The Next Two Years and Beyond: A Movement Building Conference

When: Saturday, November 17, 2018 from 9AM-5PM

Where: Simmons University, 300 the Fenway, Boston, MA

While Democrats may regain control of the House this November, the Trump administration and its supporters will continue to pose serious dangers to living standards, social justice, democracy, civil liberties, and the ability to organize for social change. Fortunately, a progressive movement has risen to challenge Trumpism—which is exemplified by Black Lives Matter, Poor People’s Campaign, Women’s Marches, and others. However, the progressive movement must proceed forward with tactalthough we must work with those acrross the political aisle, we mustn’t forget that they are equally responsible for income inequality and we mustn’t shy away from confronting U.S. militarism.

The goal of this conference is to assess the political landscape after the midterm election, chart the path towards a unified progressive movement over the coming years, and educate and motivate supporters towards more effective and unified efforts.

For more details, visit:  http://masspeaceaction.org/event/the-next-two-years-and-beyond

Saturday, November 17, 2018, 9am-5pm • Simmons University, 300 the Fenway, Boston, MA 02115

Confirmed speakers:

John Nichols is national affairs correspondent of The Nation.  His most recent book is Horsemen of the Trumpocalypse: A Field Guide to the Most Dangerous People in America	Rev. Karlene Griffiths Sekou organizes with Black Lives Matter Boston	Phyllis Bennis is director of the New Internationalism Project at the Institute for Policy Studies. The seventh edition of her Understanding the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict : A Primer was just published	Nika Elugardo defeated a powerful incumbent to become State Representative- Elect from Jamaica Plain and nearby areas of Boston	Gabe Camacho directs Project Voice at American Friends Service Committee
Paul Shannon is active with AFSC and MAPA and organizes the Raytheon Antiwar Campaign	Michele Brooks is Community Outreach Coordinator with the Massachusetts Sierra Club	Jessica Tang is President of the Boston Teachers Union, representing 10,000 active and retired educators.	Carl Williams is a movement lawyer whoteaches at Cornell Law School and is a fellow at Political Research Associates

The progressive, peace, and justice movements face new and difficult conditions in the Trump presidency. Attacks on labor and working people; tax cuts for the rich, sharply increased military spending, and escalated wars and international crises; anti-immigrant and xenophobic rhetoric and policies; escalated racism, sexism, and assaults on LGBTQ people; are among the urgent challenges we face.  And as wildfires spread and glaciers melt, the Trump administration is doubling down on policies that guarantee catastrophic climate change.

The far right controls the national and most state governments and is on the offensive on every front.  While Democrats may regain control of the House this November, the reactionary forces that have been unleashed and organized by Trumpism are determined to continue their offensive in the years to come, posing serious dangers to living standards and to social justice, as well as to democracy, civil liberties, and our ability to organize for social change.

Fortunately, a new emergent progressive movement is rising to resist Trumpism, exemplified by Black Lives Matter, the 2016 Bernie Sanders campaign and the wave of progressive candidates running in 2018, Poor People’s Campaign, Women’s Marches, Fight for $15, March for Our Lives, and the responses to Charlottesville and to the separation of migrant families.  

The resistance to the reactionaries is divided between progressives, who seek fundamental changes in the economy and social structure to the benefit of working and oppressed people, and neoliberals and centrists, who seek the stabilization of the corporate order and accept austerity and militarism. Although we need to join with the centrists to fend off the reactionary assault, we also seek to build an independent, powerful, coherent and energetic progressive movement that seeks fundamental solutions and that will contend for national power in 2020 and in the years to come.  

A major weakness of the progressive wing is a tendency to avoid confronting U.S. militarism, particularly the dangers of nuclear war and of war with Iran, Korea, and Russia.

The goal of this conference is to take stock of the political landscape after the midterm election, chart the path towards a unified progressive movement over the coming years, and educate and motivate our supporters towards more effective and more unified efforts.