Das Uberdog
remembers the alamo
Manifesto
The views represented in this Manifesto do not necessarily represent those of all speakers or participants in the spring conference, only those of its organisers.
Since 2008 the Western world has been in the grip of a 5 year economic crisis from which there is still no clear end in sight. A democratic spring has rocked the Middle East, toppling dictators and puppet regimes like a stack of cards. The Mediterranean is in flames, Greece in revolt and Spain and Italy facing economic collapse. Power is moving from West to East, as China continues to rapidly develop into the world’s next great superpower. The poor are squeezed by austerity, whilst the number of global billionaires reached a historic peak in 2011.
In short, everything is changing and shifting. And in that, there is nothing new. The question for the left is: how do we seize the moment? How can we ensure that what results from these changes is a fundamental improvement for humanity? In short, how can we alter the central social and economic core of capitalism?
We believe that the left is in diaspora, that its historic support base – the organised working class, and with it notions of solidarity and collective discipline – is a pale reflection of its former self. Without this traditional constituency, every facet of the left has fallen into decay. Working class education and traditions, and most importantly a solid grounding in the needs and experiences of the mass of the population, have been lost to the winds. In place of retreating class politics, forms of identity politics less fundamentally critical of capitalist structures have tended to dominate discourse, an indirect attempt to combat the alienation and disempowerment felt by so many. The once progressive movements of modernism in art and architecture to the contemporary eye seem contrived and faulty; the monuments to utopia constructed in our cities now appear as decaying concrete monstrosities. The left is isolated, uprooted and – as any other uprooted plant – it is shriveling and dying.
And yet, events currently unfolding present us with incredible opportunities. Amidst the suffering and desperation caused by recent turbulence, there is a clear passion amongst millions around the world to reconnect with ideas, to search for the meaning of their perpetual insecurity and to challenge the prevailing order of society. In a time when an audience for a clear and essential critique of capitalism has never been so potentially large, our spring conference wishes to challenge the decay, and ask fundamental questions pertinent to all on the radical left. As an essential human construct, what is art and culture? To change the world, how is it best we organise ourselves? What is, and why are we so focused upon, the working class? And whatever happened to leftist ambitions and aspirations – to modernity and modernism in politics – and can we (or should we?) stimulate and define ideas of what we are looking to achieve?
Spring is a shoe-string, non-profit operation put together by two full-time restaurant workers in Manchester. Our speakers span an eclectic range of experienced thinkers and activists from numerous traditions, who are giving their time to provide critical insight and perspective. We hope you will join us on May 11th for an afternoon of discussion and debate. And, potentially, some answers to the questions we face right now.
CONFERENCE TIMETABLE
***SPEAKERS INCLUDE***
Alex Niven
Paris Thompson
Andy Wilson
Dave Broder
AND MANY MORE!!
http://spring-conference-2013.com
facebook
The views represented in this Manifesto do not necessarily represent those of all speakers or participants in the spring conference, only those of its organisers.
Since 2008 the Western world has been in the grip of a 5 year economic crisis from which there is still no clear end in sight. A democratic spring has rocked the Middle East, toppling dictators and puppet regimes like a stack of cards. The Mediterranean is in flames, Greece in revolt and Spain and Italy facing economic collapse. Power is moving from West to East, as China continues to rapidly develop into the world’s next great superpower. The poor are squeezed by austerity, whilst the number of global billionaires reached a historic peak in 2011.
In short, everything is changing and shifting. And in that, there is nothing new. The question for the left is: how do we seize the moment? How can we ensure that what results from these changes is a fundamental improvement for humanity? In short, how can we alter the central social and economic core of capitalism?
We believe that the left is in diaspora, that its historic support base – the organised working class, and with it notions of solidarity and collective discipline – is a pale reflection of its former self. Without this traditional constituency, every facet of the left has fallen into decay. Working class education and traditions, and most importantly a solid grounding in the needs and experiences of the mass of the population, have been lost to the winds. In place of retreating class politics, forms of identity politics less fundamentally critical of capitalist structures have tended to dominate discourse, an indirect attempt to combat the alienation and disempowerment felt by so many. The once progressive movements of modernism in art and architecture to the contemporary eye seem contrived and faulty; the monuments to utopia constructed in our cities now appear as decaying concrete monstrosities. The left is isolated, uprooted and – as any other uprooted plant – it is shriveling and dying.
And yet, events currently unfolding present us with incredible opportunities. Amidst the suffering and desperation caused by recent turbulence, there is a clear passion amongst millions around the world to reconnect with ideas, to search for the meaning of their perpetual insecurity and to challenge the prevailing order of society. In a time when an audience for a clear and essential critique of capitalism has never been so potentially large, our spring conference wishes to challenge the decay, and ask fundamental questions pertinent to all on the radical left. As an essential human construct, what is art and culture? To change the world, how is it best we organise ourselves? What is, and why are we so focused upon, the working class? And whatever happened to leftist ambitions and aspirations – to modernity and modernism in politics – and can we (or should we?) stimulate and define ideas of what we are looking to achieve?
Spring is a shoe-string, non-profit operation put together by two full-time restaurant workers in Manchester. Our speakers span an eclectic range of experienced thinkers and activists from numerous traditions, who are giving their time to provide critical insight and perspective. We hope you will join us on May 11th for an afternoon of discussion and debate. And, potentially, some answers to the questions we face right now.
CONFERENCE TIMETABLE
***SPEAKERS INCLUDE***
Alex Niven
Paris Thompson
Andy Wilson
Dave Broder
AND MANY MORE!!
http://spring-conference-2013.com
