THE National Union of Students conference in Blackpool last week resolution on priorities for the up the crisis •VIS students.
After a year of lowkev campaigning bv the union on 'student issues', the Left Alliancedominated executive proposed more of the same.
The alliance is a motley crew or communist Party members, Liberals and handful of Labour Party careerists.
THE shooting of Reagan and his aides has once again unleashed a debate on whether or not the USA needs new laws governing the right to carry a gun.
The most vociferous defenders present regulations are the arms' manufacturers and their lobbyists on Capitol Hill.
Those who are for regulations restricting the right to carry a gun are concerned about death and injury; both liberals and reactionaries appear to be equal victims.
But the violence that American society is not impartial.
violence Is te ultimate weapon or the white establishment against the Class allu EliC minorities.
To restrict the right of people to Calv gun would HOL violence but would murders and woundings US city there is a ghetto where one or other racial minority lives, either black or hispanic.
are the worst paid, the most underprivileged ana citizens in American society. Ghetto Everv dav thev are the targets ot racial violence, inspired by the state, entorced by the armed police who are all too often supported by backward white workers.
ine gnelo is a nistory pogroms.
In the early 1920s the USA was swept by a series of terrible riots as whites swept into the black ghettos killing and maiming.
that happening today is the fact that the ghetto is armed and ready to deTena sel.
voted down every union. That of leadership among But at this conference the National Organisation (NOLS) Labour Students began LU DIcaK away Alliance. proposing the Left ting candidates for of the key The NOLS resolution on priorities - Should there be gun laws?
stalks the Organisation building, itself unable and/or unwilling oppressors, the OAAU lead to more ecuci means necessary.
It has a mammoth annual budget to arm its police, its national guard and Their inhabitants its army.
necessary, it unleashes that armoury under-employed against workers and minorities.
Henry Ford could
tional guard and scabs to shoot strikers. In 1970 the national guard gunned down the young students of Kent state university for daring to protest against the war in Vietnam.
The history of of white organising the wren Lae WUIKCIS Teamsters Union thist the cops What stops looked on. In many when the state trooner takes ott his uniform at the end of his shift he recognised that students Can nol be sevaraleo on the rest of society in the fight Tories.
Unfortunately NOLS put forward no proposals ULI how carry out that fight.
The Socialist Students Alliance motion called for the union to lead political campaigns on all the issues affecting students. But every priorities resolution was defeated. Policy will therefore be decided by the new executive.
The UCIU Alliance The assassination of Malcolm X in 1965.
of Afro-American Unity, was: 'In areas where the US government has shown who kill innocent children and adults Minees advocates that the Afro-American people insure ourselves that justice is done - whatever the price and by any The state is never short of arms.
Whenever it thinks it is may need them.
Restricting.
In the 1930s the steel bosses and rely on the natheir own paid down unarmed class.
pickers were poorly paid farmin Caltornia. ther restricts thugs to arm themselves.
ef the southern states Pennington presidential candidate, Dave Aaronovitch, , was reelected - thanks to Tory transfer votes. same thing lappener he Left Alliance executiv No doubt the alliance will now use the two lories on the new executive to retain its slender majority over the increased strength of NOLS and the far left.
The leftward shift of the conference was registered when the Socialist Students Alliance resolution on turther education Among the aims of which he was to bring to justice the racist replaces it with the tunic of the Klu Klux Klan, but he still takes with him his state-issued weapons plus a few more for any Klansmen who the right to bear weapons would not affect any of these people. In fact it would con centrate the guns in their hands. The state would have a monopoly of arms against a disarmed working It would be folly to expect the state to protect workers and racial minorities against violence. This is wny we are agallist any the right of the working class and its black and hispanic allies Readers are asked to send in details of news, events, etc that they think coula he used in Lowdown. Forward 1o Bob Socialist Challenge, PO Box 50, London N1 2XP colleges was passed. This called for priority to given to mobilising students at these colleges against the Tories' education cuts.
Shift The political shift wa also evident the creased votes for the SSA first preference votes in all the executive elections, compared to 190 to votes or the ce a arce and for Socialisi Workers Vincent Organisation (SWSO).
There was considerable interest in Ireland at the conterence. A letter trom a student on hunger strike in the H Blocks was read to conterence.
Donaldson, an SSA Queens SUDDUrICI University, successfully siooa on al anti-imperialist platform to be one of three NUS delegates to a European summit of student unions. Moves Right-wing to overturn the union's polof allowing wullcuonly meetings WCIO defeated.
There were guest speakers from the Nev Cross Massacre Action Committee, the National H Block/Armagh Committee, Lee Jeans the El Salvadoran FDR.
The conference refused mayor, insisting instead on a speaker from aucs Coumith education cuts moves by and further Tory students to break up the it is not surprising that the Left Alliance's compromise politics are pressure left.
The Socialist Students Alliance will be fighting for the maximum left unity especially NOLS and SWSO porters, to make NUS a • union that campaigns in the interests of students and the labour movement against the Tory governHOCHE
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strike Greenock