Capitalism by its nature produces crises and, for the last century, states have responded by imposing austerity measures on the public. Governments claim it’s a bitter but necessary medicine to set economies back on track. But economist Clara Mattei argues that austerity is actually a bludgeon to entrench elite power and repress workers’ aspirations for … Continued


The United States is a strikingly unequal country. The Republican Party is rightly credited with aiding the wealthy, but historian Lily Geismer argues that’s just half of the story. She examines the key role played by the Clinton-era Democratic Party in widening inequality through microenterprise schemes and development zones, free trade policies, and charter schools, … Continued


Hard Knock Radio

Fund Drive Special: Capitalism DVD, six-part series by ILan Ziv

We present audio from the six-part series, Capitalism by Ilan Ziv. Capitalism has been the engine of unprecedented economic growth and social transformation. With the fall of the communist states and the triumph of “neo- liberalism,” capitalism is by far the world’s dominant ideology. But how much do we understand about how it originated, and what makes it … Continued