A panel discussion on the Legacy of 1968, and how Marxism was transformed by the radical decade of the 1960s.

By The Platypus Affiliated SocietyFollow

When and where

Date and time

Sat, 24 Jun 2023 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM AEST

Location

Victorian Trades Hall Council 54 Victoria Street Carlton, VIC 3053Show map

About this event

• 3 hours
• Mobile eTicket

The Melbourne Chapter of the Platypus Affiliated society is hosting a moderated panel discussion on the topic “The Legacy of 1968”.

Saturday June 24, 2023, 1-4pm, Victorian Trades Hall, Carlton.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/2235352843319437

## Description:

The 1960s were a period of social upheaval that spanned the entire globe. The “New” Left that emerged reached for Marxism to help it navigate the politics of this decade. Platypus asks: How was this Marxism inherited and transformed? Did it succeed, or discover new problems?

Today, with activists fighting in the streets and calling for liberation along the lines of race, gender, and sexuality, the Left’s every attempt to discover new methods and new ideas seems to invoke a memory of the political horizons of the New Left. We can perhaps more than ever feel the urgency of the question: what lessons are to be drawn from the New Left as another generation undertakes the project of building a Left for the 21st century?

## Panellists

Andy Blunden – Hegel Scholar, the first draft card burner in Melbourne in 1966, and later a member of the Workers Revolutionary Party. Writes at https://ethicalpolitics.org/ablunden/

Alison Thorne – Member of the Freedom Socialist Party (www.socialism.com), and founder of the Australian branch of Radical Women (https://www.radicalwomen.org/Melbourne.shtml).

Arthur Dent – (AKA Albert Langer) Orthodox Maoist, former member of the CPA[M-L] and leader of the Red Eureka Movement in the 1970’s. Writes at c21stLeft.com.

## Details:

This event is free, and seating is limited by the venue.

A livestream of the event will be available over Zoom (link available closer to event, or through facebook link below). If time permits, questions from the online audience will be permitted.

The event will conclude in under three hours.

Please register for tickets so that we can keep track of numbers.

Entrance via Victoria Street.

Join us at the Curtin across the road for a drink afterwards to continue the discussion.

## About Platypus:

The Platypus Affiliated Society, established in December 2006, organizes reading groups, public fora, research and journalism focused on problems and tasks inherited from the “Old” (1920s-30s), “New” (1960s-70s) and post-political (1980s-90s) Left for the possibilities of emancipatory politics today.

http://www.platypus1917.org – http://www.facebook.com/platypusmelbourne/

instagram: @platypusmelbourne – twitter: @pas_melbourne