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| Revolution/Li Onesto Photo. |
Dear Friends
It’s been one hell of a spring, and we’re only half way through it. We look around the world, we see brutality and misery inflicted on humanity without let up. The wars for empire, the ravaging of the environment, hundreds of millions of people living on the edge of starvation, women seen as sexual objects of the property of some man instead of full human beings. And in the US, immigrants working and living without rights, facing raids and deportation at any moment; gays and lesbians demonized for loving someone of the same sex; police terror aimed at Black and other oppressed people intensifying; the right to abortion under assault and more.
It’s been one hell of a spring, and we’re only half way through it. We look around the world, we see brutality and misery inflicted on humanity without let up. The wars for empire, the ravaging of the environment, hundreds of millions of people living on the edge of starvation, women seen as sexual objects of the property of some man instead of full human beings. And in the US, immigrants working and living without rights, facing raids and deportation at any moment; gays and lesbians demonized for loving someone of the same sex; police terror aimed at Black and other oppressed people intensifying; the right to abortion under assault and more.
At the same time, and more importantly, the movement for revolution we in the Revolutionary Communist Party are building has made important advances, advances that represent great potential to turn the corner on our efforts to put revolution on the map and to let people know about the work Bob Avakian has been doing to address everything standing between humanity and its complete emancipation.
First, there was the April 11th “Celebration of Revolution and the Vision of a New World,” held on the occasion of the publication of BAsics, a new book of quotations and short essays from the work of Bob Avakian. I was part of the host committee for this event, which brought together prominent artists, educators and activists for a cultural celebration that transported people into the future, if only for a couple of hours. Film clips and quotations from the work of Bob Avakian provided the framework for this celebration. (For a great report on this Celebration, go to “And Now... A Glimpse of Spring” at http://bit.ly/memcRi) We plan to produce a film of this event to spread its reverberations far and wide.
Additionally on April 29th on the campus of UCLA, Cornel West and I had another Dialogue on the theme “In the Age of Obama: Police Terror, Incarceration, No Jobs, Mis-Education – WHAT FUTURE FOR OUR YOUTH?” More than 700 people packed the auditorium for this engaging conversation, and another 400 had to be turned away. The mainly student crowd was entertained, shocked and challenge by the interaction between me and Cornel, and between both of us and the audience. (For a full report, go to http://bit.ly/kDFbgT.)
Of course, this isn’t a time to rest on these advances. Instead we have to redouble efforts to unleash more of those who want to see a different and better way for people live as part of this movement for revolution. The key doing that right now is to get into BAsics and to get it into the hands of many more people. This book concentrates more than 30 years of work Avakian has been doing - deeply analyzing the experience of previous revolutionary societies and changes in the world today – to re-envision revolution and communism. This is something I’m going to be putting a lot of effort into.
Cornel and I plan to hit more campuses with our Dialogue. This conversation is sorely needed and almost completely absent today. Conversation about the youth today usually begins with how messed up they are and ends with blaming them for the conditions the system enforces on them. Cornel and I get into why these conditions exist, and we challenge the youth and others to grapple with what can and must be done to create a future that holds hope for a meaningful life for our youth and everyone else.
I also plan to speak on campuses and in other venues, bringing to the masses the truth that things don’t have to be this way; that thru revolution we could bring into being a totally different and far better world. In this work I will use the Constitution for the Future Socialist Republic in North America (Draft Proposal) the RCP has issued to show how a revolutionary society could end the horrors imperialism inflicts on humanity today.
I will also strategize with people across the country over what are the issues we need to build resistance around. Areas of focus for this will be 1) the need for a powerful outpouring on Oct 22, 2011, the 16th annual National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality; and 2) building resistance to the massive and racially biased incarceration that Michelle Alexander has called The New Jim Crow.
You can join us in tapping into the potential these advances provide to make the new approach to revolution and communism Avakian is developing much more of a point of reference today. Get a copy of BAsics, read it and let us know your thoughts on it. Contribute money to help send 2,000 copies of this book to people in prison -- http://bit.ly/kceqct. Also contribute to producing the film of the April 11th Celebration of Revolution and the Vision of a New World -- http://bit.ly/iS7AMk
Bring the Dialogue between Cornel West and me to your area. People are hungry for this Dialogue, and Cornel and I engage it in a way that provides them sustenance. To get a copy of the DVD of our first Dialogue or info on how to bring it to your area: www.revolutionbooksnyc.org.
Bring the Dialogue between Cornel West and me to your area. People are hungry for this Dialogue, and Cornel and I engage it in a way that provides them sustenance. To get a copy of the DVD of our first Dialogue or info on how to bring it to your area: www.revolutionbooksnyc.org.
Let me end this note with something I said at the Dialogue at UCLA: It’s not enough to be a good person in a horrible world. We can’t leave this imperialist system grinding away, breaking bodies and crushing spirits. You have to add your efforts to those who are working to resist the horrors of this system and bring a new world into being.
This System Has No Future For Our Youth. The Revolution Does.
Get With the Revolution!
Revolutionary Greetings,
Carl Dix
