Britain: Revolution Festival 2020 – 23-25 October

Our British section's online school, Revolution Festival 2020, begins in just a couple of weeks. With a packed programme of exciting talks and discussions, this year's festival promises to be the best ever. Don't miss out – get your ticket today and join the revolution!

Revolution 2020 is a three-day festival of Marxist ideas, hosted online and across Britain on 23-25 October, with talks and discussions on current events, history, philosophy, and economics.

The theme of this year's event is A World on Fire. From the global COVID-19 pandemic, to the climate catastrophe, to the mass movements against racism and oppression: it is clear that the system is broken. The old world is dying; and a new society is struggling to be born.

With capitalism in its deepest ever crisis, and with the status quo collapsing all around us, we will be discussing the revolutionary ideas needed for activists looking to organise, fight, and transform the world today.

The full programme and timetable has now been announced, with an amazing range of exciting topics and great speakers. See below for full details

So don't miss out! Get your ticket now for this inspiring festival – and join the revolution!

Festival website

Facebook event

Programme

Friday 23 October

19:00-20:30: The Chartist Revolution (Book launch by Rob Sewell, editor of Socialist Appeal)

Saturday 24 October

10:30-12:30: How to fight racism – and how not to (Hamid Alizadeh, editorial board of In Defence of Marxism)
10:30-12:30: The Black Death – The pandemic that changed the world (Josh Holroyd, editorial board of Socialist Appeal)
10:30-12:30: Is Britain heading for a revolution? (Ellen Morton, editorial board of Revolution, Scotland)

13:30 – 15:15: The police, the state, and revolution (Ben Gliniecki, editorial board of Socialist Appeal)
13:30 – 15:15: Which way forward for the trade unions? (John McInally, former Vice President of PCS)
13:30 – 15:15: The revolutionary ideas of Friedrich Engels (Adam Booth, editor of socialist.net)

15:30 – 17:15: Against academic 'Marxism' (Daniel Morley, editorial board of Socialist Appeal)
15:30 – 17:15: 'Lesser evil' politics – Should socialists vote for the Democrats? (Tom Trottier, editorial board of Socialist Revolution, USA)
15:30 – 17:15: The plunder of Africa – Colonialism, then and now (Fiona Lali, national organiser of the Marxist Student Federation)

17:30 – 19:30: The world on fire – perspectives for world revolution (Fred Weston, editor of marxist.com)

Sunday 25 October

10:30-12:30: Who are the essential workers? (Natasha Sorrell, NEU member and Socialist Appeal activist)
10:30-12:30: Culture war or class war? (Joe Attard, Socialist Appeal activist and writer)
10:30-12:30: Ireland's fight for independence (Shaun Morris, editorial board of Revolution, Scotland)

13:30 – 15:15: Art and Revolution (Alan Woods, editor of In Defence of Marxism)
13:30 – 15:15: Fascism – what it is and how to fight it (Niklas Albin Svensson, editorial board of In Defence of Marxism)
13:30 – 15:15: The Levellers and the English Revolution (Joe Russell, Socialist Appeal activist and writer)

15:30 – 17:15: What can I do? The role of the individual in history (Ben Curry, editorial board of Socialist Appeal)
15:30 – 17:15: The 1929 Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression (James Kilby, editorial board of Socialist Appeal)
15:30 – 17:15: Degrowth and neo-Malthusianism – a socialist response (Olivia Rickson, Socialist Appeal activist and writer)

17:30 – 18:30: Why we need a revolution (closing rally with Alan Woods)

Logistics and locations

Revolution 2020 will take place online and in live watch parties across Britain between 23-25 October.

The festival will begin with a rally on Friday evening. On Saturday and Sunday there will be three timeslots, each with three parallel sessions. Saturday evening will end with a plenary session. And the festival will finish on Sunday with a closing rally.

By buying a ticket, you will be able to access all of the festival's talks and discussions online, with the opportunity to participate, ask questions, and make contributions.

Alternatively, dependent on the latest COVID-19 restrictions, there will be live watch parties organised in cities across the country. These are being organised by local Socialist Appeal activists, with all the necessary health and safety measures in place.

If you are based in Britain, buying a ticket will entitle you to attend any of these live events, which will also provide an excellent opportunity to meet other Marxist activists in the area.

See the map below for a full list of local events. This will be updated regularly to take into account all the latest information and regulations.