A 4-day intensive study of Marxism

Does Marx Matter?
A 4-DAY INTENSIVE STUDY OF MARXISM

Sessions: July 21-24, 9:30 am to 6:30 pm
Registration: July 20th at 6:00 pm (preregistration advised).

The Brecht Forum's New York Marxist School, 451 West Street, New York
City. [between Bank and Bethune Streets, A,E,F,V to 14th or L to 8th Ave.]
For more information call,(212) 242-4201.

(If you are planning to attend from out of town and need a place to stay,
please check our list of low-cost lodgings and hostels
. To insure low-cost housing, it is important to make
your reservations early.)

At the beginning of the 21st Century, it is becoming obvious to many
that capitalism is an obstacle to the kind of world we want and need.
The world is marked by war and repression. More than two billion people subsist on less than $2 per day, while the assets of the three wealthiest individuals surpasses the GDP of the 48 poorest nations.

But these times don't seem to make any sense. If we want to change things, we need to understand how capitalism works. Can Marxism help us to grapple with the roots and branches of today�s problems? �or is it just, as some maintain, a relic of the past?

Join other activists and critical thinkers for a provocative 4-day summer session at the Brecht Forum, a leading center for activist education. Through lectures, readings and lively discussion, in an adamantly non-sectarian and open-minded environment, participants will become familiar with some of the major concepts in marxist thought and examine whether--and in what respects--they are still relevant today.

Our perspective will be that of Marx himself, who argued that capitalism was both productive and destructive at the same time. With all of its dehumanizing features, he believed that it opened possibilities to go beyond capitalism to the complete abolition of class domination and the full flowering of our individual and social capacities.

Marx did not view his work as either a blueprint for change or a dogma that excludes other traditions. He cautioned his readers to "doubt everything." Further, he always assumed that those engaged in struggle would have to continually analyze their changing situations.

We will also look at how three contemporary theorists have built on the Marxist tradition, particularly to flesh out the interdependence of capital with colonialism, racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia.:

* Walter Rodney, whose classic work, How Europe Underdeveloped Africa, examined the workings of colonialism within the capitalist system.

* Ted Allen , author of the path breaking study, The Invention of the
White Race, which traced the origins of racism based on skin color and its particular place in U.S. history.

* Silvia Federici who documents what it took to submit women to the
capitalist system in Caliban and the Witch

We will place a special emphasis on Marx's Capital, his historical
method and cutting through the dominant ideology and forms of social control that permeate the history of capitalism. In the process, we hope to find tools of analysis that can help us think more strategically and
act more effectively.

Participants will be encouraged to bring questions from their own activist practice and reading.

Schedule & Readings

*Registration & Fees*
Sliding Scale: $75/$125
Registration: Wednesday, July 20, 6:00 pm
Partial scholarships are available.
Pre-registration is advised.