Jacobin Radio

This week, Grace is joined by Barnaby Raine, co-author of a recent essay for Salvage magazine analyzing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine through the lens of rising nationalism, a feature of global politics especially since the 2008 financial crisis. They discuss this world-historic crisis of capitalism, how it is fueling the growth of nationalist and neo-fascist movements around the world, what that means for world politics, and how the left should respond.A World to Win is a podcast from Grace Blakeley and Tribune bringing you a weekly dose of socialist news, theory, and action with guests from around the world. Thanks to our producer Conor Gillies and to the Lipman-Miliband Trust for making this episode possible.

Jen Pan speaks with Matt Bruenig on the terrible influence of corporate think tanks on our politics and David Dayen about how decades of pro-corporate policies have ruined our supply chains. Jen’s weekly segment focuses on why Joe Biden’s approval rating is lower among Latinos than any other group, and why so many mainstream explanations of this fact are off the mark.See coverage of supply chain issues in the American Prospect: https://prospect.org/supply-chainSubscribe to Jacobin for just $10: https://jacobinmag.com/subscribe/?code=JACOBINYTMusic provided by Zonkey: https://linktr.ee/zonkeyThe Jacobin Show offers socialist perspectives on class and capitalism in the twenty-first century, the failures of liberalism, and the prospects of rebuilding a left labor movement in the US. This is the podcast version of the show from April 27, 2022.

Australian land and British institutions mix uncomfortably in Peter Weir's PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK (1975). We speculate from our Canadian vantage points why this story has become one of the iconic documents of Australia's national identity. PLUS: the boys cannot stop talking about Bob Dylan!"Picnic at Hanging Rock: What We See and What We Seem" by Megan Abbott - https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/3202-picnic-at-hanging-rock-what-we-see-and-what-we-seemMichael and Us is a podcast about political cinema and our crumbling world hosted by Will Sloan and Luke Savage.

Suzi talks to Alan Minsky and Harvey Kaye about the 21st Century Economic Bill of Rights, which they see as both a campaign platform and governing program to rescue and renew American democracy. This is more than a to-do or must-do list for progressives, but in their words, a compelling and transformative unifying project, a manifesto to advance democracy. We ask whether they think this program is feasible and realizable given the configuration of our political winner take all system?We then turn to the recent election in France, where incumbent Emmanuel Macron won with a 17% margin over Marine Le Pen. The period leading up to this election was far more uncertain. The contest had been narrowed from 12 parties in the first round, held April 10th, to the top two vote-getters, the centrist neoliberal Macron, and the far rightist Le Pen. Le Pen edged out the leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon by a very narrow margin. The day before the election, we spoke with Sebastian Budgen, author of a recent article in the New Left R

Doug interviews Donna Murch, author of Assata Taught Me, on Black radical politics from the Panthers to the Movement for Black Lives. Plus: Kyle Shybunko, author of a recent article on the New Left Review blog, discusses Hungary’s leader Viktor Orbán, a hero to many on the American right.Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global. Find the archive here: https://www.leftbusinessobserver.com/Radio.html

Gilbert Achcar joins Long Reads for a conversation about the second wave of Arab uprisings—and the possibility of a third. Gilbert is professor of development studies at SOAS in London. The second edition of his book The People Want: A Radical Exploration of the Arab Uprising has just been published.Read a 2020 interview with Gilbert in Catalyst, "The Arab Spring, a Decade Later" here: https://catalyst-journal.com/2020/12/the-arab-spring-a-decade-laterAnd his 2019 article "The Sudanese Revolution Enters a New Phase" here: https://jacobinmag.com/2019/08/sudanese-revolution-fdfc-constitutional-agreement-signedLong Reads is a Jacobin podcast looking in-depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical, with the magazine’s longform writers. Hosted by Features Editor Daniel Finn. Produced by Conor Gillies, music by Knxwledge.

