Leslie Cagan

From KeyWiki

Leslie Sue Cagan was until July 2009 co-chairman of Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism^[1].

Cagan has been active since the Viet Nam war era, campaigning against to racism at home, from nuclear disarmament to lesbian/gay liberation, from fighting sexism to working against U.S. intervention. She served seven years as Director of the Cuba Information Project. She also coordinated the largest U.S. delegation to Cuba for the World Festival of Youth and Students in 1997.

Cagan was until 2008 the chairperson of United for Peace and Justice peace organization. She is active with the Same Boat Coalition in NYC, and on the board of the Astraea National Lesbian Action Foundation.

First Venceremos Brigade

In 1969 Leslie Sue Cagan age 22, from the Bronx , was a member of the first Venceremos Brigade to Cuba.^[2] .

Addressed Communist Party USA, front meeting

An ad/notice was placed in the Guardian, November 8, 1989, concerning an upcoming U.S. Peace Council national conference. The text of the notice was:

"End The Cold War Fund Human Needs" U.S. Peace Council's Tenth Anniversary National Conference - Boston, Mass., Nov. 10-12, 1989

Speakers Included:^[3]

• Leslie Cagan
• Rep.John Conyers - (D-Mich)
• Prof.Gerald Horne
• Prof. Michio Kaku
• Robert Krimsky
• Prof. Manning Marable
• Jack O'Dell - Rainbow Coalition Operation PUSH
• Dennis Rivera - Local 1199 Drug & Hospital Workers Union
• Angela Sanbrano- CISPES
• Bernie Sanders
• Holly Sklar
• Zehdi Terzi - Palestine Liberation Organisation
• Dessima Williams - Grenada Foundation

National Rainbow Coalition 1990 conference

In May 3-6, 1990 the National Rainbow Coalition held a successful conference in Atlanta, attended by over 1,000.

Bernie Demczuk, national labor coordinator of the Rainbow, organized a contingent. Jack Sheinkman, president of the ACTWU, hosted a labor breakfast.

California Assemblywoman Maxine Waters, has been the strongest leader in the California Rainbow, also attended, as did Leslie Cagan, a Rainbow board member.^[4]

Socialist Scholars Conference 1990

The Socialist Scholars Conference 1990, held September 6-8, at the Hotel Commodore, New York, included panels such as:^[5]

After the Cold War

• Sponsor: Socialist Dialog
• Moderator: Leslie Cagan Co-Chair NCIPA
• Jim Haughton, Director, Harlem Fightback
• Ann Schwartz, National Executive Committee, Frontline
• David McReynolds, Socialist Party USA, War Resisters League

CoC National Conference endorser

In 1992 Leslie Cagan, Cuba Information Project, 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.^[6]

CoC National Coordinating Committee

The following are listed in order of votes they received as members of the Committees of Correspondence National Coordinating Committee, elected at the Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s held at Berkeley California July 17-19.:^[7]

Hiroshima Day, 1993

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.^[8]

Speakers included;

• Leslie Cagan, Cuba Information Project
• Elizabeth Holtzman, NYC Comptroller
• Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney
• David McReynolds, War Resisters League
• Ruth Messinger, Manhattan Borough President
• Congressman Jerrold Nadler
• Sonja Ostrom, Metro New York Peace Action Council
• Congressman Major Owens
• Congressman Charles Rangel
• Congressman Edolphus Towns
• Lloyd Wallisch, World Court Project, U.S. branch
• Alyn Ware, Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy

CoC training school

According to Georgia Wever the first Leadership Training School ever organized by the Committees of Correspondence took place during July 1998 , at a woodland location in upstate New York. For almost a week, the 24 participants - who came from Northern California, Chicago, North Carolina, South Carolina, and the New York metropolitan area - "talked, challenged, sang, learned, swam, disagreed, feasted, danced, camped, and asked questions."

The curriculum was planned by a committee composed of Mael Apollon, Robin Busch, Leslie Cagan, Pat Fry, Bobby Greenberg, Mel Pritchard, Roque Ristorucci and Zach Robinson. In the follow-up to the Leadership Training School, the curriculum planning committee became the National Education and Literature Committee. It is co-chaired by Bob Greenberg and Mel Pritchard.

