Welcome to the Socialist Program.

Today's bonus episode is a recording of our host, Brian Becker, delivering the keynote speech

at the Los Angeles Socialism Conference, which took place on May 7th of this year.

We need a new system.

We need a new society.

We need to demand that which may have sounded impossible even a few weeks ago, but is not only thank you, Lillian, for that story that all of us who are in the PSL, we know that story. But it's important to retell because it's, in a way, a clear indicator of how change does happen.

Many, many thousands of people were arrested. clear indicator of how change does happen.

Many, many thousands of people were arrested during the nationwide uprising against racism.

They were facing heavy charges, 50 years in prison.

And I think when the attorneys first met with you, they were pretty much predicting that you were going to do some number of years in prison. And if you're not expecting that, if you're not expecting that, that's pretty shocking.

You know, I'm older, obviously, and came from a period in the movement in the late 1960s

and the early 1970s where repression was pretty constant.

The Black Panther Party had 28 members of its organization executed by police, and Angela Davis was in prison and George Jackson was murdered

and Jonathan Jackson and the entire state apparatus that came down against anti-war forces,

people in the black and Latino and Puerto Rican liberation movement,

against the women's movement, what was at that time called the gay rights movement,

the LGBT community standing up and fighting.

The repression was pretty fierce.

And I can remember one of the first conferences I went to,

it started by saluting all of the comrades and activists who were either in prison or awaiting trial.

And it went on for a half an hour.

And I was so impressed that all these brave, courageous people were fighting for justice in spite of all of this repression. And their bravery made me feel brave.

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