In this episode of Shit Platypus Says, members Laurie R, Cam H, and Ethan L dig into the archives for a wide-ranging conversation on Cuba. Together, they trace Cuba’s historical role in the socialist imagination and ask what the latest crisis means in the shadow of the twentieth century. Their discussion is interspersed with highlights from an interview members Ben K. and Mohammad H. conducted with Steve Eckardt of the Chicago Cuba Coalition. Listen for a reflective conversation on whether, and how, Cuba still matters for anyone trying to think seriously about the past, present, and future of the Left.

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Links:

Ethan Linehan, “The revolution marooned: Cuba and the Left,” in Platypus Review 114 (March 2019)

https://platypus1917.org/2019/03/02/the-revolution-marooned-cuba-and-the-left/


C.D. Hardy, “Cuba and Trotskyism’s breakdown,” in Platypus Review 116 (May 2019)

https://platypus1917.org/2019/05/01/cuba-and-trotskyisms-breakdown/

Fidel Castro, “The Universal Conscience,” speech to the Cultural Congress of Havana, January 1968, in The New Left Reader, ed. Carl Oglesby (New York: Grove Press, 1969), 186–206.

Frantz Fanon, “Algeria Unveiled,” in The New Left Reader, ed. Carl Oglesby (New York: Grove Press, 1969), 161–185.

Carl Oglesby, “The Idea of the New Left,” in The New Left Reader, ed. Carl Oglesby (New York: Grove Press, 1969), 1–20.

New Left Reader: https://archive.org/details/newleftreader0000ogle

Port Huron Statement by the SDS in 1962.

https://www.crmvet.org/info/620615_sds_huron-stmt.pdf

Joseph Hansen, "Cuba- The Acid Test: A Reply to the Ultra-Left Sectarians"

https://www.marxists.org/archive/hansen/1962/11/acidtest.htm

Tom Kerry, "Anatomy of Stalinism" (1972) Kerry's remarks about Cuba are in the Q&A, which is not included in the published Education for Socialists pamphlet (pdf below), but audio is available online, link below in three parts.

https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/document/swp-us/education/anatomy-of-stalinism.pdf

Audio, part 1:https://marxists.architexturez.net/history/etol/audio/kerry/The%20Anatomy%20of%20Stalinism%20Part%201.mp3

Audio, part 2: https://marxists.architexturez.net/history/etol/audio/kerry/The%20Anatomy%20of%20Stalinism%20Part%202.mp3

Audio, part 3: https://marxists.architexturez.net/history/etol/audio/kerry/The%20Anatomy%20of%20Stalinism%20Part%203.mp3

C. Wright Mills, Listen, Yankee! (1960)

https://archive.org/details/listenyankeerevo0000mill

Additional readings:

https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/document/icl-spartacists/cuba/index.htm

Lisa talks with Natalie, Ben, and Farsad, the organizers of our upcoming annual convention.

See you in Chicago!

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18th ANNUAL PLATYPUS CONVENTION

1776, 2006, 2026: Marxism and the Fate of the American Revolution

April 9-11, 2026

Chicago, IL

https://www.platypus.events/

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www.platypus1917.org

This episode was recorded in the summer of 2025, before the current protests in Iran. Itsi sat down with Platypus members Stanley Sharpey and Ian Morrison to talk about the history of the Left in Iran and the significance of the Iranian Revolution for the Left. We touch on Ervand Abrahamian’s book "Iran Between Two Revolutions," which was read in the early days of Platypus, along with other works on Iran by writers such as Fred Halliday, Janet Afari, and Kevin Anderson on Foucault and Iran.

We also talk about Platypus panels and articles that address the Iranian Revolution and the Left’s historical response to it, and the millennial Left’s response to the Iranian Green Movement, specifically the panel “The Green Movement and the Left: Prospects for Democracy in Iran.” Ian also reflects on his involvement during this moment, as well as his interview with Homayoun Pourzad, a trade unionist.

Finally, we talk about the changing landscape of the Left from the Obama presidency to our current moment.

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"The Green Movement and the Left: Prospects for Democracy in Iran" (3/20/10 panel) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzK9cPxPdVA&t=60s

Against the status quo: An Interview with Iranian trade unionist Homayoun Pourzad - Ian Morrison:

https://platypus1917.org/2010/01/08/against-the-status-quo-an-interview-with-iranian-trade-unionist-homayoun-pourzad/

The Iranian Revolution and Its Implications - Interview with Fred Halliday:

https://platypus1917.org/wp-content/uploads/readings/hallidayfred_iranrev1987_NLR16202.pdf

Revisiting Foucault and the Iranian Revolution- Janet Afary & Kevin B. Anderson:

https://newpol.org/issue_post/revisiting-foucault-and-iranian-revolution/

Foucault and the Iranian Revolution: Gender and the Seductions of Islamism - Janet Afary & Kevin B. Anderson:

https://caringlabor.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/foucault-and-the-iranian-revolution-janet-afary.pdf

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www.platypus1917.org

This New Years' episode of SPS comes in two parts. In the first, co-hosts Pam N. and Itsï R. take up the Epstein files. What is this about? What does it have to do with the Left? And what does it have to do with political reality? We discuss. In the second part, Itsï and Pam sit down with Marco T. to talk about the new Paul Thomas Anderson film, One Battle after Another (2025). We treat the film as a work of art -- try to understand the world of the film and its nutty vision of paranoid cabals. We get into how it measures up to the rest of Anderson's work and what it reveals about the imagination of the last 15 years. And we comment on the reviews from Jacobin, the World Socialist Website, and the National Review.

