Detroit May Day March and Rally Schedule
-12:00 p.m. Assemble at Clark Park (Clark St. near I-75/Fisher Fwy)
-1:00 p.m. Rally at Maybury Elementary School (4410 Porter Street)
-1:30 p.m. Leave Maybury Elementary, marching northeast on W. Vernor
-2:00 p.m. Rally at Roosevelt Park (W. Vernor and Michigan Ave. - directly in front of the abandoned train station bldg.)
-2:30 p.m. Leave Roosevelt Park, marching east down Michigan Avenue.
-3:15 p.m. Rally at the Detroit Federal Building (corner of Michigan Ave. and Cass Ave.)
-3:45 p.m. Leave the Federal Building, marching one block north on Cass Ave.
-4:00 p.m. Rally at the Rosa Parks Transit Center
-4:30 p.m. Leave the Rosa Parks Transit Center
-4:30 p.m. Start assembling at Grand Circus Park (Woodward Ave. and Adams St.)
-6:30 p.m. General Assembly at Grand Circus Park (near the Hazen S. Pingree monument)

Kalamazoo May Day Rally & Sleepover in Front of Bank of America
3:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Camp set-up and picketing (sidewalk in front of BOA at W. Michigan Ave. and Rose St.)
6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. Potlock dinner
7:00 p.m. Music and speakers.

Detroit May Day General Strike Information Site
Detroit May Day General Strike Tumbler Site
Occupy Detroit May Day Page
Occupy Kalamazoo May Day Page
Kalamazoo May Day Action Facebook Page
SPMI statement on the history of May Day

Public observers are welcome. Look for the red Socialist Party USA banner.

While the SPMI holds at least one state membership meeting every two months, SPMI State Conventions are held only once every 12-24 months, in order to provide for one supreme annual/biennial meeting at which all SPMI members (including those who are generally unable to attend bi-monthly state membership meetings) can be strongly expected to attend. Although State Convention voting and motion-making rights are limited to SPMI members, the State Convention is also open to non-member observers, and all SPMI members are welcome to bring interested guests.

The State Convention will begin at 10AM and last until 7PM (with an afternoon lunch break and shorter breaks between agenda sections). The Northstar Center is located at 106 Lathrop St., Lansing, MI 48912. The Center is located immediately on the right side of the street when turning south on Lathrop St. from Michigan Ave. It is also directly connected to the same structure containing the Jerusalem Garden bakery, which faces Michigan Ave. at that same intersection with Lathrop St. The Northstar Center is a radical community/event space and infoshop serving the Lansing area community. Its website can be found at: http://www.northstarcenter.net. If looking up individual driving directions or GPS to the Northstar Center, please make sure to avoid confusing it with the Lansing-based “Northstar Cooperative,” which is an unrelated company located several miles across town from the Northstar Center. Please contact the State Office if you’ll be lacking transportation and would like assistance with arranging a carpool to the State Convention with another member coming through your area.

The bloody US occupation of Afghanistan reached a new low as a 38 year old US Army Staff Sergeant embarked on a killing spree that resulted in 16 civilian deaths.  Most of the victims were children, all were unarmed and many were not only shot and stabbed, but burned alive.  The solider had already done three tours in Iraq and had suffered a traumatic brain injury.  Despite this, the US military certified him as a sniper and shipped him out to join the occupying forces in Afghanistan – another tool in their killing machine.  So while Pentagon spinsters play off the attack as the action of one “troubled individual” with “family problems,” Afghan civilians see it for what it is – another illustration of the violence of an occupying army.

The killings come on the heels of mass protests in the capital of Kabul and other cities over the  burning of the Koran by the US military.  This, along with the videos of American soldiers urinating on dead Afghans has fueled the mass anger that was released in street protests and increased insurgent activity.  Afghan civilians have now spent more than a decade living under the military occupation of NATO forces led by the US government.   This means restrictions on civil rights, death by drone bombing and a seemingly endless  series of military offensives by NATO forces.

