https://www.investigaction.net/en/turn-the-guns-around-interview-with-john-catalinotto-part-1/

Author and socialist activist John Catalinotto granted an exclusive interview to Investig’Action to talk about his new book, “Turn the Guns Around”. We discuss the resistance to the Vietnam War from within the US army and historical soldier revolts that were decisive in revolutionary uprisings, turning “a weapon of oppression into a tool for human liberation”, and what progressive forces can learn from this.

(First part of the interview with John Catalinotto. For the second part see here)

You have published a new book, “Turn the Guns Around”. Can you give us a general idea of what it’s about?

“Turn the Guns Around” is a history, and it’s a history in two ways. In one way it’s a history of the period between 1962 and 1975, when the US was carrying out a colonial and anti-communist war against the Vietnamese people. And during that war, a movement that was opposed to war, that was opposed to racism, grew up within the US armed forces. This caused an enormous amount of problems for the Pentagon and for the officers of the military. It forced them to really change a lot their policies. This movement played a role in the victory (defeat from the US government’s perspective) in Vietnam. Of course the greatest sacrifice and the greatest struggle was waged by the Vietnamese people themselves, but the opposition inside the US military played a role in that final victory.

The other way is that I brought up other historical events where movements inside the military led to actual political or social revolutions, or combinations of those, which included the Paris Commune, the two Russian Revolutions of 1917, the revolt of the German North Sea Fleet in 1918 and the revolt inside the Portuguese military in 1974. And I did that in order to provide for new generations of activists in the United States an understanding of what the capitalist state is, and of the relationship between the military and the state. So it’s a history that combines those two ideas.

There was a well-known opposition to the Vietnam war in “civilian” contexts (e.g. University campuses), but you explore a lot the opposition from inside the army, for instance the American Servicemen’s Union (ASU). Can explain how it came about and what it did?

The opposition was first seen on the campuses, with organizations like Students for Democratic Society. But these were all people of the same age as the young men in the US military. And all the youth rebellion, the antagonism between generations, the struggles that took place, especially the struggle of the Black Liberation Movement of the mid to late 1960s, all of those spread to the military too. They were not separate from it. You could argue that the military was more concentrated working class, whereas on campus you had people from more privileged sectors of society. But the situation in the United States was much more economically secure for people in those days, even for the working class.

But the opposition began to show, with individuals in the military in 1966 and 1967, and it immediately spread. And the ASU, which is what our political tendency (1) organized, and which played a very big role in the GI movement, was not all that there was either. There was a very broad, spontaneous movement. There also was a movement of people who set up what they called “coffee-houses” near military bases, where GIs could come and get away from the military discipline. All this was going on at the same time. The ASU, as a union inside the military, had a special role, because even though it was called a union, it was an organization that had its own structure, and therefore was in competition with the chain of command of the military. The military depends upon its chain of command, and on the low-ranking soldiers going out to fight and die. Or fight and win, they hope. But in order to function, the military needs to have that kind of discipline. If they have a different organization that is representing the soldiers then it’s a competition for the state.

Two examples from the ASU newspaper “The Bond”. The speaker on the right in the right picture is John Catalinotto

How should we understand this competition?

You should see it as a class struggle that takes place inside the army. If the ASU has the loyalty of the mass of the troops, they can stop the battle. In some places, some units of the US military did refuse to go into battle. And this can also be seen by the composition of the movement. It had some individual officers, who were war opponents, but the ASU was made almost entirely of privates, low-sergeants, etc. There were no professional soldiers and no officers.

What were the consequences/reprisals against the ASU and everyone else inside the army who opposed the war?

Right, because it wasn’t just the ASU that was picked on. Anybody who did any act of dissent might get severe punishment. But the punishment was not systematic in all places. A lot would depend upon the general in charge of the military base in question. It also changed during the course of the war. For example, there were two young men who gave out leaflets calling for a union, I think it was the end of 1967, or beginning of 1968. And they got 3-5 years in prison. Other people, a couple of years later, punched their officer, and they got a month in the stockade before getting thrown out. It varied, and it depended on the timing a lot. Because once you got to 1971-72, the army’s way and the military’s way of handling dissidents was more to try and get them out, rather than try to punish them.

By then there was a lot of pressure on the Pentagon…

Yes, indeed. The war was tremendously unpopular among the civilian population by that time, 1971. And the government of the US was beginning to wind down the ground war from the point of view of the number of US troops. They were pulling troops out of Vietnam, so they no longer needed to feed bodies over there. So the troops would come home from the war, and they might have 3 or 4 months left in their military service that they were supposed to serve in the US, but the military would cut them out early. Because if they kept them around the base, they would cause problems for the officers and spread their anti-officer attitudes to the new recruits.

