BLACK&STUDENTS&FOR&REVOLUTION! !

Mission&Statement! Black!Students!for!Revolution!is!an!independent!black!student!organization!that!is! fully!committed!to!building!a!revolutionary!movement!based!on!the!self; determination!of!black!people!in!the!struggle!for!decolonization!through! intercommunalism!and!radical!intersectionality.!!Black!Students!for!Revolution! stands!firmly!against!the!threefold!components!of!racial!oppression!that!dominate! black!communities!both!in!the!United!States!and!black!communities!across!the! globe:!political!subjugation,!economic!exploitation,!and!social!humiliation.!We!seek! to!build!communities!and!institutions!for!oppressed!groups,!particularly!the!black! working!class.!As!black!scholar;activists,!we!recognize!our!unique!role!in!the! universal!fight!against!the!common!enemy!of!all!black!people,!and!seek!to!fulfill!it! without!compromise.! ! Vision&Statement! We!seek!to!contribute!to!the!creation!of!a!society!free!of!all!forms!of!exploitation!and! oppression.! ! Ten&Point&Objectives! 1.&We&seek&to&organize&black&student&groups&and&independent&black&students& into&a&powerful,&intellectually&informed,&activist&collective&that&will&utilize&its& social&capital&to&create&structural&change&at&the&University&of&Illinois&at& UrbanaPChampaign&and&the&ChampaignPUrbana&community.&&We&also&seek&to& build&a&multiracial&coalition&of&oppressed&groups&to&increase&our&social&power& and&redistribute&the&material&conditions&for&the&good&all&marginalized&people.&& We&will&organize&through&finding&common&struggle&alongside&these&oppressed& groups.&&! ! 2.&We&seek&to&develop,&expand,&and&critically&analyze&revolutionary&thought& within&the&minds&of&black&students&and&other&oppressed&people.&&Political& education,&with&which&we&learn,&discuss,&develop,&and&research&informed& critiques&of&our&social&conditions,&is¢ral&to&our&organizing&strategy:!! • We!prioritize!the!work!of!Black!intellectuals!both!inside!and!outside!!!of! curriculums! • We!will!hold!study/reading!groups!for!black!students!to!read!selected!texts,! newspaper!articles,!and!leftist!journal!articles!that!focus!primarily!on!black! power,!black!intersectionality,!black!Marxism,!and!black!Feminism;!these! study!groups!will!serve!as!a!space!to!develop!a!full!understanding!of!the! dominated!position!and!tradition!of!resistance!of!black!people.!!! • We!invoke!C.L.R.!James’!understanding!of!the!“racial!class”!as!our!foundation! for!studying!and!developing!critiques!of!the!colonial!system.!!That!is,!we! apply!historical!materialism!to!the!black!experience!to!fully!grasp!our!social! condition.!!We!counter!liberal!moralist!and!economic!determinist! interpretations!with!a!historical!materialist!conception!that!relate!structure!

to!agency!in!interactive!ways!that!reveal!black!revolutionary!activity!as!the! central!social!force!at!our!disposal.!!! ! 3.&We&seek&to&devote&our&minds,&bodies,&and&spirits&to&the&black&communities.! • We!will!develop!community!programs!that!answer!the!direct!material!needs! of!black!families.!This!includes!working!within!our!hometowns!as!well!as!the! black!communities!we!find!ourselves!near!while!in!college! • We!will!use!our!privilege!as!black!intellectuals!to!educate!the!masses!in! school!systems!and!in!black!community!spaces.! • We!will!collaborate!with!community!organizations!in!their!struggle!to!alter! social!conditions!in!Champaign;Urbana,!the!state!of!Illinois,!and!black! communities!across!the!American!empire.!! ! 4.&We&encourage&black&cultural&pride.! • We!centralize!African!and!African;American!culture!in!our!daily!lives,! symbols,!organizing!strategies,!and!community!development.!!! • We!celebrate!black!culture!through!performance/visual!arts,!clothing,! spoken!word,!historical!study,!and!music!as!tools!for!liberation! • We!promote!black!radical!intellectualism!and!black!scholarly!development.!! We!seek!to!rebuild!Black!Studies!in!K;12!education!and!post;secondary! education!as!a!paradigm!for!liberation!struggles.!!We!believe!in!developing! an!educational!system!that!will!give!black!knowledge!of!self.!If!people!do!not! have!knowledge!of!themselves!and!their!position!in!society!and!the!world,! then!they!have!little!chance!to!relate!to!anything!else.! 5.&We&seek&to&support&a&national&student&movement&against&tuitionPpeonage& (student&loan&debt)! ! 6.&We&seek&selfPdetermination&in&the&future&of&the&black&community! • We!will!organize!direct!actions!against!exploitative!institutions!that!hinder! black!progress!and!a!redistribution!of!wealth!to!oppressed!groups.!!! • Through!Intercommunalism,!we!globalize!our!struggle!in!solidarity!with! other!oppressed!communities.!!! • We!promote!organizing,!not!mobilizing.!!Organizing!encourages!the!!!! development!of!sustainable!relationships!amongst!oppressed!people!so!that! liberation!struggles!and!movements!are!stronger!and!better!structured.!!! ! 7.&We&believe&in&collectivizing&black&identities&and¬&separating&and& fracturing&them.&!!! • We!will!fight!for!gender!equality,!for!women’s!liberation,!and!for!women’s! rights!to!be!recognized!as!human!rights!in!all!areas!of!personal,!social,! economic!and!political!life.! • We!will!fight!to!ensure!that!lesbian,!gay,!bisexual,!queer,!and!transgender! people!are!recognized!and!respected!as!full!and!equal!members!of!society,! and!of!our!communities.!

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Black!women,!black!men,!and!black!LGBTQ!people!are!equally!important!and! our!organization!treats!them!as!equals.!!We!will!not!privilege!one!identity! over!the!other!and!all!struggles!that!affect!each!identity!will!be!included!in! how!we!attack!oppression!and!build!our!movement.!!We!must!use!our! diverse!identities!to!grow!closer!and!not!apart.!!!!

! 8.&We&will&fight&for&political&democracy! ! 9.&We&will&fight&for&a&clean&and&healthy&environment&! • We!believe!the!health!of!humanity!is!inextricably!tied!into!the!health!of!the! environment.!! • We!believe!that!capitalism!has!been!foundational!to!the!poisoning!of!the! planet!and!that!it!is!unsustainable!and!unjust.!! ! 10.&We&will&fight&to&advance&beyond&capitalism,&which&has&demonstrated&its& structural&incapacity&to&address&basic&human&needs&worldwide&and,&in& particular,&the&needs&of&black&people.& !