By Raskonikov Radek

TOMBALL, Texas – In spite of 100° weather today (9/11/10), I went to Tomball again in order to protest the racists and support the day laborers. While there were less people than last week on both sides, there was one thing that was absolutely clear: while our numbers were smaller than the racists, our unity was far greater. Not only did we stand firmly united against them, but we also had a great deal of support from the people of Tomball. It was quite evident that the people of Tomball wanted the racists out of their town, for we received many kind words from drivers and walkers passing by our rally. A couple of passers-by stopped to join us. A couple of others rejected the racists’ lies after discussing the immigration issue with us. Despite our numbers, we outlasted the racists again, chanting “Ya se van, ya se van, los racistas ya se van” as they departed. Love is stronger than hate.

As I left, an elderly Latino worker from a nearby restaurant approached me and shook my hand to express his gratitude for what we had done to fight racism that day.

The Tomball City Council rejected a number of anti-immigrant proposals just last week. This seemed to incite the racists and there was one minor physical confrontation in which one racist assaulted one of the organizers. They shouted vicious slurs, as they did last week, and tried to defeat us by playing loud rock music. Every moment that we spoke, standing strong with our signs and chanting together, we were acting as agents of the historical struggle against racism. Each one of us expressed our solidarity with humanity and our opposition to racism.

Racism has been used historically by the wealthy classes to divide working people. When working people stand together and support each other, great progress can be made in building a better world for everybody. When working people fight each other, the wealthy classes win. The wealthy classes know the tactic “divide and conquer” very well and use it effectively.

I had no doubt that the racists are unhappy with the conditions of working people and want a better world for themselves and their families. They probably think that attacking people less fortunate than themselves will somehow improve their lot in life. However, it is my opinion that they are only serving the interests of the wealthy.

We stand united and the larger our number, the more powerful our influence in the struggle against racism. Come support us next Saturday at 8 AM in front of the HEB in Tomball (HW 249 B & Main Street/FM 2920-28520 Tomball Pkwy.) so that we can win this struggle!