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ARKANSAS
Addition to Day 1 & 2 report: In scouting out locations on Thursday, we came across the Mexican consulate, which was buzzing with over 100 undocumented workers. We stood outside talking to people and distributing out literature. We then went inside the consulate to find a completely packed waiting room. We gave everyone the Vote PSL edition of Liberation newspaper. Within minutes, nearly the entire waiting room was holding up Liberation, reading diligently. Many expressed thanks that our campaign not only called for full legalization, but that we cared to reach out to those who could not vote.
On Saturday, we started in the morning at the University of Arkansas – Little Rock to try to access the student housing and academic building. We knew the campus would be dead that day, but we could make sure everyone on campus would see our materials. By both finding ways to sneak in, and by talking students into supporting our outreach efforts to give us access to building, we were able to cover all of the student dorms with Vote PSL materials, with palm cards on every door. The academic buildings were just as successfully covered. We met a student who offered to help distribute materials, and took a stack of palm cards to give out that night.
Because college campuses were dead because over the weekend, we decided to target shopping centers for outreach.
We first did outreach at a local Walmart. While half the team put palm cards on all cars in the parking lot, the other half tabled at the main entrance. With heavy foot traffic, we received an overwhelmingly positive response–especially from the Walmart workers, who were very interested in discussing our program. Most of the people who took the Vote PSL edition of Liberation newspaper were actually Walmart workers, not shoppers.
We eventually got kicked off of Walmart property, then went to the major Little Rock mall. There we covered hundreds of cars in the parking lot with palm cards while a team went inside the mall for outreach.
After covering the mall, we went to a Target shopping center and repeated the strategy–one team hitting cars, the other doing outreach at the doors. Once we were kicked off of that property, we went to a second nearby Walmart, where we had the same experience as before, but were able to hold on a lot longer before getting kicked off.
After the mall, Target and two Walmarts, we found another major shopping center to do the same. There we talked to an African American worker, with his young son, who started a conversation about voting for Obama. Being in an area with a history of being an epicenter of the civil rights movement, our program of struggle was extremely appealing. When we explained that our campaign was about pointing out that change doesn’t come through elections, but a peoples’ movement, he was quickly won over. He looked at his young son and said “I want a better world for him,” and said he would vote for the PSL ticket.
In between hitting the major shopping centers, we hit some other interesting locations.
We thought it would be worthwhile to visit Little Rock Central High School, the first school to be desegregated in the South. There we talked to several high school students who were touring the campus. It was an amazing place to do outreach, continuing the legacy of struggling for justice and equality.
Near the high school an African American church was holding a harvest festival, where we visited and talked with people there about the campaign. There were many young girls who became extremely excited by the fact that our candidate was a young Black woman.
We also tabled at the Little Rock Cornbread Festival, a community event with lots of food and music. We received a warm reception. Several people we talked to expressed that they were not even planning on voting, but now they would because they had a candidate to vote for.
We also met people at the Cornbread Festival who recognized us from outreach on previous days. All of them were excited to talk to us again, and were eager to recommend other places for us to do outreach. We learned about other great opportunities in the coming days.
We were also able to meet a reporter from the local community radio station, who was very excited about our campaign and is planning on having us on for an hour-long show on Monday evening, a key slot prior to the election.
CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles
Comrades in LA launched a final outreach push for the PSL presidential campaign on Friday evening. Comrades Gisela, Donna and Danielle gave out hundreds of campaign palm cards and “Seize the Banks!” campaign pamphlets near the busy Vermont/Wilshire metro station during rush hour. Many people wanted to learn more about the campaign and also took “Vote Socialist” issues of Liberation newspaper. On Saturday, three teams hit the streets with campaign literature, taking thousands of palm cards all over Los Angeles. Comrades Wil and Seth gave out hundreds of palm cards and pamphlets in Echo Park and downtown. Comrades Donna and Abraham gave out hundreds more on the subway in the afternoon, and comrades Sarah and Andrew covered metro stops from North Hollywood to downtown and Little Tokyo. In just one day, we gave out several thousand palm cards to working people all over the city.
