What Is a “Proletarian” Anyway?
With the rise of industrial capitalism and the workers’ movement it created, we created new words to explain a confounding new world.
Search Result(s) for: “working class”
An Open Letter to Ta-Nehisi Coates and the Liberals Who Love Him
The reparations demand survives as a parlor debate — it cannot address the real needs and interests of black workers.
Lincoln’s Paramilitaries, the “Wide Awakes,” Helped Bring About a Political Revolution
Throughout the 1860 election, the Wide Awakes, a novel paramilitary-style organization, held mass rallies, marches, and demonstrations to combat slave power. These “young working-men for Lincoln” successfully combined new media and unrepentant partisanship to mobilize hundreds of thousands against the Southern planter class.
Bernie’s Revolution Needs the Labor Movement to Win
So far in the Democratic primary, unions have been riding the fence. But they could play the decisive factor in Bernie Sanders’s efforts to defeat the Democratic Party establishment, oust Donald Trump, and win transformative social change.
Karl Marx Was for the Children
The freedom and flourishing of children were central to Marx’s vision of human emancipation and his critique of capitalism.
Why Are the Police Like This?
The police were first created to suppress labor militancy and the Left, before becoming a tool to bludgeon the most marginalized in society, particularly poor black people. We must dismantle this brutal instrument of social control.
The Socialism of William Morris Brought Ecology and Class Struggle Together
William Morris condemned the dehumanizing impact of industrial capitalism on workers and raised an early alarm about the threat it posed to the natural world. His vision of ecological socialism is a vital resource for today’s political movements.
Show Us the Money
Facing pressure from the Left, Democratic presidential candidates are foregoing corporate PAC money. But in private, they’re still cozying up to capitalist supervillains.
Asking the Wrong Questions
No, the British Labour Party didn't lose last month because they were too left-wing.
“Social Democracy at Home Requires Anti-Imperialism Abroad”
An internationalist, anti-imperialist vision has been all but abandoned by the Left. We need to rebuild that vision.
Zohran Mamdani Is Listening — and Taking Notes
At an unusual event in Queens on Sunday, everyday New Yorkers lined up to offer their expertise and experience to democratic socialist mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.
Lelio Basso and the Missed Opportunities of Italian Socialism
Lelio Basso was a major figure of the postwar Italian left who urged its parties to follow through on their revolutionary programs and avoid subordinating themselves to the ruling Christian Democrats. Italy’s Socialists and Communists should have heeded his advice.
Tunisia’s Next Revolution
Young Tunisians, unwilling to abandon the revolution they launched seven years ago, are fighting against a government committed to neoliberal austerity.
Xi Jinping’s Chinese Dream Has Replaced the Maoist Credo
China’s leaders now appeal to the vision of a rejuvenated future rather than a revolutionary past. The new social contract between the people and the party state is a pragmatic one: social stability in return for continued economic growth.
In Theresa May’s Shadow
Labour strategies that try to win over English workers through patriotic appeals are both condescending and self-defeating.
Bernie Sanders Should Embrace the Demand to Defund the Police
Defunding the police means cutting bloated local police budgets and diverting the resources to social programs. Politically, it’s right up Bernie’s alley. He should embrace it.
Kais Saied Is Building a New Dictatorship in Tunisia — With Help From the EU
Tunisian president Kais Saied has launched an authoritarian clampdown on opposition parties and media while inciting hatred against African migrants. But EU officials seem happy to embrace Saied as another thuggish border guard for Fortress Europe.
The Unlikely Resistance in Turkey
Turkey’s main opposition party has long been a centrist and unradical force. But the jailing of Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has forced it into a more activist posture as it faces a growing mass movement in defense of Turkish democracy.
The Fatal Flaws of the Futureless Left
The rise of doomers, preppers, and antinatalists on the Left reveals something deeper than the hollow posture of rebellion: a collapse of belief in tomorrow. A Left that chants “No future” isn’t just demoralized — it’s unserious, misanthropic, and bound to lose.
Dorothy Thompson Was One of Britain’s Great Socialist Historians
Dorothy Thompson’s work on Chartism secured her reputation as one of the finest Marxist historians Britain has produced. She displayed a particular sensitivity to gender issues and encouraged creative dialogue between Marxist and feminist currents.