Comments on: Socialist Vote for Detroit Mayor is Highest Percent Since 1951

By: Richard

Richard — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 20:14:13 +0000

No, he didn’t send me a message.

By: Peter M.

Peter M. — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 19:22:50 +0000

Yeah, I got in touch with a former RWL member who explained that to me. Perhaps he sent you a message as well?

By: Richard Winger

Richard Winger — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 18:26:33 +0000

Yes, Shanta Driver was the Revolutionary Workers League candidate for Mayor of Detroit in 1989. She got 122 votes, or .06%. That group ran two candidates for the city council, John Riehl and Judy Wright.

By: Atlee Yarrow

Atlee Yarrow — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 08:03:35 +0000

To me and many outside the fight of words it does not matter except in the area of substance. This is a leading indicator to what understanding is for human dignity, empathy, and the like. Our humanity has grown, but not too much or enough is what I read here. We, either socialist or communist need to work harder at substance and less at fighting words.

By: Citizens For A Better Veterans Home

Citizens For A Better Veterans Home — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 18:44:23 +0000

And for the average, Cold War indoctrinated American citizen, ‘Socialism’ and or ‘Communism’ is akin to throwing stink bombs into a crowded room. It clears the area real quick.

By: Peter M.

Peter M. — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 17:57:27 +0000

Scott, I think you’re right about the “Revolutionary Workers Party,” at least in this context. The group called the Revolutionary Workers League was rather active in Detroit, and on an election database site that I looked through (included as a link), there was a “Shanta Driver” who ran for mayor of Detroit in 1989. Based on a document I’ve read about someone’s resignation from the RWL (http://www.regroupment.org/main/page_appendix_3.html), the name Shanta appears fairly prominently, so I my guess is that there is a connection.

As for the Revolutionary Communist Party, Maoist groups generally don’t run candidates for office in the United States. All the groups mentioned in this post were/are Trotskyist.

I don’t know if this info is considered solid enough to warrant changing the OP, but hopefully it will help clear some things up.

By: Scott West

Scott West — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 16:26:34 +0000

I don’t think there was a U.S. party with the name “Revolutionary Workers Party”, but maybe this was a local group. There is a Revolutionary Workers League and a Revolutionary Communist Party, but I don’t believe they’ve ever run candidates for political office. There have been several organizations just called the “Workers Party”.

I know this is spotterish, but I’m curious when this “Revolutionary Workers Party” ran.