Socialism Conference in Chicago draws militant workers, young people

Over 70 people attended an April 28 Socialism Conference in Chicago. The conference, entitled, “The Struggle for Revolutionary Change” was the first of its kind held by the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Chicago.

Participants were young and old and came from various communities citywide. The conference was held in Albany Park, a working class community on the Northwest side of Chicago. The highly multi-national community is made up of Latino, Arab, Filipino, Korean, African-American, white workers and others.

The day was filled with lots of discussion, passion and resolutions to struggle for change. The conference opened with a rousing solidarity statement with May 1 immigrant rights marches.

Over the day there were two plenary sessions and two sets of workshops.

Discussion focuses on Ending War, Changing System

“If the War on Iraq is a bad idea in 2008, why should our friends and family be sent to kill and die there in 2007?” “Is Socialist revolution possible in the United States?” “What lessons can we learn from the experience of revolution in Cuba and the Soviet Union?” These were just a few of the many questions that speakers and participants addressed at the conference.

Stefanie Fisher, a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Chicago, chaired the opening panel and led off the conference with an overview of current social problems for workers, and their roots in capitalism.

Yenica Cortes, a PSL member from New York then analyzed the struggles of immigrant communities in the U.S. She talked about how the growth in immigration is caused by an increasingly aggressive U.S. imperialism. She affirmed that the struggle of immigrant workers is central to the struggle of workers against capitalist exploitation here and abroad.

Eugene Puryear, a Howard University student leader, discussed the relationship between Black liberation and socialism. He explained that the liberation of workers in the U.S. is impossible without militant support for the African-American struggle against the institutionalized racist violence of the capitalist system.

Ken Lurch, National Association of Letter Carriers, Branch 3825 talked about the war on workers and how it is directly related to the war on the Iraqi people.

Brian Becker, the National Coordinator of the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition, was the keynote speaker of the event. He spoke of the need for socialism and building a revolutionary party that can lead the struggle of the U.S. multi-national working class for emancipation in a time of crisis for the capitalist system.

Following the opening panel and discussion, the conference broke into workshops. Party members and friends presented workshops on such issues as U.S. Imperialism in the Middle East and East Africa; the importance of the Cuban and Venezuelan experience to socialism; how capitalism promotes racism, sexism, and homophobia; and a historical analysis of socialist development in the Soviet Union. Each workshop was structured around discussion. Participants engaged in the workshops with extensive questions and comments.

The conference concluded with a closing panel of speakers. Speakers included Preston Wood, a PSL member in Los Angeles, who discussed recent events in Cuba and how they relate to the workers’ struggle in the U.S. John Beacham, a PSL leader in Chicago, explained why a socialist revolution is possible in the U.S. Heather Beneno, PSL member in Chicago, addressed the need for a revolutionary Marxist party. Yoani Mendoza, a member of the PSL in Chicago, chaired the closing plenary.

Mass outreach to workers — in the name of socialism

The Socialism Conference in Chicago reflected over a month of intense preparation and outreach. PSL members in Chicago organized themselves into outreach teams, and distributed tens of thousands of stickers, flyers and posters all over the city. Party members also attended many local functions to promote the event.

The PSL organizes conferences like the one in Chicago to reach out to people who want to fight against capitalism. We want to reach out to people and promote the struggle for revolutionary change and socialism as the only alternative to the unending battles of the working class for justice and equality.

The Albany Park neighborhood was literally covered in outreach materials for the conference. Many people, far beyond the number of people who were able to attend, responded favorably to literature promoting socialism.

The conference was aided by the Leftist Lounge Chicago, which loaned the Conference paintings to display as part of an exhibit of revolutionary women of color.

One attendee described feeling “incredibly powerful” as she left the Conference after having participated in the panel discussions and the workshops. The Party for Socialism and Liberation plans to follow-up the conference with an intensive educational series on Lenin’s “State and Revolution” on May 19th, 20th and 23rd. For more information, call 773-920-7590.