“Which Side Are You On”: The 2023 American Political Science Association Annual Meeting & Exhibition: A Timeline

Abstract

On July 27, 2023, the Coordinating Council of the Caucus for a Critical Political Science unanimously decided to honor a request from UNITE HERE Local 11 and striking hotel workers in Los Angeles, California. Critical Political Science cancelled all participation – events, meetings, and panels – at the 2023 American Political Science Association Annual Meeting & Exhibition, moved its events and meetings online using independent platforms, demanded APSA refund conference registration and hotel reservation fees, and contributed to the strike fund. This essay reconstructs those events from my perspective as Chair of the Caucus for a Critical Political Science and documents a critical juncture for American political scientists.

Keywords:

• Critical political science
• APSA Annual Meeting
• strikes
• unions
• solidarity

Notes

1 Florence Reece, quoted in “Hall of Fame: Power of Arts and Creative Expression,” Labor Heritage Foundation, February 16, 2009, https://www.laborheritage.org/power-of-songs/.

2 Ibid.

3 UNITE HERE Local 11, Letter to the American Political Science Association, July 19, 2023. [See Appendix A]

4 Ibid.

5 APSA, “Update on the 2023 Annual Meeting and Exhibition,” Political Science Now, July 28, 2023, https://politicalsciencenow.com/update-on-2023-apsa-annual-meeting-exhibition/

6 Ibid.

7 Ibid.

8 Ibid.

9 Ibid.

10 APSA, “Planning Area: Annual Meeting Updates,” https://connect.apsanet.org/apsa2023/planning-area/.

11 UNITE HERE Local 11, Letter to APSA Members, August 2, 2023. [Bold in original; See Appendix B]

12 APSA Presidents, “Message from APSA Presidents – APSA Annual Meeting 2023,” August 4, 2023, https://connect.apsanet.org/apsa2023/planning-area/.

13 Labor Politics Group, “Open Letter to APSA Council.” [See Appendix C, names redacted]

14 Labor Politics Group, Email to Members, July 29, 2023. [See Appendix D]

15 Critical Political Science Chair, Email to APSA Leadership, July 27, 2023. [See Appendix E]

16 Critical Political Science Chair, Email to Members, July 27, 2023. [See Appendix E]

17 Critical Political Science Chair, Email to Members, July 31, 2023, https://connect.apsanet.org/s27/ [Appendix F].

18 Ibid.

19 Peter Drier, “A Political Battle Within Political Science: Which Side Is the APSA On?” The Nation, August 2, 2023, https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/apsa-convention-unite-here-strike/; Mary Yang, “Los Angeles Hotel Workers’ Strike Ignites Backlash Among Political Scientists,” The Guardian, August 14, 2023, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/14/striking-los-angeles-hotel-workers-american-political-science-association; Alex N. Press, “The American Political Science Association’s Profile in Cowardice,” Jacobin, August 8, 2023, https://jacobin.com/2023/08/american-political-science-association-conference-los-angeles-hotel-strike-picket-line-solidarity; Dave Jamieson, “Hotel Workers’ Union Calls for Convention Boycott of Los Angeles,” The Huffington Post, August 24, 2023, https://jacobin.com/2023/08/american-political-science-association-conference-los-angeles-hotel-strike-picket-line-solidarity; Eric R. Pineda, “Crossing the Line: Political Scientists Ignore Hotel Workers’ Strike Demands at Our Own Peril,” Peste Magazine, August 22, 2023, https://www.pestemag.com/featured-posts/crossing-the-line-djdf8; Steven Hayward, “The Price Point of Virtue Signaling,” Powerline, July 30, 2023, The Price Point of Virtue-Signaling | Power Line (powerlineblog.com)

20 Press Release CCPS, 8/2/2023. https://connect.apsanet.org/s27/ [Appendix G].

21 Danielle Kaye, “Political Scientists Are in the Middle of a Hot Button Issue: Striking Hotel Workers,” NPR, August 31, 2023. https://www.npr.org/2023/08/31/1196943518/political-scientists-are-in-the-middle-of-a-hot-button-issue-striking-hotel-work.

22 Author Unknown, Open Letter to Recipients, August 17, 2023. [Bold in original; See Appendix H; names redacted.]

23 Annual Meeting Updates, 9/20/2023, https://connect.apsanet.org/apsa2023/planning-area/.

24 https://www.unitehere11.org/.

25 Email to Critical Political Science Chair, August 6, 2023.