Dozens of anti-war activists picketed the SSA Terminal in Oakland May 19, blocking the entrance and causing longshore workers to stand down.

The demonstrators, who appeared at the morning and evening shift, included many Oakland teachers whose schools are suffering with budget cutbacks as war funding nears the trillion-dollar mark. The demonstrators also demanded that the Port of Oakland should share with the schools a portion of the billions in dollars in revenue that flow through the port.

With the entrance to the terminal blocked, the longshore workers waited for the arbitrator, who would rule if the picket line was permitted by contract, which meant the workers could choose not to cross. If there was any danger involved in crossing the line, the arbitrator could also rule the workers were not required to cross.

“We had an arbitration, [in the morning] and the arbitrator ruled it was a health and safety issue, and they paid the men time worked and that was the end of that one,” longshore Local 10 President Tommy Clark said. “In the second shift the arbitrator ruled against the union because he felt it wasn’t a bona fide picket line.”

Workers cited the behavior of Oakland Police during the April 7, 2003 demo as a reason for not crossing the picket line, according to news reports. That day, police fired wooden dowels and rubber bullets at a peaceful crowd, injuring nine longshore workers—who were well away from the line—and dozens of protestors.
“There wasn’t any hostility from the police towards the demonstrators this year, it was quite different from April 2003,” Clark said.

The police didn’t fire on anybody, but they did keep news crews away from the scene for “safety reasons.” Some demonstrators speculated that the cops might be planning another police riot and didn’t want cameras around. Some also speculated that this had something to do with the fact that Ron Dellums is now the Oakland mayor. He sent a message of support to the protestors.

The ILWU International Convention, the highest constitutional body in the union, has condemned the Iraq war and called for the withdrawal of occupation forces.

“The ILWU speaks for itself on that issue, we’re against the war,” Clark said. “But we support our troops and we want to return them safely home.”

—Tom Price