Sacrifice And Commitment - Both Necessary Towards Building Our Organization To Challenge Colonialism:

Editor's Note - The following is an edited version of Chairman Ernesto Bustillos' presentation given during the first session of our National Congress. This presentation outlines the basic understanding of what the purpose, objectives and future goals of our organization is suppose to achieve.

The Opening Statements Of The Congress By Our Chairman, Ernesto Bustillos

Compañeros y Compañeras:

I would like to briefly review with you what we understand a congress to be; the importance of this particular congress; how we would like the process to take place; and what we hope to accomplish these next couple days.

But before I sum-up these questions, I want to say that I truly respect all of you - as I recognize the commitment that it takes to be here this morning. I want to especially recognize the work that the Central Committee has done these last couple of months to prepare us for this congress. While we are self-critical to the many errors and weaknesses that became apparent as we were building for the congress, I can truly and honestly say that errors were based on limitations and conditions currently beyond our control; and that the work the Central Committee has done to build for this congress was done in a principled and most honest fashion.

We Are An Organization Dedicated To Liberation

Before we get into what we believe is the significance of this Congreso, I also want to unite with some of the comments that were made last night, during the opening session of our congress.

I want to say that I am in unity with compañera Maria's (Oritz, currently a member of the Central Committee) observation, that this Congreso is part of the 500 years of Raza resistance to oppression and colonization. I want to say that I am in unity with compa Ismael's (Camarada from San Diego's North County unit) statement describing this Congreso as "moving us one step towards putting an end to colonialism, and uniting us with the Zapatistas, Ejército Popular Revolucionario, and the struggle that has been coming down in St. Petersburg, Florida." I want to say that I am unity with Camarada Hector Muro's (North County) comment that this Congreso is moving us towards a real unity with humanity and in real struggle against capitalism and all forms of colonialism. I want to also say that I am in unity with that position that compa Marcelino (one of the original members of Unión) took - when he explained that this Congreso will have a long term significance to our struggle and therefore we must take this junta in the most serious way. I also want to say that I deeply appreciated compañero Jose Moreno when he said they (Oxnard Unit) have finally found an organization that is dedicated to liberation.

The comments made by all the camaradas last night, I think, have set the tone for what will come down these next two days.

It Is Of Critical Necessity For All Of Us To Contribute To This Congress

Compañeros, the current Central Committee (the CC at the time prior to the Congress), wants all of us to have a solid understanding as to what a congress is and what we hope to accomplish these next couple of days.

First of all, a congress is where all the leading membership of an organization, in the highest expression of democracy, meet to critically review and change - if necessary - the fundamental elements and components that represent the ideology, framework, and objectives of an organization:

· Second, the Congreso is a forum where we examine the structure of the organization to see if it is capable of allowing us to function in a way that we desire;

· Third, the Congreso is where we go over the rules that govern our organization, to make sure that it makes our membership accountable and creates the type of discipline necessary to reach our objectives;

· Fourth, it is where were we critically look at our political philosophy or political line, to see if it meets the test of time and if it can hold up to the many contradictions and complex questions facing our gente and our struggle;

· Fifth, the Congreso is the place where we critically analyze our past work, our strengths and weaknesses, to see what works and what doesn't and gain some serious lessons from this analysis; as Maria said, the "Congreso is a learning process".

· And sixth, the Congreso is also where we collectively develop plans of actions, long and short term, and use these plans as an instrument by which to measure the effectiveness of our understanding, our commitments and our work.

Due to the many issues we are going to take on over the next couple of days, we can't stress enough the critical necessity for all of us to contribute to this congress.

Compañeros y Compañeras, we think all of us understand that this is an extraordinary congress. Its an extraordinary congress for several reasons. One, because it's our organization's first congress. Second, it is a congress that will place Unión along a path that will enable us to transform ourselves into a vanguard type formation. Third, it is a unique gathering of special significance because it is taking place in a particular period in history when our movement appears to once again taking on a liberation-revolutionary character. And fourth, it is taking place during a period when - even as we speak - revolutionary struggle is seen throughout the world; its seen by the actions of the Tupac Amaru in Perú, the struggle of the guerrillas in Columbia, the struggle of the Palestinian masses, the struggle of the New People's Army in the Philippines, and we can give many more examples.

We Must Build The Capacity Of Our Organization To Meet The Challenge Of Colonialism; This Calls For Sacrifice And Commitment

Compañeros y Compañeras, we are confident that this Congreso can move us towards becoming the organization and leadership that the conditions of this period demand. But, as it has already been said, to make this change - this necessary transformation - we must be extremely serious about our commitment to struggle. This calls for understanding and coming to terms with the tremendous sacrifice - physical and psychological - that we all must make in order to realize our objectives. At all times our discussion and decisions must be rooted in reality and with the understanding of the many contradictions facing our gente, the movement, and our own organization.

We're talking about the ever growing misery, despair, and violence in which the great majority of our people exist. A violence that has its basis in a colonial situation in which our people exist in. All of us are aware that eleven Mexicanos have died crossing the gringo imposed border in January alone. This is a type of violent reality in which a large sector of our gente exist.

We're talking about addressing the movement's present inability to put up an effective struggle against the vicious oppression facing our Raza. We are talking about recognizing and coming to terms with the fact that at this particular time we find that within our organization, there exists an uneven political development of its membership, scarcity of resources, and an absence of the kind of leadership necessary to effectively lead a national liberation struggle. These are major contradictions that must be resolved by our organization.

If We Don't Respect Each Other, We Have No Business Talking About Revolution

We understand that the process necessary for the building of the type of organization needed to resolve these contradictions and to lead our movement forward calls for intense and heavy struggle. But this struggle must take place with respect and an open mind. If we don't respect each other, we have no business talking about revolution. This particular point is important and we want all of us to internalize it, as we struggle.

Also, as we struggle, we must be conscious that all of us hold petty bourgeois tendencies that have been embedded in us by years of capitalism and colonialism; and only by controlling or putting aside these tendencies can we collectively create the strategy and program that will win liberation.

As we struggle, we must ask ourselves; are the issues we are raising rooted in scientific historical and dialectical materialism or idealism? Are the objectives we are developing attainable? And would they truly change the current course of history? We must ask ourselves how will the conclusions that we are developing going to impact our people, the movement, the organization, and our lives.

As we struggle we must also take into consideration the seriousness of the decisions that we make; decisions, like Camarada David Rico said, could cost us our lives and the lives of gente we love. Therefore all of our decisions must be carefully weighted. They must be decisions that we can live with, that we can struggle with, and that we can win with.

Compas, before we finish with this Congreso we want to accomplish several things:

First, we want to develop a solid foundation that will permit us to consolidate the organization.

Second, we want develop long rang objectives that will serve as a measure of our work.

Third, we want to arm our membership with the theory, practice, knowledge, experience and the motivation to struggle harder and more effectively.

Fourth, we want to provide our members with the skills necessary to struggle and have the confidence to overcome all the obstacles placed upon us by a capitalist colonialist society.

Fifth, we want all of our membership to understand what the science of making revolution is all about.

Sixth, we want to elect a leadership that we all trust and support and that has the capacity to implement the objectives which we will develop. We can't leave this Congreso and in a few days complain about the decisions we made or the leadership we elected.

And, seventh, we want to come out of this congress - no matter how intense and heated the struggle - a firmly united organization. We must put the collective needs over those of the individual as this is the primary characteristic of a revolutionary...

¡Que Viva La Raza!