A cause everyone should support
POLITICAL LITERATURE has a long history of being an essential component of social movements and can have a lasting effective on society long after those movements are gone.
The written word can be a decisive weapon in political conflict. It can explain the issues at hand, confronting the corporate media account. It can make convincing arguments for strategy to move the struggle forward to a population seeking one out. It can relay the experiences of one group of activists to another to share successes and lessons learned. A written history of past struggle is crucial for people trying to understand how to fight this time while standing on the shoulders of giants who came before.
Political literature has changed my life. It opened my eyes to a hidden history where the powerless and disenfranchised become powerful. Real history is written when the downtrodden and oppressed stand up for themselves, challenging this unjust system and winning. Theirs are incredible tales of brave left-wing fighters organizing, pushing with every ounce of their being to achieve great things.
The importance of such accounts cannot be overstated. This is why I am a proud supporter of the Center for Economic Research and Social Change (CERSC).
The CERSC Web site explains:
The Center for Economic Research and Social Change (CERSC) is dedicated to a better understanding of today's world, and helping to put forward the vision of a better future. Our central goal is education. By highlighting alternative voices, especially those that have been pushed to the margins, we hope to contribute to a greater insight and awareness of the injustices that exist in society, and the many efforts at the grassroots to right these wrongs.
CERSC efforts towards this objective include production of Haymarket Books, the bi-monthly "International Socialist Review magazine and sponsorship of the annual Socialism conferences. These projects have been a crucial part of my political education and I hope you will make them a part of yours.
Haymarket Books has produced numerous titles that are indispensable on every activist's bookshelf. For example, the recently republished book of labor history, The Labor Wars by Sidney Lens reveals the beginning and victory of the U.S. labor movement from the 1860s to the 1930s in its fight for basic union rights, the eight-hour day, and a decent wage. With working conditions and the standard of living falling as they are now, a return to our roots of struggle is absolutely necessary.
Another useful book for me has been Sherry Wolf's Sexuality and Socialism: History, Theory, and Politics of LGBT Liberation. This books looks at the history of sexual and gender identity, the root of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender oppression, and the movement for equality in the past and today.
Other important books include Lance Selfa's The Democrats: A Critical History which challenges the common understanding about the other corporate political party and argues that our side needs to remain independent and Joe Allen's Vietnam: The Last War the U.S. Lost which explains how the anti-war movement stopped the U.S. imperial project the last time.
I write to strongly urge readers of SocialistWorker.org to contribute financially to the CERSC fund drive this year. CERSC is a small operation that depends on the funding of its supporters to continue operations. I have donated what I can to support CERSC and so should you.
There is a battle for ideas and radical change and the projects of CERSC can and do have a large and positive impact on the movements for social change in our time.
Ben Daniels, from the Internet
