Make October red again

The month of October has special significance in the revolutionary calendar. In 1917, it marked a turning point in the Russian Revolution. The October Revolution was the culmination of a months-long struggle between thousands of workers’ councils across Russia, which represented a deeply radical experiment in democracy, and the old regime, which promised reform to the workers, but couldn’t deliver it.

Red October, as it came to be called, was the moment when workers gained the upper hand in this struggle, seizing control of the state and consolidating their power–the first and only successful revolution led by workers themselves.

It is against this historical backdrop that the Spring Socialist Network is hosting its second annual conference, Red October, which takes place from Friday, October 18 to Sunday, October 20 at the Toronto Metropolitan Student Centre in downtown Toronto.

Global crisis

This year’s conference is taking place at a moment of deep crisis in our world: the ongoing genocide in Gaza, the deepening regional war in the Middle East, the rise of the far right and its anti-immigrant agenda, a worsening cost-of-living crisis, and the existential threat of climate change, just to name a few.

Now more than ever, we need to come together and strategize about how to build working-class unity and power. And that’s exactly what we aim to do at Red October: A conference of socialist ideas in action.

Like last year’s conference, this one has three goals: 1) To connect with, and contribute to, the best revolutionary socialist traditions, from the Russian Revolution to the present day; 2) To create a platform for leading activists to share their insights and experiences; and 3) To develop our own collective sense of revolutionary politics, on a wide range of issues.

Opening rally

The conference opens on Friday evening with a rally called: “Building a movement to defeat Poilievre.” Its goal is to challenge the widespread belief that the outcome of the federal election, whenever it comes, is a fait accompli. By contrast, we want to rally all those who oppose Pierre Poilievre’s destructive agenda, and build a mass movement well ahead of an election–in our workplaces, on the campuses, in our communities, and in the streets.

And we want to learn from our own history and struggles: what workers and students have done in recent months to resist war and genocide, to confront the boss and fight for better wages and decent work, to stop the sell-off of our health care and public services, to take on the housing crisis, and so much more.

Rally speakers include Ricardo Tranjan, author of The Tenant Class; Sarah Rasikh, a Palestine solidarity activist and organizer at the People’s Circle for Palestine at the University of Toronto; JP Hornick, President of OPSEU/SEFPO, who led a number of high-profile strikes in Ontario this year; Fred Hahn, President of CUPE Ontario, the most outspoken labour leader for Palestine and the rights of trans kids and their families; and Deena Ladd, a leader of the decent work movement in Ontario and across Canada.

On Saturday, October 19, Red October opens with a morning plenary, followed by five rounds of three talks each (a total of 15 talks).

The plenary is called “The politics of Spring: What does it mean to be a revolutionary socialist?” which will introduce participants to three practices that help define the work of the Spring Socialist Network: centering Equity, revolutionary journalism, and the rank-and-file method (or “socialism from below”).

Course & talks

The remaining 15 talks are organized into five courses based on active debates in the labour and social movements.

All talks will be delivered by Spring members, followed by a period of discussion and debate among participants. You can see the full program at this link.

Labour caucus

On Saturday evening, Red October will host “Nuit rouge”–a cabaret-style social event featuring performances and music. The event will allow participants to relax and interact with one another after a full day of rich discussion and debate.

Red October concludes on the morning of Sunday, October 20 with the “Spring Labour Brunch”–hosted by Spring’s Labour Caucus. The Brunch will be a relaxed, informal strategy discussion among trade union and decent work activists about their work in the labour movement and what to expect in the months ahead.

A focus of the meeting will be the upcoming federal election, which will continue the discussion from Friday’s opening rally: “Building a movement to defeat Poilievre.”

Getting organized

Red October is an opportunity to learn from each other, to equip ourselves with the best ideas, and, crucially, to put them into practice. It’s also a space where we raise our collective expectations–we can defeat Poilievre, for example–and we need to get organized to do it.

The fight for a better world starts with small acts of resistance, in one struggle at a time, but it can quickly grow into a mass movement that has the potential to transform all of society. But we need to come together, learn and generalize the lessons of everything we do, and link every fight to a coordinated challenge against the system.

On the 107th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, a movement fuelled by the desire for “land, bread, and peace,” let’s build on the decades of working-class struggles that came before us, and make October red again.

See you at the conference!

Tickets can be purchased using this link.

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