San Francisco
Starting on Friday, Nov.’2nd at 7am, comrades took several hundred palm cards and door hangers and went door to door throughout the Mission neighborhood. On Saturday, Comrades set up a table with campaign literature and information about our upcoming branch meeting at the local farmers market that has hundreds of multinational workers attending. We distributed flyers and palm cards to the crowd and left palm cards on the windshields of dozens of cars. After the farmers’ market, we went to distribute more door hangers throughout the Mission neighborhood.
COLORADO
There are three main metropolitan areas in Colorado—Boulder, Denver and Colorado Springs running in a straight line north to south. Our team plans on hitting all three areas at least once.
We began our first day in Longmont, the most working class city in Boulder County. We set up a table and canopy at a farmers market during lunch time hours. Comrades saturated the market with leaflets and engaged in many conversations from the literature table. The market was mostly white and middle class liberals. It was not a very receptive crowd overall, although there were exceptions. Among them, one young man who refused to take a leaflet after initially passing by our table, passed by several more times, and finally approached us as we were getting ready to leave, wanting to know more about the party’s campaign and activism. He is representative of a greater number of young people here that don’t trust or feel any loyalty to the two mainstream parties, but who are isolated from any movement. The campaigns ability to find and make contact with people like this is why we’re here.
Wanting to locate a more working class population, our team made a spontaneous decision to do outreach at a Super Wal-Mart, which is where low-income people flock to shop. The crowd was much more multinational and receptive. We distributed hundreds of cards and placed hundreds more on the windows of parked cars. Before we left town we did flyer drops at strip of Latino businesses.
Two comrades then made a long trip south to Colorado Springs and spent the evening posting leaflets and flyers around college campuses in preparation for a planned presidential meet and greet the following day with stand-in candidate Gloria La Riva.
FLORIDA
On Nov. 3, outreach took place in Fort Lauderdale and Jacksonville. Noah got up over 100 cards on poles in the Five Points area near downtown Jacksonville and passed out hundreds more at a farmer’s market. John D. handed out cards at a laundry and shopping center this morning in Fort Lauderdale. Tomorrow, Ernesto and John are going to do outreach.
MARYLAND
Question 4/6 Outreach, Silver Spring
Romeo, Liz, Nadia, Roger
Yesterday’s outreach was brief, but successful. I am glad that we were able to pull together people and resources on such short notice. There were a couple of things we noticed, however, that would be of great help to us in the next election season. Most people in the Silver Spring area have already voted, and a few seemed more interested in early voting info than in our flyers. So it’s going to be really important that we plan these things ahead of time, so we have the chance to make large updated posters to place on the table so people don’t mistake us for voting judges. Secondly, it’s going to be important that we start outreaching as soon as early voting starts because A LOT of people took advantage of early voting this year, even more so than in 2008. As usual , Silver Spring still remains an area highly guarded by police and security guards and Liz was told she could not outreach on a certain side of the street, which is ridiculous. Other than that, everything we believe went well and we are looking forward to even better results Sunday.
MINNESOTA
Nathalie and Yvonne met Anne at the airport before picking up supplies and heading to our first planned destination, the Minneapolis Farmers’ Market. The market was not what we had been told it would be and we had to change our plans. So we drove to the large, central outdoor Nicolette Mall. Minneapolis had unusually cold weather and we arrived relatively early for a Saturday morning. So we taped up 12 blocks along the mall, leafleted passers-by and dropped stacks of palm cards at cafes, the YWCA and on cars. We received a positive reception from the individuals we met but not much additional interest. People weren’t really interested in conversing much. The largest crowd was hundreds of young people waiting for a concert—not a super receptive crowd, although the response increased when we used the line “Education should be free. Vote for Peta Lindsay for president.”
We took a short lunch break before meeting up with an ex-student of Anne’s, Jeffrey, at the Chicano Cultural Center at the very end of their Dia de los Muertos celebration. The area around the center is a very working class, multinational neighborhood. There are many services, center and museums run by the Native American community as well as a nice community library. We visited all the open places, flyering and speaking to people as well as taping up the main strip of the neighborhood. Jeffrey then had to go to work but has committed to continuing outreach with us Sunday or Monday, depending on his school and work load.
