Tulane University to Host Notorious White Supremacist on Campus

Tulane University is sponsoring an event featuring notorious racist David Horowitz this Wednesday. Horowitz is a nationally-known right wing extremist who denies that racism exists, calling institutional racism a "fantasy of the left." He has also said that the fact that Oprah Winfrey–whom he called "a fat black woman"–has made it to the top of society proves that racism is no longer a barrier to success for most Black Americans.

Horowitz sponsored a national ad campaign against reparations for slavery called, “Ten Reasons Why Reparations for Slavery Is a Bad Idea—and Racist Too.” In the campaign, Horowitz said, “Reparations to African-Americans have already been paid” in the form of “trillions of dollars of welfare benefits and racial preferences” for Black people. In addition, Horowitz claims that African-Americans “owe a debt” to white people for "giving them freedom."

"If not for the sacrifices of white soldiers and a white American president," Horowitz has said, "blacks in America would still be slaves.”

Horowitz is the publisher of FrontpageMag, a right wing journal that frequently publishes white supremacists. For example, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, FrontpageMag published a piece called "Africa in our Midst: Lessons from Katrina," by Jared Taylor, a white supremacist who is close to Louisiana klansman David Duke and argues that blacks and Latinos are genetically inferior to whites. Following this line of attack, Horowitz himself complained that "in the national discussion of Katrina, Bush was accused of racism for failing to be on site immediately in New Orleans but actual racial crimes committed by blacks were rendered invisible." Horowitz has also published James Lublinskus, a former editor of the white nationalist movement's flagship publication, American Renaissance.

Horowitz is most famous for his self-declared war on Islam - the Southern Poverty Law Center lists him among the most prominent anti-Muslim racists in the US, and he is publisher of Jihad Watch, an online magazine dedicated to anti-Muslim and anti-Arab rhetoric. He is known for statements such as “what has the Arab world contributed except terror?…The theocratic, repressive Arabic states do no significant science, no significant arts and culture.” He has also called Hillary Clinton's top aide Huma Abedin a "Muslim Brotherhood plant." Following this theme, the topic of his event this week is “From Boston to Jerusalem: How Islamic Jihadism Affects Us All.”

It is especially ironic that a local university would host Horowitz, as he has made a reputation for his work to stifle free expression on campuses. For example, in 2003, Horowitz started Students for Academic Freedom, which encouraged students to sneak into classes to take notes and report on "suspicious" professors as part of an attempt to launch campaigns to fire (or deny tenure to) professors who are insufficiently "pro-American."

Despite his history of attacks on African Americans, Muslims, and even academic freedom, Tulane Administration is helping to bring this hate speech to New Orleans. This is not the first time that Tulane has embraced Horowitz. In 2007, Tulane University hosted "Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week," part of a national anti-Muslim campaign launched by Horowitz. A primary sponsor of this event is a Tulane student group, Tulane Students United for Israel, as well as a UNO student group called Allies for Israel. In selecting Horowitz as a speaker, they appear to be making a statement that white supremacy and Israel advocacy go hand-in-hand.

Tulane students are asking allies to wear Black and meet at 6:15pm on Wednesday at Jones Hall on the Tulane campus. For more information, including contact info for student organizers, see this link, or you can directly contact Hillary Donnell at hdonnell@tulane.edu or Tulane Students for Justice in Palestine at tupalestine@gmail.com.

New Orleans’ Food Service Workers Organize and Advocate for Fair Workplace Conditions

By Alison McCrary
Food service workers at Tulane University walked off the job at 6:00 AM yesterday, to demonstrate their outrage over the unfair labor practices of their employer, Sodexo.

Students and workers gathered together for a rally and march later that morning in support of the workers’ right to organize. State Senator-elect Cynthia Willard Lewis addressed the crowd at Tulane in support of the workers.

For more than a year, Sodexo workers and students at Tulane and Loyola University have been fighting for better workplace conditions and have been met with management retaliation and intimidation. The cafeteria workers earn as little as $8 an hour and many lack access to affordable health insurance. While the workers experience unfair working conditions, Sodexo continues to profit, posting more than $1 billion profits in 2009.

The demonstration yesterday is part of a national campaign to hold Sodexo accountable for its unfair labor practices and work environment hostile to organized labor.

Alison McCrary is an attorney and Soros Justice Advocacy Fellow at the Louisiana Justice Institute. She received her Juris Doctor of Law from Loyola University College of Law where she served as a member of Moot Court and president of the Public Interest Law Group. Alison is a member of the National Lawyers Guild.

