Workers World Party’s Detroit Branch, along with the Wayne State University chapter of Students for a Democratic Society, hosted a Midwest conference March 24-26 on resisting capitalism and all its oppressions and fighting for socialism. This important gathering took place during the 100th anniversary year of the Russian Revolution, which was discussed at the conference, along with the need for socialist revolution in the United States here and now.
Conferencegoers came from many states, including Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey, and were predominantly youthful. More came from Detroit and other Michigan cities and towns. For many it was their first WWP conference.
The weekend kicked off the evening of March 24 with a “Red, Black and Queer” slideshow presentation by longtime union and LGBTQ organizer Gerry Scoppettuolo of Boston before a packed house at the Detroit WWP headquarters. “Red, Black and Queer” refers to the Marine Cooks and Stewards Union in the Congress of Industrial Organizations which achieved unity of Black, white and gay union members. The slideshow referenced decades of people’s resistance in the struggle for LGBTQ liberation…
Joe Mshahwar, a youth leader in the Detroit WWP branch and a key conference organizer, gave Workers World his assessment of the revolutionary weekend: “The conference was a tremendous success. Youth cadre, with the support and hard work of older comrades, were able to pull off a thoroughly Bolshevik conference in the midst of a multifaceted ruling class offensive on local, state, national and international levels. Comrades and allies brought powerful analysis rooted in struggle, spanning our fight on the streets of Detroit to the fight on the streets of Caracas.
“On Saturday, after a full day of plenaries, conference participants joined SDS in facing down pigs to demand all-gender bathrooms at WSU. The night ended with an open-mic cultural program featuring dozens of spoken word and musical artists and a resistance sing-along. It was an experience I won’t forget, a testament to the powerful work of communists in the ravaged rust belt.”
Conference sessions can be viewed on the Workers World Party – Michigan Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/WWP.michigan/
Members and friends of Workers World Party at Wayne State University in Detroit March 26, 2017
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