MIM Notes No. 197	 December 1, 1999

Arabs harassed during Michigan vote

by MIM

Thirty-two Arab residents of Hamtramck, Michigan have filed complaints 
with the state's Bureau of Elections arguing that their rights were 
violated while voting on Election Tuesday in November.(1) Only four days 
later, presidential candidates seeking support presented modified 
imperialist pleas for votes to Detroit area Arabs.(2)

Hamtramck, part of the Detroit metro area, is known for its historically 
labor aristocrat Polish and European-descended population. In recent 
years the increase in Yugoslavian, Albanian, Asian and Arab proportion 
of the population has pushed Hamtramck to label itself a diverse multi-
cultural enclave. There are about 300,000 Arab-descended nationals in 
the Detroit area, the largest concentrated Arab population outside of 
the Middle East.

The week's events portrayed well the contradiction of oppressed nations 
within Amerika. On the one hand, white reactionaries act out the 
national chauvinism that stems from the imperialist system. On the other 
hand, both local and federal politicians vie for the support of the 
growing population and praise the assimilation of new immigrants who've 
found their 'place' in Amerikkkan society. All this in the context of 
imperialist military and economic attacks against Arabs around the world 
and the "Flying while Arab" harassment of Arabs traveling in the U.$.

White-nation chauvinists from the group Citizens for a Better Hamtramck 
harassed about 60 Arab and Asian voters. The leader of Citizens for a 
Better Hamtramck is quoted as saying: "Some people couldn't speak 
English, some people didn't know their own address. Some people didn't 
know their own birthday, for God's sake. I mean, are these not 
clues?"(1)

Challengers are legally allowed to question a person's eligibility to 
vote if they have "good reason." Citizens for a Better Hamtramck 
apparently think that deterring Arab representation in politics is a 
good reason. The election conflict reflects the fact that Arabs in 
Hamtramck are gaining some political representation in local politics 
and this is pissing off whitey.

MIM urges readers not to vote because there is little difference between 
imperialist 1 and imperialist 2. It is the entire Amerikan system that 
parasitically represses and exploits the world's majority. 

An increasing number of vocal organizations have developed to call for 
the end to sanctions against Iraq, profiling for harassment at airports 
and to minimize other manifestations of Amerikan chauvinism. Many of 
these organizations spend their time courting white nation politicians 
in the hopes that they will represent the interests of the oppressed on 
one or two issues. But MIM urges all progressives working to end 
sanctions and other forms of oppression to analyze the root causes of 
that oppression and build revolution to fundamentally uproot 
imperialism. 

Progressives should learn from the lessons of progressive protests in 
decades past. Mass organizations arise to address single issues, they 
court politicians to side on the issue and then that one small 
manifestation of imperialism might be altered. We unite with those 
fighting against sanctions, but remind everyone that once the sanctions 
are lifted, Amerika still continues its bombings and repression, moving 
on to other Third World targets.

Displaying the non-existent difference between imperialist politicians, 
presidential candidates (or their spokespersyns) addressed groups in 
Dearborn, Michigan on Saturday November 6. Each praised Arab groups for 
assimilating well into Amerika. Gore said of the on-going war against 
the people of Iraq: "We still don't feel it's a confrontation between 
peoples."(2) Despite the deaths of 600,000 Iraqis during the Clinton 
administration alone and approximately 5-7000 deaths of Iraqi children 
per month as a result of sanctions, Gore has the gall to say that he 
will work for the interests of Arabs in Amerika. Bradley's spokespersyn 
said that "Support for Israel does not assume hostility to the Arab 
countries."(2) The Republican candidates were no different. McCain said 
that he supported the arming of Iraqi opposition groups against Saddam 
Hussein. He also criticized the Hezbollah.(3)

Amerikan politicians act as the representatives of the majority of 
Amerikans who support Third World exploitation and imperialist 
militarism. Lobbying politicians to go against the interests of 
imperialism can sometimes help win small battles on individual issues. 
However, if these campaigns do not recognize that the call for the end 
of sanctions or other imperialist tools of oppression are inadequate 
reforms to a fundamentally flawed system, the imperialist system will 
continue to grow and merely find another title for their next 
exploitation campaign. 

Enclaves of Arab-descended nationals in the u.$. are much like Puerto 
Ricans on the island who have been given small kickbacks from the u.$. 
The u.$. gives rewards to such groups to encourage assimilation and 
thwart revolutionary organization. MIM urges Arabs to get what they can 
from the imperialists while building proletarian leadership capable of 
fighting u.$. imperialism entire.

Notes: 1. http://www.freep.com/news/locway /vote6_19991106.htm. 2. 
http://www.freep.com/ news/statewire/sw228_19991106.ht. 3. http:// 
hotnews.mlive.com/cgi-free /getstory.cgi?g6243_AM_MI--Candidates-
ArabCo&ML&news&michnews