Teach-In by Eduardo Silveyra for Platypus Affiliated Society (University of Houston), October 4, 2019
Teach-in hosted by Platypus at London School of Economics introducing the Platypus project: "On Surviving the Extinction of the Left".
An introductory workshop by member Ethan Linehan on the development of freedom in human history from the Platypus perspective.
In the mid-19th century, Marx and Engels famously observed that a "spectre was haunting Europe: the spectre of Communism". 170 years later, it is Marxism itself that haunts us, while capitalism remains.
What does it mean that Marx and Marxism still appeal, while political movements for socialism are weak or non-existent? What were Marxism's original points concerning radical possibilities for freedom that might still speak to the present?
Does Marxism even matter?
On September 27, 2019, at the University of Houston, the Platypus Affiliated Society hosted a teach-in led by Platypus member Michael Woodson on capital in history.
What is the development of freedom in human history from the Platypus perspective?
In the mid-19th century, Marx and Engels famously observed that a "specter was haunting Europe: the specter of Communism". 170 years later, it is Marxism itself that haunts us, while capitalism remains.
What does it mean that Marx and Marxism still appeal, while political movements for socialism are weak or non-existent? What were Marxism's original points concerning radical possibilities for freedom that might still speak to the present?
Is Marxism still relevant?
A teach-in on trans liberation held by David Faes at Northwestern University on June 4th, 2019.
Description
The socialist Left, which historically stood for increasing the scope of freedom, has historically shifted positions on issues of gender and sexuality. Recently, there has been some conflict over the trans identity, how it should be taken up by the Left if at all. What do such controversies tell us about the politics of sexual freedom and the history of the Left, moving forward? How did the historical socialist Left relate the struggle for sexual freedom to the broader struggle for freedom in greater society? What exactly do contemporary socialists mean today when they speak of sexual liberation, and what does it have to do with the broader task of the Left, of increasing the scope of human freedom?