American elections have provided no relief to them as Barack Obama has proved to be every bit the war President that George W. Bush was.  Scandals about private mercenaries have done little to relieve the oppression.  And even the massive financial crisis that has gripped the Western world has done nothing  to weaken the will of the global militarists to rule over Afghanistan.  Deeply politically entrenched military weapons makers and military service company lobbyists have made common cause with war hawks in the Pentagon to ensure that the military occupations continue despite budget cutbacks elsewhere.

Only a globally coordinated anti-war movement that connects people in NATO countries with Afghan civilian groups can drive out the occupiers.  This movement will not be made by governments or NGOs or by social media outlets.  It can only come to life as a result of the determined resistance of everyday people who are willing to put their bodies on the line in the name of peace.

Instead of such a movement, Afghans have faced a series of betrayals by the West.  Under the guise of supporting democracy in Afghanistan, the US  installed Hamid Karzai as the puppet President of the country.  Not surprisingly, the Karzai government has proven to be a deeply corrupt and oppressive regime that aims at securing privileges for a close circle of friends while obeying the orders of the occupiers.  This has resulted in mass discontent in the population and the resurgence of support for Taliban resistance forces.  It is a cruel twist for Afghan civilians that Western Occupation has provided a new future for Taliban fundamentalism.

The recent acts of the Occupiers, especially the Koran burnings and the massacre of innocent civilians, demonstrate that this bloody occupation must end immediately.  Americans have a global responsibility to participate in a movement to remove US troops immediately.  This is a desperate short-term goal for the global anti-war movement that has resonated throughout the various Occupy Wall Street movements.  In the longer term though, we need more than this.  Our movement needs a sustained push to put an end to the Military Industrial Complex.

Many people ask Socialist Party USA members why we are running a candidate for President this year.  The killings in Afghanistan provided a clear answer to this question.  Stewart Alexander and Alex Mendoza carry a clear message of anti-militarism with them on the campaign trail.  The peace initiative they propose is one that can resonate throughout the globe.  An immediate 50% cut  to the military budget, the removal of US occupying troops, the elimination of all foreign military bases and the responsible elimination of weapons of mass destruction set the Socialist Party USA apart from the Democrat and Republican parties of war.

This is not about a “disturbed” 38 year staff sergeant or about building democracy in Afghanistan or about weakening the grip of the Taliban. Democratic Socialism is about building a peaceful world that puts an end to one of the greatest threats to human security in the 21st century – the US military.  Our democratic revolution is built upon the hopes and aspirations of millions of people throughout the world to live a life based on peace, solidarity and freedom.  The immediate removal of US troops from Afghanistan and a moratorium on drone bombings are small steps in that direction.  Only democratic pressure from below can make this happen.

All SPMI members have full voting, motioning, and proposal-making rights at all SPMI state membership meetings. If you have any written proposals for the meeting for which you’d like copies printed in advance for distribution, please email them by this Friday to spmi@spmichigan.org. New proposals can also be added to the agenda at the meeting directly.

Attendance at SPMI state membership meetings is free open to public observers, and all SPMI members are welcome to bring interested non-member guests.

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

The MSU Union building is located next to the Abbott Rd. entrance to the MSU campus, at the corner of Abbott Rd, and W. Grand River Ave. East Lansing, MI 48824. Meter parking can be found at the public parking ramp located approximately one block east of the MSU Union building (behind the Human Ecology building) and on surrounding campus streets. Maps and directions to the MSU Union building can be found at: http://www.msuunion.com/about/directions.html

We are currently working to confirm our ability to establish an available speaker phone connection at the meeting location to enable remote conference call attendance by members located in greatly distant parts of the state (i.e. northern Michigan/U.P.) and will post another update on that to the SPMI membership list (with the dial-in number and access code, if applicable) within the next day or so.

All SPMI members have full voting, motioning, and proposal-making rights at all SPMI state membership meetings. If you have any written proposals for the meeting for which you’d like copies printed in advance for distribution, please email them by this Friday to spmi@spmichigan.org. New proposals can also be added to the agenda at the meeting directly.

Attendance at SPMI state membership meetings is free open to public observers, and all SPMI members are welcome to bring interested non-member guests.

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!