In the first of two special election-related episodes this week, I talk with Vivek Chibber. You may already be familiar with Chibber’s popular pamphlets called ‘The ABCs of capitalism.’ In this episode I asked Chibber to expand on these, taking the “why” of class struggle as a given, but venturing into questions of who, where and how. We also discuss the stakes in the upcoming election. Finally we talk about Chibber’s forthcoming book on “the cultural turn” in Marxism, in particular the idea of ‘whiteness.’
Vivek Chibber is Professor of Sociology at New York University and editor of Catalyst, which is published by Jacobin. He is the author of several books, including two due next fall, which we discuss here.
https://catalyst-journal.com/vol1/no1/cultural-turn-vivek-chibber
Robbie Nelson is a member of New York City DSA and a rank-and-file public school teacher. He has been organizing in the Democratic Socialists of America for more than 3 years and in the broader movement for almost a decade, largely focused on labor and political education. He is also a member of the Bread and Roses caucus within DSA. ...
Gindin calls on us to transform America whatever the outcome of the U.S. election. We discuss socialist visions, Syriza, racial solidarity in the U.S., and the need for widespread socialist education. Sam Gindin has served as director of research for the Canadian Auto Workers union from 1974 to 2000, and Visiting Packer Chair in the political science department at York University. With co-author Leo Panitch, who appears on an earlier episode of this podcast, he has written extensively about the U.S. state’s role in globalizing neoliberalism. Most recently, he co-authored The Socialist Challenge Today: Syriza, Corbyn and Sanders. He is also a contributing editor of the Socialist Register. ...
Describes the objectives of the show as an analytical resource for socialist and progressive organizing during the pandemic. Guests in May include Doug Henwood, writer and host of the podcast Behind the News, Frances Boyes and Eric Blanc, organizers with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Mike Elk, editor of the Payday Report, and Ruth Milkman, labor sociologist at the City University of New York. ...