The Brecht Forum -New York Marxist School -Institute for Popular Education 122 West 27 Street, 10 floor New York, New York 10001 (212) 242-4201 (212) 741-4563 (fax) [EMAIL PROTECTED] (e-mail) May 1995 Events ***** Friday, May 5; 7 pm ($6) -The Stock Market: Theory and Empirical Evidence--A Marxian Approach -Anwar Shaikh What drives the stock market? In the short run the psychology of the market place plays a crucial role. But the longer the time horizon, the more connected the state of the stock market seems to be to the underlying health of the economy as a whole. As John Campbell notes, the "fact is both familiar...and surprisingly hard to explain." Anwar Shaikh, who has taught for twenty years at the Graduate Faculty of the New School for Social Research, is currently completing his forthcoming book, _The Welfare State and the Social Wage: An International Study_. ***** Wednesday, May 10; 8 pm ($6) -Can Progressives Use Capital Markets for Social Change? -Peter Camejo Peter Camejo will discuss the issue of using capital markets for social and environmental change. Come and hear a provocative exposition on the role of markets in the class struggle and building alternative independent social and political movements. Peter Camejo is Chairperson of Progressive Assets Management, Inc. and Earth Trade, Inc. ***** Thursday, May 11; 7:30 pm ($6) -A Report from the Social Summit: The "Free market" = - Poverty, Unemployment, and Alienation -Suzanne Paul, Jim Paul, and Margaret Willig-Crane Suzanne Paul is Chair of the United Nations NGO Committee on Aging and President of Global Action on Aging. Jim Paul is Executive Director of Global Policy Forum. Margaret Willig-Crane is Director of the Economic and Social Human Rights Advocacy Network (ESHRAN). ***** Tuesday, May 16; 7:30 pm ($6) -Windows on the Workplace: Technology, Jobs, and Work Organization -Joan Greenbaum Welcome to the age of insecurity--a return to the not-so- romantic days of medieval freelancers. In the 1990s, jobs are becoming more and more temporary in nature and the traditional bonds between employer and employee are being cut, turning increasing numbers of workers into freelancers and homeworkers. Joan Greenbaum is the author of _Windows on the Workplace: Computers, Jobs and the Organization of Officework in the Late Twentieth Century_. ***** Monday, May 22; 7:30 pm ($6) -Today's News: The Other Point of View -Ellen Braune and Steve Rendall Hosts Ellen Braune, Director of New Channels Communications, and Steve Rendall, Senior Analyst at Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR), will be inviting independent and mainstream journalists and others to join in monthly discussions of breaking news and current events. These discussions analyze key issues, critique media coverage, and identify ways to inject alternative perspectives into the mainstream discourse. TONIGHT'S TOPIC: Right-wing talk radio ***** Thursday, May 18; 7:30 pm ($6) -Fighting Giuliani and the Cuts: An Alternate City Budget -Bob Fitch and Michael Letwin Robert Fitch, author of _The Assassination of New York_ and _Reclaiming What Is Ours: A Proposal for a Fair and Progressive New York City Tax Policy_ (written for Local 1180, CWA) and Michael Letwin, President of the New York City Legal Aid Attorneys Union and battle-scarred recent veteran of labor's first conflict with Giuliani, will discuss their campaign to force the City Council to consider an alternate city budget. ***** Tuesday, May 23; 7:30 pm ($6) -The Direction of History: What Can We Explain and Predict? -David Laibman Despite recent calls for "weak" or "soft" versions of historical materialism, Marx's theory of social evolution--if formulated rigorously--does succeed in capturing the trajectory of human existence. It does not guarantee that we will survive! David Laibman is Professor of Economics at Brooklyn College, CUNY, editor of _Science and Society_ and author of _Value, Technical Change and Crisis: Explorations in Marxist Economic Theory_. ***** Wednesday, May 24; 7:30 pm ($10; includes wine and cheese reception) -Legislative Acts: Mother Courage Goes to Rio -Augusto Boal Augusto Boal, founder of the Theater of the Oppressed and a major innovator in post-Brechtian theater, was elected to the City Council of Rio de Janeiro as a Workers' Party (PT) deputy in 1992. Once installed in office, he adapted his theater techniques