This article is the opening report given by Erica Meade, the Club chair of the Angelo Herndon Club–Atlanta CPUSA, at their 2026 club conference.

This conference is our club’s fourth conference. At this time, our club and party, like so many other organizations, are faced with an existential question. Will we let the barbaric sections of the capitalist class destroy the working class under the MAGA banner, or will we turn the tides, and make sure it is them who ends up under our boot? Today is the time to strategize our plan to do exactly that. We have had so much success as a club, but our past accomplishments will not equate to future victories if we do not find a way to build relationships and focus on the most pressing issues in Georgia.

Before we find our footing on the path ahead, let’s examine our struggles this past year. By far, our club’s biggest organizing campaign was the 2025 holiday shopping season Target boycott. Leading up to Black Friday, civil rights and African American organizations created the We Ain’t Buyin’ It campaign, and our club took great initiative to put boots on the ground and let Target know: No DEI means no dollars! Actions and speakouts like the ones we helped to organize did in fact have an impact! Target lost foot traffic, billions of dollars, and even their CEO!

The Target boycott movement lost its biggest voice in Georgia this year when Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant of New Birth Baptist Church in DeKalb County announced that he felt satisfied with Target’s response to the campaign and would be withdrawing from the coalition. Indeed, Georgia lost its biggest advocate for the boycott and the split caused mass confusion. To set the record straight, yes, we are still boycotting Target. In fact, 15 million AFL-CIO workers joined our call for a boycott this year during the back-to-school season when the labor governing body voted to support the movement at its convention.

Our movement won big with this endorsement, but our campaign in Atlanta brought small victories to our club that will have reverberations for years to come. I am speaking of the fact that this year our club started an Atlanta chapter of the Friends of People’s World. This creation has served as an organizing tool that we took full advantage of. Yes, not everyone will work with the Communist Party, but many are willing and excited to work with supporters of independent journalism. Our quick coalition building with Black Voters Matter, BLM grassroots, and DSA is the proof in the pudding.

After starting an ATL PW page, our presence on Instagram quickly grew. Despite having only 200 followers, our posts regularly received more interactions than our club’s posts, despite having fewer followers. What do we take from this? When we focus on concrete issues and collaborate with key accounts, we drive engagement. I would like to thank Talia for holding it down so well with our club’s social media presence. Keep in mind, I met Talia at court support for the family of Jamarion Robinson. Their presence in the club is a great testament to the fact that when we show up in the community, we can win over potential comrades.

Other aspects of our club’s successes this year have come from our dedication to hosting events and meeting outside Atlanta. At the moment, our membership is split about 50–50 with people living in the Atlanta metro vs. the rest of the state. By holding social gatherings in other cities, we have been able to grow our relationships together as club members, which lays the groundwork for future party building.

A prime example of that from this year was our club’s mobilization for the Political Action Conference, where we met in Augusta. The conference was a great opportunity to show the rest of the party the work we have been doing in Atlanta, as well as a chance to have an honest look at the work our club members do in our local areas.

I would also like to thank all the club members who came out this past spring for a successful May Day. May Day in Georgia is still a small affair. Even though prominent unions took a major step this year and endorsed the call for no work, the Atlanta protest still only attracted a few hundred attendees. We know that if the demands are right, people will show up for May Day. Go out into your neighborhood. Ask your coworkers, friends, and family; if you could go on strike with millions of others over one demand, what would it be? These conversations will be the first step in building toward an economic shutdown in the U.S.

Going back to the Political Action Conference, our conversations afterwards showed that our club simply does not do enough in our community to genuinely change the balance of power in the state of Georgia. What is missing in our membership is honest, patient work in organizations that already have a foothold in our cities and counties. It is here that we must build relationships and gain influence.

If someone were to ask us what our club’s successes were from 2023–2025, the most likely responses would have been to point out our event hosting. These included mainly cultural events, revolving around movie screenings, art builds, and galleries. These events served as a learning experience in how to book spaces, how to flyer and promote events, and how to lead discussions. However, what was missing from these events was mass appeal. We successfully attracted a handful of leftists and activists to our events, but can we honestly say they were key in building a mass base with the goal of influencing political decisions? The answer is no.

