Saturday, May 21, 2016

Left Forum 2016 - Black Liberation & the Sanders Groundswell: Prospects for Left Unity


 
This is the Saturday Night Plenary from the 2016 Left Forum, held May 20 -22 at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. The conference theme was "Rage, Rebellion, Revolution: Organizing Our Power."

Moderators:

Bhaskar Sunkara and Glen Ford

Panelists:

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor is a writer, public speaker and activist living in Philadelphia. She writes on Black politics, housing inequality and issues of race and class in the United States. She is the author of the forthcoming From Black Lives Matter to Black Liberation, published by Haymarket Books in Fall 2015. She is an Assistant Professor at the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University.

Kshama Sawant is an activist who brings a passion for social justice to her work. As a member of the Seattle City Council, now in her second term, she has been a voice for workers, youth, and the oppressed. After earning her PhD in economics, Kshama moved to Seattle and began teaching at Seattle Central Community College, Seattle University, and the University of Washington Tacoma. She joined Socialist Alternative in 2009, and since then has helped organize demonstrations for marriage equality, participated in the movement to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and was a leading presence in the Occupy Movement. In November 2013, she defeated a 16-year incumbent Democrat to become the first socialist elected in a major US city in decades and the only Councilmember in Seattle outside the Democratic Party establishment. Kshama has consistently used her position to expose the ties between powerful corporate interests and a majority of the city's politicians - all Democrats. After being at the forefront of the movement that won a $15/hour minimum wage, Kshama helped win critical funding for homeless people in the City budget.

August H. Mintz is a professor of political science and African American and African Studies at the University of Minnesota, August H. Nimtz is the author of several books including Lenin’s Electoral Strategy (2014) and Marx, Tocqueville and Race in America (2003). His essays on Marxism, race and politics have appeared in leading journals and publications and have been translated into many languages.

Debbie Bookchin is an investigative journalist, author, and former press secretary to U.S. Congressman Bernie Sanders. She has published in The Nation, Atlantic Monthly, HarperCollins' Best Science Writing and many other venues. She is coauthor of The Virus and the Vaccine (St. Martin’s Press, 2004) and recently coedited and introduced a new book of essays by her father, Murray Bookchin, called The Next Revolution: Popular Assemblies and the Promise of Direct Democracy (Verso Books, 2015).

Download the audio at the a-Infos Radio Project.

Left Forum 2016 - A Dialogue On Israel and Palestine with Tariq Ali and Norman Finkelstein


 
This is a panel from the 2016 Left Forum, held May 20 -22 at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. The conference theme was "Rage, Rebellion, Revolution: Organizing Our Power."

Moderator: Paul Jay

Panelists: Tariq Ali, Norman Finkelstein

Listen to the 58 minute podcast on iTunes.

Left Forum 2016 - What Next for the Movement Behind Bernie?



This is a panel from the 2016 Left Forum, held May 20 -22 at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. The conference theme was "Rage, Rebellion, Revolution: Organizing Our Power."

From the Organizers:

The Sanders campaign has drawn tens of thousands into massive, enthusiastic rallies for "a political revolution against the billionaire class". Grassroots organizations like "Labor for Bernie," "People for Bernie" and "#Movement4Bernie" swelled around the country. How do we continue the fight against the billionaire class after the primaries? Do we need a new party for the 99%? Can this be a step towards revitalizing the labor movement? Come discuss these questions and more with leaders of the movement.

Panel Chair:

Bryan Koulouris is the National Organizer for Socialist Alternative.

Panelists:

Charles Lechner is with People for Bernie.

Philip Locker is the national spokesperson for Socialist Alternative and a founder of #Movement4Bernie.

Micah Landau is with Labor for Bernie.

Kshama Sawant is Seattle's socialist City Councilmember. She was initially elected in 2013 as an open socialist fighting for a $15 an hour minimum wage. After Kshama initiated the "15 Now" movement, Seattle became the first city in the country to win 15, and that victory rapidly spread to other cities across the country. Kshama was re-elected in 2015 with widespread labor support while she campaigned for housing justice. She spoke alongside Bernie Sanders at rallies addressing thousands in Seattle.

Download the audio at the a-Infos Radio Project.

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Brian Zbriger - The Palm Oil Boom: Why It Matters and What You Can Do


 
Endicott, NY; May 17, 2016

From the Organizers:

Brian Zbriger is a PhD candidate in Sociology at Binghamton University. He will discuss why palm oil plantations are expanding in Southeast Asia, how this is negatively impacting the environment, and how citizens and consumers are working to address the problem.

Sponsored by Sierra Club - Susquehanna Group.