Canadians for Peace & Socialism May Day Statement 2011

Workers, men women and youth, this May Day, raise the banner of peace and full employment in defiance of the fomenters of imperialist war and capitalist economic depression.

Workers of all countries unite on May Day to demand a better world now for all who labour.

In Canada the working class seeks a new direction for our country away from militarism and war and chronic boom and bust economic uncertainty. The labour and peace movements demand something better than what is offered by the profit system of state monopoly capitalism.

A federal election takes place the day after May Day 2011. It is possible that working class voters along with other progressive social classes, united at the polls can defeat the right-wing reactionary Conservative government that has brought nothing but war, corruption and unprecedented wealth appropriation by a small minority of banking, investor and monopoly interests and burdened the working people with the costs of their reactionary policies.  

Regardless of what type of government emerges on May 2^nd the labour movement is serving notice that it will not agree to continue to bear the burdens of the failures of capitalism. The workers did not create the economic crisis, were not consulted about more war, did not create the budget deficit and will not accept a reduction in their hard won gains and their trade union and democratic rights.

The majority of the people who labour to live know from bitter experience that as soon as they have cast their ballot, the major parties of the profit system have already relegated their demands to the bottom of the Parliamentary agenda.

Workers and their unions demand that whatever government emerges on May 2^nd its first priority must by to implement labour’s demands. Those demands are justified, reasonable, attainable and affordable now, and could be enacted by any government elected on May 2^nd with the will to do so. Those who labour for wages and salaries are the majority. Their interests are in the best interests of Canada and must be at the top of the Parliamentary agenda.

The struggle following the election is to send the message to Parliament, we will not go back, we have not given any government a mandate to shelve our just demands.

Whatever type of government emerges from the election it must confront a mass movement of labour and its allies demanding to regain what the Conservative government took from the working people, restore what has been lost and implement what the majority of people are demanding for a life of peace, full employment and real human progress.

What Canadian workers struggle for this May Day and what the new government must be called upon to enact is what workers in all countries struggle for this May Day:

• Good jobs at union pay

• Free universal health care

• Universal publicly funded child care

• Guaranteed pensions for all

• High quality free public education for children and youth from primary to post-secondary

• Opportunities for youth to acquire apprenticeship and technical training for skilled jobs in modern industrial society

• Affordable housing for young families and seniors

• Affordable nutritious food for all

• Low cost transportation for all

• A clean environment and effective reductions in global warming

• The elimination of poverty

• An end to all forms of human degradation

• A life with culture, leisure, civility and friendship among all

• A  lasting and durable peace

On This May Day 2011!

Unite for Peace, Jobs, and Canadian Independence! Government Action on People’s Needs!

Left Turn Canada!