We Went to Indiana
Gwendolyn Hart
In April, four members of Labor Militant flew to Indiana, to build the newly-launched Socialist Party of Indiana (SPI).
The SPI is running two independent candidates against the Democrats and Republicans: Ben Davis who is gunning for a seat in the state House and Harrison Jacobo who is running for Secretary of State. Their campaigns are supported by a sitting socialist city councilmember, Jesse Brown, who is helping build the party.
There is a desperate need for a new party to fight for the interests of the working class against the Democrats and Republicans. The Socialist Party of Indiana is an important development toward getting exactly that, launched at a time when both parties are historically unpopular. That’s why United Front members collectively raised $XXXX to send Labor Militant members there to build support for the party and forge connections between Washington and Indiana.
In Seattle, workers have won serious victories in the last decade. The first $15 minimum wage in any major city, the Amazon Tax, the renters’ bill of rights, and more. And critical to these victories was electing an independent socialist, Kshama Sawant.
We are often told by the mouthpieces of big business and those tied to the Democrats, that we only won these things because Seattle has “special conditions.” It’s “easy” in Seattle. Only in blue coastal progressive liberal Starbucks venti frappucino Seattle could a worker even imagine electing an independent socialist.
The experience in Indiana proves them completely wrong. Workers in Indiana were hungry for socialist ideas.
Our members led boldly with calls for free healthcare and a socialist party. People were grabbing the clipboards from our hands. This held true not only in urban Indianapolis but also in rural Lafayette, where Ben Davis is running. Very often just a slogan was enough to get someone to stop and sign on. In five days, members of Labor Militant collected over 400 signatures.
We also held a small rally with the SPI. With only three days to build for it, the rally still got a turnout of twenty people, including union members and socialist activists from outside the city.
The SPI is in a position to permanently shatter the myth that socialist ideas can only take root in “safe” blue states.
Workers and socialists across the country need to dedicate serious time and resources into achieving a breakthrough with the SPI. If they succeed, it could embolden workers to build socialist parties in other states.
Ben Davis and Jesse Brown are both members of the Democratic Socialists of America, yet the leadership of the Central Indiana DSA has so far refused to support the SPI. Instead, they continue to support Democratic Party politicians.
The DSA has 100,000 members nationwide. It has the resources to send several paid full-time organizers to build the party through the elections. DSA members should pass resolutions in their local chapters endorsing the SPI and demanding the national organization take action.