Science for the People is an international organization of scientists, students, educators, and academic workers committed to developing a radical Marxist analysis of the development of science under capitalism and building a practice of science in service of the people to support the working class, tenant and labor unions, and oppressed peoples around the world. In addition to local and organizational working groups addressing issues from climate change to militarism, Science for the People regularly publishes a magazine which highlights social movements and political struggles at the intersection of science and society.
Header image illustration by Matteo Farinella.
History
Science for the People was first formed in 1969 under the name Scientists and Engineers for Social and Political Action during the anti-war movement in the US with the goal of mobilizing scientists against the application of their work toward militarism and US imperialism. The organization quickly broadened to encompass several key areas of work from confronting sociobiology to health care inequalities to corporate control of research agendas. The original Science for the People also published over 100 issues of the SftP magazine.
The organization was disbanded in the late 1980s and was revitalized in 2014; since then, several chapters have started up across the US, Canada, and Europe alongside worldwide membership.
Volume 2, number 2 issue of the Science for the People magazine, published in August 1970. Find this and other archival magazines here.
New Haven Chapter
The New Haven chapter of Science for the People was founded in early 2023 to build a community of radical scientists at Yale University and the greater New Haven area. Our goals are to expose and challenge the dominant capitalist model of science, and to develop a practice of “solidarity science” in New Haven and Connecticut communities where scientists are directly engaged with class struggles in solidarity with tenants and workers.
New Haven Working Groups
Antimilitarism
The Antimilitarism working group was formed in 2024 to create a permanent space within the chapter to develop an analysis and strategy to challenge militarism and imperialism as STEM and academic workers. This WG conducts investigations into academic and industry ties to war and works alongside other antimilitarism organizations.
political education
The Political Education Working Group works to mutually educate people in and outside SftP on political and theoretical topics related to the organization, including the analysis of capital, structures of race and gender, and historical struggles. The group aims to develop educational resources, readings, and strengthen our ability to learn from one another.
tenant support
The Tenant Support working group was initially created to support the organizing efforts of the Cargill Tenants Union. We work with tenants, unions, and other housing support groups to develop materials, such as information about the health threats from lead and mold contamination in rental housing, to support tenant organizing and building coalitions to fight for tenant’s rights and safety.