NEXT MONTH ::: Texas Socialist Conference 2011

Texas Socialist Conference 2011

November 19th - 20th

University of Texas at Austin

The end of the one sided class war has arrived--from Egypt to Madison; from the occupation of Wall Street to the urban uprisings in England-- working people are fighting back against a greedy and destructive ruling class which has ruined lives and the environment with it's blind and unquenchable lust for profit.

Socialist politics are back; factories, workplaces, campuses and the mainstream media have become forums for debating the relevance of Marxism once again.

The Texas Socialist Conference will be one such forum for the debate and discussion of issues that matter to socialists and activists from across Texas and the surrounding areas.

Come learn what Marxists have to say about class, race, sexuality, war, capitalism and how to create a better world.

Reserve your spot by RSVPing on our Facebook event page.

$5-$20 registration

Childcare available upon request

Evening party (Details TBA)

Schedule:

Nov 19

11:30AM-Noon

Registration

Noon-12:30PM

Opening Plenary: Why Marx was Right

12:45PM-2:15PM

No power greater: Marxism and the centrality of class

Reading: Hal Draper: Karl Marx’s Theory of Revolution: volume 2, The Politics of Social Classes, ch 2-3

Hal Draper, “The Principle of self-emancipation in Marx and Engels,”

The roots of racial oppression

Readings: Lance Selfa, “The Roots of Racism”

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, “Race, Class, and Marxism”

2:15PM-3:15PM

Lunch

3:15PM-4:45PM

The Minneapolis Teamsters Strike: A case study in working-class power

Reading: Irving Bernstein, The Turbulent Years, chapter 6, “Eruption” (read at least 217-252);

Farrell Dobbs, Teamster Rebellion

"The Rebellion in Minneapolois" - Adam Turl

Theories of Women’s Oppression

Readings: Sharon Smith, Women and Socialism, Chapter1: “The Origin of Women’s Oppression,”, Chapter 5: “Women and Socialism”

Lindsey German, “Theories of Patriarchy,” (http://www.isj.org.uk/?id=240)

Alexandra Kollontai, “The Social Basis of the Woman Question,” (http://marxists.org/archive/kollonta/1909/social-basis.htm)

5PM-6:30PM

The changing working class and the future of the labor movement

Readings: Adam Turl, Is the U.S. becoming Post-Industrial? (http://www.isreview.org/issues/52/postindustrial.shtml )

Sharon Smith, The Future in the Present: Marxism, Unions, and Class Struggle (http://www.isreview.org/issues/78/feat-marxism&unions.shtml)

Kim Moody, U.S. Labor in Trouble and Transition

Can the working class liberate the oppressed?

Readings: Paul D’Amato, “Where Oppression Comes From,” (http://socialistworker.org/2009/10/09/where-oppression-comes-from)

Jen Roesch, “Can the Working Class Unite?” (http://socialistworker.org/2010/11/04/can-the-working-class-unite)

Sharon Smith, “Marxism and Identity Politics,” (http://socialistworker.org/2008/07/11/marxism-and-identity-politics)

Ahmed Shawki, Black Liberation and Socialism, Chapter 7, “Socialists, Communists, and Trotskyists”; Conclusion, “Black Liberation and Socialism”

Nov 20

12pm-1:30pm

Introduction to the International Socialist Organization

Suggested reading: "Where We Stand" (http://internationalsocialist.org/pdfs/WhereWeStandPamphlet.pdf)

Sponsored by the International Socialist Organization

http://internationalsocialist.org/

http://socialistworker.org/