A special election is being held for the 9th Congressional District in Massachusetts left vacant by the death of Joseph Moakley, a Democrat.

Satter was placed on the ballot August 29 by state officials after supporters of his campaign submitted 4,100 signatures, well over the requirement of 2,000 signatures of registered voters.

In a news release announcing he had qualified for ballot status, Satter explained he is launching the campaign "at a time when the Israeli state is on an accelerated war drive to try to crush the resistance of the Palestinian people and deny them their right to self-determination in their own land. None of this could happen without Washington's backing. This includes supplying military hardware to Tel Aviv, such as the Apache helicopter gunship used in the cold-blooded assassination of Palestinian leader Abu Ali Mustafa as he was at work in his study."

Satter, 30, is a meat packer and participant in a drive to organize his workplace, Kayem Foods, into the United Food and Commercial Workers union. He joined six Democrats and a Republicans who are vying for the congressional seat at the debate, which drew more than 150 people.

The event was sponsored by Citizens for Participation in Political Action and a number of organizations critical of some aspects of U.S. foreign policy.

In the first question, candidates were asked where they stood on "Plan Colombia," which involves massive U.S. military aid to Bogota under the guise of the "war on drugs." Several Democratic contenders replied saying they favored the "intent" of the program, but opposed it because it isn't really working.

Satter blasted "Plan Colombia," explaining that the "war on drugs" both at home and abroad is aimed at the rights of working people. "It has meant a huge increase in the prison population in the United States, where there are now more than 2 million people behind bars," he said. The expanding U.S. military presence in South America is aimed at the workers and peasants of Colombia and Latin America. "Instead, working people can fight for canceling the massive and unpayable debt owed by semicolonial countries to banks in the imperialist countries. We can demand an end to deportations by the immigration cops and equal rights for immigrants," he said. "Where I work an organizing drive is being led by immigrant workers."

Replying to candidates who said Washington needed to deploy an antimissile system to protect the United States from "rogue nations," Satter pointed out, "We must never forget that the one government that used nuclear weapons against human beings was the United States. One of the most heinous crimes against humanity was the dropping of the atomic bombs on the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We need to take away the war-making power of the imperialists and replace their government with one of workers and farmers."

Opponents of Washington's embargo against Cuba asked the candidates about their position on this centerpiece of U.S. policy. They explained they were looking for a candidate who will carry on "Congressman Moakley's legacy" of opposition to the embargo. Moakley was one of a handful of capitalist politicians who see lifting the embargo as a way to hasten the restoration of capitalism to the island under U.S. domination.

Many of the liberal Democrats said they opposed the embargo against Cuba because it "hasn't worked," meaning it has not overturned the revolution that took place more than 40 years ago. Satter, on the other hand, said he sees the Cuban Revolution as an example for workers and farmers the world over and opposes the embargo and the travel restrictions to Cuba because "workers and farmers in the U.S. can learn from the Cubans. We can learn that revolution is possible." Satter pointed out that Washington initiated the embargo in the early 1960s in response to the deepening land reform carried out by the revolution that gave land to the peasants for the first time and other measures that benefited working people."

One of the largest ovations of the night came when Satter, answering a question from the floor, called for the U.S. Navy to get out of the Puerto Rican island of Vieques.

After the debate Satter was interviewed by a local radio station and a community newspaper.

On September 1, Satter attended a Labor Day barbeque here hosted by members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association on the 100th day of their strike against Brockton Hospital. The nurses have been fighting forced overtime and understaffing. A tentative agreement has been reached between the union and the hospital. The nurses have taken down their picket line in anticipation of a settlement of the dispute, but will not return to work until the offer is ratified.

Ted Leonard is a meat packer in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Andrea Morell and Sarah Ullman contributed to this article.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home