Destin Jenkins on his book The Bonds of Inequality: Debt and the Making of the American City, which makes a powerful argument about how the ubiquitous and in many ways invisible dependence of American cities on municipal debt to fund basic infrastructure has devastating consequences for democracy and entrenches spatial, racial, and wealth disparities.Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDigTickets for live NYC show on The Return of Labor Militancy: eventbrite.com/e/the-return-of-labor-militancy-with-the-dig-and-jacobin-tickets-320732338057

Jen Pan discusses why “cannabis equity” programs, which were designed to provide opportunities for victims of America’s decades-long drug war, have been a complete failure. Paul Prescod talks about the importance of forging electoral campaigns deeply rooted in the labor movement. And finally, Lily Geismer gives a history of the New Democrats' assault on labor and social programs. Her new book is Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality. Subscribe to Jacobin for just $10: https://jacobinmag.com/subscribe/?code=JACOBINYTMusic provided by Zonkey: https://linktr.ee/zonkeyThe Jacobin Show offers socialist perspectives on class and capitalism in the twenty-first century, the failures of liberalism, and the prospects of rebuilding a left labor movement in the US. This is the podcast version of the show from April 20, 2022.

This week, Grace talks to Sam Moore, co-author with Alex Roberts of The Rise of Ecofascism: Climate Change and the Far Right. Sam and Alex host their own podcast, 12 Rules for WHAT, which focuses on the rise of the far right. They discuss how far-right politicians are weaponizing the climate crisis to build support for an extremist, exclusionary politics based on "batteries, bombs, and borders," how this links to a longer history of right-wing environmentalism, and how the left should respond.A World to Win is a podcast from Grace Blakeley and Tribune bringing you a weekly dose of socialist news, theory, and action with guests from around the world. Thanks to our producer Conor Gillies and to the Lipman-Miliband Trust for making this episode possible.

The 1969 documentary WHAT'S LEFT? captures the Canadian left (and more specifically, Canada's New Democratic Party) being pulled in two directions: by an emerging, student-led generation of radical activists, and an older political class that has either grown pragmatic or complacent depending on who you ask. We discuss the history of the Canadian left, and what has both changed and remained the same in the 50+ years since the film. PLUS: We catch an acute case of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them fever!!!Watch the documentary What's Left? here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRzNoaEw3xMMichael and Us is a podcast about political cinema and our crumbling world hosted by Will Sloan and Luke Savage.

Doug speaks with Wanda Bertram of the Prison Policy Initiative about the demographics of the million people in state prisons and the fight around cash bail in New York. Plus, Doug talks to historian James Chappel about his recent article "Inside the Postliberal Mind" which reviews a new book by reactionary Catholic law professor Adrian Vermeule. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global. Find the archive here: https://www.leftbusinessobserver.com/Radio.html

Mariame Kaba and Geo Maher discuss police, the politics of policing, abolition, reform—and more.Support this podcast at Patreon.com/TheDig

Jen Pan takes a look at the politics of the pentagon budget and Daniel Zamora discusses how American-style identity politics somehow found a way of suffusing the ideological debates around the French election. Then, Jen sits down with Cedric Johnson to discuss why the defund movement failed, and why the Left should prioritize a politics of increased social spending to eliminate the very basis of what Johnson terms "stress policing" of working-class communities. Subscribe to Jacobin for just $10: https://jacobinmag.com/subscribe/?code=JACOBINYTMusic provided by Zonkey: https://linktr.ee/zonkeyThe Jacobin Show offers socialist perspectives on class and capitalism in the twenty-first century, the failures of liberalism, and the prospects of rebuilding a left labor movement in the US. This is the podcast version of the show from April 13, 2022.

Grace talks to Kojo Koram, who teaches in the School of Law at Birkbeck College and is the author of Uncommon Wealth: Britain and the Aftermath of Empire, about why the government is trying to change the curriculum to include a more 'balanced' perspective on Britain's empire. We ask who actually benefited from the days of formal empire, how imperialism continues to this day, and why the right are so keen to keep the culture wars alive.  A World to Win is a podcast from Grace Blakeley and Tribune bringing you a weekly dose of socialist news, theory and action with guests from around the world. Thanks to producer Sarah Hurd for filling in this week and to the Lipman-Miliband Trust for making this episode possible.

