ON 8 MAY one of the most important local government elections will take place in the Bruce Grove ward in Haringey — the ward that covers the Broadwater Farm police took place on 6 October last year. MARTHA OSAMOR is one of the Labour Party candidates for the ward. • Haringey council, and Vince Gillespie.
campaign in the media, and an equally racist local campaign by the Tories. LARRY HERMAN asked Martha Osamor about the campaign. WHAT are the issues in this election?
housing.
There no doubt that local people need and want better housing. But above all blacks suffer racism.
Since last October, Bernie Grant has been the object of an intense and vicious media attack. has that affected the campaign?
I support Bernie and it is an asset that he is standing. He is supported by the black community and among those whites who have had brushes with the law — and, also, among those whites who understand that we want our own leaders.
The press can't keep saying 'Bernie, Bernie! when its an attack on all of us. The media not only attacks Bernie Grant, but the whole community. The way they talk about Grant is the way they talk about all black people.
What support are you getting from whites?
THE LABOUR Party Black Section calls for an imEstate where an uprising against the The others are Bernie Grant, leader of Grant has been the subject of a vicious racist As blacks we welcome allies. Anyone who supports our demands is an alBut when the whites backed off - as many of them did after the uprising on the Farm last October - then they are not allies.
Some workers mobilised in a reactionary way against us after 6 October People move when their interests threatened when defend yourselves the establishment puts pressure on you. We're not saying 'throw stones every day', but we want everyone's support when we move. When we move and they don't support us they are not our allies Outside of Tottenham and the black community wilere las your stronges support come from? Blacks have been screaming years everything we've said over the years is coming to be.
saw this with the the 1UW printers. As I said earlier, when you defend yourBernie Grant: vicious racist attacks from Tories selves then the establishment puts pressure on you.
Our respect for the miners come from the days of the Grunwick strike.
We've areas many times. The the kind of working class we look up to and want.
What sort of election campaign has it been so far?
We've been going to many community meetings and talking to many people on the doorstep The res ponse has made us hopeful of victory.
The Tories have waged an overtly racist cam paign. individuals from the National Fron and other fascist groups have joined the Tory Party JOI more respectability and their tradition is being taken into the Conservative Party.
The local Tories are attacking gypsies in the area; but this is a cover for tacks on black people. The Tories say: "send the gyp sies out, but they don't say where they will be sent.
The Tories don't talk about immigration laws because these laws are as tight as they can be. They just say 'get them out', 'the day after the election we will get them out'. And they are talking about us of course. Do black people in Broadwater Farm see the Labour Party as an ally?
Many black people, not in the Labour Party, come along and help us in the campaign. They are looking for supporters - any way of organising against their oppression. But the Labour Party should not The Black Section will act as a conduit for taking our problem into the Party as a whole.
The Black Section will not be 'a dumping ground', but for organisation as with the Women's Section and the Youth Section.