Brenda Comissiong & E. Betty Levin: Our Revolution: The Future of the Bernie Sanders Movement

On August 24, 2016, Bernie Sanders announced the creation of a new organization called “Our Revolution,” described as the continuation of Bernie’s 2016 campaign for President. The new organization plans to mobilize support for the issues that defined the campaign, especially: environmental, social and economic justice.
From the “Our Revolution” website [About Our Revolution — Campaigns End. Revolutions Endure]: “Our Revolution will reclaim democracy for the working people of our country by harnessing the transformative energy of the ‘political revolution.’ Through supporting a new generation of progressive leaders, empowering millions to fight for progressive change and elevating the political consciousness, Our Revolution will transform American politics to make our political and economic systems once again responsive to the needs of working families.”
Sanders wrote to supporters: “You should know that in the weeks since the last primary, both campaigns have worked together in good faith to bridge some of the policy issues that divided us during the election. Did we come to agreement on everything? Of course not. But we made important steps forward.”
On the progressive website, ourfuture.org, Robert Borosage [Sanders: The Struggle Continues], wrote observations from the Democratic convention’s first day: “The Glaring Omission: War, Peace and the World … Remarkably, there was virtually no mention of our global policies outside of climate change and trade from Sanders or any of the first night’s speakers. The silence reflected stark differences, not consensus. Here the gulf between Clinton’s interventionist temper and the majority of Democrats is the greatest. Here the effort to gain progress in the platform had the least success.”
Will “Our Revolution” be able to sustain the mass movement for progressive change that arose during Bernie’s campaign? A new group has formed that is supportive of Bernie’s “Our Revolution” but critical of its omission of War and Peace issues.
The speakers will discuss how they were drawn to a commitment to Bernie Sanders because his philosophy, especially with regard to education and healthcare, was consistent with their own values.
A native of Grenada, West Indies, where she was a physics teacher, Brenda Comissiong has been in the US since 1984. Brenda lives in South Orange, has been tutoring in mathematics and physics at Columbia High School and elsewhere, and is also a tennis instructor and fitness coach. Brenda earned her MS in Computer Science from Steven’s Institute of Technology; BS in Theoretical Physics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
The program will be co-led by E. Betty Levin who has been a longtime Ethical Culture Society member, peace educator and psychotherapist. As a private practice psychotherapist for over 40 years, Betty has a broad understanding of contemporary society and tradition-anchored humanistic values, vital for a meaningful human journey. An indefatigable member of the Ethical Culture Movement almost all her adult life, Betty is also currently active in the Peace Movement.