for use in city politics--with some hilarious, and sometimes rancorous, results. NOTE: For more information about this event, or for information about Theater of the Oppressed workshops with Augusto Boal (to take place in New York from May 18-23) please call the Theater of the Oppressed Laboratory at (212) 924-1858 or e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***** Thursday, May 25; 7:30 pm ($6) -Grassrooting: Multicultural/Anti-racist Education -Sam Anderson and DARE Youth Representative TBA Speakers will examine how one community is struggling to develop a progressive student-centered multicultural/anti-racist curriculum. It will explore the ideological and pedagogical foundations to a curriculum that organically grows out of the various racial and national backgrounds of the youth involved in creating the new high school curriculum. Sam Anderson is a math professor at CCNY Center for Worker Education and author of _The Black Holocaust for Beginners_. ***** CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS Saturday, May 20; 11 am-3 pm ($35) -Navigating the Internet -Louis Proyect This workshop will combine a demonstration of the Internet system with a discussion of the political and cultural implications of the "Information Highway." Students will observe key Internet features including user lists, electronic publications, and Internet tool kit. This workshop is appropriate for beginning and intermediate users. Louis Proyect, a systems integrator at Columbia University, is a former president of TECNICA, which sent technicians to work with the Sandinistas and the ANC. ***** alternate Wednesdays (ongoing) ($45 per 4 sessions) -Political Economy Workshop -Paul Cooney This workshop uses a Marxist approach to explore such topics as the implications of NAFTA and "free" trade, the political economy of New York City, and the IMF and Third World debt. Newcomers are welcome to join in this ongoing group. A background in the study of _Capital_ or political economy is recommended. The group meets every two weeks for presentations and discussions. Political economist Paul Cooney coordinates the workshop. ***** UPCOMING IN JULY The New York Marxist School Annual Summer Intensive in Marxist Theory and Practice Marxism vs. the Contract on America Sunday, July 9 to Saturday, July 22; 6:30-10 pm ($95) Learn the basics of Marxist methodology and how this can contribute to an analytical grounding for political strategies in the U.S. today. The first week will focus on the process of globalization--how it sets the basis for the emergence of capitalism and how it is essential to all subsequent development. We will cover basic concepts in Marx's _Capital_, his analytical method, Gramsci's contribution to understanding the formation of states and modes of domination, and how these illuminate the rapid changes now taking place. In the second week, we will explore the development of capitalism in the United States and the particular character of the class and race relations that underpin U.S. culture, the Contract on America, and U.S. politics today. Call the office at (212) 242-4201 for pre-registration, advance reading materials, and further information. Presenters include Mary Boger, Benedetto Fontana, Larry Hanley, Kathy Kazanas, Robin D.G. Kelley, Harry Magdoff, Annette T. Rubinstein, Sheila Thimba, and others TBA. ***** Please note that fees listed only partially cover our expenses. We need your donations to keep our doors open. And, no one is turned away for inability to pay. ***** All Brecht Forum lectures and seminars are available on audiotape. Lecture tapes (single cassette) are $7 and seminar tapes (usually 3+ cassettes are $20. To order, make checks payable to *The Brecht Forum* and send to The Brecht Forum, 122 West 27 Street, 10 floor, New York, New York 10001. Please enclose an additional $1 per order to cover postage costs. For orders outside the U.S., please send and international money order or bank check payable in U.S. funds and enclose an additional US$5 to cover the cost of air postage. For a complete list of all available tapes, contact the Brecht Forum at (212) 242-4201 or e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Selected Brecht Forum events are available on videotape from Turning the Tide, PO Box 631, Wilton, New Hampshire 03086. Contact TTT directly for a catalog or ordering information. //end
