Sara Haviland, author of James and Esther Cooper Jackson: Love and Courage in the Love and Freedom Movement, discusses the intertwined personal and political lives of Esther and James. As Communists, they were involved with the Southern Negro Youth Congress, the fight against fascism during World War II, the struggle for antiracist unionism, and the 1960s Civil Rights, Black Power, and peace movements, among many causes. Married in 1941, they were immediately separated by World War II and later by James’ going underground after being indicted under the Smith Act. Throughout periods of separation, they maintained a strong connection through their correspondence, which “often conveyed a deep longing for each other, respect and admiration for each other’s work, a desire for warmth and love, and for the commitment they shared to equality and socialism.”
Image: James and Esther with their daughters Kathryn (left) and Harriet (right), circa 1960s. People’s World.
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The Communist Party USA is a revolutionary working-class political party founded in 1919 in Chicago, IL.
The Communist Party stands for the interests of the American working class and the American people. It stands for our interests in both the present and the future. Solidarity with workers of other countries is also part of our work. We work in coalition with the labor movement, the peace movement, the student movement, organizations fighting for equality and social justice, the environmental movement, immigrants rights groups and the health care for all campaign.
But to win a better life for working families, we believe that we must go further. We believe that the American people can replace capitalism with a system that puts people before profit — socialism.
We are rooted in our country's revolutionary history and its struggles for democracy. We call for "Bill of Rights" socialism, guaranteeing full individual freedoms.
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