National Hard Times Conference
The National Hard Times Conference was organized by the Prairie Fire Organizing Committee, with Weather Underground Organization (WUO) support and leadership, at the University of Illinois Circle Campus in Chicago, from January 30 to February 1, 1976.[1]
The slogan for the conference was "Hard Times are Fighting Times".
Laura Whitehorn said that she was was so nauseated by the politics of the conference, she became physically ill. “I hated it more than anything else I’ve ever done, she told Nicole Kief in an interview on October 20, 2002.
Board
The following were members of the National Hard Times Conference Board:[2]
- Vernon Bellecourt, American Indian Movement
- Virginia Collins, Republic of New Africa, New Orleans, Los Angeles
- Pam Costain, Twin Cities Women's Union
- Jennifer Dohrn, PFOC National Committee
- Leo Fletcher, Boston
- Ted Glick, Mass Party Organizing Committee, New York
- Yvonne Golden, San Francisco Black Teachers Caucus
- Beverly Grant, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Wilbur Haddock, United Black Workers
- James Haughton, Fightback, New York; Mass Party Organizing Committee
- Juan Irizariy, Association of Trabajadores Agricolas Connecticut
- Pete Kelley, United Auto Workers Local 160; United National Caucus
- Annie Stein, PARE; Prarie Fire Organizing Committee; Puerto Rico Solidarity Committee, New York
- Arnold Townsend, WAPAC, San Francisco
Delegates
In 1976 the following attended the Weather Underground and Prairie Fire Organizing Committee organized Hard Times Conference Jan 30 - Feb 1 at the University of Chicago.[3]
The following were delegates at the Hard Times Conference:[4]
- Ellen Afterman, PFOC, Chicago
- Danny Albert
- Miguel Alvarez
- Rosa Alvarez
- Robert Appel, PFOC
- Ella J. Baker, Mass Party Organizing Committee, Puerto Rican Solidarity Committee
- Joe Barnett, PFOC, California
- Nancy Barnett, Bay Area PFOC
- Richard Becker, Workers World Party
- Alan Berkman, New York PFOC
- Vernon Bellecourt, American Indian Movement
- Arlene Bergman, Bay Area PFOC
- Barbara Bishop, San Francisco
- Dennis Cunningham, National Lawyer's Guild, Chicago
- Jim Dannon, Philadelphia PFOC
- Ruth Dear, Workers World Party
- Nick DeFreitas, Workers World Party
- Mike Deutsch, National Lawyer's Guild, Chicago PFOC
- Jennifer Dohrn, PFOC National Committee
- Kathy Dorsey, Coalition of Labor Union Women
- Ted Dostal, Workers World Party
- David Duboff, Center for Defense Information, Washington D.C.
- Kevin Duncan
- Deb Dunfield, United Steel Workers
- Diane Block, secretary, treasurer, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee, Bay Area
- George Bowers, United Black Workers, Newark, New Jersey
- Rob Brinkman, Cook County Hospital
- Joel Britton, Socialist Workers Party Observer
- Robert Burlingham, Boston
- Bob Cantor, National Lawyers Guild, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Guy Carawan, Highlander Center Knoxville, Tennessee
- Joe Carnegie, Fightback, New York
- Eugene Clancy
- Paddy Colligan, Workers World Party
- Virginia Collins, Republic of New Africa, New Orleans, Los Angeles
- Gerry Condon, National Council for Universal Unconditional Amnesty
- Rick Cornish
- Pam Costain, Twin Cities Women's Union
- Ann Durham, PARE, Native American Solidarity Committee, New York
- Melody Ermachild, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee. California
- Francis Estrella
- Phyllis Fastwolf
- Brian Flannigan, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Marc Fliegelman, Philadelphia Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Leo Fletcher, Boston
- Enrique Flores
- Claudette Forlongo, Workers World Party
- Donna Futterman, New York
- Barb Gagre, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Betty Garcia, Puerto Rican Socialist Party
- Raphaelo Garcia, California
- Tom Gardner, Workers World Party
- Ted Glick, Mass Party Organizing Committee, New York
- Yvonne Golden, San Francisco Black Teachers Caucus
- Fred Goldstein, Workers World Party
- Linda Goodspeed Philadelphia Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Beverly Grant, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Pedro Grant, Puerto Rican Socialist Party Central Committee
- Penny Grillos, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee, Brooklyn College
- Sheila Gruchala
- Irrero Guitierriez
- Jeff Haas, National Lawyers Guild, Chicago Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Wilbur Haddock, United Black Workers
- Thelma Hamilton, Brownsville, New York
- Iberia Hampton
- Frederick Douglass Hobby, Black Workers Coalition Louisville, Kentucky
- Georgina Hoggard, New York
- Sokhom Hing, Khmer Residents in U.S.
