PROJECT PROFILE     (Update of " srcnwaiy prepaid for last board neetlng of April 5*8)
This profile will not ©over merg project extant as the last one did0 just new projects»
new events» ©hashed situations, etc»
This time around» it0s all arranged by regions»
BESBä
1) Bfcrfolk» Va.~=V©ry» ver» impressive thirds happening herec For one thing» it's one of
those mm places that has both a white and a black 01 organisation» and they even have a
high degree of ©»opération between thesso The Tidewater Africans is a younger groupf they
counsel and rap with blade sailors» put out a bimonthly newsletter and distribute other
literature,, worked hard on the Camp Allen Brothers defense» and have gotten sssae support
froa the Hati©Ml Black Draft Counselors in GhieagOo Içts entirely active«=duty» but the
WB±n organiser intends to stay and- build the organisation when he ETS'g in S©pt0
The two main things the Defense Cossaittee has going for it are ara amasing eivilian organizerv
and an extensive network of ©cntactse In fast they do not see themselves as a mass
©ovesent but as a network» on© capable of getting out inforsation» gathering intelligence»
Mobilising support and defense» building GI consciousness^ and in general maintaining an
'anti-taperialist organisation of sailors organised around their "Statement of Principle's*."
It must be working« Grapes of Wrath» their paper» is distributed widely throughout the
Sixth Fleet» with bulk copies being mailed to Portsmouth» M NH» to Florida» arod on several
ships (on® sailor regularly distribute© 200 copies on his shlp)o Dozens of sailors write
in every month with articles» or to talk about the situation where they0re atQ It looks
to go beyond that» since as a result of regional meetings» Defense Gossaittees have now
been fosiaed at Charleston Naval Bas® &ttà Camp Lejeune» as well» This project deserves all
the support we can possibly give»
2) Cassp Lejeune» KC°~The United We Stand bookstore^ the project center hereB was bombed
on May 2 by the leader of a white sispremaeist paramilitary group called Right© for White
People^ The bombing followed tvo days of meetings between 15°20 black Marines and an
organiser from NBDC in Chicago» The clear racist nature of the bombing las just enforced
the unity of the "Brothers of Camp Lejeune"« White marines are now talking of foming
a Defense Committee after meeting with Norfolk Defense Coraalttee members (and showing the
fila Potemkin}» The bookstore is being rebuilt; the staffers expect some harassment as a
Tpesult of their taking the witness stand'In the impending trial of the bombero
3) Charleston Naval Base» SC==The Charleston GI Office folks have he®n receiving some
AFSC funds till now9 but that0,s going to end in October» and theyfre not sure how they0re
going to make ends meet theno The last issue (June) of Fat Albert0© Death Ship Times cost
them $365 to print=.=>they are a prime case where the USSF stipend is important but hardly
enough. Folks here held an^ Aff®ed Farces Day celebration on May 19? all the original fancy
plans of reserving a park and having Phil Ochs fell thru» but it all turned out successful
anywayo Phil from Norfolk came down and played his guitar singing 0£ and worklngsongs»
Potesakiagwas showed » isM   a chapter of the Defense Committee was discussed» and it was
good for everybody involved (none of the sailors had ever heard of Phil Ochs anyway)»
4-) Flowers of the dragon—-three of the FighT bAck GIs that were transferred out of
Gemas^ In January are at Southern bases«
—Andy Beraan was shipped to Ft Polk„ Lao» and after a premising start (guys were talking
about a mimeod paperB leafletting) suffered a series of setbacks» First the other active
GI centrally involved ETS°d» and then Andy's past ea<ä$ht up with him In the wake of a
security screening that preceded a visit by then=Army secretary Froelke., Andy's been taken
a out of his MOS and made a TV repairman where he work^s with civilians all day long and so
has little contact with GIs on the .job»
»—Dave Gersh went to Ft Knox» Kyos and has slnse formed a Grievance Committee in his unit
which has done a lot of agitation around working conditions«. They put out an Issue of
FTA (that0s what the old Knox paper was called* It was the very first stateside local GI
paper)„ He0s getting out in Sept» but hopes to have developed some active cadre»to keep one
--Excuse me» it0s John Parks who's at Knox» not Dave0
—Dave Gersh is at Ft Sam Houston» TX„ See seetlon on Southwest belowo