What is Democratic Socialism? Explore the answer with leading organizers and thinkers.

Moderated by Susan Kang, the panel will feature Chris Maisano, Bill Fletcher, Jr., Barbara Smith, and New York Assemblymember Diana Moreno alongside Discussants will include Alex Caputo-Pearl, Jeremy Cohan, Kristian Hernandez, Jose Alejandro La Luz, Sam Lewis, and Jana Silverman.

Susan Kang, an associate professor of political science at John Jay College, City University of New York, is the author of Human Rights and Labor Solidarity: Trade Unions in the Global Economy.

Chris Maisano’s influential article on democratic socialism, “A Precious Legacy,” appeared in Socialist Forum in Fall 2023. He is editor of New Labor Forum.

Barbara Smith, a pioneer in Black feminist thought, is the author of The Truth that Never Hurts and an author of the Combahee River Collective Statement.

Bill Fletcher, Jr., is author of Solidarity Divided: The Crisis in Organized Labor and a New Path toward Social Justice, among other works. He was president of TransAfrica Forum and is cofounder of standing4democracy.org.

Diana Moreno represents the 36th district (Queens) in the New York State Assembly.

Alex Caputo-Pearl is the former president of United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), currently on UTLA's bargaining team and the California Federation of Teachers' Civil, Human, and Women's Rights committee.

Jose Alejandro La Luz was the architect of the grassroots campaign that won bargaining rights for public employees in Puerto Rico. One of the founders of DSA, he has served on the National Political Committee.

Kristian Hernandez, an immigrant rights organizer, served as national chair of DSA in 2021–23. She is cochair of Socialist Majority.

Sam Lewis is a union organizer and an architect of DSA’s electoral project. His article, “A Coup is Coming. Only the Socialist Left Can Stop It” appeared in Convergence.

Jeremy Cohan, a sociologist, is a member of DSA’s National Political Committee and former cochair of NYC-DSA.

Jana Silverman, professor of International Relations at UFABC in Sao Bernardo do Campo, Brazil, is co-chair of the DSA International Committee and a foreign policy analyst with the Fundacao Perseu Abramo (the political foundation of the Partido dos Trabalhadores).