Interactive sessions were led by Timothy V. Johnson and Shirley McClain.

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 Leslie Cagan.^[9]

One of the many workshops at the Manifestivity was;

Women's Liberation: Seneca Falls to the Present; with Anannya Bhattacharjee, Leslie Cagan, Dawn Crandell, Rosalind Petchesky, and Sofia Quintero. Moderator: Diane Greene Lent

Committees of Correspondence Conference 2002

At the Committees of Correspondence National Conference and Convention, July 25-28, 2002 San Francisco State University, the Plenary Panel and Discussion on War, Peace and Democracy consisted of;

Elaine Hagopian, Leslie Cagan, Rhonda Ramiro, Angela Davis September 11 and Bush’s “war on terrorism.” Response to increased militarism, Ashcroft’s attack on civil liberties, the role of the United Nations and other international bodies.^[10]

YDS conference

In February 2004, Young Democratic Socialists convened a "Life After Bush" conference at CUNY Graduate Center in new york.

Speakers were^[11];

• Cornel West, Department of Religion, Princeton University; author of Race Matters and many other books; Honorary Chair of Democratic Socialists of America

• Frances Fox Piven, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, the Graduate Center, CUNY; author of Poor People's Movements and many other works; Honorary Chair of Democratic Socialists of America

• Doug Henwood, editor of Left Business Observer

• Steve Max, Director of Organizing and Training, Midwest Academy

• Leslie Cagan, National Coordindator, United for Peace and Justice

• Ian Williams, author of The U.N. for Beginners and a correspondent for In These Times and The Nation

• Bertha Lewis, Co-Chair, Working Families Party and Executive Director, New York ACORN

Communist history event

On March 23, 2007, "people jammed in to sit on folding chairs or stand shoulder-to-shoulder and listen to speakers tell of the Communist Party USA’s contributions to American labor and democratic rights". The crowd studied display cases full of photos, buttons, leaflets and letters from the 2,000 boxes of archives donated by the Communist Party to New York University’s Tamiment Library, which specializes in left and labor history.

The presence of dozens of party and Young Communist League members in the crowd indicated that the Communist Party continues to be an important and growing part of the American political scene.

Speakers included, Tamiment Library director Michael Nash, Committees of Correspondence leader Leslie Cagan, a leader of United for Peace and Justice, Rutgers University professor and CPUSA member Norman Markowitz, Steve Kramer, executive vice president of Service Employees Union Local 1199, New York State Sen. Bill Perkins, New York State Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, CPUSA Executive Vice Chair Jarvis Tyner , American Communist History editor Daniel Leab , University of Houston professor Gerald Horne and CPUSA leader Teresa Albano

Leslie Cagan, a leader of United for Peace and Justice, the national anti-Iraq-war coalition, said of the party’s peace activism, “We have so much to learn from the history of the Communist Party about how this work has been done.” .^[12]

Open Letter to Obama on Iran

In 2008 Leslie Cagan of United for Peace and Justice signed an online petition “A Open Letter to Barack Obama on Iran”.^[13]

United for Peace and Justice

In 2008 Leslie Cagan was National Coordintor for United for Peace and Justice^[14]

Independent Progressive Politics Network

In 2009 Leslie Cagan served on the Advisory Committee of the Independent Progressive Politics Network^[15].

Committee to Celebrate the Life of Luis Miranda Rivas

In 2009 Leslie Cagan was a member of the Committee to Celebrate the Life of Luis Miranda Rivas.^[16]

Campaign for Peace and Democracy

Cagan is listed as an endorser of the Campaign for Peace and Democracy, as of March 15, 2010.^[17]