For too long, our club has become complacent with working exclusively with other socialist, communist, and left-leaning groups. The crux of this issue has been that we have been insistent that the club must be a prominent member of the coalitions that we build. When we work with the Atlanta Alliance, for example, this is not an issue. On the other hand, organizations such as the Georgia AFL-CIO, the League of Women Voters, or Georgia Equality are not so willy-nilly to sign on to an event that we host. Why? Because these organizations represent thousands, if not millions of people, and the work required to win them over cannot be done with an email or an Instagram DM.

Different conditions require different strategies. Just because we are building coalitions around the party’s strategy and vision does not mean that we have to build coalitions around the club. The task of defeating poverty and racism will take millions. Our club’s immediate reach is nowhere near sufficient to do that alone.

Take, for example, the issue of the GA National Guard deployment to Washington, D.C., which we will cover more later in the conference. We could, theoretically, reach out to other left groups and put together an event. I genuinely believe that is possible. What would be missing from that equation is the millions of Georgia workers required to bring the guard back home.

The DC Target boycott coalition is a great example of what is possible. Although the DC CPUSA club is a member of the coalition, it also includes the DC Poor People’s Campaign, the American Federation of Teachers, and Jewish Voices for Peace. The coalition in DC is so strong not because the DC club is the front and center of the coalition, but because DC club members were able to use their years of relationship building to bring in unions, churches, and community organizations.

Club members: find the organizations you can join that will open up pathways to connect you with your city and county. It took me three years to become a representative for my union, but that patience has allowed me to connect with leaders who wouldn’t have given me the time of day a few years ago. Our job as party members is to be the conductor of the justice symphony. The Road to Socialism USA lays out the blueprint; it’s time to organize.

With that in mind, what will the coming year look like for us as a club? Our largest area of focus must be the GA National Guard occupation of DC. If we do not defeat the occupation in DC and Memphis, the soldiers will come to Atlanta.

The assignment for every club member here is simple. Reach out to your local state representative and senator. Tell them you are concerned about the GA National Guard deployment to DC and ask to set up a meeting. You might get some non-responses, but there will be those who do reply. Remember, our way forward is through relationship building. Can you invite a coworker or your neighbor to join you?

There are other ways our club can continue to be successful. Let’s keep meeting outside the city of Atlanta. In the discussion period, let’s encourage everyone to bring up areas and places in Georgia you would like to visit. When I look back on some of my favorite times with this club, I think of our trip to Albany a few years ago, or the hike we went on together in Athens this year.

One area we have heard from club members that they would like to see us take up is running candidates in elections. I think this is an exciting idea. When we think about running for office, we must remember, it cannot be us who decide to run; our community must decide that we are the best fit for office.

Lastly, our club must maintain a focus on the Target boycott. Sustained efforts for our club fell short because there was no distribution of duties when it came to the protest organizing. Maybe protesting is not where we must focus in the coming year. Are there other avenues we can explore to continue pushing the boycott forward? Let’s think with a cultural and educational mindset. At the same time, let’s not rely on the venues, organizations, and activists we know will respond to our texts and emails. There’s a difference between working with your base and boxing yourself in.

Comrades, I know the pain that all of us are dealing with right now in terms of economic and social pressure. Black people are found dead in the South almost every week with no justice. Trans existence is up for debate every time we turn on our phones. No matter what jobs we are working, the paychecks are never enough.

In this moment, more than ever, a chin held high will be our greatest weapon. When we are struggling to carry forward, it is the relationships we are building that will be our guiding light. Yes, we are meeting in a small venue, but I believe through a combination of determination and the science of Marxism-Leninism, we can turn this library meeting into a packed stadium. We will turn despair into victory, and hardship into abundance.

When we fight, we win, and I know this is a room full of fighters. To 2027 and beyond, long live the Angelo Herndon Club CPUSA!

The opinions of the author do not necessarily reflect the positions of the CPUSA.

Images: Angelo Herndon Club–Atlanta CPUSA.