Photo: LJI Board Member Davida Finger addresses Loyola students and workers at Sodexo Rally and Protest in April 2010.

Honduran Coup Leader Meets With New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, Tulane University President Scott Cowen, and Other Local Leaders

Civic and political leaders in New Orleans took steps this month towards support and recognition of the illegal and anti-democratic government of Honduran coup-supporter Porfirio Lobo Sosa. In a meeting reported in the Tulane University newspaper The Hullabaloo, local education leaders pledged cooperation with the illegal government, which violently overthrew the elected government of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya on June 28, 2009. Sosa was installed in office in a 2009 election organized by coup leaders that is still not recognized by many Latin American countries.

According the report in the September 17 Hullabaloo, "President Sosa joined Mayor Mitch Landrieu, Tulane President Scott Cowen and representatives from University of New Orleans, Loyola University, Dillard University, Xavier University, Southern University of New Orleans and Louisiana State University in signing a memorandum of understanding. The memorandum formalizes their commitment to move forward by working together in three key areas: healthcare, public education and student exchange."

Coup leader Sosa - who's daughter is enrolled at UNO - seems especially interested in the privatization of health care and education, and in following the example of New Orleans in firing 7,500 public school employees and ceasing recognition of their union. “We’ve had a huge problem with teachers’ unions,” said Mayra Pineda, former Consul General and current liaison between the Honduran government and New Orleans city officials. “Charter schools are certainly one option to try to solve the union situation.”

Apparently, none of New Orleans' local leaders took the opportunity of the meeting to express concern over the charges that the coup government has assassinated journalists and other opposition leaders. “About 80 percent of our students are from New Orleans, and many, for financial reasons, can’t go abroad,” said outgoing UNO Chancellor Tim Ryan. “So to be exposed to Latin Americans in their classes provides a tremendous learning experience.”

LJI Guest Column: Sodexo Workers on Tulane and Loyola’s Campuses Walk out of Work to Protest Unfair Labor Practices, By Lauren Elliott & Brian Ford

On Friday, April 23, the 50 out of 54 workers scheduled to work in Tulane University’s cafeteria Bruff Commons walked out of work to protest unfair labor practices committed by their employer, Sodexo Inc. Tulane University and Loyola contract Sodexo Inc, an international corporation, to provide all food service on campus in order to cut costs for the University. Sodexo achieves this goal by undercutting the workers’ wages and benefits in the race to bottom. In an effort to achieve bargaining power with their employer, workers have been organizing with the union SEIU’s local chapter since last fall. Very quickly those involved with the organizing began to face illegal intimidation and threats from management on both Tulane and Loyola’s campus. Sodexo workers on Xavier and Dillard's campus are unionized with SEIU and have seen improved working conditions since their organization.

The main complaints from the workers regarding working conditions are a total lack of respect from management (one woman has been working for Tulane food service for 40 years and must ask permission to go to the restroom), inadequate healthcare benefits (for most employees the healthcare plan provided would cost two weeks of their salary), and poverty wages (many Sodexo workers are paid under $9 hourly while the federal government reports living wage in New Orleans as $9.68 hourly for one individual). Many workers have waited over a year for raises, only to receive a raise of $0.20 or less while others who have worked on Tulane’s campus for more than 3 decades work for $9.50 per hour and without healthcare. Many were hired being told they could rise to management, only to realize they would be unable to do so because Sodexo would never provide training - they prefer to hire outside management. Many others were hired with the promise of full-time employment only to receive part time hours.

This walk-out was a large and loud public outcry against the injustices of Sodexo. For the first time, the Tulane and Loyola Sodexo workers seized opportunity to be public, vocal, and united. Prior to the walk-out only a few workers had come out publicly with their stories at student organized rallies and at city council hearing on April 13 because of the intimidation they experienced on the job. Most feared that if they went public with their support of a union they would face retaliation from management. The day of the strike they stood at the picket line and said, "Look at us, we are human!" to their managers as they walked by. After months of silence and fear, the workers were able to find courage in each other that day and the community of support around them, collectively demanding that management see them, hear them, and treat them with the respect and dignity they deserve as humans. The first worker back on the job on Saturday told me that his manager said "Good Morning" to him for the first time ever. Their strength in solidarity was felt that day.

For more worker testimonials and information about the student campaign to pressure Tulane University and President Cowen to live up to its image as a socially responsible university, go to www.tulane.usas.org.

Lauren Elliott and Brian Ford are seniors at Tulane and members of the Tulane University Solidarity Committee.