Andre Easton was born to Jamaican immigrants in the Bronx, who taught him the importance of healthy, strong communities.
From running cross country practice at Van Cortlandt Park, to grabbing a slice from Nick’s Pizza, Andre’s childhood experiences in the Bronx shaped who he is today. Witnessing the mental health challenges faced by his community inspired him to pursue college studies dedicated to community support and well-being.
After graduating as a student athlete from Delaware State University with a BA in Psychology and a minor in English, Andre began working with youth in after school programs in the Bronx and Queens. He returned to school to study to become a Special Education teacher and has spent 12 of the last 14 years teaching English in Bronx public schools.
An active father, Andre is raising three boys with his wife, Angelica, who is also a public school educator in the Bronx. Through nurturing young people at home and at work, Andre has learned the value of consistent engagement and compassionate environments.
His time in the classroom has shown him firsthand how deeply this system fails to recognize and nurture the potential of working-class students. Andre realized that it wasn’t enough to teach his students about the important lessons of struggles waged by young people against capitalism and white supremacy. Lessons from the Young Lords, the Black Panthers and the ongoing struggles for LGBTQ rights, disability and environmental justice could not be confined to textbooks. Andre learned that it is only through organization that social transformation is possible.
He joined the Party For Socialism and Liberation as an organizer to help build the fighting capacity of the working class in New York City. He has fought against police brutality, organized for housing justice, and built mutual aid networks and spaces for mass political education. Reconnecting his community with struggles of working people all over the world is crucial to bringing justice and dignity to the people in the Bronx.
When Andre isn’t in his community talking to his neighbors about the need for a new system, he is in his classroom, cheering his sons on the soccer field, preparing a meal for his family, or out back with a wrench in hand, working on his project car.
Andre spends time talking to his students, his family and his neighbors about the need to care deeply about the humanity of all people around the world. The African concept of “Ubuntu” is a guiding principle that teaches of the interconnected nature of humanity. With this approach, Andre recognizes that the value and quality of his life is directly tied to the value and quality of other human lives. He can often be found alongside his wife and sons at demonstrations against war and police violence, and in solidarity with Palestine, Haiti, and immigrant rights.
THE PARTY FOR SOCIALISM AND LIBERATION
The Party for Socialism and Liberation is fighting for the immediate needs of poor and working people and for the socialist transformation of society. Capitalism cannot and will not solve the crises that threaten to destroy humanity: catastrophic war with Russia and China, climate change and unmanaged artificial intelligence that will replace millions of jobs.
The billionaires get richer, and the Senate, the Supreme Court and the banker-control of the Federal Reserve manage the affairs of the ultra-rich as millions continue to sink into debt and poverty. Poverty is now the fourth leading cause of death and 75% of all Americans between the ages of 20-75 will be among the “current” poor or near poverty, it is clear that vast majority of people in this country cannot have a future while capitalism allows the ruling elite to thrive and grow their profits while life and work worsen for the working class.
In order to emancipate the workers, we have to build a socialist movement, anchored in a multinational organization, that fights for a socialist transformation and abolishes the tyranny of the market, that abolishes the rule of private property and profit.
We are fighting for a planned economy, the democratization of decision-making, production and distribution that works to our collective resources and labor to meet the needs of the people and the planet. The market, capitalist exploitation and a profit motive will no longer dictate who gets access to life-saving medicine, who has a place to live, who gets evacuated from a flood zone or who goes to prison.
There are two choices: it’s capitalism or it’s socialism. We choose socialism because it’s possible and necessary. We know we cannot wish socialism into existence -- it takes political organization and uniting millions of people of all backgrounds for a common goal and a common vision -- that we have no choice but to take power from the tiny elite and give it to the vast majority -- to the water protectors, the climate activists, the students, the political prisoners, the immigrants, the farmers, the women, the workers, the poor, the LGBTQ fighters, the anti-racist organizers.
Join us in the ongoing fight. This is about more than one election or one campaign. It takes building an independent political organization. We are in over 50 cities across the United States and count with multinational and multigenerational leaders of key social movements engaged in the daily fight against exploitation and oppression and for the socialist reorganization of society.
