Toronto civic crisis

moves people to action

By WILLIAM STEWART

The financial crisis in the mu-
nicipalities continues.

This crisis is moving the peo-
ple into action, which is ex-
pressed in tax reform move-
ments, tenants organizations,
reactivization of ratepayers -or-
ganizations and citizen’s groups.
Committees have sprung up to
defeat such unpopular projects
as the Spadina Expressway and
the Lakeshore Raceway. The
labor movement is stepping up
its activities in civic politics.

All of these development im-
pinge upon the undemocratic
big business tax policies of the
Robarts provincial government
and the interests they represent
in Metropolitan Toronto.

In these circumstances the
provincial government and mon-
opoly forces are undertaking
measures to head off these
movements and insulate their
control of Metro Toronto civic
politics from them.

_CIVAC (Civic Independent
Voter’s Action Committee)
which was inaugurated with

much fanfare three years ago,

is the vehicle through which
the Tories hope to secure their
control of Toronto City politics,
which is the heart of the Met-
ropolitan area.

CIVAC, which, in a sense, is
the father of:party politics at
Toronto city hall, has succeeded
in drawing both the Liberals,
and unfortunately also the NDP,
into running as political parties
in the forthcoming civic elec-
tions. Hiding behind the veneer
of non-partisanship, it is: cynic-
ally planning to trick the voters
into turning control of city hall
over to a Tory administration.

It is impossible for the Tories
to make a direct assault on city
hall because of the disrepute of
their municipal policies. How-
ever there is growing alarm in
Tory circles about their weaken-
ing position in the major muni-
cipal areas and in the first place
in Metro Toronto. At the same
time big business is concerned
about the growing activity of
labor in municipal politics and
the re-election of Mayor Den-
nison in the city of Toronto.

In these circumstances CIVAC
is being groomed as a “new ap-
proach” to civic government and
citizen participation. It is hoped
to use it to head off the threat
posed by labor and its demo-
cratic allies and make the situ-
ation safe for monopoly and nip
in the bud the growing fight
against Tory municipal financial
policies through control of the
most important municipality in
Ontario.

In these circumstances it is
indeed unfortunate that the
NDP, rather than seeking the
broadest possible alliances, in-
cluding small business, ratepay-
ers and the trade union move-
ment, has undertaken to go it
alone and get caught in the
web of sectarian party politics.
It is imperative that the demo-
cratic forces unite at the polls
to defeat CIVAC and the Libe-
rals and elect labor and demo-
cratic voices on the Toronto
City Council and all other Met-
ro Councils.

CIVAC must be given a sharp
defeat at the polls, including its
mayorality candidate Margaret
Campbell, whom CIVAC has not
officially endorsed, but will cam-
paign for in this election. In
these circumstances Mayor Den-
nison should be returned and
along with him the strongest
possible block of labor and pro-
gressive candidates.

This is not just another elec-
tion campaign. Monopoly is
striking back hard in Toronto to
head off the growing mass
movements and to make it pos-
sible for the monopolies to con-
tinue and intensify their attacks
on the living standards of the
working people. At the same
time a real possibility exists for
the democratic forces, headed
by the labor movement, to de-
feat this threat and to extend
its strengh in the Metropolitan
area, and paricularly in the City
of Toronto.

This could open the way for
Metro Toronto to lead a mass
provincial movement for demo-
cratic tax reform _ legislation,
and a democratic restructuring

.of civic government.

PUBLIC MEETING

The Communist Party's campaign to defeat the govern-
ment’s austerity program will be the subject of a public
meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 8 p.m. to be held at
1579 Dupont Street in Toronto's west end.

The speaker will be the party's leader, William Kashtan
who will discuss labor's alternatives to either continued
inflation or deflation and recession.

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The national organizer of the
Communist Party of Canada,
Don Currie, and the national
youth secretary, Charles Mc-
Fadden, are travelling across
western Canada on a trip to
mobilize the Communist Party
in a _counter-offensive against
the Trudeau Administration’s
austerity program, and for a
people’s program, based on the
needs of the working people.

Both Don Currie and Chuck
McFadden were elected to lead-
ing posts in the Communist
Party at its national convention
last spring. Both are young, and
both have a history of having
played an active and_ leading
role in the mass struggles of
the people.

Mr. McFadden will be seeking
out working, farm and student
youth in preparation for the
founding convention of the
Young Communist League to
take place in March, 1970. His
report to the Central Committee
was a highlight, when he report-
ed on the successful establish-
ment of YCL branches in Tor-
onto, Edmonton and Regina, as
well as the founding convention
of the Ligue des Jeunesses du
Quebec in Montreal.