Jacobin Radio features the recent UCLA colloquium, “The Political Economy of Russia’s War in Ukraine,” organized and moderated by the Center for Social Theory and Comparative History’s Robert Brenner. The panelists are Boris Kagarlitsky, Ilya Budraitskis, Ilya Matveev, and Suzi Weissman, followed by a lively Q and A.  The Russian decision to invade Ukraine was seen as an inevitability to some observers, but a surprise to many others. While the precise motivations are still subject to much debate, the current situation is highly dynamic and the future of the war remains uncertain. This panel examines the underlying political economy of Russia to better understand the reasons for war and its ramifications for the region and the wider world economy.  View the full video here:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1im2wU5nKZj-GFHorqk19_z7rsxqE9cBR/view?usp=sharing

Luke and Will delve into the world of right-wing legend Tom Clancy and his signature character Jack Ryan with the blockbuster film adaptation of THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER (1990). PLUS: Winston Churchill predicts the future!Michael and Us is a podcast about political cinema and our crumbling world hosted by Will Sloan and Luke Savage.

Jan Toporowski joins Long Reads for a discussion about Polish economist Michal Kalecki. Kalecki is best known for his celebrated essay on full employment, which has lost none of its topical value. Jan is a professor of economics at SOAS in London and the author of a two-volume intellectual biography of Kalecki.Read Jan's article "Michal Kalecki and the Politics of Full Employment" here: https://jacobinmag.com/2022/01/michal-kalecki-keynes-full-employment-political-economyYou can also find Michal Kalecki's classic 1943 essay, "The Political Aspects of Full Employment" here: https://jacobinmag.com/2018/05/political-aspects-of-full-employment-kalecki-job-guaranteeLong Reads is a Jacobin podcast looking in-depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical, with the magazine’s longform writers. Hosted by Features Editor Daniel Finn. Produced by Conor Gillies, music by Knxwledge.

Suzi talks to John Logan, labor historian and expert on the anti-union industry, about the historic victory for Amazon workers on Staten Island, who voted on April 1st to form the first US Amazon union. The new Amazon Labor Union won against the retailing giant whose profits have skyrocketed during the pandemic. This changes everything, and we get John Logan's analysis of the scope of the victory and the challenges to come. Ilya Budraitskis, who just published Dissidents among Dissidents: Ideology, Politics and the Left in Post-Soviet Russia, joins us to discuss the state of Russia's war on Ukraine, now in its second month. We get Ilya’s understanding of Putin’s battle to control the minds of Russians at home—closing all independent media, pushing a false narrative, and imposing draconian penalties for even calling this a war. Ilya sees these as moves toward establishing a real dictatorship that depends on economic, political, social, and now even psychological control over the population.

Rupert Russell and Isabella Weber discuss Russell's book Price Wars: How the Commodities Markets Made Our Chaotic World and also the current politics of inflation.  Listen to Weber discuss her book How China Escaped Shock Therapy: thedigradio.com/podcast/how-china-escaped-shock-therapy-w-isabella-weber/ Look at Rupert's precious puppy: twitter.com/rupert_russell/status/1511428696409837573?s=20&t=OPVNgfXuokFY6ZQYRkxe4g Support this podcast at Patreon.com/TheDig

Jen Pan sits down with Jacobin columnist Ross Barkan to discuss his latest article, “Working-Class Politics Without the Working Class,” which takes a critical look at the Working Families Party. Next, Jen turns to speak with Chris Maisano about the future of the labor movement and his latest piece in Jacobin, “The Liminal Left’s Bid for Power,” in which he analyzes the conflicts and potential bright spots that arise within a new left that is young and highly educated. What does that mean for our chances of building a mass working-class coalition?Find Chris Maisano's pieces in Catalyst and the latest issue of Jacobin here: https://jacobinmag.com/2022/02/the-liminal-lefts-bid-for-powerhttps://catalyst-journal.com/2022/03/is-the-labor-movement-backAnd Ross Barkan's piece in the latest issue of Jacobin here: https://jacobinmag.com/2022/02/working-class-politics-without-the-working-classSubscribe to Jacobin for just $10: https://jacobinmag.com/subscribe/?code=JACOBINYTMusic provided by Zonkey: https://linktr.ee/zo