60th Anniversary of The Free Speech Movement

Speakers:

Waldo Martin, Professor, UC Berkeley Department of History, author of Black Against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party

David S., Revcom Corps for the Emancipation of Humanity, Bay Area

The Free Speech Movement (FSM) shook Berkeley, college campuses across the country, and impacted the broader society, sixty years ago in the fall of 1964. We call for people to join with Revolution Books, Berkeley, in a program to commemorate the FSM. We need to uphold key lessons from what students at Berkeley did to change history then, so that students – and everyone – can step to the fore to change this crazy and dangerous world today.

In his famous speech, Mario Savio said:

“There is a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can’t take part; you can’t even passively take part, and you’ve got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you’ve got to make it stop. And you’ve got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you’re free, the machine will be prevented from working at all!”

Here is an irony which stands out on the Berkeley campus: what Mario actually said and fought for is right now under attack in a wave of repressive measures on campuses all over the country, including the UC system and Berkeley itself. And among those driving that attack are people who claim to uphold (but actually distort) the legacy of the FSM and Mario Savio.

A further irony is that Bob Avakian, one of the students brought forward through participating in that historic movement, became the foremost revolutionary communist in the world today, developing a new communism. And Avakian has upheld the FSM and the principles and spirit of that movement, has popularized this in his recollections of that time, and has incorporated this into the guiding principles of the new communism.

He spoke forcefully in his social media to key principles from that time which need to be brought to the fore in commemorating the FSM, and also need to be applied today:

“…the bedrock stand of refusing to go along with injustice and putting yourself on the line to oppose it, without being derailed by the hypocritical maneuvers, or shrinking in the face of the repressive measures, of those wielding unjust power; the largeness of mind and generosity of spirit that leads to uniting all who can be united in the fight against injustice, with the orientation of valuing and encouraging critical thinking, with open-minded debate over the road forward and the biggest questions related to changing the world.”

We live in a society that is tearing apart and in which things that may have once seemed unthinkable are today the stock in trade of mainstream political parties. Never has the need for rebellion against injustice and oppression on the campuses, resonating throughout society, been greater. Never have the stakes of whether there is an atmosphere of encouraging critical thinking and open-minded debate been higher.

Join with us to commemorate the FSM. We will bring out Bob Avakian and his unique views on the FSM and on revolution, and feature other voices and perspectives on the FSM and its great significance for today.

There will be time for discussion after the presentations.