Seattle Socialism Conference Aims To Capitalize On Anti-Trump Activism

SEATTLE, WA - Puget Sound-area socialist groups are hosting a conference on Sunday at the University of Washington to excite existing members - and to attract people motivated by the election of Donald Trump to get involved in political action.

The Seattle Socialism Conference is a joint effort by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) chapter in Seattle, Seattle Councilwoman Kshama Sawant's Socialist Alternative, the Young Democratic Socialists at UW, and the International Socialist Organization.

Since the 2016 presidential election - which featured a socialist candidate, Bernie Sanders, versus capitalism-inclined candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton - local socialist groups have seen astronomical growth.

Andrej Markovčič, chair of Seattle DSA, said that the group has experienced about 600 percent growth since last summer, growing from 50 to 350 members recently. Both the energy leftover from the Sanders campaign and anger at Trump have driven interest in socialism and political action, Markovčič said.

Ty Moore, a leader with Socialist Alternative, said that the group has seen its "biggest surge of growth ever" since Trump's election - even bigger than after Sawant was elected in 2013. Socialist Alternative has held conferences in the past, but this will be the first to include other local leftist groups.

"This year we felt it was an excellent moment to revive the tradition because of the huge outpouring of resistance against Trump and within that the rapidly growing support for socialist ideas," Moore said.

In general, the political left has been highly active since Trump's election. Seattle saw a massive women's march in January, followed by protests at Sea-Tac over the travel ban executive order. Plus, groups united under the Indivisible banner have sprung up in places like Bonney Lake, North Bend, and Issaquah, and have been focused on pressuring Republican U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert to vote to the left of Trump.

"We really are trying to bring in new people since the Bernie campaign; he won the Democratic primary here and there was huge enthusiasm for that," Markovčič said. "So we're hoping for a pretty broad cross section of people. that's why we have speakers that can talk about practical things happening in Seattle; we want to it to be an accessible event."

The event will feature several notable national and local speakers, including Bhaskar Sunkara, the editor of Jacobin magazine, and, naturally, Sawant. Seattle City Council candidate Jon Grant will also speak, and mayoral candidate Nikkita Oliver will host her campaign kick-off party after the conference.

The conference with also act as a local draw for other Puget Sound DSA groups, Markovčič said. In Washington, DSA has opened chapters in Tacoma, Bellingham, and Spokane. Likewise, Socialist Alternative has groups in Kent, Tacoma, Bellingham, and Spokane.

"I'm excited for this because I see it as our opportunity to bring together the various left organizations and movements within the Seattle area," Markovčič said.

Seattle Socialism Conference | Sunday, April 2

Kane Hall, University of Washington | $10 - $20 suggested donation | Childcare available

• 10:30 a.m. - Doors open
• 11:00 a.m. - Panel discussion: Making Seattle a Center of Resistance
• 12:30 p.m. - Panel discussion: Building the Socialist Movement in the Age of Trump

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