We honor you and invite you to join us in our fight -- the fight for survival. Never forget! Never Surrender! ****************************************************************** 8. WHERE IS THE MONEY? WHO'S GOT THE MONEY? HOW DO WE GET IT? By Bruce E. Parry, Ph.D. Where is the money? Every time the working class needs money, the government and business -- the capitalist class -- say there isn't any. Is that true? Is all the money gone? Don't we have any social wealth left to provide homes for the homeless, food for our children, to rebuild the schools, to provide the sick with medical care? Of course we have the wealth. The question, then, is "Where is it? Where is the money?" WHO'S GOT THE MONEY "Where is the money?" In the hands of the capitalist class: big business and the billionaires who own those businesses. In the hands of the Rockefellers, the Waltons, the Mellons, the Bill Gateses, the Trumps, the Pritzkers and their ilk. And it's in the hands of the governments that work for them. There is plenty of money out there. We are capable, with modern technology, of feeding and housing and caring for everyone, not only in this country, but in the world. * It's in the military budget, which is still about half of the federal budget -- about $500 billion -- each and every year. That's where the money is! * And it's in the S&L bailout. One Congressman has estimated that the bailout will wind up costing us $1.4 trillion over the next 50 years. That's where the money is! * And it's in the banks. The federal government has a debt of over $3 trillion -- about $12,000 for every man, woman and child in the U.S. -- owed to banks, foreign governments, rich individuals, insurance companies, pension funds and other bond holders. That's where the money is! * And it's in the state and local governments. Sears held up the state of Illinois recently. They said they'd leave the state if the state didn't fork up. The state forked up a whopping $178 million. That's where the money is! * And it's in the hands of the rich and the corporations they own. There are 101 billionaires in the U.S. and more than 6 million homeless. The richest 2 million people own more than 225 million Americans. That's where the money is! HOW DO WE GET IT? --> Bring back the 95 percent tax bracket for everyone making over $100,000! --> Tax all corporate profits! The government has stopped taxing those with the money -- the rich and the corporations -- in the name of profits and economic investment. That's why the federal government and state and local governments are going into debt. They refuse to tax the folks with the money. Then they take the money they get from the workers and distribute it to the capitalists! That's what it means when we hear all the talk about "reducing the top tax brackets" and "eliminating the capital gains tax." --> Eliminate the "labor gains tax!" --> Jobs at a livable wage for everyone! No tax on any money made by honest labor! Make the capitalists pay the taxes and then make the governments spend the taxes on the majority -- the working class. ****************************************************************** 9. ZOOM BLACK MAGIC RADIO DEMANDS SUPPORT FOR NAPOLEON WILLIAMS "Napoleon's case will be used as a precedent..." LOS ANGELES -- At the November 15 Mau Mau Rhythm Collective Rap Conference in Oakland, the People's Tribune interviewed Black Rose and Mr. Ebony. They are the founders of the Fresno-based Zoom Black Magic unlicensed radio network. People's Tribune.: Napoleon Williams, the operator of Liberation Radio in Decatur, Illinois, was recently sentenced to three years in prison on trumped-up charges. Have you ever met Napoleon? Mr. Ebony: Yes, last year in Chicago we met with Napoleon, his wife Mildred, and their daughter Unique Dream. I was very impressed with Napoleon and his commitment to the community. Black Rose: Napoleon dealt with issues no one else would deal with, including so-called "voices of the black community." Napoleon, by speaking out in his community, inspired others to speak out in their community. Mr. Ebony: He has always had an "open mike" policy, which is unheard of at mainstream radio. He was definitely arrested because he runs an unlicensed radio station. P.T.: What has Zoom Black Magic done recently? Black Rose: A couple of weeks ago in Los Angeles, we worked with Ice Cube to help him break his new album, The Predator. It was definitely not going to get any airplay because of censorship. So we did a clandestine broadcast of the record. Mr. Ebony: Ice Cube was forced to use unlicensed radio. Even though music and culture do not a revolution make, it does carry the spirit of the people when it speaks out against the monstrous inequities of this society. There is no other medium in this country by which that opinion is going to be aired. P.T.: Do you see a connection between the censorship of Ice Cube and the three-year prison sentence given to Napoleon Williams? Mr. Ebony: What happened to Napoleon Williams is happening at all levels of the entertainment industry. There are artists who have been arrested at their concerts, young people who have bought records and then the store owner is arrested. It's a clear message across the board: Our voice will not be tolerated. If we allow ourselves to be scared into silence, Napoleon's case will be used as a precedent to shut up everyone speaking about truth and unity. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Napoleon Williams, operator of Decatur, Illinois Liberation Radio was sentenced Nov. 13 to three years in the penitentiary on false charges of assault on an officer and criminal trespass. He is out on bond, pending an appeal. For more information call: 217-422- 3710. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ ****************************************************************** 10. DEADLY FORCE: MIDNIGHT ENCOUNTER #2 +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "Deadly Force" is a weekly column dedicated to exposing the scope of police terror in the United States. We open our pages to you, the front line fighters against brutality and deadly force. Send us eyewitness accounts, clippings, press releases, appeals for support, letters, photos, opinions and all other information relating to this life and death fight. Send them to People's Tribune, P.O. Box 3524, Chicago, Ill. 60654, or call (312) 486- 3551. +----------------------------------------------------------------+ By Jack Hirschman SAN FRANCISCO -- Turning onto Mission Street from 18th Street, I see cop standing, I figure, harassing two hookers across street near bus stop; walk across to wait for Bus, they standing nearby, not two hookers at all, the long haired one's a guy holding skateboard, the cop standing close to woman. #4 Bus is coming. Suddenly, cop yanks her arm back behind -- -Owwww! -- -and begins applying cuff to wrist as she shouts out in pain, "Police brutality! Police brutality!" Passengers in Bus rush to windows. Inside ten seconds three copcars vroom up, male and female cops jumping out all over corner, sirens and blinking