What’s inside that seemingly unremarkable object: a metal can of food? How did we get to where we are today, where canned food appears so mundane — when, in fact, selling food in a corrodible can to dubious American consumers was an uphill battle for the processed food industry? Historian Anna Zeide looks at the … Continued
It’s easier to remember the histories of defeat, than those of social transformation. But in the three years preceding the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile, the country experimented with a form of socialism that was both top down and bottom up. Historian Marian Schlotterbeck discusses how under Salvador Allende’s government, the radical left fueled changes at … Continued
We’re often told that the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians rises out of a unique historical situation. But the dispossession of the Palestinians, rather than being exceptional, has strong echoes in other historical dispossessions. Gary Fields discusses the enclosure of the lands of the English peasantry, Native Americans, and the inhabitants of historic … Continued
Open any world history book and you’ll read that the Neolithic Revolution was the key turning point in human history, when hunter gatherers gave up roaming in small egalitarian tribes and settled down to farm. Out of that, civilization was born, with all the benefits and ills connected to it: the rise of cities, the … Continued
The U.S. was left the world’s sole superpower after the demise of the Soviet Union. Yet the U.S. spends a mind-boggling amount on weapons and we’re constantly warned, including in the liberal media, that there are dangerous governments out there in need of containment, Russia being first among them. John Marciano discusses the lessons of … Continued
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
