THROUGHOUT THE WEEK 'ghetto'. tions, explained where the real divisiveness comes ty,' she said. 'But the real apartheid that exists is an all-white parliament, councils, and a nearly all-white conference.' debate on black sections on the party and on black people.
THE settling after the comassault on Partv of the of Wednesday particular, have blacks nothing with the The politically differently.
tions, advanced country most other or abstained, secHions must have got if not ency votes. Diane Abbott, moving one of the resolu'We're accused of creating apartheid in the paran all-white NEC, all-white MIKE WONGSAM assesses the impact of the This is in a situation Where come ence confirmed that racism is alive and kicking in the where campaigning has only just started in the unions, and where only 26 constituency black sections yet exist.
It is not usual for issues like the self-organisation of the oppressed to even get on to the agenda of a come ene after only a year of campaigning and discussion In this sense then the black sections' lobby must be seen as an unqualified success, a great moral vicalthough the first skirmish was lost. acente point is that black selfIs now much on the agenda, black sections will grow in the coming year, and there are many more skirmishes to come.
But the greatest moral victory was the flimsiness the opposition's arguments exposed to the whole black community on national television.
After the case for black sections had been persuasively put, the union bureaucracy ed out its real 'token The carnival of reaction was led by the EETPU which led out its first ever Dwayneaker closely followed by Militant stool pigeons. But they didn't seem to realise the irony of their position.
The fact that the opDOSIROT only black speakers in the debate is had powerful argument for the black section. Once th argument that only black people are really qualified to speak on black oppression is accepted, then the main argument has already been won.
Similarly filthiest arguments put against the hack section that they 'assume blacks are not capable of taking their rightful place in the party'. This without explaining have been self-evidently unable to take that place in the past.
The argument of the Luton South delegate, that black sections would start tidal Wave black segregation throughout the labour movement, flew in the face the experience of the biggest atpeople at a Labour Party conAlongside this high atphoto: JOHN STURROCK (Report, galvanised by the black section debate tendance by black people, also saw the emergence of a new layer of black activists in party, who are destined to play large rebuildin a new Labour ference delegate Elaine 3 deiste, did in this this debate, in this alone naked rightism was sufficient to squash the left • on Diack sections. This despite the opposition was so weak in arguments and disproved is own cas through its actions. Not the Labour Party conference! This year saw the biggest attendance ever of black people at conference — There point at which opposition takes on a particularly putrid stench, and in this case it was the intervention of Militant that evinced most disgust.
The blacks pleading young pleading with the bureaucrats to deny black people right organise be most memory Militant's black youth will have gone home configood job work. But hopefully they will only find that they have helped the left understand Militant's real role in this issue more clearly • as a left cover for reaction in the party.
As such Militant is an Black Sections Yes!
A Socialist Action pamphlet. Price 40p (plus 17p pap), from PO Box 50 London NI Labour needs black sections, with by Russell Profitt Ben Bosquet, and others...
Black Sections Here to Stay: the Vauxhall Experience A Vauxhall Labour Party pamphlet Price 35p (plus 17p p&p), from 1 Alverstone House, London SEII STS. Produced by Vauxhall members as a contribuThe resolutel COnDUSIL 40, moved by Ron Tod -was also passed by conference on show of hands. It retained these commitments and speller out that cutting military spending must be a priori during the lifetime of the next Labour government.
CND has its part to play. Il nas adopica lit anti-Trident campaign as a priority.
The arguments against Trident have always cluded the economic and social consequences of defence spending both here Third World. They are not the only arguments, but they do relate to the lives of or dinary workers. Without them the military establishment can find alternatives and continue the phonership con me with capitalist state Under Neil Kinnock, the has already stated it will • transfer the Trident money to more conventional arms does not tell voters country already spends more than any other in Europe on defence twice the average of the obstacle to sweeping away all that is rotten and stink. ing in the labour movement.
Ne lost and gained i his first skirmisi Black sections are here to stay. tion to the debate on black sections and how to set them up...
spending cripples the increases Fenner Post all must basic Trident must be 1021 invested ing directly We also egies sooner cạn have peaceful future. speaker at conference said: war is a class issue and workers have to unite together to demand peace.
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conference the Militant denounced the black section for being "divisive', for taking black people into a
Black sections