Gerald Horne on Juneteenth: The Revolutionary Class Struggle in America
On today's episode, we discuss the hidden history of the revolutionary class struggle that brought down the system of slavery in America, an accomplishment celebrated by the Juneteenth holiday. The military defeat of the confederacy -- accomplished thanks to the heroic intervention of hundreds of thousands of Black soldiers in the war -- ushered in a new era that sent shockwaves around the world. They also discuss the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Communist Party of China and how the party led the transformation of the country into the rising power of today. Brian is joined by Dr. Gerald Horne. He holds the Moores Professorship of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston and is the author of many books. His most recent book is “The Bittersweet Science: Racism, Racketeering, and the Political Economy of Boxing,” and he is the author of “The Counter-Revolution of 1776: Slave Resistance and the Origins of the United States of America.” Dr. Horne is also the author of The Dawning of the Apocalypse: The Roots of Slavery, White Supremacy, Settler Colonialism, and Capitalism in the Long Sixteenth Century. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
1 Juli 202155min
Brian Becker Seminar #6: The Communist Party Of China, How To Organize A Union, & More (Preview)
In this June 2021 patrons-only seminar, Brian and the crew discuss the Communist Party of China and other communist parties in power, the union movement today and how to organize with unions, a behind the scenes look at the struggle to end the Vietnam War, nationalism and national liberation, and more. Check out the preview now and subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest!
1 Juli 202110min
Why the Bourgeoisie Loves the Gig Economy
Today we continue a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. We discus the Marxist understanding of the so-called gig economy. More and more workers are forced to make ends meet driving for Lyft or Uber, delivering food or an ever expanding number of irregular jobs. But far before smartphones and the internet, capitalism has long depended on precarious labor. Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself”. You can check out his work at rdwolff.com. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
30 Juni 202132min
A Socialist Mayor in New York State's Second Largest City?
On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem, Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss the election of a socialist in the Democratic primary for mayor of Buffalo, New York, a series of dramatic reversals by the Biden administration over infrastructure, injustices in the prison system, the sentencing of convicted murderer Derek Chauvin, U.S. airstrikes attacking Iraq and Syria, and more. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
29 Juni 202138min
How a COVID Conspiracy Theory Fuels U.S. War Drive Against China
Over the past month, the U.S. media and the Biden administration have sought to give credence to the conspiracy theory first advanced by Trump that the COVID-19 virus emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China. Last month, Biden breathed new life into this notion when he ordered intelligence agencies to redouble their efforts to determine whether the virus came from a lab and to report back to him in August. Brian is joined by KJ Noh. He’s a peace activist and scholar on the geopolitics of Asia, and he’s a frequent contributor to Counterpunch and Dissident Voice. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
24 Juni 202155min
Stock Markets: Making the Rich Richer for 400 Years
Today we continue a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. We discuss the Marxist understanding of the role played by stock markets in capitalism. How has the function of stock markets evolved over the years, and how do they contribute to today’s exploding wealth inequality? Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself”. You can check out his work at rdwolff.com. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
23 Juni 202132min
Billionaire Capitalism Makes a Killing During COVID-19
On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem, Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss growing inequality, the Juneteenth holiday, the New York City mayoral race, Joe Manchin's war on the working class, far right calls for a coup in Peru, the Biden-Putin summit, and more. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
22 Juni 202151min
The Pentagon Papers 50 Years Later: America's Most Famous Whistleblower Still Fighting Militarism
This week marks the 50th anniversary of the publication by The New York Times of excerpts of the Pentagon Papers — 7,000 pages of top-secret documents. These documents proved that the government of the United States had been lying to the people of this country for decades about a war that eventually ended with a U.S. withdrawal -- but only after millions of Vietnamese had been killed, 58,000 U.S. troops were killed with hundreds of thousands more suffered from physical and psychological injuries. Brian is joined by Daniel Ellsberg. He is one of the most important whistleblowers in modern American history and the author of The Doomsday Machine: Confessions of a Nuclear War Planner. Daniel Ellsberg is also the author of Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.
17 Juni 202140min