In 1968 a group of black soldiers at Fort Hood refused riot duty. John Catalinotto and the ASU helped organise their defence. (Photo by Ellen Catalinotto)

You also mentioned that there was an intertwining between the anti-war movement and the black liberation movement. There was this famous case of Ali refusing the draft. Can you talk a bit about that?

Ali had a big impact on the soldiers. This was in April 1967, the same month that Martin Luther King made his first anti-war speech, then Ali refused the draft. It had a big impact throughout. It had a big impact on the young man (who happened to be white) who was the leader of the ASU, Andy Stapp. It had a bigger impact even on the black population, who in general were more opposed to the war than the whites were at the beginning, but everyone was after a while. But also, black people were directly involved in a struggle for their rights in the United States. There were rebellions going on in the major U.S. cities. And the most exciting organization was the Black Panther Party, which partly got its reputation because they carried guns in a demonstration in Sacramento, California and they confronted the racist police. So a lot of Black veterans of the military, and Vietnam in particular, looked towards the Black Panther Party as something that they might want to join.

One of the elements that you gather in the book are letters from GIs. What do they show?

The ASU put out a monthly newspaper of 4 pages, sometimes 8, called The Bond. And 1 or 2 pages would be of letters from GIs. And it was always the most popular segment of the paper. I’ve picked out three of them and I’ll read you some excerpts, I think they will give you an idea. I published about 80 or 90 in the book, we published about 1200 in the course of the life of the ASU, and we must have received 10 times as much. It used to be the most exciting part of my day, running over from my job during lunch hour to see what kind of letters had come in! And these letters also show how the situation is evolving in Vietnam:

Letter from a Vietnam GI (source: “Turn the Guns Around”)

Now this second one is interesting because the 196th was once on the frontpage of the New York Daily News as being a unit where 60 troops refused to go into the field when they were ordered to.

Letter from a Vietnam GI (source: “Turn the Guns Around”)

There’s one more, a rather short one, it shows you even another kind of progression:

Letter from a Vietnam GI (source: “Turn the Guns Around”)

Notes:

(1) The Workers World Party, a revolutionary socialist party formed in 1959 that has consistently fought against imperialism and for the liberation of oppressed peoples, both in the US and around the world.

John Catalinotto has been active in anti-imperialist politics since the October Missile Crisis in 1962. From 1967 to 1970 he was the political organizer for Workers World Party in the staff of the American Servicemen’s Union. Since 1982, he has been managing editor of Workers World, the last pro-communist newspaper still published weekly in print in the USA. He was a co-organizer of the Yugoslavia War Crimes Tribunal in New York in June 2000 and the Iraq War Crimes Tribunal in New York in 2004, both with the International Action Center, a U.S.-based organization founded by Human Rights activist Ramsey Clark. Before Turn the Guns Around he had edited and contributed to two books, Metal of Dishonor (about depleted uranium) and Hidden Agenda: the U.S.-NATO Takeover of Yugoslavia.

Cover photo: Protest of the American Servicemen’s Union

Source: Investig’Action

Washington’s economic war on Russia (and Germany)

In February, President Joe Biden made it clear that the U.S./NATO military escalation in Europe was not about Ukraine. Since taking office in 2021, President Biden has been more focused on Germany and Russia, in […]
Read on »

Dr. Maryse Narcisse

Joel Edouard “Pacha” Vorbe

Saturday, April 30th11AM-1PM Pacific Time/2PM-4PM Eastern Time

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Endorsers:

Advancing the Research, Africans Deserve Reparations, Africa Today/KPFA, All African People’s Revolutionary Party, African Children’s Advanced Learning Center, ANSWER Coalition-SF Bay Area, Anti Police-Terror Project, Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC), Avotcja KPOO, BAYAN-USA, Bay Area Youth Arts, Black Cultural Zone, Caminante Cultural Foundation, Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, Center for Political Education, Chiapas Support Committee, Code Pink, Communist Workers League, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, Ecumenical Peace Institute, End Solitary Santa Cruz County, Flashpoints/KPFA, Four Nations, Freedom Archives, Global Exchange, Global Women’s Strike, Hastings to Haiti Partnership, Hard Knock Radio/KPFA, International Action Center, John George Democratic Club, Justice Vanguard, Kemet Foundation, Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, Mandela Grocery Co-Op, Marcus Books, Massachusetts Peace Action, National Lawyers Guild – International Committee, National Lawyers Guild-SF, New Afrikan People’s Organization (NAPO), NorCal TPS Coalition, Pan Afrikan People’s Organization, PayDay Men’s Network, Peace & Freedom Party of Santa Cruz County, Peninsula Peace and Justice Center, People’s Eye Photography, People’s Alliance Bay Area, Priority Africa Network, San Francisco Bay View, San Francisco Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines, Sojourner Truth – Pacifica Radio, Task Force on the Americas, Venceremos Brigade – Bay Area, Venceremos Brigade – National, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) East Bay, CA Branch; Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) San Francisco, CA Branch; Women’s International League for Peace & Freedom (WILPF) Santa Cruz, CA Branch; Women of Color in the Global Women’s Strike, Workers World Party

