A key strategist in many militant anti-war movements
By Sara Flounders
Sam Marcy was an intransigent opponent of imperialist war. He explained weekly that imperialism needs war, thrives on war, its industries are kept alive by giant military contracts. Yet capitalism’s very reliance on militarism is proof of its chronic instability—and will be its undoing.
At the first hint of a new imperialist offensive, he would call an emergency meeting. He would insist that a leaflet be written in simple language to explain the crisis to the workers. He would urge his comrades to look for all possible allies who would be able to stand up to the media barrage.
Sam was the key strategist in the most militant acts of resistance by youths and GIs in the anti-Vietnam-War movement. He first proposed the massive 1981 march on the Pentagon.
He gave the closest attention to actions in defense of the Palestinian people. He wrote and organized around the defense of Korea, Libya, Yugoslavia, Lebanon, Panama, Cuba and Iran.
Seven years ago, the movement against the U.S. war on Iraq had his daily attention. When the International Action Center was founded, he thought it was very important to support its work.
Just how powerful is the weapon of international solidarity in today’s world?
Consider what happened just two weeks ago.
The U.S. ruling class was determined to devastate Iraq. They announced it to the world and proclaimed it in the United Nations. Madeleine Albright said they needed no one’s approval. They would strike alone, if need be. Woe to any small country that resisted.
No nation seemed more isolated, outcast, outlawed than Iraq. It had been laid waste by 110,000 air sorties seven years earlier. Now the Pentagon would terrorize the world again by demonstrating its unlimited power.
But they had not calculated the depth of mass opposition. In the Middle East, it was so great that U.S. client states in the region feared collapse. And they hadn’t anticipated the firestorm that exploded right here in the United States.
The International Action Center was a rallying point for this opposition world wide. There were more than 300 demonstrations and protests, covering every major city and university in the U.S.
The U.S. war against Iraq is where the imperialist guns are pointed. It’s where we have to be.
In the spirit of Sam Marcy, we must never forget that class consciousness and international solidarity are our greatest, our most powerful weapons. They really can stop the Pentagon dead in its tracks.