PUBLISHED BY THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS OF AMERl<..A MAR.·APR. 1986 VOL XIV, No. 2 $1.50 T ....412 Zey Aronountz, an;(/ ull Employrnent Socialist Scholan Conference REBELLION, RESISTANCE, REVOLT April 18, 19 & 20, 1986 Boro of Manhattan Commwdty College, CUNY 199 Chambers Street (near Trade Center), New York City The usual suspects and hundreds more••• • Luciana Castellina • Noam Chomsky • Murray Bookchin • Dorothy Healey •Tony Mazzochi • Goren Theroorn • Adamantia Pollis •Ruth Messinger • Stanley Aronowitz • Paul Sweezy • William Kornblum • Joanne Landy • Irving Howe • Paulette Pierce • Bogdan Denitch • Michael Harrington •Frances Fox Piven • Barbara Ehrenreich • Robert Lekachman • Daniel Singer • William Tabb • Barbara Epstein • Cornel West •Erwin Knoll Some of this year's panels are: Democratic: Soc:lalbta of America South End Preaa Race, Class and Gender Aids Organizing Strategies for Change in America Women's Movement Strategy The Generation After: Holoc:auat Survivon ANoclatlon TV The Roots and Causes of Nazism and the Holocaust Israel and the US Left l.aRouche. The Liberty Lobby: A Base for U.S. Fascism Veteraoa of the Abraham Uncoln Brltade Mid-Atlantic: Radical Hlatorlana Ortanizatlona The Popular Front Strategy in Spain at the Time of the Civil War Risking Old Age in America National Wrlten Union The Sears/ EEOC Case Publish (Pay), or Perish: The Sad State of Scholarly Affairs On the History of Cinema Labor Reeearcb ANOClatlon Irish-American Radicals The AFL-CIO Report on the Changing Work History and Future of New York City New York Marxlat School Wrillng the History of American Communism Women Scientists Speak on Women in Science Monthly Review Dialectics Revisited: The Dialectical Biologist Liberation Theology Who is Programming the DNA Programming Socialism and Local Politics Soc:lal Text: Planaen Network Lukacs-Bloch A Socialist Housing Program Reform Caucua, United Unlwralty Pror-lom, SUNY Hungary: The 1956 Revolt Innovative Organizing Strategie$ in Higher Education South Africa and Israel: The Alliance and Its Roots Unions and Higher Education American Agriculture in Collapse: The Economics of Food Insurgent Movements within Unions American Foreign Policy and the Philippines Science and Soc:lety The Crisis of the Budget: Gramm-Rudman Are There General Laws of Socio-Economic Transformations The Cold War and the Holocaust SATURDAY NICHT SPECIAL EVENT THE FUCS IN CONCERT Spouon/ Partidputa (in formation) Reptrallo• Form CUNY Ph.D. Progrun in Sociology, and Dissent, Nolion, Institute for Democratic Make checks pay~ to ··SocJa1 SchoWs Conftttnce" a1'd mail to Socilliam. Mid-Allin tic Radial HistoriAns Orpaizatjoo, MonJhJy /ktJitul, Social R.L Norman, Jr, CUNY Democratic SociallJla Oub. Rm 901, 33 Wesl 42nd St . New York, N.Y. 10036. lt>lq, SoaaJ Ttxt, Soaa/ist R«iew, Ttios, CUNY Democratic Socialist Faculty Prerepetratloa: __$17 .50 __11 0 O dly) __11 0 (lludrnl/low lllCOIM) Oub, CUNY Democratic Socialist Graduate Student Oub, South F.od Presa, The 1ep1ar ~: __125 00 __11 2 50 (I dly) _ _ 112 SO~lludttllllow income) Fabian Society, The Generation After. Against the Cunmi, TM NNJ Soo'tty. Sarna Pro~Nl Chddc1~ 1v1111b~ dunn1 1he dly on S.11inl1y a1'd Sunday and Socltty, CuipailD for Democ:acy- F.ut and West. Stmiolat. Cintaslt, The 0 I nttd chikkltt for __ chlklml Bildner Center for Western Hemisphere Studies, Socialist lt>litics, Dioltclical Alllhropology. New Yott Marxist Schi>ol. Union for Rldial l'olitial Economics, Addrns·~---------------------- 1 TM />roRmsiot, TM Guardian, Bergin & Ganey Publishers. Ci1y _ _______ __S..te _____.._.7i•,p ______,,_,.. l>EMOCllATIClfn 2 MAJt .•fH - 1- FAMILY TIES Of .Parents, Politics, and Progeny by Maxine Phillips help. "The main reason we can stay active is afford individual babysitters. Former L.A. that grandma lives with us and provides co-ehair Jan Breidenbach, mother of two­ ill DSA lose not just much love and help with the kids," says year old Jesse, notes that her branch one but two genera­ D.C. Executive Committee member De­ schedules its meetings on Sunday morning tions of activists to the borah Goldman, mother of Benjamin, four, for brunch so that families can bring their new "baby boom?" It's and Joshua, one-and-a-half. Debbie's children and the children can get to know no news that the gen­ mother-in-law, Dorothy Healey, combined each other. Boston tried having potluck Weration in the 30 to 40-year-old age range is grandparenting and serving on DSA's Na­ dinners on Sunday nights before the regu­ having babies and becoming less active in tional Executive Committee up until this lar monthly meetings, but since the pro­ DSA, but