After leaving Jeffrey, we visited the Mall of America. We had been wondering where everyone was in Minneapolis … and apparently they are at the mall on Saturday. Outreach inside the mall proved challenging. We did a small amount before moving out to the corner of the parking lot—which was slightly more successful.
NEW JERSEY
On Saturday nov 3, comrades peta, walter and heather went to atlantic city to assess the damage, talk with Sandy survivors and assist with the Sandy relief effort. The comrades tweeted their activities throughout the day. We arrived in Atlantic City early in the afternoon and went immediately to the Atlantic City convention center serving as temporary housing for those who needed it. Far fewer people were sheltering there than there had been on previous days because electricity had began to return to the neighborhoods. While it was hard to estimate the crowd size because of how large the convention center, we were told that 200-300 people remained there. People had cots to sleep on. The facility was run by the city of atlantic city, with the red cross providing volunteers for some functions. By order of the city, no media was allowed in the center; many residents also lacked access to news. While there were a lot of donations, there were definitely many unmet needs, including cribs for babies and clothing. Atlantic city cops were guarding the donated clothes to prevent “looting.” We volunteered throughout the afternoon, assisting survivors locate and organize donated clothes, and talking with people taking shelter. We donated some copies of liberation news, campaign pamphlets and statements on sandy as reading material to those in the shelter.
People explained that their spirits remained high, but were mostly bored in the shelter, with a lack of reading material and entertainment for children. One father of two, Roberto, explained that he worked at Tropicana casino, and was unsure when he could return to work. The casinos were mostly untouched but Tropicana was closed temporarily for lack of clientele after the storm. He said, “my family cannot return home because it is cold, we have no power and snow is coming. How can my children live in the cold with no heat?” According to Roberto, schools were scheduled to reopen next week, but many students may still be living without electricity.
We also spoke with Kim, a woman from a working class area of atlantic city, who was homeless before the storm. She explained the constant harassment that she faced by the local police (peta and walter may be able to add more here).
The campaign was generally well-received. People were excited about our 10-point program, that our campaign stood against racism, and that we were organizing independently from the two bourgeois parties for working peoples needs.
After volunteering at the convention center, we walked by the boardwalk. As recent reports have said, the main tourist drag, including the casinos, was largely undamaged by the storm. The boardwalk had power and was open for business.
We then toured and documented devastated neighborhoods. We observed the effects of severe flooding on the first floors of homes, as well as wind damage. People had thrown away piles and piles of destroyed furniture and belongings. according to one man that we interviewed, even those whose power had been restored were having difficulty locating towels and cleaning supplies to make their homes safe to live in again.
In addition to documenting, we did some tape-ups of our statement on sandy and our campaign palm cards at busy intersections. We also distributed snacks with the psl stickers on them to passers by since it was too cold to give out cold water, and that was not a need.
All in all, our volunteering and intervention in atlantic city was much appreciated by the residents who, while life was returning to normal, were very much still in crisis as a result of the storm. We were unable to record interviews or get sign ups given this environment.
NEW YORK
Lower East Side:
Six comrades and about eight volunteers headed to the Lower East Side today. Power was back on, although according to some reports there were a few blocks still without power. The neighborhood was full of volunteers through the organization GOLES (Good Ol’ Lower East Side). NYC candidate, Emilie, works with this group and was able to serve as a liaison between our group of volunteers and the centralized efforts of GOLES. The GOLES orientation was to survey residents for what their needs were and report back to the organization. It seemed like there was a group heading into almost every building on Ave. D. Our group chose to go on our own and directly provide the supplies.
We went into a community center of the Masaryk Houses, we donated some water and baby food, but found they still needed diapers, bread for sandwiches and more water. They said that people were overwhelmed by all the door-knocking, were not opening their doors anymore, and that they had accounted for their elderly. We split our team in half. Half went to a nearby supermarket to make the purchases that Masaryk needed, the other half headed into the Baruch Houses after a passer-by from the neighborhood informed us that this building still had not been checked on. The supermarkets had been restocked but were very crowded.
