Revolutionaries rally in San Francisco as Amerikan fascism grows On October 27, African People's Solidarity Committee(APSC) hosted a march and rally in San Francisco featuring many revolutionary speakers and hip hop artists including Boots Riley of the Coup and M-1 of Dead Prez. Penny Hess of the APSC gave an excellent in depth presentation on the U$ role in the current war and how amerikans, particularly whites fit in. She was clear that the majority of people are living on less than a $1 a day because amerikans control the vast majority of the world's resources; allowing the amerikan minority to enjoy the lifestyles that they do. Looking at history, she discussed how white people lynched and stole land in the early years of this country and it was never just the government acting alone. The United $tates has a long history of exploitation and genocide. Therefore MIM joins her in condemning the flying of the amerikan flag whether the United $tates is engaged in a one-sided hot war as it is now in Afghanistan or if it is in a so- called peace time where exploitation of the Third World is running more smoothly and people are dying quieter deaths. As a speaker from the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee noted, as many people die every month in Iraq due to U.$.-led sanctions as died in the World Trade Center attack. Omali Yeshitela of the African People's Socialist Party (APSP) also provided a good line on the amerikan nation while discussing the anti-war movement during the Vietnam War which brought many white's into the battle for peace who would not support the revolutionary movements of Blacks and Chicanos in the U$. Now those same people are a little older and wealthier and are fully behind the bombing of Afghanistan. While the war has brought out the internationalism in Yeshitela, MIM has strong criticisms of the APSP's disregard for Third World struggles and historical experiences. The APSP tends to see the Black nation as the most revolutionary force, ignoring the benefits it reaps by living within U.$. borders, compared to the oppressed in much of the rest of the world (see MIM Theory 8 for an in depth review of the APSP). Everyone at the rally seemed to agree that the U.$. attacks on Afghanistan are a prime example of why the World Trade Center and the Pentagon especially were attacked. Omali Yeshitela talked about how Bush came into office with a war cabinet stacked with generals and former defense officials. The events of September 11 only gave Bush the ideal excuse to launch huge military operations across the globe. In October U.$. military personal visited the Philippines to begin the "struggle against terrorism" there. One Filipino speaker said that the target of the "anti-terrorist" efforts, Abu Sayyaf, is very similar to Al Qaeda in that it was formed and funded by the CIA and the illegitimate government of the Philippines but was never fully aligned with either and hence has turned into an independent force. The speaker expressed concern that the U.$. involvement will crack down on the genuine revolutionary forces in the country, which do not engage in random kidnappings and murders as Abu Sayyaf does. The Communist Party of the Philippines has been leading one of the most successful modern People's Wars in the world already requiring the government to seek huge military aid from the United $tates. While Bush was a favorite target of the event, one rapper pointed out that Bush is just one man and it is the economic system that is the real enemy, which is right on point. While we can criticize Bush all day, no presidential election can eliminate the built in necessity for war within capitalism. Only the overthrow of that system can provide the opportunity for the evolution for a peaceful world. This rally occurred in the midst of a rising tide of fascism within the United $tates. The president had just signed the Patriot Act into effect which gives the police, FBI and CIA expanded powers to spy on and control the u.s. populace. MIM was collecting signatures to oppose this legislation while distributing a statement exposing the repressive measures it includes. People MIM approached were eager to read our analysis of the Patriot Act and supportive of the petition effort but generally fearful that nothing can be done to stop this expansion of the government's repressive powers. MIM agrees that our petition is not likely to lead to changes in the legislation or in the supreme court implementation, but it is important to build public opinion against this and future repressive legislation. And our petition efforts are combined with education and work organizing the people to fight these attacks on supposedly guaranteed civil liberties. Later, one MC from the hip hop group Renaissance reminded the audience of Executive Order 10995 which gives the government authority to take over all radio and other media to encourage U$ interests in times of emergency. Exective Orders such as this give the government authority to more or less ignore the Constitution and enact fascist restrictions at will. MIM will continue to rally opposition to this tide of repression as we organize to oppose U$ aggression abroad.