A call to action

Emergency meeting to oppose water shutoffs in Detroit

2 September 2014

The Socialist Equality Party and the Detroit Workers Action Committee are calling an emergency public meeting September 9 at Wayne State University in Detroit to mobilize the working class throughout the Detroit area against water shutoffs.

On August 26, following a temporary “pause,” the city resumed shutting off hundreds of workers and retirees every day from one of the most basic necessities of modern life: running water. This cruel and criminal policy reveals the essence of the entire bankruptcy process. Essential services are being eliminated, jobs cut, wages and benefits slashed and public assets sold off—all to benefit the banks and corporate executives that run Detroit.

The bankruptcy of Detroit is a conspiracy against the entire working class. It involves the emergency manager and the courts, which are overseeing the “plan of adjustment”; the city council, which has given its stamp of approval; the Obama administration, which has endorsed the process; and the trade unions, which seek to advance their own interests at the expense of the workers they claim to represent. Both Democrats and Republicans see the transformation of Detroit as a model for similar measures throughout the country.

The working class must unite on the basis of a program to defend its interests. City workers, teachers, auto workers, service workers, the unemployed, retirees and young people—all have a common interest in opposing the dictates of the corporate and financial aristocracy. The ruling class claims that there is no money for the basic rights of workers, even as endless resources are funneled into the banks and the military-intelligence-police apparatus of war and repression.

The SEP and the Detroit Workers Action Committee have called this meeting to plan immediate actions to oppose water shutoffs and discuss the broader political perspective required to fight back.

Make plans to attend today! Organize delegations from your school and workplace!

Meeting details:

Tuesday, September 9, 7 p.m.

Wayne State University, State Hall, Room 101

5143 Cass Avenue, Detroit

Map

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