NBAWADU Report by Tony T., March 29, 1968
C ? The National Black Antiwar, Antidraft Union (NBAWADU)
represents a formation that can potentially organize and unite
on a national level the various black power militants and organizations, as well as other blacks opposed to the war, into a national-,
independent antiwar coalition.  NBAWADU has the potential of being
a parallel to the SMC and the NMC, as the organizer of largely
untaped massive Afro-American antiwar sentiment. We strongly
support it as a significant step forward in the development of
the antiwar and black struggles.
While the organization at its formation at the Chicago SMC
conference had some representation from major cities in the nation
and received support from the national leadership of SNCC, local
NBAWADU affiliates in most areas have yet to get off the ground.
The area coordinators elected at the SMC conference, and the
various black organisations have done minimal work on behalf of
NBAWADU.  Local NBAWADU organizations have appeared in the Bay
Area, Boston, Detroit, Carbondale, and Washington, D.C. Areas
such as Chicago, Philadelphia ~r.d Ohio, and the new layer of
campus militants organized in Afro-American associations, have
yet to be reached by NBAWADU in a significant way.
The lack of any effective local organization in New York
has severely limited the effectiveness of the national apparatus
which largely consists of John Wilson of New York SNCC and Gwen
(      Patton of SMC.  However, at a recent meeting of the New York
NBAWADU plans were made to try and improve the effectiveness of
the local organization.  The CP and the DBC have failed to carry
out any meaningful activity on behalf of NBAWADU in New York,
even though Ken Baily of the CP xvas elected as one of the four
local coordinators.
The founding meeting of NBAWADU at the SMC conference projected a national conference to be held in New York April 12-14-,
to consolidate the organization, to discuss black participation
in the Student Strike (which NBAWADU has already supported) and
to project actions at the Democratic Party convention. While
this conference will not have as massive a characger as originally
projected, it can serve as a point of departure for organization
of new areas and groups and the establishment of a more effective
national apparatus.  It is important that this conference have a
national character and that it be publicized, especially in areas
where NBAWADU chapters don't exist.
Comrades in local areas should publicize NBAWADU and its April
conference to blacks we are in contact with. Local areas should
send  reports on how the conference is received.  Where NBAWADU
chapters exist, especially where comrades are active in them, they
should send in progress reports to the NO.  If possible, lists of
names and addresses of black militants and organizations should
( ,    be sent into the NO to help build a national contact list for
v      NBAWADU.
Further correspondence on the NBAWADU will follow.  All
Afro-American comrades should plan to attend this conference.