Eo eet toll Glimpses of ‘Cuba . .. by ‘Kay“Edwards THE N Cuba, the’ year 1961 will be known as “The Year of Education,” With character- Stic energy and decision, the Revolutionary Government is OW, Opening a mass campaign to end illiteracy. Cubans are Unhappily aware that the 1953 Census showed that 25% of their people over the age of ten, are unable to read and Write. Many others have only two or three years‘ of school: Ing. The poverty ridden camp- €sino did not receive an -edu- Cation. There are actually peo- Ble in Cuba who have never held a book in their hands. _ Under Batista, the depart- Ment of Education. was a tragic Joke. Money allocated for Schools disappeared into the already swollen pockets of the Srafters. Salaries were: paid to Whole faculties of non-existent teachers or to teachers who did not have a school —in Which to teach. The University itself was closed during the height of the . revolutionary Struggle in an effort to prevent Students demonstrating-against the corrupt regime. The Revolutionary Govern- Ment, even while: still fighting, began to establish schools in ‘| KAY EDWARDS Season's. Greetings to All Our Friends. _ ‘For Peace and Socialism. From The Boylan Family Holiday Greetings / to allour _ Friends and Supporters ‘West End Club | Communist Party of Canada OF EDUCATION” YEAR the country-side. As Fidel’s army gained territory, classes for young and. old were estab- lished public buildings and even out of doors. This was an army that taught while it-marched. Immediately after the revo- lution, the...government | an- nounced “plans:; for . 10,000 schools and many have now ‘been constructed and are in ‘operation. Two. model scholas- tic cities are being built ‘to which two hundred thousand farm children will. go _ to study. Every new school, every fortress. and building convert- ed into a school, will bear the name of a revolutionary fight- er who died in the struggle for liberty. By the end of next year, it is hoped to have near- ly every Cuban child com- mence elementary education. Adults are not forgotten and special night classes in many subjects will be available. Even..now . mobile . libraries and educational film units. are touring the country . bringing knowledge. and. information .to people. for the first time in the history of the country. In Havana today, the.words, “Allfabetizer es hacer revolu- tion” (To. educate. is. toe make revolution), can be .seen” on posters in nearly every build- ing. Sound trucks cruise the streets calling on the people of Cuba to “Teach another per- son — every: Cuban~a:teach- er.” Tables are set up in. pub- lic buildings and on the streets collecting signatures. of people who pledge to teach an- other person to read and write in 1961. For this purpose, the government is distributing- free thousands of little text: books to those who participate. *.» Extremely active in’. the campaign is the Federation of Cuban Women, a mass organ: ization of women from every strata of Cuban life. Many of them -will hold city;« classes while others will -devote:their holidays “and «weekends . to work in the countryside... The. people. of “Cuba and their -revolutionary . govern- ment. understand well the need for..an educated. citizenry .who can; acquire. and: use the tech- nological abilities. -necessary- ‘in today’s society. . Economic independence can. only. come through scientific. development of the country’s resourees. ; . The. cry, “Alfabetizer” sweeps: across this. lovely land ‘Ti.and. it is “Education ‘‘with.a purpose.” Perhaps. the words) of Marti, roughly. translated, from. a, poster » will sum. up> “The fundamental; purpose.of education. is to’ fill, the mind with knowledge and to cleanse | the. soul of prejudice. and of ruinous: egotism. - in military bases, in| — ‘Soviet Publ against WILLIAM Z. FOSTER, hon- orary chairman of the Com- munist Party of the United States, has won the right to travel abroad. It is expected he will fly to Moscow this month to receive medical care for the paralysis that affects his right side. Foster will be 80 years old .next February. OBITUARY Following a long illness, death brought to-a close last week the long and colorful career of - one of:B.C.’s. out- standing «citizens, ©George Edgar. of Vancouver in *his 77th year. A. veteran of the*first world war, George Edgar served with _the famed . Middlesex Regiment with the rank of regimental sergeant. Strongly epposed’ to the imperialist -in- tervention against the young republic. in 1919-20, George Edgar undertook the job of running supplies under the noses: of British American and -Russian . Whiteguardist troops, to*help the: hard-press- ed Russian workers. “In 1937 George Edgar went to ‘Spain and later the West) End club. Funeral services were held in ‘the Edwards. Funeral. Par- lor last Saturday and. conduc- ted by*Tom McEwen, editor of the Pacific Tribune.-A: number of ‘Mae-Pap -veterans ‘acted as pallbearers. FARM NOTE Labor-Farmer Unity Grows in B.C. The Vancouver Labour Council has decided to throw its support behind the Farm- ers Union of B.C. in the de- mands the farmers are mak- ing on the federal and provin- cial government. This was the substance of a_ letter to the Council from the Marine Workers’and Boilermakers In- dustrial Union No. 1 which was adopted by the’ Council. The B.C. Federation of Labour is also urged to continue wor- king closely with the farm union. This action by the VLC fol- lows closely upon the decision of the annual -convention “of the Farmers Union of B.C. to join... labor.in. opposing. Bill 43 and in demanding government action to create jobs. “Benefits” of Advertising “In 1959 in the Metropoli- tan Toronto area, 21% million dollars was spent. advertising soft drinks, 142 million adver- tising liquor and $50 thousand advertising milk: the result— in the same area, the. average family spent $12.48 on soft drinks; $78.90 on liquor; and $24.96 on milk. In spite of milk. being a nutritious and healthful drink, the average Toronto family spent half as much on soft. drinks, - three times. .as much on liquor as they. did on milk.” ic urged to protest. Montreal arrests The. Padlock law is gone, Duplessis is gone, but it is still a crime to fight fascism in Montreal — at least in the eyes of the Montreal police (who are gaining an unenyi- able nation-wide _ reputation for their inability to stop the current crime wave), At 7:30 a.m. on Dec. 5, three citizens of Montreal, Alex Gauld, Dora Rochlin and B. Hough, were arrested for dis- tributing leaflets at the gates of the Northern Electric plant calling for action against the Canadian Nazi fuehrer Belle- fuille, who was recently ex- posed by the CBC. After being held for a num- ber: of hours they were. releas- ed on*$100 bail each. Protests against the arresis should be sent to Mayor Jean Drapeau, of Montreal Finan- cial help is also needed for the legal battle. Donations can be sent to Frank Brenton and Marcel Gelinas, Defence Fund Trustees, 4654 St. Catherines St."East, Montreal, P.Q. The above extract is taken from the report of the Ontario Farmer -. Labour Conference, 1960. National Farm Union At its annual convention in Edmonton earlier this month, the Farmers Union of Alberta approved a resolution propos- ing that the name of the In- terprovincial Farm Union Council (which unites the var- ious provincial unions) be changed to National Farm Un- ion, It was also agreed that the various farm union papers be merged into one. eR A. big. strike. movement) has been «sweeping the South American countries. as -workers. demand. decent: standards. of . living. .Phote shows. workers in Brazilia, capital. of. Brazil, demonstrating for wage increases. hee December 23, 1960—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 7