when Demo<::raiic Left surveyed year. gram lasted until 10:00 and the children both new and experienced parents to find The Los Angeles local takes up a col­ needed to be in bed by 8:30, most parents out what the organization could do to help lection at meetings to reimburse parents left after dinner. "Night meetings just don't them stay active, it found that parents are for babysitting expenses, a practice that work,'' emphasizes Julia Johnson, former looking for more than child care during the D.C. local recently adopted. "We chair of the Boston local and soon-to-be meetings. They want their children to be­ reafued that most of the few kids in our mother of a second child. come involved. The news is that if DSA' local are pre-school age or babies and that Still, before the children are old doesn't appeal to parents and children, it providing child care at meetings wouldn't enough to have a set bedtime, many ac­ risks losing both generations. help for this age group,'' says Debbie tivists find child care at night meetings Goldman. In Chicago, where there is a helpful. And if the number of children is Parent I Activists? larger number of parents, the local pro­ small and members are willing to take turns vides child care at meetings, but cannot caring for them, it doesn't have to be paid How do parents manage? "At first nothing changed," remembers Beth Cagan, who has been active in Cleveland since the beginning of the New American Movement (NAM - one ofDSA's predecessor organi­ zations) and before. "It was 1969 and there was a lot of focus on women and kids in the movement ... But as the kids got older and our jobs more demanding, intense in­ volvement was difficult. At first we were very conscious of taking turns, being fair. But as time wore on, I'd say I tended to give in more and let Steve be active. It would have been too difficult for both of us to give so much time to politics." Beth's story is echoed today by other DSA women. Although none of the women who answered the questionnaire had dropped out completely, most reported cut­ ting back on their activism, especially if they have more than one child. Most of the men, too, reported lower levels of activity than in their pre-parenting lives. (Parents of older children recalled living with other adults and children in the early 1970s and thus being able to maintain activity. Group living did not seem to be an option in the 1980s.) Interestingly, respondents who are part-time parents because of divorce are able to stay active because they have blocks of time when they are not responsible for child care. Some lucky parents have extra DEMOCRATICLEFT 3 MAR.·APR. 1986 child care. Judy Johnson, who served as head ofNAM's Parenting Task Foree in the 1970s, remembers a rule in her local that l whoever brought a child to a meeting would be free of responsibility for the child during I CAN'l" 1'1.AY Now­ IJ.AVE: lo SPEND SOM~ the meeting time. Other members took QUAJ..ll'Y 'f IME WITH half-hour child care shifts. For the parent, MY HolHER f "it was very freeing and let you concentratE on the meeting." Lf _J.I Locals can also aid parents by involv­ @o ing them in work they can do at home, such as teaching a course in their living room or performing much-needed maintenance tasks that don't involve phone calls. Former DSA Program Director Holly Graff and husband Tom Simonds, former Chicago DSA staffperson, are now the par­ ents of Keith, almost three, and nine­ month-old twins, Tessa and Kevin. Al­ though Holly and Tom were able to stay active nationally and locally with one child, having three means that their main political "Recruiting" the Kids two-year--0ld Joe, and two-month-old Kath­ work is now done at home, where they are Veterans of the early years of the ryn Eleanore, suggest playgroups as a way computerizing the Chicago local's mailing women's movement recall debates over for children to meet each other and for par­ list. They are glad that the local provides what type of child care socialists should ents to "share concerns and maybe engage child care at meetings, but what is most provide. They now note the lack of imagina­ in some type of activities." Without such important to them at this point is to tion shown at most meetings when it comes support, they don't see how they can stay socialize with others in the local who share to setting up an atmosphere that children active. their parenting concerns. "We want to would like. "I've stopped talcing my daugh­ When children are little, there are build ties for our children," says Holly. ter to DSA events," says Judith Van Allen, some ways to include them in political activ­ mother of nine-year-old Adrian, and until ity.