THE EVENT IS CANCELED

 

As you are no doubt aware, many civic organizations have taken steps to safeguard our community during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chicago Public Library is among them and has suspended meetings at its locations. We therefore must suspend the series of classes on “Envisioning Socialism: Class, Race and Gender in the Struggle for New Human Relations.” Please watch for announcements from us about new dates for the four remaining sessions. Meanwhile please continue to visit the International Marxist-Humanist Journal for analysis and news.

 

Join the Chicago Chapter of the International Marxist-Humanist Organization for a new series of discussions on… 

Not by Class Alone: Women’s Liberation as the Measure of Social Emancipation

Struggles over gender, feminism, and sexual identity have transformed politics over in recent decades, providing new perspectives for how socialism should be understood.  We will explore this by examining the role of patriarchy in premodern as well as modern societies.

Readings: Raya Dunayevskaya, “Marx’s ‘New Humanism’ and the Dialectics of Women’s Liberation in Primitive and Modern Societies” (1984); Rosa Luxemburg, “Proletarian Women” (1914).

Leading off the discussion—Alyssa Adamson, author of “Queer Spirit.”

 

This is the second session in a series of discussions on:

Envisioning Socialism:

Class, Race and Gender in the Struggle for New Human Relations

Is it possible to develop a socialist alternative that goes beyond both reformism and statist authoritarianism? In what ways do the social movements of the past 100 years provide insights for how to overcome capitalism? How do recent mass upsurges in Chile, Ecuador, Lebanon, France, and India illuminate the organizational forms best suited for creating a socialist alternative? We will explore these and related questions by studying select writings of Karl Marx, Rosa Luxemburg, Frantz Fanon, and Raya Dunayevskaya.

 

Future Sessions

Session 3—April 1
Rethinking Socialism from an Anti-Racist and De-Colonial Lens

Session 4—April 22
Forms of Mass Self-Organization That Can Promote a Transition to Socialism: From the Paris Commune and the Russian Revolution to Today’s Movements 

Session 5—May 13
Socialism as “True Democracy”: Transcending the Capitalist Law of Value

 

All readings are available for free on pdf files here.

All meetings held every third Wednesday, at 6:30 pm (Beginning February 26, 2020)

Harold Washington Library, 400 S. State St., Chicago, Room 7 #N5 (Room across from 7^th floor elevators)

Sponsored by the Chicago Chapter of the International Marxist-Humanist Organization