Doing Something
Harold Meyerson's recent column on SEIU president Andy Stern ("Organization Man," 2/1/07) makes a compelling argument regarding Stern's political effectiveness and his similarities to former UAW president Walter Reuther. But, to strengthen the comparison, Mr. Meyerson likens Reuther's failed Alliance for Labor Action to the recently-formed Change to Win Federation, which -- according to Meyerson -- "can't really be said to have done anything, either."
Quite the contrary. Since the formation of Change to Win, SEIU organized 5,300 janitors in the union-hostile environment of Houston, TX, the UFCW mounted an effective nationwide opposition to Wal-Mart, and UNITE HERE, in an unprecedented victory, won organizing agreements with two national hotel chains. In fact, a year ago Mr. Meyerson published a Washington Post column on the revolutionary nature of the UNITE HERE campaign, which he praised for "opening a whole new front" ("Taking on the Hotels," Washington Post, 1/18/06). These milestones, along with the record participation of labor unions in the 2006 election cycle, clearly demonstrate the commitment of Change to Win members to the new federation's founding principle of strategic, industry-based organizing. Change to Win may have faults to match its successes, but it is, without a doubt, doing something.
Alek Felstiner, Organizer
UNITE HERE Local 2
No Compromise on Health Care
While the article by Matthew Yglesias ("By the Slice," 1/30/07) had many good points about how to compromise on national healthcare, his assumption is wrong. We do not need to compromise NOW. The time for compromise is a long way down the line.
Right now, the task is to push Congress to hold hearings on H.R. 676, the only single payer national healthcare bill in the House, the bill that has almost 50 Co-sponsors already since it was reintroduced last Wednesday, theonly bill that will save the tax-payers money, not add to the deficit. In fact, it is the only bill that can pass muster under the new Pay/Go rules.
There is a huge and growing movement nationwide for a national single payer healthcare system. Now is the time to push that envelope, not to compromise with those who want to put more money into the coffers of the insurance and pharmaceutical drug industries.
Let's keep building on the momentum we have built over the past three years.
Marilyn Clement, National Coordinator
Talking Turkey
Erica Lipper's provocative review ("Broken Family," 1/26/07) of Elif Shafak's The Bastard of Istanbul is only truly broken by her own misperceptions. To start, murdered journalist Hrant Dink would utterly reject the claim that his death was for "the Armenian cause." He was foremost a Turk, who fearlessly fought for a democratic Turkey where Armenians, Kurds and other minorities were respected and heard.
Second, her assertion that the international community has forgotten this issue is laughable. It was Ralph Lemkin who coined the word "genocide" in a direct response to what he believed occurred in the crumbling Ottoman Empire in 1915 -- an issue that has always been at the forefront of the Turkish consciousness since the country's founding in 1923. It is quite obvious to the rest of us that the international community has allowed Turkey to ignore this issue which has now reached a tipping point. Elif Shafak, among other Turks, is part of the critical mass that has boldly told the Turkish nation it time for dialogue -- the denial must end.
It is a shame that The American Prospect would assign an intern to review a compelling and artful book on a serious and complex subject. Shafak is hardly banking on political courage but rather literary laurels to bring into focus the many layers that surround the events of 1915. Dialogue is foremost, and as Shafak's novel demonstrates there isn't a single voice, just as the matter is not black or white, which might have made it easier for Ms. Lipper to comprehend.
Elmira Bayrasli
Brooklyn, NY
Editor's Note: Lipper was formerly an intern at the Prospect. She is now a graduate student in English at Georgetown University.
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