“With pride in our unity and fighting spirit,” the National Committee of the Communist Party USA has kicked off preparations for its 28th national convention, July 1–3, under the slogans, “The people can win! Defeat the Bush agenda! Build the CPUSA.”
Some 400 party activists and guests will convene in Chicago, the working-class city where the Communist Party USA was born 85 years ago.
“On the eve of our national celebration of our revolutionary heritage,” the party’s convention call says, “we will … reaffirm our confidence in the revolutionary fighting power of our working class, men and women of all races and nationalities united in the struggle for a better world.”
A convention highlight will be an international solidarity evening with representatives from fraternal parties around the world.
“There’s something in the air, in people’s consciousness, after having mobilized in the 2004 elections, a sense of fightback, of reclaiming our country — not just in our party but in the mass movements — and I think that’s what we’ll see at our convention,” said convention organizer Pam Saffer.
“Instead of being pushed down,” she said, “people are coming back stronger,” with a deeper understanding, seeing the connections between what’s happening in the U.S. and abroad – the war, the job losses, young people feeling they have no future.
“Dynamic,” and “vitality,” will be the convention’s keywords, Saffer said. “We will be talking about solutions — here’s what the ‘reds’ are saying today!”
“This is not going to be a ‘sit-down and listen’ convention. It will be participatory, sharing the most successful campaigns and activities, asking, ‘How we can multiply them? How can we strengthen this people’s movement?’ We want to reclaim our country!”
At a Jan. 29-30 National Committee meeting in New York, party leaders and activists debated and refined drafts for two documents that will be the core of discussion leading up to and during the convention: a main political resolution and a new party program. The updated drafts will be available on the party’s web site within the next few weeks.
The CPUSA is inviting members, fellow activists, friends and colleagues, to participate in its preconvention discussion and the convention itself.
For more information, e-mail cpusa@cpusa.org.
suewebb@pww.org
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