| February 10, 2006 Interview With an Anarchist A Tribute To Ruth Sheridan by Katy Parrish, insurgent49 photo by Pamela Thompson  At 88,
Ruth has more energy than most of her younger peers. January 20th has
officially been proclaimed Ruth Sheridan Day. Side Street Espresso was
packed with friends while the Mayor’s office presented Ruth with
a wonderful proclamation highlighting her service advocating for fair
labor practices and world peace. My first impression of Ruth still resonates with the same sense of respect and inspiration I felt when I met her three years ago at an Alaskans for Peace and Justice meeting. I wondered how such a petite, respectful woman could command such a dedication to serving the oppressed. I thought about how many struggles she had witnessed, the wars that never stop, and her determination to never give up. I decided then that I wanted to be like Ruth when I grow up. It took only a moment to discover our common commitment to anarchism. I laughed with delight when she confided, “We always manage to find each other.” Then she passed me one of the few original copies of “Anarchism” written by Albert Parsons, one of the martyrs of the Haymarket Square riots. Whenever I have questions about resources for families I’m serving or friends in need, I call Ruth. She is a generous wealth of information, humor and steadfast activism. Tell me about how you began your community activism. I was eighteen and attending Brooklyn College, between the years 1932-36. It was during the Spanish Civil War. I had met a man with the Communist Party who was trying to recruit people to fight on the side of the Loyalists. The tragedy of war is that no one really wins. Civil wars are particularly gruesome. Neighbors, family and friends can end up fighting each other. There was a lot of interest in communism, socialism and anarchism during the depression because people thought that those ways would be better than starving. People were focused on sharing more. During World War II, I joined the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) in Chicago and found the anarchist faction there. The good things about anarchy are that it teaches you how to live within an unfair system and that you don’t have to wait for a revolution. Do you ever get frustrated that those in power have manipulated the definition of anarchy to mean chaos? I just ignore it. I attended the first International Anarchist convention in Portland in 1979. There were different speakers and presentations going on all over the place simultaneously and it started to get really dull. Then someone held up a big sign that read: “Whatever happened to spontaneity?” I’ve always been part of the peace movement. The demonstrations were the only time that the lefty groups came together. Today there is more collaboration going on with the different left leaning groups outside of the peace demonstrations. Who inspires you? I am intrigued with all of the different anti-war groups. We’ve got prayer, GI rights, singing, like the new peace choir here in Anchorage…Whorl Peas. But, I miss the more radical groups. How did you meet your husband? I met him in Bughouse Square in Chicago. He liked to talk on the soapbox. You know anyone who had an axe to grind could show up at the park. Every Friday and Saturday night, a guy nicknamed Wingy – he only had one arm so we called him Wingy – would bring the box. Anyone who wanted to talk could, and then people would pass the hat and go drink it up on Clark Street. This was a wonderful way to share ideas and the crowd varied from night to night. In ’69 after my husband died, several friends in the IWW decided I needed to meet Eldon the fruit tramp. He would travel from Phoenix to Yakima, back and forth on freight trains, to pick fruit. He showed me how to ride freight trains. That season, I traveled from Chicago to Yakima, Washington. To pick apples? It was more about organizing than picking fruit. When did you come to Alaska? In 1970…all of the radicals found each other from different cities. There were two anarchists, one Trotskyite, a couple of socialists and a few Mao Commies. We founded a newspaper and a food co-op, and then after three years we couldn’t agree on anything anymore and stopped meeting. From 1978-1983, I helped run a bookstore called Ships, Shoes and Ceiling Wax. I sold the radical stuff and my partners sold feminist literature. Tell me about your most current community project. Wal-Mart has bought all of this land over in Muldoon. They have gone into the developing business these days and plan on not only building a Wal-Mart store, but a Sam’s Club, housing and an emergent care center as well. To get it done they will have to change the zoning. On January 19th, the Northeast Community Council unanimously passed a resolution against Wal-Mart. What do you think about Bush and his domestic spying? Is this really new? I don’t want to go there. The only time I had any experience with spying was when my husband’s twin was deported after World War I for being involved with the Communist Party. After every war, they deport the revolutionaries. You’ve seen so many wars. Do you ever get depressed? Jared Diamond’s book “Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies” really helped me. Human beings have been at war since day one. If we can’t learn to live in peace in my lifetime, why should I get so upset about it? Katy Parrish is a freelance writer and media activist who can be reached at takebackthemedia@hotmail.com. |
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2005
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Reserved. in-sur-gent (in sur'jent), n. 1. a member of a group which revolts against the policies of its leadership. |
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