Radical Women’s 41st Anniversary Conference

Conference info from Radical Women:

You are invited to Radical Women’s 41st Anniversary Conference:

The Persistent Power
of Socialist Feminism
October 3-6, 2008
San Francisco
The Women’s Building, 3543 18th St.

Speakers:

• Embattled civil liberties attorney Lynne Stewart
• Activists & scholars from Central America, China, Australia and the U.S.

Key topics:

• Multi-racial organizing in a society divided by racism
• The dynamic leadership of youth and queers
• Women of color and immigrant women spark a labor revival
• For a grassroots feminist movement independent of the twin parties of war & reaction

Workshops:

• Organizer skills training * Strategy workshops
• Radical culture & more!

For more information, to register or donate, go here.

“Radical Women’s 41st Anniversary Conference occurs at a very important time. Around the world, women are part of a bold resistance to reactionary social and political forces. In Latin America, women and indigenous people are providing vibrant workingclass leadership against crippling neoliberal trade agreements. In Mexico, “Adelita” brigades shut down congress to oppose privatization of the nationalized oil industry. These movements provide a powerful stimulus to the entire hemisphere.

In the U.S., women are both targets and opponents of repression. In the anti-war, racial equality, immigrant, labor, student and queer movements, organizing is sparked and driven by women, especially women of color. They demand justice for Sean Bell and Black youth in Jena as well as funding for services in New Orleans. They oppose racist shock-jocks and lead unionization campaigns. They have stopped shipments of Iraq war supplies on the streets of Washington State. They defend civil liberties and continue the fight for affirmative action, childcare, and an end to sexual violence. They infuse the immigrant rights movement with militancy inspired by anti-imperialist upsurges in Latin America and fueled by the fight against U.S. xenophobia.
U.S. women are fighting tooth and nail to keep gains won by past generations, as well as to advance women’s cause. But feminist reformists and NGOs hold back the movement by diverting organizing into single-issue and Democratic Party politics. Radical Women looks for inspiration and strategies to our revolutionary socialist foremothers, and to the civil rights militants, students, lesbians, and unionists who spearheaded the Second Wave women’s liberation movement. Such women today are the sparkplugs for radical change and, by working in coalition with supportive men who have their own stake in achieving human liberation, they can truly shake the status quo.
Now is the time to mobilize women who are open to revolutionary alternatives to capitalism. The Radical Women conference is an opportunity to grapple with ideas, examine the limitations of reformism, gain the confidence to challenge the system, and build the ranks of socialist feminists. Radical Women has a time-tested program, decades of experience, and the responsibility to reach out, connect with, and train women who are outraged and ready to take action to change the world.
If you are interested in attending or helping with this exciting and historic event, contact the Conference Organizing Center at radicalwomenus @ gmail.com. All genders are welcome.”