The Passing Of Susan Ross

You never know what sad news the next day will bring. This morning I learned via email from several sources that Comrade Susan Ross has passed away. Her husband, Gabe, said that it was "very peaceful and dignified," and there is comfort in knowing that.

I didn't know Susan, and in my whole life I've only spoken to Gabe a half dozen times. I met him in 1990, if memory serves, and I know both he and Susan worked very hard for the cause of socialism. The passing of a comrade is always very sad. The world always needs people like Susan, moreso now it seems. Gabe and Susan were always seen as kindred spirits. Very much alike in what they felt as comrades, one often spoke of Gabe if talking about Susan, and Susan if talking about Gabe. They went together so perfectly.

David A. Hacker sent a lovely letter about Susan this morning where he wrote, "I found Susan to be a very sensitive soul. She was sensitive to in-justice, hatred, and in-difference." He went on to say, "The fact that her pre-mature death was caused as a result of a blow to the head by a student in the high school class she was teaching, who was a neo-Nazi, over a decade ago, should inspire us to work ever harder to end the racism and bigotry that still stains our land."

It's also worth mentioning that she was upset at the schisms that have split the party, and the movement, over the years, and that she called for more civility in the discorse.

Goodbye comrade, you are well-remembered.