Free and Open to the Public
Saturday, November 11
11am - 6:00pm
Walker (Uptown) Library
Meeting Room
2880 Hennepin Avenue, Mpls
buses: 6, 12, 17, 21, 23
*** 11:00am - 11:30 ***
Coffee and Bagels
Join Socialist Alternative for a quick breakfast before the conference.
*** 11:30am - 12:45 ***
The End of the American Dream? - The growing class divide and perspectives for mass struggle.
Recent reports show that the class divide in America is growing while social mobility is declining. What does this mean for working people in the US? Does this mean that the American Dream is over? Will this lead to mass struggle?
Speaker: Bryan Koulouris, Boston based national organizer for Socialist Alternative.
*** 1:00pm - 2:00pm ***
Breakout Sessions:
1.The War on Terror – Five years of deception and slaughter
Five years ago, Bush and the Neo-cons took advantage of the tragedy of September 11th to launch their ‘war on terror’ – which they have used to attack civil liberties, gain access to oil and to attack regimes who are less friendly to US imperialism. In that time, they have managed to, among other things, get over 2,500 US troops killed in Iraq and bring that country to the brink of civil war. Can the attacks on our civil liberties and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan be stopped? What are the next steps for the anti-war movement?
Facilitated by Theodros Shibabaw & Brandon Madsen
2. Employed and in Poverty – Organizing a fight-back in the low wage service sector
36% of all workers in the US are employed in the retail or service sector. These jobs are amongst the lowest paid in the country. Most of these workplaces will stop at nothing to keep their shops from being unionized. Is there any way to organize the low-wage sector? What kind of tactics are necessary?
Facilitated by Canyon Lalama & Sheryl Raygor
3. Mexico – Lessons from the unfolding revolution
Facilitated by Ryan Timlin & others
The past months have seen mass protests against rigged elections, and a huge strike that has taken over much of Oaxaca. Will these mass movements continue? Will they be successful?
4. Abortion Rights Under Attack – Strategies for resistance
The recent attacks on women’s right to choose in South Dakota have brought the struggle to defend abortion rights to the forefront. How can we stop these kinds of attacks and the eroding away of the right to choose?
Facilitated by Katie Quarles & Laura Madsen
*** 3:00pm - 4:20pm ***
DEBATE: Should the Left support progressive Democrats like Keith Ellison?
Between Ed Felien, editor of The Pulse, and Ty Moore from Socialist Alternative
Between the war in Iraq, attacks on civil liberties and the ideological offensive of the Neo-cons, many people on the left are asking themselves: Even though we don’t like the two-party system, should we vote for left Democrats in order to stop the Republicans?
*** 4:30pm - 5:45pm ***
Reform or Revolution - Historical lessons for our struggles today
Speaker: Katie Quarles, University of Minnesota School of Nursing student
How can we ultimately end war, poverty, sexism and racism? Is socialism possible in the United States today? Can we introduce socialism little by little through smaller reforms? Or is it necessary to confront capitalism directly?
