Upcoming courses and events

July 2, 2025

Eyesore Cinema, Toronto

The Leo Panitch School for Socialist Education is very pleased to present Smiley Face as the latest installment in the ongoing FilmSocial series.

Not very often do stoner comedies bring in The Communist Manifesto, but there also aren’t very many directors like Gregg Araki, who is able to successfully combine the absurd with the political. Smiley Face follows Jane (Anna Faris), a struggling but perpetually stoned actress in L.A., as she tries to complete a busy day of tasks, such as paying her electric bill, going to an audition and buying more weed. Her day is made that much harder when she unknowingly eats an entire tray of pot-laced cupcakes.

The result is a hilarious series of misadventures in the same vein as movies like After Hours and The Big Lebowski. Jane’s day starts to get really out of control when she gets her hands on a first edition copy of The Communist Manifesto.

Smiley Face is exuberant, hilarious, and fun, but with a sharp satirical edge.

Accessibility Information

Eyesore Cinema’s screening room is on the main floor of a storefront. While there is stair-free access, the floor is uneven and may not be suitable for mobility devices. Washrooms are located in the basement of the store and are not wheelchair accessible.
Please do not hesitate to contact us at info@leopanitchschool.ca with any questions or concerns regarding accessibility at this event.

July 14, 2025

Toronto and Online

Amidst the ongoing genocide in Gaza and continued Israeli attacks across the region, much of the world’s attention has been diverted away from the worsening situation in the West Bank. Palestinians across the West Bank have experienced increased violence, demolitions, and displacement from settlers and Israeli Occupation Forces.

Toronto based activist Anna Lippman has recently returned from spending three months on the front lines of settler and State violence in Masafer Yatta, or the South Hebron Hills, in the occupied West Bank. Made famous by the Academy Award winning film, No Other Land, Anna witnessed the steadfastness of these communities firsthand. Hear about the experience of living with a small farming community, engaging in daily life, and coming face to face with soldiers, police, border security, and extremist settlers. In her three months, Anna was arrested once, detained over ten times, witness to three arsons, and was a victim of six violent attacks by settler youth.
Anna will share her experiences and perspective as a Jewish Canadian standing against her own people. Together we’ll hear about these precarious communities that continue to resist displacement and ethnic cleansing as well as how you too can go to Palestine as a protective witness. The evening will feature a presentation, as well as messages from Anna’s Palestinian hosts, and information on how to support their continued sumud.


Location: Downtown Toronto and online (location to be shared upon registration).
Registration page: *INSERT HERE*
Pre-registration is mandatory for this event.

Anna Lippman is an Askenazi Jewish activist in Toronto who organizes with Showing Up for Racial Justice, Independent Jewish Voices, and Labour for Palestine. Anna is a PhD candidate where she looks at the relationship between identity, activism, and art. Anna’s work has been published in Briarpatch, Mondoweiss, and several other publications.

This event is being organized by the Leo Panitch School for Socialist Education with support from the following organizations:
Socialist Project
*More to be announced


Accessibility

The event venue has level access and is wheelchair accessible. The event organizers kindly ask that attendees refrain from wearing scents. Please reach out to info@leopanitchschoo.ca with any accessibility concerns or questions. 

July 18, 2025

Toronto

Between 1917 and 1936 the Governments of Ontario and Canada produced hundreds of films on various subjects like farming techniques, industrial technology, vacations for the wealthy and “appropriate” workplace behaviour, among others. The Ontario Motion Picture Bureau, (OMPB) made educational films for “farmers, school children, factory workers and other classes”. The Canadian Government Motion Picture Bureau, (CGMPB) advertised “Canada’s scenic attractions, agricultural resources and industrial development.” 
 
Today these films provide a rare glimpse at how work, industry, gender, and class was understood and promoted by the state over 100 years ago. The narratives in the films avoided overt discussions of politics. Unions are invisible in these films, though they feature industries where unions were militant and active. Similarly, protests of any kind do not appear, yet in their absence, they have much to say about workplace struggle. 
 
Several of these historical films have been restored via The Moving Past, a film restoration and history project. Join us as we watch a selection of films that address labour, indigenous land use, gender, and social class in the 1920’s. We’ll also be hearing from the curator of the project, David Sobel, on the history behind the films, the project’s origins and why resources such as these are so invaluable for those of us trying to understand the past while we struggle for a better world today. 

When: Friday July 18, 7pm
Location: Downtown Toronto – Venue TBA

Cost: FREE. This and all other LPSSE events are open to all and presented free-of-charge. If you are able and  would like to help ensure we can continue providing radical and accessible educational programming, we invite you to support the school via monthly contribution.

David Sobel has worked on labour issues since the 1980s, for various unions. He co-authored, Working at Inglis: The Life and Death of a Canadian Factory in 1994. He joined the Ministry of Labour in 2000 and retired from the civil service in 2020.