By Peter Moreau
Last year, for the first time in over a century of organizing, we hosted other communist parties from around the world for an international conference dedicated to anti-imperialism and internationalism. The conference hosted over twenty different fraternal parties who sent us greetings, presentations, and delegates, including some of our keynote speakers. Over seven hours of content was filmed over the course of two days, with over 1,200 people watching live. Additionally, over 1,400 people registered over Zoom alone, making this conference by far the most popular online event the Party has ever hosted.
Three members of the National Board traveled thousands of miles each to attend the conference in person along with comrades from around the country. There were keynote speakers from the Communist Party of Australia and the Communist Party of Britain, Comrade Hannah Middleton and Comrade Liz Payne respectively as well as keynote addresses from Tings Chak and Dr. Gerald Horne. Co-chair of the Communist Party USA, Rossana Cambron, was the first to speak at the conference, and she opened with a candid take on imperialism and fascism in the US. She remarked that the antidote to imperialism is internationalism, and she did not mince words when she said that the immediate struggle of the Communist Party is against the fascist front. Fascists oppose our existence, they recognize that socialism is the prescription for the imperialist disease and they will try to stop us at any cost.
This year we are honing in on just one aspect of imperialism in the 21st Century (the theme of last year’s conference). This year we are focusing on the Cold War 2.0. China has developed itself into a global superpower and has developed a system of South-South cooperation which is slowly undoing the imperial power structure over the global south. This has made China the main target of US imperialism in recent years and a new Cold War has been brewing for the past few decades. In the turn of the 21st Century, China has presented itself as a threat to US imperialism and the US realizes that.
We will have several speakers from communist parties and friendly organizations from around the world to discuss the various presentations and proxy conflicts / policy decisions which the Cold War 2.0 presents itself. We will have presentations from the National Network on Cuba (NNOC) on the blockade. The YCL and other fraternal youth organizations are sending presentations and greetings to participate in the conference.
Last year we had a few cultural presentations (i.e. songs, poems, etc.). There were beautiful songs about immigration policy and the fight against fascism at last year’s conference. Last year’s internationalist spirit was so spectacularly exemplified through the cultural pieces and we are very excited to see what will be presented this year. This year we are excited to explore this area even more and to present some more beautiful revolutionary art in the conference.
We are also honored and very excited to present Vijay Prashad and Jenny Klegg as our keynote speakers for the conference. This is an exciting opportunity to listen to some of the most brilliant voices on the internationalist movement and on the left in general. We would implore you to attend to listen to these keynote addresses if nothing else.
There are so many exciting and brilliant presentations lined up for this year’s 2nd Annual International Conference. The Conference is a huge symbol for our commitment to internationalism and allows us to flex our internationalist muscle. This pair of conferences is one of the biggest steps in our Party’s century-long history. We urge you to be a part of history and attend this Conference. Go to International Conference – Red World Review to register for the conference. We hope to see you there.