We made the delivery to Masaryk. They were very appreciative. We gave them some of the PSL fliers saying it would explain a little bit more about our organization and asked if there was anything else they needed help with but they said no.
The team in Baruch houses surveyed 12 floors, about 72 apartments, and came up with a list of 5 tenants who needed items from the store. We split up and purchased the items and then delivered it back to the tenants. We put a flyer in each grocery bag. The tenants were appreciative and two were enthusiastic about coming to future PSL meetings.
Before leaving we checked in one last time at the Masaryk community room. Residents were still trickling in to pick up aid but the room was starting to empty. Volunteers has stashed about 300 bottles of water which they said they would be delivering to elders in the complex who were stuck at home. We asked if they needed any more help but they said they were under control.
Overall we reached probably 50-100 residents through our donated materials (approx. 100 bottles of water, 6 packs of diapers, 10 loaves of bread, and assorted canned food, and assorted hygiene products) and about five families through direct fliers with their delivered groceries. We also made some meaningful connections with the volunteers we worked with.
Far Rockaway
Two teams of volunteers left for Far Rockaway this morning with donations of water, diapers, paper goods, batteries and cleaning supplies. One team joined a caravan of Occupy Wall Street Volunteers and drove from Jamaica, Queens to Far Rockaway. This team bundled their donated supplies into packages that were handed out to people at distribution locations. Both teams drove from street to street in between distribution centers with the donated items and asked people if they needed the materials. Many people that live in between the distribution centers and national guard sites have no way of reaching these sites or haven’t been told that these sites exist. Many people living in between these distribution sites told us they had been without water, food, electricity, dry clothing, diapers or heat for days and many of them don’t know aid is available. The gas shortage has limited people to their immediate neighborhood in order to get supplies. Without access to phones, most people out there didn’t know how they could find out information about where to go for help. “They keep saying the Red Cross is here but where are they?” one woman asked us. There were signs on the roads leading to Far Rockaway in Broad Channel that say “Fema Please Help Us.” This sentiment was shared by many of the people in Far Rockaway. People shared their feeling that the government has forgotten them and left them to fend for themselves. In addition to providing the much needed donated items, the PSL volunteers also provided the information about where people could find the materials they need.
PENNSYLVANIA
After our outreach efforts, we returned to philadelphia, where peta spoke at the afro futurist affair masquerade ball. We set up a table displaying literature and information about the campaign and talked with many people at the party. About 100 people or so attended. The event attracted many african american artists and poets. Peta, the only political candidate speaking at the event, was very well received. Attendees were inspired that she – a Black woman – was taking on the system through organizing and challenging even those in the “highest” office. We sold some papers and distributed others to anyone interested. We collected 7 sign ups. The organizer, rashida, was very happy with our participation. She spent significant time talking to peta and walter and was interested in continuing to work collaboratively with comrades in philly. Overall, our campaign was very popular at this event.
RHODE ISLAND
On Saturday, November 3rd, four PSL members, Chris and Jen from Boston, Norman from New Haven and Victor from LA, did a full day of outreach in Providence. The group split into two teams of two. One team set up a table at the Kennedy Plaza bus station, a major bus depot in downtown Providence. Thousands of poor and working class people pass through the area every day. The other team taped up palm cards throughout the downtown Providence area, including hitting nearby college campuses.
At the bus station, comrades distributed palm cards, as well as color brochures and copies of Liberation News. Seven people signed up at the bus station, interested in finding out more and getting involved, and one person signed up with the postering team.
Overall, the campaign received a very positive response. Many people came back up to the table after reading the palm card, to find out more information. One young man commented that he couldn’t support either Romney or Obama and said, “Now I have someone I can vote for!”.
We only received a handful of negative responses from people who said they didn’t want to take away votes from Obama. One man started to loudly about how socialism means people living off the government. He did not find any supporters and was even shouted down by several people nearby who disagreed with him and wanted to hear more about the campaign.
