Platypus Coffee Breaks are a great time to meet and connect with members of Platypus as well as fellow travelers and allies of the group. It’s an opportunity to discuss issues raised in the latest issue of the Platypus Review, to consider the state of the Left, and to just hang out with people who have similar political interests.

Please join us!

During the summer months, we will have one coffee break in New York. It will begin on Wednesday, June 16th and run throughout the summer:

Think Coffee
Wednesdays, 7:00 PM -8:30 PM
Think Cafe,
248 Mercer st.
Please e-mail Pac Pobric at zpobric@gmail.com with any questions.

Uncategorized coffee break, ideology, Left, New York, New York chapter, NYC, Platpus Review, theory

Platypus Marxist Reading Group

June 13 – August 22, 2010

Sundays, 1–4PM at:

The New School University – 25 E. 13th St, Room 502

Marx and Marxism

Readings pp. from Robert C. Tucker, ed., Marx-Engels Reader (Norton 2nd ed., 1978) (* at marxists.org)

June 13

Karl Marx on the history of his opinions (from Preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy), pp. 3–6

Marx, To make the world philosophical, pp. 9–11

Marx, For the ruthless criticism of everything existing, pp. 12–15

Marx, Theses on Feuerbach, pp. 143–145

June 20

Marx, On The Jewish Question, pp. 26–52

June 27

Marx, The coming upheaval (from The Poverty of Philosophy), pp. 218–219

Marx and Engels, Communist Manifesto, pp. 469–500

Marx, Address to the Central Committee of the Communist League, pp. 501–511

July 4

[break for Independence Day weekend]

July 11

The tactics of social democracy (Engels’s introduction to Marx, The Class Struggles in France), pp. 556–573

Marx, from The Class Struggles in France 1848–50, pp. 586–593

July 18

Marx, The 18th Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte, pp. 594–617

July 25

Marx, On imperialism in India, 653–664 (available online as The British Rule in India and The Future Results of British Rule in India)

Marx and Engels, Europocentric world revolution, pp. 676–677 (available online as Marx to Engels October 8, 1858 and Engels to Kautsky September 12, 1882)

August 1

Marx, The Civil War in France, pp. 618–652

August 8

Marx, Inaugural address to the First International, pp. 512–519

Karl Korsch, The Marxism of the First International *

August 15

Korsch, Introduction to Marx, Critique of the Gotha Programme *

Marx, Critique of the Gotha Programme, pp. 525–541

August 22

Max Horkheimer, “The Authoritarian State” (1940) (in The Essential Frankfurt School Reader, eds. Andrew Arato and Eike Gebhardt, pp. 95–117)

–

Please join us for our summer reading group, open to the public beginning on June 13. Please contact Pac Pobric at zpobric@gmail.com with any questions.

Connect with Platypus through out Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=150346701425&ref=ts

Sign up for our email list to egt announcements about Platypus goings-on in New York: http://groups.google.com/group/platypus1917nyc

Uncategorized Left, Marx, Marxism, New School, New York, New York chapter, NYC, philosophy, reading group, theory

School of the Art Institute of Chicago, 112 S. Michigan Ave.

The Platypus Affiliated Society is proud to announce its second annual international convention, What is Left, and where to begin? Platypus has organized four days of activities. Starting on Wednesday May 26th with a film screening at University of Chicago’s Woodlawn Collaborative and Thursday with theater and poetry performances at Decima Musa in Pilsen. On Friday May 28th, the Platypus Affiliated Society will convene for the panel discussion on The Question of Imperialism in the 20th Century at School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). On Saturday May 29th, Platypus will host a selective series of workshops and panel discussions at SAIC (112 S. Michigan Ave.)  Activities will focus on political and cultural issues that have shaped the Left historically and today. Sunday May 30th, Platypus members will be leading a series of talks on The Platypus Experience: Perspectives from three generations and The origins of today’s Left in the 1970s New Left. Saturday and Sunday spaces are limited and require registration. Click here to register.

