While New York City may be the capital of wealth in America, the celebrated metropolis has been a locus of rebellion. From the revolt of the Native American Munsee against the Dutch, to slave uprisings, class and race riots, Stonewall, protests against the Republican National Convention, Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter, and much … Continued
How is radical memory transmitted from generation to generation? How does that transmission frequently fail — and how might it better succeed? Anthropologist and veteran radical Phil Cohen discusses the politics of remembrance and archiving, from the Sixties to the present. Resources: Livingmaps May Day Rooms Phil Cohen, Archive That, Comrade! Left Legacies and the … Continued
In 2009, the mainstream, but democratically-elected government of Honduras was overthrown in a coup that was backed by the United States. Probably no surprise there: the US has a long history of supporting repressive regimes in that country. But what was surprising, medical anthropologist Adrienne Pine argues, was the response of the until-then fairly quiescent … Continued
Building solidarity across racial lines has been one of the thorniest problems of the left in the US, stymying struggles against capitalism over generations. David Roediger talks about race, class, and solidarity — as well as the radical scholar George Rawick and the organization Facing Reality. Resources: David R. Roediger, Class, Race, and Marxism Verso, … Continued
The oceans are in turmoil, but unfortunately most of it is out of sight and therefore out of mind. Environmental sociologist Stefano Longo explores the multiple threats to the oceans, from overfishing to coral reef collapse to ocean acidification. He weighs in on whether the notion of the “tragedy of the commons” is sufficient to … Continued
Few thinkers have shaped the world as much as Karl Marx, although the ways that he changed it may not have been to his liking, as David McNally argues. He discusses the ideas and legacy of Karl Marx, to mark the bicentennial of his birth.
Zombies are almost the mascots of our dark times. Hard to avoid in popular culture, they have become so ubiquitous that even the Centers for Disease Control put out a tongue in cheek guide to surviving the zombie apocalypse. Sarah Juliet Lauro discusses the origins of the zombie, from enslaved worker to liberated rebel in … Continued
Historian Alfred McCoy argues that the end of the US as an empire may come sooner than most of us realize. He discusses the rise and fall of American global power. Resources: Alfred W. McCoy, In the Shadows of the American Century: The Rise and Decline of US Global Power Haymarket, 2017
In 2013, Edward Snowden’s revelations of mass surveillance by the National Security Agency pointed to spying on a mind-bending scale. Journalist Pratap Chatterjee weights in on the connection between that mass data collection and drone warfare – and the state of surveillance and drone attacks five years on. Resources: Pratap Chatterjee and Khalil, Verax: The … Continued
What can Star Trek tell us about life after capitalism? Peter Frase discusses four possible futures in a world where workers are increasingly being replaced by machines — ranging from communist and socialist societies to ones in which workers are literally disposable. Resources: Peter Frase, Four Futures: Life After Capitalism Verso, 2014
