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Indybay Feature

Socialism 2009

640_socialism2009_header_1.jpg
Date:
Friday, July 03, 2009
Time:
10:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Event Type:
Conference
Organizer/Author:
Ragina Johnson
Location Details:
Women's Building
3543 18th Street
San Francisco, CA

The world economic crisis has shattered the free-market consensus that has dominated politics for the last generation. Meanwhile, the end of the conservative era and the election of the first African American president have raised expectations among working people that long overdue change is at hand. With capitalism in crisis, even some in the mainstream media are admitting that Karl Marx was right.

There has never been a better time for those who want to see fundamental change to get together to debate, discuss and organize for a new society—a society based on the needs of the many instead of the whims of a few. We need to organize a new left to meet the challenge of this new era.

That’s the purpose that Socialism 2009—expanded to two sites this year—has set for itself. Gather with activists from around the world to take part in dozens of discussions about changing the world: How can we end racism? What kind of organization do we need? What would a future socialist society look like?

Yes we can organize for socialism in the 21st century! ¡Sí se puede!
Added to the calendar on Sat, Apr 4, 2009 3:51PM
§Friday schedule
by more info

Friday, July 3rd

9:30am - 11:00am

40 Acres and a Mule? What Went Wrong? The Rise and Fall of Radical Reconstruction.James Illingworth
Death to the State: Can Anarchism Smash Capitalism?David Russitano
How Capitalism Works—And How It Doesn't: The ABC's of Marxist EconomicsDeborah Goldsmith
Have Women Always Been Oppressed?Gillian Russom
Art, Hip Hop, Sports and Culture in the Obama AgeDave Zirin, Jeff Chang, Davey D (host of KPFA's Hard Knock Radio) and Favianna Rodriguez (graphic artist and founder of Taller Tupac Amaru)

11:30am - 1:00pm

Students, Young Workers and Capitalism: How Can We Get the Future We Want?James Bichler, Seattle Central Community College; Wael Elasady, Portland State University; Laura Martinez, Mt. San Antonio College; Adam Hudson, Stanford University; Tayler Mehit, San Francisco State University
Emiliano Zapata and the Mexican RevolutionVictor Fressie
How Eugene Debs Became a SocialistJessica Hansen-Weaver
Iran: From the 1979 Revolution to Rebellion in the Streets TodayBarry Sheppard and Lee Sustar

1:00pm - 2:00pm Lunch

2:00pm - 3:30pm

The Roots of Racial Oppression: Why Didn't Racism Vanish After Slavery was Abolished?Sid Patel
The General Strikes of 1934: San Francisco, Minneapolis and Toledo: What Can We Learn Today?Sharon Smith and Clarence Thomas
What Would a Sustainable Society Look Like?Avery Wear and Michael Yates
10 Days that Shook the World: How the Russian Revolution Was WonChristine DaRosa
Lenin's State and RevolutionTodd Chretien

4:00pm - 5:30pm

Three Strikes, the Death Penalty, "Tough on Crime:" Is It Time to Abolish Prisons?Barbara Becnel and Cameron Sturdevant
Trading in Pollution: Environmental Destruction & the Fallacy of Market SolutionsAnuradha Mittal
Charlie Chaplin: Never Afraid to Stand UpScott Johnson
How are Revolutionary Parties Built?Ahmed Shawki
Venezuela: the Bolivarian Revolution and Socialism in the 21st CenturyMartin Sanchez

5:30pm - 7:00pm Dinner

Stand Up Dinner Comedy and Politics with Mark Steel on the Life of Che Guevara

7:00pm - 9:00pm

Prop 8 is Going Down! Winning Equal Marriage in CaliforniaSherry Wolf with Gay Marriage activists from up and down the West Coast, including: Kip Williams, San Francisco; Chanan Suarez Diaz, Seattle; Zakiya Khabir, San Diego; and more to come!

Comments (Hide Comments)
by Terri
I would like to attend. ISO events are usually interesting , despite what my anarchist friends say, and the floor discussion is open .
But $10 a session and $35 a day (and no '' No one turned away for lack of funds "" ) is way too expensive .
I am lucky to get a couple of days a week of work . MANY people are in the same situation . After all we're in a depression .
I hope someone in ISO reads this and gets the rates lower . After all you want to attract the working class and students to this conference not just the priviledged petty bourgeois .
by Todd C
Hi All,
In response to Terri... of course the ISO is very sympathetic to folks who are suffering economically, especially these days. The conference rates are as low as we can hold them and still cover expenses... for instance, we are (gladly) providing (and paying for) for full-time child care providers to assure that working class parents can attend the conference. Many people have contacted us prior to the conference and asked for scholarships, and we have grants dozens of them. We are trying to be as flexible as possible. If you would like to discuss a scholarship, please call me at 510-590-6073 and we can work out a rate that you can afford and I will do my best to get back to you asap, although there may be some lag time because the conference has already started. Sounds reasonable?

In Solidarity,
Todd
by dave id
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