Overall, comrades distributed nearly 2,000 palm cards, the majority were handed out at the bus station and hundreds were used for tape ups.
UTAH
Students at Westminster College, workers downtown at Metro stops, residents of the Glendale neighborhood and participants in events celebrating Dia del los Muertos were just some of the people who learned about the 10-Point Program of the Lindsay-Osorio campaign over the last two days.
The Utah team passed out literature and talked with people about how the socialist program of the PSL would be able to address many of the issues and concerns of working and poor people. One person at a local library, when handed a campaign brochure with the large “Seize the Banks” slogan, commented: “This is right up my alley.”
The campaign visited the Centro Civico Mexicano and talked with the staff about the program of the PSL that stands for full rights for all immigrants. Students at the University of Utah and Salt Lake City Community College were able to read material from the campaign that calls for free education and the cancellation of student debts. One woman we met doing door-to-door outreach commented on the on the big-business candidates, saying: “Democrats and Republicans aren’t doing anything for us.”
VERMONT
Volunteers with the Vote PSL campaign hit the streets in Burlington, Vt. beginning on Nov 3. The target area was the Burlington marketplace, an outdoor shopping center with consistent foot traffic. Cafés, music stores and more in the area were happy to display Vote PSL palm cards in their stores. Shoppers were intrigued to hear about a leftist third party option and gladly stopped to listen and take literature. After hearing about the 10-Point Program and what socialism really means, many gave their promise to cast a vote for Peta Lindsay and Yari Osorio. Over 400 palm cards were distributed by two campaign volunteers in a few hours at the marketplace despite intermittent rain and threats of a snowstorm. Vermont workers were also interested to hear about the relief efforts being done by campaign volunteers in Queens, as they remember the devastating effects of Hurricane Isaac in 2011. Even tourists from Canada and the UK stopped to talk about the campaign, and said the PSL’s efforts were a breath of fresh air within the grossly undemocratic capitalist system in the United States.
WASHINGTON STATE
The Washington state outreach has just concluded day one. Four comrades from San Francisco (Keith, Sarah, Adam and Risa) joined the three members of the Seattle branch (Jane, Andy and Rachel) to reach out with a beautiful new Washington-specific palm card.
In the morning, we met to discuss the campaign issues and review the plans for the day. We made sure all comrades understood the issues behind the two initiative mentioned on our palm cards: Approve Referendum 74 (same-sex marriage) and No on Initiative 1240 (charter schools).
We then split into two teams. One team went to the Lake Forest Park for the Peace Vigil, an anti-war vigil that has taken place every Saturday in a suburb north of Seattle for almost 10 years. The LFFP group will be holding a special demonstration the day after the election because they understand that no matter who is elected to president on Nov. 6, the wars will continue until the people force the politicians to end them. This team then went to Capitol Hill, a neighborhood which is a counter-cultural center. That team leafleted and spoke to passers-by outside a supermarket and at a bus stop, and also taped up and dropped off palm cards.
The second team went to the University district near the University of Washington and distributed palm cards. They then went to Westlake Park, in the center of town and joined the Save Gaza regular demonstration,and leafleted passers-by.
Both teams then drove to Tacoma and did drop offs in two neighborhoods and met with Andrew, a worker from Tacoma who is interested in PSL. He had met the Party when Peta came to Washington in September.
WISCONSIN
In Madison, Wisc., volunteers from Chicago met up with volunteers from Wisconsin for a day of outreach and tabling on the busy State Street pedestrian mall. Thousands of people received materials about the PSL election campaign as they passed by or stopped at the campaign tables. Hanging from the tables were two large posters with the slogan, “Seize the Banks!”
Nicholas Katter, a new PSL member in Madison who joined the campaign effort, said, “Today reinforced how really important the PSL election campaign is. The campaign and our ten point program give workers like me an opportunity to take the message of class struggle and Socialism out to the people. It gives us an opportunity to connect with thousands of people on the basis of fighting back, which is really, really necessary right now.”
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