Page 8-Friday, May 8, 1981-The Michigan Daily Opinion 4 Page 8 The Michigan Daily The Michigan Daily Vol. XCI, No. 3-S Ninety Years of Editorial Freedom Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan sorry legacy DDRESSING THE annual Teamsters' Con- A vention in 1976, president Frank Fitzsim- mons bellowed at his union brothers: "For those who think and those who would say it is time to reform this organization, that it is time that the officers quit selling out the member- ship of this union, I say, 'Go to hell!''' Though he swiftly disavowed his declaration as a tongue-twisted faux pas, Fitzsimmons had nonetheless subliminally defined the course of his tenure as Teamsters boss. At the time of his death Wednesday, both he and his union had largely come to symbolize everything that has gone wrong with the labor movement in America. Like many of his modern day union com- patriots, Fitzsimmons seemed to forget the humble roots he rose from. His reign was, to put it charitably, undistinguished: Though never convicted or indicted for personal wrongdoing, he was conspicuous in his lack of effort to reform a union which had long been em- blematic of graft, corruption, and even murder. Lacking the drive and charisma of his predecessor Jimmy Hoffa, Fitzsimmons presided over a steady, decade-long decline in Teamster membership, as more and more truckers turned in disgust to more radical splinter . groups or away from unionism altogether. None of this seemed to trouble Fitzsimmons, who preferred playing footsie with the fat cats - those of corporate America who were once labor's most bitter enemies, and those of his own kind-corpulent union sovereigns who have come to be almost indistinguishable from the company tycoons sitting opposite them. An ignoble legacy at best. Atlanta's true killers By Manning Marable The murder of any single child is a hideous thing. The systematic execution of about two dozen Black children over the last twenty-one months in Atlanta has struck a deep vein of grief and anger within every Black person in this nation. The response of the federal, state and local governments and white America generally has bheen cynical, at best. First, there has been a conscious attempt to turn the butchery of our children into a nonracial phenomenon. This began about two months ago when many whites began wearinggreen ribbons on their lapels, shirts and blouses. ONCE AGAIN, WHITE liberals and self-appointed "do-gooders" can act self-righteous about the oppression of the Black com- munity without lifting a single finger to halt it. The old slogan, "Some of my best friends are Negroes" has been preempted by the green badge of cowardice, conformity and complacency. The children'smdeaths have provided the government with an opportunity to increase police surveillance and harassment of Black Atlanta residents. In February and March alone, more than 1500 Black youth were detained by police for curfew violations. Police patrols have increased in recent weeks by 33 percent. stBlack children are warned con- stantly by the media, educators, and local officials to distrust any Black adult other than their own parents. Our kids are pressured by a veil of terror and tears, afraid to leave their homes and subconsciously reluctant to trust any Black authority figure. Many of these children will carry this psychological damage for the remainder of their lives. Simultaneously, the white power structure and the Old Guard Negro leadership in Atlan- ta have combined forces to calm the troubled racial waters of discontent. Black mayor Maynard Jackson ordered the suppression of Black residents of Techwood Homes housing project who organized a patrol to protect their children. Four residents were arrested on March 20-Chimurenga Jenga, Gene Fergerson, Modibo Ups whos biit a oself np... Kadaliad Jerm Gbs Jackson condemned the GBask self-defense group as "vigilan- tes" whose activities "will not be tolerated." Police Chief George Napper charged that Techwood residents had been agitated hy "the work of outsiders." SEVERAL POINTS must be made on the Atlanta crisis. The first and foremost observation is that the killings are a direct product of white racism. It does not matter who is actually mur- dering the Black youth of Atlan- ta, Georgia. The climate of white racism and political repression has nurtured the social pathology of the killer or killers. If and when the murderers are caught, whether Black or white, we must still charge the U.S. government, the police, and the politicians with tne crimes against our people. Second, Black demonstrations and marches are needed to illustrate our collective outrage. In New York City, on March 15, about 20,000 people demonstrated in a candlelight march. In San Francisco that same night, hun- dreds attended a protest gathering at the Federal Building. When the Reverend Amos Brown; pastor of Bethel A.M.E. Church asked the crowd "Who's killing the children of Atlanta?" the audience replied: "It's the government! It's the police!" We must understand that Atlanta is not unusual. It is the norm rather than the exception. Weeks ago, a 19 year old Black youth, Michael Donald, was savagely beaten to death and then lynched on a plastic rope by whites. The local white authorities insist that the hanging was not racially motivated. Meanwhile, the murderer(s) of Buffalo's Black men, two of whom were beaten to death and had theirahearts ripped out, is still at large. New York City's white slasher who stabbed Black men on the streets and subways during Christmas remains free. And Ronald Reagan's nightmare budget, with its cutbacks in welfare, jobs, and other critical human services, will kill more black children in the long run than an army of Atlanta mur- derers. We still live in the shadow of death in America. The next Black child to die could be that of our neighbors or friends. The next Black child could be your own. Manning Marable teaches political economy at the African Studies Center at Cornell University. 4 I I Violence no answer 6 SAA<'21E &6cs To the Daily: I had to comment on the letter from Malika a. Mutakabbir dated April 17. The author described his four years at the University, years allegedly tinged with racism. This is cer- tainly a valid contention worthy of airing in print. Yet, Mutakab- bir goes on to say that he can un- derstand, in view of this overt racism, why alleged murderer Leo Kelly, Jr. "reacted the way he did." What nonsense! There is no instance in which murder or education obviously has failed to violence can be rationalized or teach Mutakabbir the process by legitimized. which to vent a grievance against Truly, I feel great pity for an policy or attitudes. Nowhere in individual, who after having this process is there room for a completed four years at the gun, nor a legitimization of a University of Michigan, can violent, senseless act. make such an absurd statement, -Karre L. Slafkin a statement so thoroughly May 7 lacking in thought. A college Letters to the Daily should be typed, triple-spaced, with inch margins. All submissions must be signed by the individual author(s). 40