S & D in Real Time
From the Editors
A recent paper by Joseph G. Ramsey, "Sifting the “Stony Soil” of Black Marxism," is attracting considerable interest as it engages sympathetically, but critically with Cedric Robinson's treatment of the Black Marxists, including W. E. B. du Bois, C. L. R. James, and... Read more
S&D in Real Time
Welcome to the new Socialism & Democracy blog – a place for commentary, discussions and debate on matters of concern to the working class as a whole. Content shared here is curated by the Research Group on Socialism and Democracy but does not necessarily reflect any “official” perspective or endorsement from the Group.
Nicholas P. Petropoulos, S&D's informal correspondent on Greek affairs, died recently in Athens. He was an exemplary scholar/activist with whom I worked closely during his years in US academia (at Indiana University, 1971-78). He wrote for us in in 2018 (32:2) on "Badiou and the Greek Debt Crisis" and in 2001 (15:2) on the general strike in Greece. He also commented on submissions by other authors related to Greek politics... Read more
From the Fall 1978 to 1984, Peter Roman served two terms as PSC Chair. Under his leadership, he negotiated an agreement with then President Flora Edwards to limit the class size in all developmental courses. He also played a key role in the successful campaign to prevent the firing of Prof Pat Oldham. (Peter succeeded Gerald Meyer’s two-term leadership of the Hostos PSC Chapter, and was succeeded by Eugenio Barrios.)
... Read more
Peter Roman, Professor Emeritus in the Behavioral and Social Sciences Department, longtime S&D editorial board member, and a well-known scholar on Cuban politics, died on July 20, 2020, at the age of 79. Prof. Roman taught at Hostos for nearly fifty years, from 1971 to 2019, when he eventually retired. Uncompromising, unconventional, and fiery, he was an outstanding political scientist and educator who inspired and mentored... Read more
When I was invited to speak on behalf of Mumia, one of the first things that came to mind was how long he's been in prison. How many years of his life had been stolen away from him, his community, and his loved ones. He's been incarcerated for 38 years. Mumia has been in prison longer than I've been alive.
When I first spoke with Mumia on the phone, I did very little talking. I just listened. Hearing... Read more
“It can’t happen here.” That is the complacent mantra that societies with long-standing “democratic” institutions cannot possibly succumb to authoritarian dictatorship. Sinclair Lewis used the phrase as the title for his 1935 novel about the rise of a fascist dictatorship in the United States. Even as the aspiring dictator rises in prominence, and mobilizes a paramilitary army to deliver him to power, many of the novel’s... Read more
Beating Trump in 2020 is going to take a massive organizing effort. This is not an ordinary election. According to reporter Greg Palast, Republicans are trying to steal the election. They are implementing a slew of voter suppression strategies. That is, they are trying to prevent people likely to... Read more
Louis Proyect expresses surprise at several of the signatures, including mine, that are affixed to the “Dump Trump, then Battle Biden” open letter.
Speaking just for myself, I share his surprise, and I also share his disgust at the figure of Joe Biden. I surprised myself, because the position of... Read more
1. What is the legacy of the Sanders insurgency? What is the state of left organization? Are we closer to a proto-workers party?
JWL: The Sanders campaign accomplished two historical achievements that progressive activists can build on going forward. First, the campaign united millions of mostly working-class Americans behind a progressive universalist political vision. Second,... Read more
There is no revolution without crisis. But crisis does not necessarily lead to revolution.
Over the last months, diverse movements, rallying under the banner #BlackLivesMatter, outraged by repression and exhausted by forced isolation, have stood up to militarized cops in every U.S. state, knowing that doing so risks horrific outcomes—losing an eye to a rubber bullet or gas canister, contracting the coronavirus, even... Read more
Photo by Kelly Lacy from Pexels
We republish Steve Martinot’s 2013 historical/theoretical interpretation of a phenomenon that, despite its recent explosion into universal public awareness, has been plaguing US society from the beginning. - VW
For months, the Blueford family begged the Oakland City Council for answers to why and how their son Alan had been murdered by an Oakland police officer in May, 2012. They got a series... Read more