9/9 Meaning of Marxism Study Group

Join Our Study Series on the Politics of the ISO!
This 4-week study group on the politics of the ISO meets every Sunday from 1-2pm in the UMass campus center (room TBA). All the meetings discuss readings from ISO New Members Packet which can be purchased at ISO meetings and literature tables.

9/9: The Case for Socialism This session will tackle all the frequently asked questions about socialism and provide a general Marxist framework for understanding the capitalist system we live in and why socialists look to the working class as the agent of revolutionary change

9/16: Why we need a Revolutionary Party This session will discuss: Why is the ISO building a revolutionary organization in a non-revolutionary situation? How is the ISO organized? What is a Leninist organization? What is a vanguard party? What is democratic centralism? Why does the ISO put a central emphasis on producing and selling Socialist Worker newspaper?

9/23: Marxism and the Fight Against Oppression Genuine socialists have always understood that the struggle against all oppression, particularly racism, sexism, and homophobia, must be central to the struggle for socialism. This session will also discuss the history and lessons we can draw from social movements in US history, and why socialists argue that identity politics are a dead end as a strategy for liberation.

9/30: The Russian Revolution and the Real Marxist Tradition The Russian Revolution of 1917 is the only revolution in history in which the working class was successful in seizing power and defeating the old ruling class. By the end of the 1920s, that victory had been reversed in counter revolution led by dictator Joseph Stalin. How did workers win power in Russia, how did they lose it what has the impact of Stalinism been on the socialist movement internationally? What does the ISO say about supposedly socialist countries like Cuba? This session will uncover the genuine Marxist tradition—one based on democratic, working class struggle from below.