New Orleans, LA – On Saturday, March 2, around 50 community members packed into a community space in the 7th Ward. There, Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) held a forum titled “Black Power and the need for communist organization.”

Juleea Berthelot, a student organizer, introduced the organization and two FRSO members who work in NOCOP (New Orleans for Community Oversight of the Police).

The first speaker, Toni Jones, starts off by pointing out that the political experience of Black people in the U.S. is also an economic one. Despite being over half of the city’s population, Black households make significantly less money than white ones. Historic, systemic factors play into the material conditions of the Black population. “The struggle for Black liberation has a class character,” says Jones. “Class character requires class struggle.”

Toni Mar, another FRSO member, expanded on what a communist organization looks like by connecting their work in NOCOP with the separate goals of a revolutionary organization. They aim to organize among the masses, who are not solely other socialists. In these environments, communists emphasize building the leadership of Black working class. Ultimately, they want to win people over to the socialist cause. Mar finished their addition to the forum saying, “We will only ever get what we are organized to take, and we want it all!” filling the room with applause.

#NewOrleansLA #NOCOP #BlackLiberation #Communism #WorkingClassStruggle #PoliceCrimes #SDS