Eric Mann:
Bay Area Book Signing & Movement Strategy Discussion

Thursday, August 10, 2006 - 7:00PM
at Centro del Pueblo Auditorium
474 Valencia, San Francisco (Mission District)

As part of the West Coast launch of his new book, Letter in Support of a Black Reconstruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, Eric will be discussing the centrality of the Black Liberation Movement for the U.S. Left and programmatic proposals for a new reconstruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.

In the end of August, he will be leading a Strategy Center delegation to New Orleans for the 1st anniversary of Katrina.

August 10 program:

Introduction

Phil Hutchings of the Bay Area Katrina Solidarity Group

Readings from Letter
Vanessa Moses of Just Cause Oakland,
Zachary Norris of The Ella Baker Center

Presentation
Eric Mann: The Role of Letter in Support of a Black Reconstruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast as a Tactic in the Movement Building Process

Book Signing by the Author

Q & A from Audience

Praise for Letter in Support:

“Buy this book and study it well. Eric Mann was my first teacher in the black freedom movement; he taught me door-to-door canvassing and basic organizing. And then he introduced me to SNCC. Eric is still teaching and organizing a new generation, and setting the pace as we build up our strength for the Battle of New Orleans.”

Komozi Woodard, author of A Nation within a Nation: Amiri Baraka and Black Power Politics.

“Stands with Black Nations 9/11 as the clearest strategic statement within the movement, a must read for anyone working in solidarity with the reconstruction movement in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.”

Kali Akuno, People’s Hurricane Relief Fund & Oversight Coalition

“Mann’s writing is a door. Our movement, and indeed, the very life of Black New Orleans, depends on our ability to fully comprehend and embrace the counter-hegemonic and long-term movement building demands that Mann describes.”

Xochitl Bervera, Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children

“From the first days after Katrina struck New Orleans, Eric Mann has been a crucial ally to organizers on the ground. His Letter is vital for anyone looking for a deeper understanding of what happened in New Orleans, and what we can do about it.”

Jordan Flaherty, New Orleans Organizer; Editor, Left Turn Magazine

“Places the Gulf catastrophe in the historical context of racist capitalist rule in the U.S. at a critical time when the ‘cracks in the ruling class levees’ are visible for all to see. Mann’s Letter provides political leadership, the outlines of a plan for action, and calls us to our battle stations.”

Glen Ford, Executive Editor and Co-Publisher, The Black Commentator

“An inspiring call to action rooted in a powerful tradition of Black resistance in the South. It provides a comprehensive framework, a clear vision and strategy for this moment in history to build the movement among communities of color and low-wage workers.”

Ai-jen Poo, CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities

“Excellent. Mann has a distinct talent for drawing political lessons from historical events. Every movement needs a map. Letter takes us to the ravaged Gulf Coast and shows us how to find the road toward a Third Reconstruction. America needs this movement, and Eric helps us find our way.”

Vijay Prashad, author of Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting : Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purity
Event Information

Thursday, August 10th
7:00 PM

Centro del Pueblo Auditorium
474 Valencia (Between 15th & 16th Streets in the Mission District)
San Francisco, 94103
-BART: 16th Street Mission Station (2 blocks from station)
-MUNI Lines: 14, 22, 26, 33, 49

Suggested donation: $5 - no one turned away
All admissions are applicable to the purchase price of the book at the event.

Please RSVP to Kelly Archbold- kelly@thestrategycenter.org or (213) 387-2800 x10.

How to Order

Copies of Letter in Support are $15. Bulk prices are available, additional discounts available for New Orleans and Gulf Coast groups.

Please visit www.frontlinespress.com or call (213) 387-2800.

Eric Mann

Eric Mann is a veteran of the Congress of Racial Equality, Newark Community Union Project, Students for a Democratic Society, and the United Auto Workers. He is the author of Comrade George, Taking on General Motors, LA’s Lethal Air, Dispatches from Durban, and The 2004 Elections: A Turning Point for the U.S. Left. He is presently the director of the Labor/Community Strategy Center in Los Angeles and is a member of the Planning Committee of the Bus Riders Union.

www.frontlinespress.com
www.thestrategycenter.org
(213) 387 - 2800