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Haiti Action Committee

PO Box 2040

Berkeley,CA 94702

Sign the Mayday declaration against NATO’s proxy imperialist war on Russia – Class-Conscious (classconscious.org)

Liga Communista and classconscious.org have launched an appeal for groups and individuals to sign an open letter to be published on May Day 2022 against the imperialist NATO proxy war against Russia in Ukraine and for the right of Russia to defend itself against imperialist encroachment.

The open letter hopes to build on the momentum of the panel initiated by the two groups held on March 26^th “Marxists speak out against the conflict between Russia and imperialism”.  

As the imperialist offensive deepens in Ukraine and the drive towards WW3 accelerates, it is an essential political task for anti-imperialist forces to also deepen our collaboration. We must work together to build the socialist leadership of a genuinely anti-war movement that is built upon the twin goals of fighting imperialism and building socialism.

To sign the letter please send an email to: ClassConscious@protonmail.com or

emancipacaotrabalho@gmail.com

Some of the groups involved in the March 26th panel are putting out a call for joint actions on May Day through marching in a united front style bloc together at May Day marches. This is a separate political initiative. To join this initiative please email mayday2022@protonmail.com .

OPEN LETTER FOR MAYDAY

On May Day, the international day of solidarity of the workers of the world, the following groups and individuals proclaim our united opposition to the greatest threat to the global working class: imperialist war. We declare our refusal to accommodate ourselves to the war drive of world imperialism against Russia.  We hoist on our banners today the following:

• Down with NATO’s proxy imperialist war in Ukraine!

• for the right of Russia to defend itself against imperialist encroachment!

Those on the Left who seek to emulate the propaganda of the ruling class by reducing this global conflict to a national struggle for Ukrainian “self-determination” ignore the following:

Although Russia has been a capitalist state since 1991 it is not an imperialist power in its own right. Imperialism is more than when one state employs military force against another. Imperialism is a stage of capitalism represented by the dominance of finance capital. Russia is not part of the “imperialist club” but a relatively backward, dependent capitalist economy. 

The military operation of Russia in Ukraine is a desperate effort to stop it from being used as a spearhead in the long held plans of western imperialism to turn Russia into a semi-colony to loot its vast internal resources. Ukraine’s integration into the NATO war machine was well advanced before Russia launched its defensive military operation. Russia faced the prospect of its entire western border becoming part of the NATO alliance and a staging ground for the deployment of advanced weaponry, including nuclear weapons, missile defence systems and troops aimed squarely at Russia. 

The 2014 Maidan Coup led by fascist shock troops on the ground and guided by US imperialism, installed an effective puppet government in Kiev. Since the coup this government has not only been a direct tool of US imperialism, but has violently suppressed all Leftists, ethnic Russians, and other minorities. The repression provoked a bloody civil war in Ukraine as residents of the Donbass established the Peoples Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk to defend themselves from the violently Russophobic Kiev regime and its fascist attack dogs.

This is why we reject the policy of “revolutionary defeatism” being advocated by many centrist Marxist tendencies. It is not enough to just oppose NATO intervention in Ukraine. Opposition to imperialism means extending support to those in it directly in its cross hairs. This means offering support to both the Peoples Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk and to the Russian state. Russia has the right to defend its sovereignty by militarily force against imperialism’s proxy war. 

We are also committed to the genuine independence of Ukraine. However this cannot be achieved under the aegis of an imperialist war alliance that is using Ukraine as pawn.

We oppose the proxy war in Ukraine because it is part of imperialism’s drive to World War 3.  The efforts to subordinate Russia through sanctions, war and regime change, are part of US imperialism’s ever more reckless efforts to maintain its global hegemony and reverse its economic decline against both its imperialist rivals in Europe and rising China. The rivalries are fuelled by the ongoing capitalist economic crisis deepened by the Covid19 pandemic. A NATO victory in Ukraine would not lead to peace but only advance imperialism’s war plans against China. 

