While European labor movements established foundations for their welfare states in the late nineteenth century, it was not until the New Deal that the United States began instituting policies like unemployment insurance and old-age pensions. But although working-class struggle was also key to this success, several unique factors in American history proved an impediment to more egalitarian policies.

In this episode of the Jacobin Radio podcast Confronting Capitalism, Vivek Chibber and Melissa Naschek continue their deep dive into the history of social democracy. Together, they look at the impacts of craft unionism, mass immigration, racial tensions, and employer violence in explaining American exceptionalism.

Confronting Capitalism with Vivek Chibber is produced by Catalyst: A Journal of Theory and Strategy and published by Jacobin. You can listen to the full episode here. This transcript has been edited for clarity.