NOTE: If you would like to attend the convention and live in the NYC area, please contact us at newyork@platypus1917.org to arrange transportation with us. We will be finalizing all transportation arrangements by Wednesday, May 26th.

Uncategorized

ATTENTION, LOCATION CHANGE: Tisch Hall, 40 W. 4th St. (4th and Mercer, on the South side of the street) Lower Level 2, Room. LC11.

A teach-in on labor, human rights and prospects for a Left in Iran with Ervand Abrahamian

The Platypus Affiliated Society, in collaboration with United for Iran, Amnesty International and the Network of Iranian Unions (NILU) has organized a teach-in on Iran for May 2nd, from 1-5pm at the Tisch Hall, 40 W. 4th St. (4th and Mercer, on the South side of the street) Lower Level 2, Room LC11. The keynote speaker for the evening  will be historian on Iran and outspoken voice on the recent events, CUNY professor Ervand Abrahamian. The day will consist of an opening informational (1-2pm) panel, a workshop (2-3pm), a break with refreshments provided (3-3:30pm) and the keynote address with Ervand Abrahamian followed by an audience Q&A (3:30-5pm).

We would like to raise questions about the direction of the Green movement in Iran, with an especial, though not exclusive, focus on labor organization in Iran, the role it’s playing and what it may achieve in the future. This teach-in will produce political discussion around these questions and inform students, faculty, and the public at large of the ongoing events in Iran. We would like to brainstorm (during the workshop especially) what kind of political response would further possibilities in our time for a progressive leftist movement.

Please register for this free event at (we need a count for refreshments): http://iran.platypus1917.org/
Facebook Invite: Iran Teach-in with Ervand Abrahamian

This event was organized by the platypus affiliated society with the help of united for iran, amnesty international and the network of iranian labor unions (NILU).

http://newyork.platypus1917.org/

http://united4iran.org/

http://www.amnesty.org/

http://iranlaborreport.com/

Uncategorized Ali Mirsepassi, Bryan Farell, Eric Stoner, Ervand Abrahamian, Green Movement, ideology, Iran, Left, NYC, Pam C. Nogales C., praxis, public forum, Reza Gharashi, teach-in, Waging non-violence

In an age of global capitalism, “progressive” art is generally conceived of as a political form of resistance to capitalism’s all-encompassing presence and commodification of culture. Taking the form of public stunts, political pranks, “dematerialized” experiences, and community engagements, many works seek to rupture the texture of our everyday lives and offer alternative models for politics and society. But given that, in our current moment, the Left has little to no capacity to shape our social and political direction, the merits and effectiveness of art as a form of resistance must be thrown into question. Can art really have a stake in making political change? If so, has contemporary art been at all successful in doing so? How must art’s relationship to politics be understood, and what must be rethought in light of our present? Bringing together practicing artists and critical theorists, this panel raises these questions in order to increase the potential to shape our socio-political and artistic future.

Coco Fusco (Artist, Writer and Associate Prof. at Parsons )
Andrea Geyer (Artist and Professor at Parsons)
Jim Miller (Chair of Lib. Stu. and Professor of Poli. Sci. at the NSSR)
Haseeb Ahmed (Platypus Affiliated Society)
moderated by Chris Mansour (Platypus)

Event Sponsored By:
The Platypus Affiliated Society
NSSR Philosophy Department
NSSR Liberal Studies Department
NSSR Department of Politics
NSGS Media Studies Department
Parsons Fine Arts Department

If you have any questions, please contact Chris Mansour at chris.d.mansour@gmail.com

Uncategorized

From left to right: Gabriel Gaster, Chris Mansour and Ian Morrison

Platypus’s own Chris Mansour and Ian Morrison were recently interviewed by Mitchel Cohen on “Steal this Radio.” The show will be broadcast on Friday, April 2, 2010 at 11 a.m. (New York time). Steal This Radio can be heard only over the internet, not on regular radio.) To hear it, go to http://nytalkradio.net at that time and click on Listen Live.