External links

• Campaign for Peace and Democracy website

References

v • d • e Endorsers of the Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s Abdallah • Ahmad • A. Akin • K. Akin • M. Akin • Albert • K. Alexander • V. Alexander • Allen • Allan • Craig Anderson • Cynthia Anderson • Anolin • Aptheker • Atkins • Aull • Bacon • Baird • Battles • Bazian • Beal • Bebb • Becker • Beeman • Benjamin • Berry • Blake • Bloice • Blong • Borchardt • Braden • Bragin • Brenner • Brigham • Brock • J. Brough • M. Brough • B. Brown • L. Brown • M. Brown • Burns • Burnside • A. Buxenbaum • K. Buxenbaum • Cagan • Campbell • Camejo • Carlisle • Carver • Case • Celestin • Chacanaca • Maron • Chiesa • B. Clark • H. Clark • B. Cohen • D. Cohen • J. Cohen • Colbert • Coley • Comer • Contreras • E. Crain • I. Crain • Dalrymple • Daniels • Daves • David • A. Davis • M. Davis • A. Dawson • D. Dawson • Fuente • Deinas • Diskin • Donnelly • Donohue • Dover • Douglas • Doyle • Dunbar-Ortiz • Edminster • Eisenscher • Elbaum • Eltayeb-Givens • Etazadi • Ewing • Faatz • Fichtenbaum • Fillingim • Fincke • Fisher • Flory • Foster • Fraga • L. Frank • M. Frank • B. Franklin • G. Franklin • Friedheim • Friedman • Fromer • Fry • Fursa • A. Garcia • M. Garcia • Gerena-Rochet • Gespass • Gibson • Gilbrecht • Glass • Gluck • Golden • B. Goodman • P. Goodman • Gosse • Grayson • Green • Grieco • Grinnon • Grossinger • Grossman • Guy • Hallinan • Hanson • Harford • Harris • Hay • Healey • Hemmingson • Hendricke • Hilliard • Hillsman • Hilsbos • Hinds • Hinman • Holme • C. Howard • M. Howard • Hurwitz • Hutchings • Idosidis • J. Jackson • M. Jackson • Jean-Charles • Jenkins • Jessie • Kano • Kayed • Kessler • Kimbrough • Kinchley • Kinney • Kinoy • Kling • Knudsen • A. Knutson • J. Knutson • Kramer • Kurzweil • Laboriel • Lake • Lambiase • Lee • LeSueur • Lind • D. Lindsay • J. Lindsay • R. Lindsay • Lipschutz • B. Liveright • H. Liveright • Livingston • Lubin • Lucero • Lui • Lynch • McAleavey • E. McGowan • J. McGowan • McKinnon • McReynolds • Magil • Malfaro • Mandel • Mansbach • Mansour • Mar • Marable • Markey • Marks • D. Marquit • E. Marquit • B. Martin • del Campo • R. Martin • W. Martin • Martinez • Marzani • Maymudes • Meneely • Milanese • Mills • Mitchell • A. Mohr • T. Mohr • Moise • Montero • Montes-Matzger • Moore • Muga • Muñoz, Jr. • Myers • Myerson • Natwick • Navarro • Netzger • Nelson • Newman • Newport • Noble • J. Oberwager • M. Oberwager • Oden • Oke • Orris • Patrinos • Paradis • Parenti • Pasternak • Perla • Perez • Peterson • Phelan • Phillips • Pizarro • Pollach • Polletta • Potash • Price • Prigoff • Prince • Proctor • Quaife • Quinones • Reed • Revsen • Rice • Richard • Ristorucci • Robb • Robins • Rosenberg • Rubin • Ryan • Ryder • Sandy • Sayre • J. Schaffner • N. Schaffner • R. Schaffner • Schirmer • J. Schmidt • M. Schmidt • Schnitzer • S. Schwartz • Z. Schwartz • Scott • Seeger • Shannon • Shaltuck • Shelton • Shirek • Silber • Silverstein • Simon • Michael Smith • Mike Smith • Small • Solomon • Soriano • Sorro • Spiegel • Steele • Stein • Stewart • Stroud • Stromberg • Sullivan • Szczepanski • Talbutt • Taleb • H. Tandler • M. Tandler • Tarzynski • Tashiro • Teninty • Thomas • Trinkl • Valdez • Vanderslice • Vann • Walker • C. Wallace • H. Wallace • Waters • Webb • L. Weinstock • R. Weinstock • Weisberger • Wilensky • D. Wilkinson • M. Wilkinson • T. Wilkinson • Williamson • Wilson • Wing • Withington • Wofsy • D. Young • E. Young • Zylman