Randy Shannon
Randy Shannon ...
Committees of Correspondence conference
Randy Shannon attended[1]the 6th National Convention of the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism (CCDS) at San Francisco's Whitcomb Hotel July 23-26 2009.
The "Building the Progressive Majority: Race, Class and Gender" plenary discussion began a series of panel and workshop discussions. The plenary panel consisted of reports highlighting work of CCDS activists in the South, in the Heartland "rustbelt states," on the West Coast and New England and the East Coast. Randy Shannon's report on Western Pennsylvania and the dire conditions in the wake of de-industrialization was particularly moving. He described independent political work with groups like Progressive Democrats of America in raising the consciousness and unity of the working class and Black community, and then in turn ally with forces like the Congressional Progressive Caucus in the Congress to defeat the right and advance progressive planks in Obama's economic package. He stressed the importance of ending the wars and health care reform, especially HR 676 "Medicare for All."