Alex Doherty is the host of Politics Theory Other.
A coordinated protest wave across China, the country’s largest since the Tiananmen Square movement in 1989, has been instrumental in prompting the government’s policy shift on COVID-19. It’s a culmination of tensions that have been building for years.
Vivian Gornick’s recently reissued The Romance of American Communism is in high demand these days by young socialists grappling with the meaning of their activism. In an interview, Gornick is slightly skeptical of the reborn socialist movement — and even the book itself. But although she says “I wouldn’t have written that book today, I’m not sorry I did write it.”
Many observers expected that the 2008 financial crisis would mark the end of neoliberalism. Instead, we saw a wave of privatization and sharp cuts in public services. Today, the forces best placed to exploit the coronavirus pandemic are still those who already have power: the neoliberals who’ve been shaping the economic policy agenda for decades.
Gary Shteyngart’s novel Super Sad True Love Story was published a decade ago, and it offers a portrait of a near-future, dystopian United States that might suddenly be upon us. It’s perfect reading for the pandemic lockdown.
Unite’s general secretary, Len McCluskey, told us why all working people should be in trade unions — and why we can’t rely on anyone else to speak up on our behalf.
Ignore the media spin — Jeremy Corbyn was the clear winner of last night’s debate. But to defeat Boris Johnson, he’ll need to make sharper attacks on the Tories’ shameful record.
The grassroots group Momentum was an instrumental campaigning force for Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party during the 2017 election. Now the group is bigger and stronger, and preparing for victory next month.
Jeremy Corbyn’s call for a break with neoliberalism has given hope to millions. But implementing his agenda will require more than good policies — Labour needs a mobilizing strategy to defeat resistance within the state machine and the City of London.
You can’t understand the chaos of Brexit without understanding the fundamentals of the European Union.