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TO SAVE OUR NATION

by ANGELA DAVIS

In support of the people's right to know, and recognizing the unequal treatment accorded non-Establishment political views by the U.S. media, we present below a statement by the Communist Party's candidate for the Vice-Presidency of the United States and the co-chairperson of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

THREE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS AGO - it was the summer of 1968 - I applied for membership in the Communist Party.  Charlene Mitchell, whose lucid vision and exemplary leadership in the Los Angeles black community had convinced me to take that step, was the Party's presidential candidate.  As an active supporter of the Charlene Mitchell-Mike Zagarell campaign, I became a passionate participant in electoral politics for the very first time in my life.
  During that era, black people unanimously rejected Richard Nixon's program, and they were profoundly disappointed when Hubert Humphrey - the Democratic "alternative" - appeared strangely unwilling to address the pressing needs of our community.  As one of those many millions of Black people who had become disillusioned with the traditional two-party system, I personally felt invigorated and inspired by the radical message of the Communist candidates.
  The disgraceful record of both major parties over the last 12 years has confirmed the lesson many of us learned at that time: Neither the Republicans nor the Democrats are capable of providing honest representation for people of color or for the working class as a whole.  In 1980, it has become more apparent than ever that these two par-ties are fundamentally committed to the monopoly corporations and to the racism which nourishes big business's exploitative drive for profits.  And in 1980, it has also become more apparent than ever that the principle of the Communist Party's campaign - People Before Profits - contains the only real hope for our people's and our country's future.
  As Gus Hall, the Party's General Secretary, conducts his third presidential campaign, I feel extremely honored to be his running mate.  Together, we are attempting to articulate the needs and aspirations of this nation's abandoned majority - all those who desperately desire more jobs, decent wages and healthy working conditions, those who look forward to a peaceful future based on racial and sexual equality.

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---------- Reopened for Editing 2024-02-26 13:52:48