A political report by Socialist Workers Party National Secretary Jack Barnes, above at podium, set the framework for three days of plenary sessions, classes and discussions at the SWP International Conference in Oberlin, Ohio, June 12-14.
Barnes addressed the SWP’s response to the sharply accelerating changes taking place in today’s world and the receptivity of workers to the party. Capitalist rulers in the U.S. and elsewhere are building up their militaries and looking for allies as they fight to defend and expand their economic and political reach, pushing inexorably toward World War III. Understanding and acting on the fact that communism is not a doctrine but a movement, Barnes explained, is crucial to winning workers to join the kind of proletarian parties that are needed to lead the fight to replace capitalist rule with workers power.
The two other main reports were: “Israel, Jew-Hatred and Deepening Imperialist Rivalries,” by Steve Clark and Dave Prince, and “Why the Fight for Women’s Emancipation Is Inseparable from the Class Struggle,” by Mary-Alice Waters. Panel discussions on each of the reports were held, along with four classes supplementing the conference’s central themes.
Following a lively final rally, participants left the gathering to campaign widely among working people and build the party.