If you are not able to catch it live, just click on the link below:

http://www.healthytipsradio.com/podcasts/03.30.10.STR.106.mp3

Chris and Ian did an excellent job representing the group, and I would recommend anyone even remotely interested in Platypus to tune in!

Uncategorized

Dear New Yorkers,

Please join us on the weekend of March 19th at the 2010 Left Forum. Platypus members from Toronto, Chicago, Boston along with New York City members will be there both presenting and chairing these panels.  Below are a list of Platypus organized panels along with their respective line-ups and time slots.

Uncategorized

Thank you to those of you who came out for yesterday’s teach-in. In light of the discussion, we thought we would share our reading list on Iran, including some of our own Platypus Review articles.

David Greason, “Embracing Death: The Western Left and the Iranian Revolution 1978-83″ (2005)*

Spartacist League, “Down with the Clerical Regime: No Support to ‘Reform’ Mullahs” (2009)*

Spencer Leonard, “30 Years of the Islamic Revolution in Iran: An Interview with Ervand Abrahamian” (2009)*

Chris Cutrone, “The Failure of the Islamic Revolution: The Nature of the Present Crisis in Iran” (2009)*

Christopher Hitchens, “Don’t Call What Happened in Iran an Election” (2009)

Slavoj Zizek, “Berlusconi in Tehran” (2009)

Fred Halliday, “Iran’s tide of history: counter-revolution and after” (2009)

Chris Cutrone, teach-in presentation/opening remarks at Platypus forum on “30 Years of the Islamic Revolution in Iran: The Tragedy of the Left” (2009)*

Ian Morrison, “Against the Status Quo: An Interview with Homayoun Pourzad” (2009)*

Hamid Taqvaie (W[C]PI), “Iran: A Turning Point” (interview, 2009)*

Uncategorized

Join Platypus members this Wednesday, February 17th at 7:30pm for a teach-in on the Iranian Revolution and a discussion on the current situation in Iran led by Platypus Review editor Pam C. Nogales C.

This event will be held at the New School, 80 Fifth Avenue, Rm. 802

Undoubtedly, the Left today should demand the overthrow of theocratic regimes; the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran is no exception. However, how the regime is overthrown, who participates in this act and how they understand their political practice, has irreversible effects. In 1977-79, the international Left overlooked this consideration by uncritically supporting those seeking to overthrow the Shah. In so doing, the Left helped a right-wing popular movement establish the theocratic dictatorial government the protesters fight against today. How are we as leftists to make sense of this political failure so as to help rebuild an emancipatory Left today? How do the current protests challenge the Islamic Republic? What are the prospects for overthrowing the Iranian regime and what would take its place?

1. Against the status quo: An interview with Iranian trade-unionist Homayoun Pourzad

2. The failure of the Islamic revolution: The nature of the present crisis in Iran

3. 30 Years of the Islamic Revolution Iran: An interview with Ervand Abrahamian

4. Review: Iran “Insights into its Religion Politics and Power”

Uncategorized Ervand Abrahamian, Iran, Iranian Revolution, Left, New School, New York, New York chapter, NYC, Pam C. Nogales C., public forum, teach-in

Two evenings of screenings and discussion on the legacy of black politics, its buried history, unmet challenges, and lingering problems for the Left.

Finally Got the News (1970): 7:00pm Thursday, February 11 Lang Cafe 65 W. 11th Street

Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin (2003): 7:00pm Thursday, February 25 Room 1009, East 16th street

Recommended readings from the Platypus Review,

1. An unmet challenge: Race and the Left in America

2. Book review: Jeffrey B. Perry, Hubert Harrison: The Voice of Harlem Radicalism, 1882-1918

This event is co-organized with our friends at Union Docs,

The mission of Union Docs is to present a broad range of innovative and thought-provoking non-fiction projects to the general public, while also cultivating specialized opportunities for learning, critical discourse, and creative collaboration for emerging media-makers, theorists, and curators.
http://www.uniondocs.org/

Thanks Union Docs!

Uncategorized