Mr. Currie will be discussing
the development of a campaign
on the prairies for the Commun-
ist Party's farm emergency pro-
gram, (carried elsewhere in this
paper) and to arouse interest
in the sending of a mass delega-
tion of farmers to Ottawa to
present their demands,

At the recently. concluded
meeting of the
Party’s Central Committee, Mr.
Currie centered his report on
party organization, on industrial
organization, the Canadian Tri-
bune, the fight to form a Young
Communist League and_ the
municipal work of the Commun-
ist Party.

“From this meeting of the
Central Committee,” he _ said,
“will begin an independent cam-
paign beamed to the working
people around a program of ac-
tion” to defeat the austerity
program. “We will campaign to
carry forward the fight to defeat
Trudeau’s wage freeze policy.”

“An emergency farm program
of action to provide federal cash
payments to farmers and to step
up the sale of wheat will be com-
bined with a demand for a new
deal on the prairies. We will
step up our campaigning in the
cities around the slogans, New
Tax Deal for Homeowners, a
Tenant’s Bill of Rights, a federal
program of urban renewal .. .”
he said.

“We will continue our cam-

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PROGRESS svascripTion SERVICE ,
487 Adelaide St. W., Toronto 2-B, Ontario, Canada , Phone 368-5336

Communist ©

paign to end Canadian compli-
city in the war in Vietnam and
for Canadian withdrawal from
NATO and NORAD. The party
will mobilize and work in co-
operation with the peace forces
organizing the nation-wide dem-
onstrations. on November 15,”
he said.

Mr. Currie said that the party
pledges to guarantee the suc-
cessful founding of the Young
Communist League in March of
1970, in honor of the 100th anni-
versary of the birth of Lenin.

We live in the age of sweep-

ing revolutionary change, said
Mr. Currie, into which Canada
is being drawn every bit as much
as any other country. He point-
ed to the upsurge of mass pro-
tests and strikes of the working
people across the country, in the
struggle against monopoly’s at-
tempts to foist the costs. of

Gromyko's visit aid
Canada-Soviet ties

The Soviet press believes that
closer relations with Canada,
which will be mutually benefi-
cial to both countries and serve
to ease international tensions,
are in the offing as a result of
the talks USSR foreign minister
Andrei Gromyko held with
Canadian government leaders in
Ottawa earlier this month.

On October 5 Pravda publish-
ed an artile by its Ottawa’ cor-
respendent K. Geivandov, which
reads in. part: ©

“In the past years there took
place a certain revival and ex-
pansion of mutually beneficial
Soviet-Canadian relations in the
economic, scientific-techni-
cal and cultural fields. As a result
of the reciprocal exchange of
visits of prominent leaders of
both countries good foundations
have been laid for expanding
political contacts between our
states. ‘

“True to its peaceful foreign
policy the Soviet Union comes
out for the promotion of rela-
tions. with Canada. When leav-
ing Ottawa Andrei Gromyko ex-
pressed the conviction that
prerequisites exist for Soviet-
Canadian relations to grow
steadily stronger and become
good neighbor relations in the
full sense of the word. Canadian
Minister of External Affairs M.
Sharp also came out-in favor of
the promotion of Soviet-Cana-
dian relations.

“During the Soviet-Canadian

capitalism’s economic ills on
backs of working people. a0

He underlined the imp? rol
of the Communist Part sig
in the development and

}
of these movements. eee
ists active in the mass

ments of the people havt iy

communist attacks, knoe
well that the mass ne nf
were on the rise. As 0
movement arises it dé
conscious revolutionary ff
perspective. It is such @
that we are entering nov el
our party faces the challe 0
fighting for a mass bas@ ©
the working people, We"
party will come into its o” 92
In the months ahead &
will aim to bring about a
all improvement in the of y
fighting strength of the pa

talks it was agreed tO aie jer
the near future at a PFOF 9 (0
concrete questions Per’ a 0
the state and develop’ aii

economic relations, se ont
technical and cultural He ;
tion between our count

“In the course of thé’
Ottawa a fruitful exch,
views took place on @
of international problé

favor of a relaxation the
national tension, against twee
of force in the relations i
states, for the affirmallO?
principles of peaceful
ence, for the solution
lems that divide the ©

“Consolidation of ©
peace is the urgent t85? coi
days, The adjustment °
Canadian cooperation 4” h
lishment of mutual trus
fulfil this task and C0?
the interests of both °
tries and° all the Pe
peoples.”

a

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—OCTOBER 17, 1969—Page 4