Michael Albert is an American activist, speaker, and writer. From an early involvement in the social movements of the 1960's, he has become an influential figure in progressive activism today. He is co-editor and co-founder of Zcommunications, including Z magazine and Znet, an alternative media and networking site with hundreds of thousands of weekly readers. He also co-founded South End Press and has written numerous books and articles. Along with Robin Hahnel he developed an alternative economic vision called participatory economics.
In this talk, Michael Albert will discuss prospects for social change based on mass participation of the public. Building on observations of past progress, including his own experiences from the movements of the 60's up to the present day, Albert will argue for the relevance, and indeed the necessity, of a mass movement for social justice that explicitly opposes the logic of profit, authoritarianism and gender-based and racial oppression. Along the way, strategies for a successful movement will be sketched. Albert will also state the case for anti-capitalist vision and strategy as an important part of this movement. This talk will be of interest to anyone concerned with grass-roots campaigns on cultural, economic, environmental, political or gender-based issues.