A war between NATO and its allies against either Russia or China risks wiping out billions of lives in a nuclear war and unleashing horrors that would dwarf the worst infernos of the 20^th century. 

On May Day we recommit ourselves not only to resistance to imperialism but to building an independent movement of the working class internationally to overthrow capitalism through world socialist revolution. The signing and sharing of this statement on May Day is aimed at starting to rebuild concrete links between the genuinely anti-imperialist Marxist forces as part of this process. 

The struggle against imperialism must be forged into a struggle against the capitalist system and all the capitalist ruling classes! War will only truly end when there are no more nation states or classes!

Workers of the world unite!

[English Below]

Nuestras comunidades se están levantando! Acompáñenos a esta huelga de 2 días para demostrarle a los políticos y a las corporaciones que nuestra economía no puede funcionar sin nuestro trabajo. ¡Nuestro poder está en nuestra unidad!

**Domingo 1 de Mayo a las 11 a.m. en Milwaukee

Marcha desde las oficinas nuevas de Voces en 733 W. Historic Mitchell St hasta la oficina del Senador Ron Johnson

**Lunes, 2 de Mayo a las 11 a.m. en Madison en el Capitolio Estatal

Día de manifestación y cabildeo estatal para restaurar las licencias de conducir para inmigrantes

Debido a que el Congreso no ha pasado una reforma migratoria, hacemos el llamado al:

Presidente Biden a:
-Abolir 287g
-Poner fin a los centros de detención con fines de lucro
-Respetar los derechos de los solicitantes de asilo
-Dar Perdón presidencial para todos los inmigrantes
– Expandir TPS

A los Republicanos de Wisconsin a:
-Parar de bloquear las Licencias de conducir para todos
– Parar de bloquear equidad matricularia para inmigrantes

A las familias trabajadoras de Wisconsin que se organicen para:
-Quitar al Senador Ron Johnson de su puesto
-Re-elegir al Gobernador Tony Evers

Ver más información en: https://vdlfa.org/mayo22/

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Our communities are rising up! Join us for an escalated 2 day strike to show politicians and corporations that our economy cannot run without our labor. Our power is in our unity!

**Sunday, May 1 at 11am march in Milwaukee

March from New Voces office at 733 W. Historic Mitchell St to Senator Ron Johnson’s office

**Monday, May 2 at 11am Lobby Day in Madison at State Capitol

Statewide Rally and State Lobby Day to restore state driver licenses for immigrants

In the absence of Congress passing immigration reform, we call on

President Biden to:

– Abolish 287g
– End for-profit detention centers
– Respect the rights of asylum seekers at our border
– Presidential pardon for all immigrants
-Expand Temporary Protected Status

Wisconsin Republicans to:

-Stop blocking Driver licenses for all! -Stop blocking in-state tuition equality for immigrants

Wisconsin working families to organize to:

– Vote out US Senator Ron Johnson
– Re-elect Governor Tony Evers

Find more information in:
https://vdlfa.org/mayo22/

https://fb.me/e/1srThhWk7

Event by The Wisconsin Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call For Moral Revival

Have questions about the June 18th Mass Poor People’s & Low Wage Workers’ Assembly and Moral March on Washington? Join us in this virtual space for more info on traveling to D.C. + ask any questions you may have!

RSVP for Zoom link: http://tinyurl.com/june18thqa

https://fb.me/e/1Jb7preV5

Event by The Wisconsin Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call For Moral Revival

Join us as we recognize Workers’ Memorial Day with a presentation from local PPC member Sonia Kurhajetz on the history and importance of this day, and the need to continue the fight for workers’ rights and strong safety and health protections in the workplace.

We’ll also discuss additional education and outreach plans for the Poor People’s Campaign in Dane County, and share information and answer questions about June 18th’s Poor People’s and Low-Wage Workers’ Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls!

RSVP by emailing us at: ppcdaneco@gmail.com
The Zoom link will be sent a few days before the meeting to those who RSVP.

Forward Together!

https://fb.me/e/2y81pJxaj

Event by SEIU Healthcare Wisconsin

NOTE: This event is for UW Health employees only

WHEN: Wednesday, May 4 at 5 pm and 8 pm

WHERE: Madison Labor Temple
1602 S Park St. Room 201

Let’s all gather together to plan the actions it will take to get UW Health to recognize our union NOW. With our union, we can win long term solutions for safe staffing, nurse retention and quality care!