reds in full ego flap. Her boyfriend, and I as well, are yelling, "Let her go, she didn't do anything!" Arresting cop pushes him away, tells me to back off. She's in cuffs now, them saying she has a warrant, she's yelling she doesn't and please don't take her to jail, and (to her boyfriend) call her mother. And us yelling to the other cops, "The arresting officer really did attack her when she was doing nothing but standing there!" A Black woman and her guy come strolling along and she hmmphs hearing cops saying the other woman had a warrant, that there was all them cops for just one woman with warrant. One of the cops scoffs at her sarcasm imitating her drawl in such a way you feel you're listening to a Klansman. They hand-to-head stuff the cuffed woman into copcar and drive off. One of the other cops tries explaining it's their right to cuff suspect once check has been run and it's found she has warrant (she denied she had warrant). I ask name of arresting officer and repeat it to her boyfriend. Cuffing with violent armtwist when prisoner has shown no violence, these days especially after L.A. ...The other cops drive off. I ask boyfriend what originally happened. "Nothing," he says. "We were just crossing Mission St. when he stopped us, for doing nothing." I ask his name, he gives it to me, says they'll probably just cite her out but would I be witness to the violence if she felt she has to go further. I say Of course, and give him my number in case he needs to call me about the case. There's a sense that that Has to be done, what's really out of control is the law itself, that that cop's violence has been backed by a gang acquitting him of it in name of real gang law. Another Bus coming. We shake hands, have sense we'll fight together if it comes to that down the road. ****************************************************************** 11. WHY ARE WE POOR? (REGULAR COLUMN) THE REAL UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION II By Bruce E. Parry, Ph.D. The number of people actually unemployed in any year is about _double_ the unemployment rate (see chart). The unemployment rate has recently been published as 7.5 percent. For African-Americans, it is 13.7 percent. For Latinos, 11.9 percent. But the number of people who have been unemployed, on average, for 1991 was 15 percent. For African-Americans, it is 21.9 percent. For Latinos, 21.8 percent. What's the difference? Why is it that the number who have been unemployed is approximately _double_ the unemployment rate? Because the unemployment rate only counts those who were unemployed _during a specific week_ (the week the survey to count unemployed was taken). Thus, the number of people who were unemployed during the month, but not unemployed at the time of the survey, is about twice as many. The government doesn't count them. This is just one more way the government diverts our attention from how bad unemployment is. ****************************************************************** 12. PT AWARDS: THANKS FOR YOUR BEST! The staff of the People's Tribune would like to thank everyone who has supported the P.T. this year. To those who submitted articles, poems, letters, essays, editorials, photos, cartoons, drawings and ideas, we thank you. You make the P.T. a great paper. To those of you who sold the P.T., who raised money and who gave financial support, we thank you. You make the P.T. possible. Most importantly, to each of you who got the P.T. and who support what we are doing, we thank you. The People's Tribune is your paper. With so many people to thank, it was almost impossible to decide on the following recognition awards: Best Distributor: Jack Hirschman, San Francisco A world-class poet, revolutionary and internationalist, Jack routinely sells over 100 P.T.s a week everywhere he goes. Best Article: Jitu Sadiki, Los Angeles >From the streets of L.A., with the force of the rebellion itself, his words clarified the meaning of the rebellion. Best Photo: Jean Weisinger, San Francisco A photographer and painter whose work spans the world. From the front lines of the battle for justice, political photos that captured the militancy and revolutionary spirit that swept the country in the wake of the L.A. Rebellion. Best Poem: Rev. Ronald Schupp, Chicago Rev. Ron is a well-known minister who works on behalf of the poor and homeless. For his poem protesting Illinois budget cuts and for being the initiator of the "People's Poetry" page. Best Correspondent: Jan Lightfoot, Maine For covering events in New England, sharing the experience and insight of all the key struggles. THANKS FOR YOUR BEST! THEY GAVE THEIR BEST, IT'S UP TO YOU TO GIVE THE REST. The holiday season is upon us. Please include the People's Tribune in your giving. Your donations are needed for continued success. ****************************************************************** 13. ABOUT THE PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE The PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE is a weekly national communist paper published in Chicago since 1974. The purpose of the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE is to prove that the capitalist class is unfit to rule. The capitalist class cannot assure the basic necessities of life for the working class within the capitalist system. This system must be overthrown, and the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE is leading that fight. Join us! Editor: Laura Garcia Publisher: Lenny Brody To help support the production and distribution of the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE, please send donations, letters, articles, photos, graphics and requests for information, subscriptions and bundles of papers to: PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE P.O. Box 3524 Chicago, IL 60654 Respond via e-mail to jdav@igc.org GETTING THE PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE IN PRINT The PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE is available at many locations nationwide. One year subscriptions $25 ($35 institutions), bulk orders of 5 or more 15 cents each, single copies 25 cents. Contact PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE, P. O. Box 3524, Chicago, Illinois 60654, tel. (312) 486- 3551. WRITING FOR THE PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE We want your story in the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE. Send it in! Articles should be shorter than 300 words, written to be easily understood, and signed. (Use a pen name if you prefer.) Include a phone number for questions. Contact PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE, P. O. Box 3524, Chicago, IL 60654, tel. (312) 486-3551. ****************************************************************** We encourage reproduction and use of all articles except those copyrighted. Please credit the PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE. The PEOPLE'S TRIBUNE depends on donations from its readers -- your generosity is appreciated. ******************************************************************