Socialist Legacy

Socialist Legacy

By Socialist LegacyEducation
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Socialist Legacy episodes

  • We need a socialist party
    Some reflections provoked by the upcoming election, inspired by the election speeches of Eugene Debs.
    To the extent that I have any "positive" opinions about contemporary politics, I am simply trying to channel Eugene Debs and say what he would have to say on the subject.
    That's why I'm generally more interested in unearthing the forgotten or distorted history of the Debsian socialist tradition than trying to write original thoughts of my own. When I do say something in my own voice, if there is any merit in it, it's because I'm effectively bringing that legacy to bear upon present questions.
    But the relevance of even such "positive" assessments is, on balance, negative, because the conditions in which they would have positive bearing on the question of "what should be done" are missing.
    The pain of that absence must be felt.
    13 min
  • Future of the class struggle [What is a socialist party? Session 3]
    This was the third session of a course for members and fellow travelers of the Socialist Party of Southern New Hampshire and the Socialist Party USA, titled "What is a socialist party?"
    The readings for this session, "Future of the class struggle", were:
    - Karl Kautsky, The Class Struggle (1892)
    -- Chapter IV. The Commonwealth of the Future: https://www.marxists.org/archive/kautsky/1892/erfurt/ch04.htm
    -- Chapter V. The Class Struggle: https://www.marxists.org/archive/kautsky/1892/erfurt/ch05.htm
    A video version of this recording is available here: https://youtu.be/UfV4tGPJH3A
    If you are interested in learning more about this course, please feel free to contact me: rkotlas @ gmail . com
    For more information on the Socialist Party USA, visit: socialistpartyusa.net
    1 hr 59 min
  • Origins of the class struggle [What is a socialist party? Session 2]
    This was the second session of a course for members and fellow travelers of the Socialist Party of Southern New Hampshire and the Socialist Party USA, titled "What is a socialist party?"
    The readings for this session, "Origins of the class struggle", were:
    - The Erfurt Program of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (1891): https://www.marxists.org/history/international/social-democracy/1891/erfurt-program.htm
    - Karl Kautsky, The Class Struggle (1892)
    -- Chapter I. The Passing of Small Production: https://www.marxists.org/archive/kautsky/1892/erfurt/ch01.htm
    -- Chapter II. The Proletariat: https://www.marxists.org/archive/kautsky/1892/erfurt/ch02.htm
    -- Chapter III. The Capitalist Class: https://www.marxists.org/archive/kautsky/1892/erfurt/ch03.htm
    A video version of this recording is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gtnt9jT4IYA
    If you are interested in learning more about this course, please feel free to contact me: rkotlas @ gmail . com
    For more information on the Socialist Party USA, visit: socialistpartyusa.net
    1 hr 57 min
  • What is a socialist party? An introduction to the course
    This was the first session of a course for members and fellow travelers of the Socialist Party of Southern New Hampshire and the Socialist Party USA.
    It seeks to raise the question, "What is a socialist party?", by exploring how that question was answered historically.
    We will begin with a unit covering the major works of Karl Kautsky, the leading theorist of the Second International and intellectual successor of Karl Marx and Frederick Engels.
    The readings for this introductory session, "What is socialist politics?", were:
    - Karl Marx, Programme of the Parti Ouvrier (1880): https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1880/05/parti-ouvrier.htm
    - Socialist Party of America, 1904 Platform (1904): https://medium.com/@reidkane/socialist-party-of-america-platform-1904-d6da4cad879e
    - Eugene Debs, "Competition versus Cooperation" (1900): http://marxisthistory.org/history/usa/parties/spusa/1900/0929-debs-competitionvcooperation.pdf
    - George Herron, “Why I Am a Socialist” (1900): http://marxisthistory.org/history/usa/parties/spusa/1900/0929-herron-whyiamasoc.pdf
    Other pieces referenced in this video:
    - Rida Vaquas, “What’s a good political education? A debate from the SPD": https://theclarionmag.org/2018/06/25/whats-a-good-political-education-a-debate-from-the-spd/
    - Marx, Letter to J. Weydemeyer: https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1852/letters/52_03_05-ab.htm
    - Engels, Letter to August Bebel: https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1882/letters/82_10_28.htm
    If you are interested in learning more about this course, please feel free to contact me: rkotlas @ gmail . com
    For more information on the Socialist Party USA, visit: socialistpartyusa.net
    1 hr 21 min

About Socialist Legacy

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Reflections on the history of the socialist movement and its legacy in the present.