David McReynolds

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David McReynolds

David McReynolds is a civil rights activist on socialist and pacifist issues, retiring in 1999.

David McReynolds has been one of the leading voices in progressive politics since the 1950s. He has been affiliated with the War Resister's League, the Peace and Freedom Party, and the Socialist Party USA. In his lifetime, David has run for president twice, once in 1980 and again in 2000. He has twice placed bids for the U.S. House of Representatives, once in 1958 and again in 1968. In 2004, he ran against Chuck Schumer to represent New York in the U.S. Senate. He is also a member of Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism.[1]

War Resisters League

McReynold spent 38 years working as an organizer in the pacifist War Resisters League.[2]

Norman Thomas lecture

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David McReynolds gave the Norman Thomas lecture for 1978.

Guardian

In March 1979, the New York radical magazine the Guardian issued an emergency appeal to funds in an effort to save the publication.

Over fifty supporters endorsed the appeal including David McReynolds[3]

Tribute to Ben Dobbs

On Sunday, June 7, 1981, the Los Angeles Chapter of the New American Movement sponsored a Tribute to Ben Dobbs for "His lifelong commitment to socialism". The event was held at the Miramar-Sheraton Hotel, Santa Monica, California. Sponsors of the event included David McReynolds.[4]

Opposing loans to Chile

In 1987, Joanne Landy, Thomas Harrison and Gail Daneker, Directors, Campaign for Peace and Democracy/East and West, New York, circulated a statement Against Loans to Chile calling upon the Reagan Administration to oppose all loans to Chile.

It has been signed by leading "peace, labor, human rights, religious and cultural figures from the United States, Western Europe and Latin America." They were "joined by a large number of activists and writers from the USSR and Eastern Europe, many of whom have been persecuted in their own countries for work in independent peace and human rights movements."

David McReynolds endorsed the call.

The majority of signatories were affiliated with Democratic Socialists of America.[5]

Socialist Scholars Conference 1990

The Socialist Scholars Conference 1990, held September 6-8, at the Hotel Commodore, New York, included panels such as:[6]

After the Cold War

CrossRoads

In the mid 1990s McReynolds was[7]a contributing editor to Oakland based Institute for Social and Economic Studies- sponsor of CrossRoads magazine, which sought to promote dialogue and building new alliances among progressives and leftists... and to bring diverse Marxist and socialist traditions to bear while exploring new strategies and directions for the progressive political movements.

Key CrossRoads supporters

Among the more illustrious supporters of CrossRoads were Gil Green, Harry Hay, Elizabeth Martinez, Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, David McReynolds, Muhammed Ahmad [Max Stanford] and Peter Camejo.[8]

CoC National Conference endorser

In 1992, David McReynolds, national co-chair Socialist Party USA, New York endorsed the Committees of Correspondence national conference Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s held at Berkeley California July 17-19.[9]

Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s

The Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s was the Committees of Correspondence's first national conference held in Berkeley, California July 17-19, 1992.[10]

Workshops that were held at the conference on Saturday, July 18 included:[11]

Socialist U.S. Toward a Socialist United States? Reshaping the vision and charting a path. Is it possible? On what basis?

Socialist Scholars Conference

David McReynolds, Co-Chair, Socialist Party USA, Sara Bowling, Labor Organizer, Socialist Party USA, Karen Kubby, Councilperson, Iowa City and John Martin Winter, Socialist Party USA were speakers on the Socialism in Our Time: Where is the Socialist Party Now? panel sponsored by the Socialist Party USA at the Tenth Annual Socialist Scholars Conference. The conference was held April 24-26, 1992 at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, New York City

He spoke alongside Ethan Young, CrossRoads; Gil Green, Committees of Correspondence; Barbara Ehrenreich, Democratic Socialists of America and Paul Robeson Jr. were speakers on the Democracy in the Left panel sponsored by Socialist Dialogue.

McReynolds also spoke alongside Max Elbaum, CrossRoads, Carl Bloice and Judith Pasternak, Committees of Correspondence and Annette Rubinstein, New York Marxist School were speakers on the Crisis and New Directions of the Organized Left panel sponsored by CrossRoads and Socialist Dialogue.[12]

Hiroshima Day, 1993

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On August 6 1993, a rally to commemorate Hiroshima Day was held at the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjold Park, New York. The rally was designed "to kickoff a national campaign to collect a million signatures supporting a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, commend president Clinton for extending the nuclear testing moratorium, urge renewal of the Non Proliferation Treaty, urge swift and complete nuclear disarmament."

The event was sponsored by the Metro New York Peace Action Council and several other "peace' groups.[13]

Speakers included;

Socialists Urge End of Fragmentation

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96-06-26 an email was sent from David McReynolds and several other socialists, headed "Socialists Urge End of Fragmentation"

The following open letter has been sent to the organizations listed below.
The letter was drafted by Ethan Young, who has been connected with Crossroads, in consultation with a number of concerned individuals in all of the groups listed.
Fraternally,
David McReynolds, member, Socialist Party USA, New York City, June 26, 1996

To: The National Convention of the Committees of Correspondence

As members of the groups listed above, we have joined together out of concern for the future of the organized socialist left. We have two concrete proposals that are being submitted to all of our groups simultaneously, so that they might be discussed and, if accepted, acted on as soon as possible.
1. We propose that joint regional meetings of our six groups be organized for members and invited individuals, as outlined in the June 1996 issue of CROSSROADS.
2. We propose that organizing begin immediately for a national conference of socialist youth in Fall 1997, initiated by the youth members and affiliates of the six groups, but open to co-sponsorship by other agreed-upon groups and individuals.

