Real Abundance Requires Class Struggle
Today liberals lead the call for abundance. But if they really want to deliver plenty for all, they’ll need to confront the entrenched power of the capitalist class.
44 Article(s) by: Vivek Chibber
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Vivek Chibber is a professor of sociology at New York University. He is the editor of Catalyst: A Journal of Theory and Strategy.
The Revolutionary Roots of Social Democracy
Why was the revolutionary road out of capitalism abandoned for an evolutionary one? Vivek Chibber explores how socialist parties moved from revolution to reform, but why real progress will always mean a conflict with capital.
Power, Not Economic Theory, Created Neoliberalism
Neoliberalism didn’t win an intellectual argument — it won power. Vivek Chibber unpacks how employers and political elites in the 1970s and ’80s turned economic turmoil into an opportunity to reshape society on their terms.
Colonial Plunder Didn’t Create Capitalism
Despite what you may have heard, colonial plunder didn’t give rise to capitalism. In an interview with Jacobin, Vivek Chibber discusses why the “colonialism-created-capitalism” argument fails, and why Marxism provides a better account of its emergence.
The Left Is Stepping Out of the Neoliberal Dark Age
Vivek Chibber describes how four decades of neoliberalism have distorted the radical left, but also how the Left is finally starting to rebuild a truly socialist politics — and what it will take to advance further.
What Populism Can (and Can’t) Do for the Left
We live in an age of populism, on the Right and on the Left. In an interview with Jacobin, Vivek Chibber explains both populism’s potential and limitations for putting class and economics back into politics.
Why Class Matters as Much as Ever
Some argue that the continued existence of the middle class refutes Karl Marx’s analysis of capitalism. In an interview with Jacobin, Vivek Chibber explains why this is wrong.
The Politics of the PMC
Vivek Chibber on how we should understand capitalism’s middle strata — and why so many professionals are moving toward anti-capitalist politics.
The Iraq War Playbook, Now for Iran
The Trump administration’s recent bombing of Iran suggests that elites have failed to learn the lessons of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Donald Trump Is Just Another Republican President
Donald Trump styled himself as a populist, antiestablishment president. But look at what he has actually done in office, and you see he’s a status quo politician with nothing to offer working Americans.
The US Started Both the Old and New Cold Wars
In an interview with Jacobin, Vivek Chibber discusses why the US desire for global dominance was responsible for the Cold War — and why the United States is inflaming new rivalries with Russia and China today.
Are We Still in Neoliberalism?
Vivek Chibber on why Trump II signals the end of an era — but not capital’s unchecked rule over our society.
Materialism Is Essential for Socialist Politics
The socialist tradition was long associated with materialism, a view that has come under fire in recent decades. But materialism is both a legitimate and necessary foundation for left-wing politics.
The Democrats Actively Expedited Class Dealignment
In the 1990s, Democrats adopted a neoliberal program to suit the needs of capital, driving many workers out. The party then adopted a political strategy meant to replace working-class voters with professionals — with disastrous consequences.
Not the Fall of Saigon — Its Liberation
Fifty years since the triumph of national liberation forces, Catalyst editor Vivek Chibber explores the true story of the Vietnam War — not as a tragedy of American overreach but as a triumph of Vietnamese resistance.
Capitalist Disorganization Has Enabled Trump’s Dominance
The GOP is now a hegemonic force in US politics. But much of that dominance is predicated on Donald Trump’s personal rule, itself made possible by internal GOP weakness and business elites’ political disorganization.
Trump’s Tariffs Are a Gift to Capital, Not Workers
Donald Trump has championed tariffs as a way to revive American manufacturing. But without a real industrial strategy, Catalyst editor Vivek Chibber argues, they’re little more than a handout to capital.
Why Elites Love Identity Politics
The Democratic Party at every level spent years embracing identity politics that mostly served the interests of professionals, argues Catalyst editor Vivek Chibber. We need a return to class.
Requiem for the Obama Coalition
The data is clear: the Democratic Party’s alienation from the working class extends across racial lines.
No, Liberalism Hasn’t Buried Marxism
As liberal thought has evolved to address capitalism’s flaws, some argue it has caught up with Marxism, rendering it irrelevant. Vivek Chibber argues that liberalism may diagnose capitalism’s injustices, but Marxism gives us the tools to overcome them.