- Sarah Horowitz, Boston Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- James Haughton, Fightback, New York; Mass Party Organizing Committee
- Juan Irizariy, Association of Trabajadores Agricolas Connecticut
- Charles Isaacs, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee, Staten Island Community College
- Mard Isaacs, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Sarah Kaplan, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Jane Katz
- Pete Kelley, United Auto Workers Local 160; United National Caucus
- Mohammad Kenyatta, Black Economic Development Corporation, Philadelphia
- Connie Keresey, Vermont Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Kitty Kimatsu, Chicago Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Susan Klug, Workers World Party
- Rev. Frederick Douglas Kirkpatrick
- Yuri Kochiyama, Puerto Rican Solidarity Committee National Board
- Vu Ngoc Kon, Union of Vietnamese in the U.S.
- William Kunstler, New York
- Jose LaLuz, Puerto Rican Socialist Party Central Committee
- Rudolfo Lasano, CASA
- Liza Lawrence, Chicago Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Jon Lerner, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Rev. Richard Leucke, AIF Chicago
- Margo Levine
- Rick Levine, New York
- Sarah Loft, Boston Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Jose Lopez, Northeastern University, Boston
- Doris Lucas, Welfare Mothers
- Jeanne Mackey, Washington, D.C.
- Akil Mafundi, Inmates for Action, Alabama
- Don Major, Puerto Rican Socialist Party
- Alberto Mares
- Tapson Mawere, Zimbabwe African National Union, New York
- Al McSurely, Alliance for Labor & Community Action, Washington D.C.
- Robert Mendoza, AIM, San Francisco
- Shelly Miller, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- David Moberg, The Reader, Chicago
- Audley Moore, New York
- Donald Morton, Southern Africa Committee
- Joel Myron, Eugene V. Debs Caucus
- Truman Nelson
- Prexy Nesbitt, Chicago
- Russell Neufeld, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee National Committee
- Julie Nichamin, Puerto Rico Solidarity Committee national staff
- Nancy Nichols, New York
- Betty Olbekson, Minnesota Welfare Recipients Alliance
- Roger Olson, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Bobbye Oniz, Monthly Review
- Charles Ostrofsky, Socialist Workers Party
- Belinda Palm
- Winslow Peck, Fifth Estate, Washington, D.C.
- Ken Peterson, Workers World Party
- Jed Provjanski, New York
- Lance Pustin, Philadelphia Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Miles Pustin, Vermont Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Bernice Reagon, singer
- Antonio Rodriguez, secretary general, CASA
- Melinda Rorick, Bay Area Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Sharon Rose, Middle East Research & Information Project, Alliance for labor & Community Action, Washington D.C.
- Eve Rosen, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Susan Rosenthal, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Lisa Roth, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Marge Russell, Boston Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Nancy Ryan, PARE; New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Olga Sanabria, Puerto Rican Socialist Party, New York
- Nick Sanchez, New York
- Jeff Sarokov, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- David Saxner, Chicago Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Mara Seigel, Chicago Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Gloria Shepherd, Bay Area, California
- Irwin Silber, Guardian
- George Simpson
- Tom Smucker, Village Voice
- Tom Soto, Workers World Party
- Ronald Starks, Black Panther Party
- Annie Stein, PARE; Prarie Fire Organizing Committee; Puerto Rico Solidarity Committee, New York
- Mike Sturdevent
- Louise Sweeney
- Willie Tate
- George Taylor
- David Tilsen
- Susan Tipograph, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Arnold Townsend, WAPAC, San Francisco
- Peggy Two Deer, Chicago
- Alfredo del Valle, Puerto Rican Socialist Party, U.S. Zone Committee
- Clayton Van Lydegraf, Bay Area Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Carlos Vasquez, CASA
- Antonio Vellaro
- Sylvia Warren, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Susan Waysdorf, New York Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Barry Weinberg, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee, California
- Cora Weiss, Friendshipment, Women Strike for Peace
- Kathy Welsh, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee, California
- Tim Whally, Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Vicki Wheeler, Puerto Rico Solidarity Committee national staff
- Laura Whitehorn, Boston Prarie Fire Organizing Committee
- Brooks Whiting
- Evelyn Wiener, LEMPA
- Hal Womack
- Margaret Wright, People's Party Presidential candidate