Saul Mendelson's funeral

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The Memorial Service for Chicago Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member Saul Mendelson was held on Sunday, March 29, 1998, at the First Unitarian Church, Chicago[14].

The service was MC'd by a retired colleague, Bob Clark. Carl Shier of DSA, spoke first and was followed by Saul's friend Deborah Meier, "a MacArthur Genius Grant recipient who is now starting a new school in Boston". Amy Isaacs, National Director of the Americans for Democratic Action, spoke of what "Saul had meant on foreign affairs to the ADA".

Other speakers included Communist Party USA aligned Senator Carol Moseley Braun, Alderman Toni Preckwinkle, State SenatorBarack Obama, Illinois House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie and "a good friend from New York", Myra Russell.

The concluding remarks were made by an old friend, Harriet Lefley, a former Trotskyist with Saul Mendelson in the 1940s, who was then Professor of Psychology at the University of Miami Medical School.

Eulogies also came from Quinn Brisben, (Socialist Party USA presidential candidate 1976, 1992) and David McReynolds (Socialist Party USA presidential candidate 1980, 2000).

Both Brisben and McReynolds are also members of Democratic Socialists of America.

Communist "Manifestivity"

On October 30 and 31, 1998 the Brecht Forum presented the "Communist Manifestivity to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Communist Manifesto" at Cooper Union's Great Hall, New York.

Individual endorsers of the event included David McReynolds.[15]

Socialist Party USA Involvement

At its national convention[16]in mid-October,1999 the Socialist Party USA nominated David McReynolds for U.S. President and Mary Cal Hollis for Vice-President.

He was the Socialist Party USA presidential candidate in 1980 with a Catholic nun as his Vice Presidential runningmate. He was the first openly gay person to ever win a party's Presidential nomination.[17]

McReynolds served two terms as National Co-Chair of the Socialist Party USA.[18]

DSA support in 2004

In 2004 Democratic Socialists of America targeted local races where control of state houses were up for grabs and where statewide electoral-vote outcomes hinged on successful local district turnouts.[19]

NYDSA activists are also backing David McReynolds in what the local views as a spirited and needed educational campaign for U.S. Senate against centrist incumbent Democrat Charles Schumer, who faces token Republican opposition. McReynolds, a DSA member, longtime peace activist, staff member with the War Resisters League and a Socialist Party leader, is running on the Green Party ticket. In Albany County, incumbent Democratic District Attorney Paul Clyne is a notorious champion of the punitive New York State Rockefeller drug laws unrevised.”

In Democratic Socialists of America's Democratic Left Winter 2004/2005, Theresa Alt wrote;[20]

We reported on the candidates that DSAers were supporting in the last issue of Democratic Left. How did they do?
New York State looks like politics as usual on the surface... Longtime left labor advocate Frank Barbaro, who took on a challenging congressional district; Socialist Green David McReynolds, whose longshot campaign was really about educating for a more peaceful and wiser foreign policy; and labor activist Dan Cleveland, who made a state senate bid in rural Republican western New York, all lost..

New Politics

As of 2009 David McReynolds served as a sponsor of New Politics, magazine almost completely staffed and run by members of Democratic Socialists of America[21].

Campaign for Peace and Democracy

McReynolds is listed as an endorser of the Campaign for Peace and Democracy, as of March 15, 2010.[22]

Left Forum 2011

Then and Now: Is the Gay Rights Movement Radical?

Left Forum 2013

Resisting Racism and Militarism in 21 Century America: A Dialogue on the new book “We Have Not Been Moved” Sponsored by: WIN Magazine, PM Press

External links

References

Template:Reflist Template:Endorsers of the Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s

  1. ↑ [http://juliusspeaks.blogspot.co.nz/2011/01/interview-with-david-mcreynolds.html Julius Speaks, January 15, 2011 Interview with David McReynolds]
  2. ↑ http://www.politics1.com/socialist04a.htm
  3. ↑ Guardian March 2 1979
  4. ↑ Tribute to Ben Dobbs program, June 7, 1981
  5. ↑ New York review of books, Vol 34, Number 10, June 11, 1987
  6. ↑ Second Annual Socialist Scholars Conference program.
  7. ↑ Crossroads March 1996
  8. ↑ Re: [Marxism Line of March from [Ethan Young]Date, Wed, 15 Sep 2010]
  9. ↑ CCDS Background
  10. ↑ Conference program
  11. ↑ Proceedings of the Committees of Correspondence Conference: Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the '90s booklet, printed by CoC in NY, Sept. 1992 (Price: $4)
  12. ↑ SSE Tenth Annual Conference Program, 1992
  13. ↑ Peoples Weekly World, June 31, 1993
  14. ↑ Memorial Service program
  15. ↑ Mail Archive website: Communist Manifestivity Conference Schedule, Oct. 28, 1998
  16. ↑ http://www.chicagodsa.org/ngarchive/ng67.html#anchor2446773
  17. ↑ http://www.politics1.com/socialist04a.htm
  18. ↑ http://www.politics1.com/socialist04a.htm
  19. ↑ Democratic Left, Fall 2004, Beyond Kerry: DSAers Back Local Candidates, By Theresa Alt and Michael Hirsch
  20. ↑ Dem. Left,Winter 2004/2005
  21. ↑ http://ww3.wpunj.edu/newpol/whoweare.htm#eds
  22. ↑ Endorsers
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