UPSERJ Founders Diana Coleman, Fred Brewington, and Bob Lepley • Photo by Bill Davis, Newsday


U.P.S.E.R.J!

Two summers ago, three seasoned activists crossed racial and neighborhood borders to form a coalition for victory in the fight against racism and poverty on Long Island. Two years later, UPSERJ is 50 organizations strong, and has acheived major progress with a head of steam to accomplish more in 2002.

Four Victories we share with the many other groups we work with:

1. We have worked with the new administration in the Nassau County Executive office to institute Saturday visiting hours for the first time at Nassau Co. Jail.

2. Our tenant law reform stops the cops in Nassau from dumping evicted tenants belongings on the street.

3. UPSERJ helped support the granting of $6 million to the Roosevelt schools, to help insure a quality education for the most needy of Long Island's youth.

4. In Freeport, we won a plan for an outdoor shelter and facilities for Latino day laborers. After the September 2000 attack on Mexican laborers in Farmingville, we need to send a signal that both institutional racism and direct violence against immigrants will not be tolerated. This Freeport shelter is just the first step towards showing that Long Island does care about labor, about the rights of those on the bottom of the food chain.

Taking this question to a national level, UPSERJ is organizing a bus to DC to counter-demonstrate at the neo-nazi National Alliance protest, to confront the hate with something better, as these new fascists speak on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. Of course, progressives will likely out-number the neo-nazis on August 24 (last year they had 250 boneheads there), but this presents a great opportunity to present our agenda on a national stage: We're in the middle of a big crisis, in corporate America, and in U.S. intelligence, regarding the so called 'War on Terrorism.' The integrity of the U.S. Government itself is called into question. President Bush is doing nothing to help the fight on poverty and racism, in fact, as Governor of Texas, he opposed Hate Crime laws, and supported Neo-Confederate groups.

UPSERJ represents the antidote to the hate and fear the system hands us as a distraction from the real problems. UPSERJ works both inside and outside the system, changing laws and changing minds, taking direct action and taking meetings with others who have the power to make change happen.

More Info:

A Good site for information on the Anti-Fascist movement in North America and Europe: www.onepeoplesproject.com

More Info on Anti-Fascism in DC:
www.dcafn.org

UPSERJ
38 Old Country Road Garden City, NY 11530 (516)741-4360
Sander Hicks Coordinator (631) 424 1291
sander@softskull.com http://www.rooseveltlong-island.org/UPSERJ.htm
Co-Founder Bob Lepley: lialliancepeace@juno.com

Artwork: Seth Tobocman