That's a wrap for the SPS team in 2025! Thanks to our listeners for the great feedback and suggestions -- keep them coming. As always, if you like the podcast, share it, and leave us a review! It goes a long way to help us get the word out. SPS is on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Soundcloud. If you want to send us a message, find us at [email protected] and on IG: @shitplatypussays.

Episode Links:

- Chris Cutrone on Venezuela (Sublation Media, December 2025)

https://youtu.be/EYdgYDMqG7Y?si=LIYIAOPAYVJxCSpF

- Spartacists on Venezuela (Workers Vanguard No. 1188, December 2025)

https://iclfi.org/pubs/wv/1188/venezuela

Published after our recording so we didn't get a chance to discuss it, but take a read!

- Jacobin review of One Battle after Another

https://jacobin.com/2025/09/one-battle-after-another-review

- WSWS review of One Battle after Another

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/10/04/xvwh-o04.html

- Armond White's review of One Battle after Another for the National Review

https://www.nationalreview.com/2025/09/there-will-be-bloodlust-in-one-battle-after-another/

- Sunit Singh's review of The Baader-Meinhof Complex (2008) (Platypus Review 12, May 2009)

https://platypus1917.org/2009/05/15/film-review-the-baader-meinhof-complex/

- SPS on Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/ep19

On this episode of SPS, we talk about all things Mamdani -- the new DSA mayor of New York City. Your host Pamela N. sits down with former co-host Laurie R., Platypus president Erin H., and our New York member Benjamin K. -- one of the organizers of the recent Platypus Mamdani panel in NYC. We give our impressions of the Oval Office press conference, after the first Trump and Mamdani meeting, and we digest the discussion by the Left on Mamdani captured in our NYC Mamdani panel. We discuss the history of Sewer Socialism, the Second International, and the Millennial Left's journey towards a "new New Deal." The episode features clips from the panel recording to anchor the conversation for our listeners. The edited transcript of that panel has been published on the Platypus Review's most recent issue, linked below. We encourage our listeners to take a read!

Links

- Platypus Panel (NYU): "Whither socialism? Mamdani and the Left," with Mitchel Cohen, Melvyn Dubofsky, Daniel Lazare, and Sebastian LM (September 26, 2025, published Nov. 2025)

Edited Transcript: https://platypus1917.org/2025/11/01/whither-socialism-mamdani-and-the-left/

Video recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRmIkNQB4ME

- Mamdani Victory Speech (Nov. 2025)

https://youtu.be/_650kn3RpmI?si=IfgevMLTzgJEpDSh

- Michael Kinnucan, "How Zohran Mamdani Triumphed Over a Decrepit Establishment" (Nov. 2025)

https://jacobin.com/2025/11/mamdani-dsa-democrats-cuomo-socialists

- Derek Thompson, "'What Speaks to Me About Abundance': My Full Interview With Zohran Mamdani" (Jun. 2025)

https://www.derekthompson.org/p/what-speaks-to-me-about-abundance

- "Socialism in one City?" Independent Labor Club of New York event (Sept. 2025)

https://x.com/ILCofNYC/status/1964339829446946907?s=20

- "Socialism in Our Time: A Jacobin Conference" (Sept. 2025)

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/socialism-in-our-time-a-jacobin-conference-tickets-1485130077039

- Jacobin obituary for David Dinkins, “What David Dinkins Taught Us" (Nov. 2020)

https://jacobin.com/2020/11/david-dinkins-mayor-new-york-city-obituary

- Daniel Lazare, "Cheering on Trump" (Jan. 2025)

http://forum.permanent-revolution.org/2025/01/cheering-on-trump.html

- Mamdani Meet the Press Interview (Nov. 23, 2025)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YNwdXW64WA

This mini-episode is a teaser for our eighth European Conference, soon to be held in Leipzig. Lisa sits down with the organizers to discuss the program for the weekend. See you there!

Details as follows:

VIII. Annual Platypus European Conference

What's Left of Europe?

13th-15th November 2025

Leipzig, Germany

Highlights include panel discussions on the French Revolution and the state of the European Left today, teach-ins on Ferdinand Lassalle and the American Revolution, and a book talk by Spencer Leonard.

Full schedule here: https://sites.google.com/view/whatsleftofeurope

Get in touch with our Leipzig chapter at

https://www.instagram.com/platypus_leipzig

www.platypus-leipzig.de

Get in touch with our Paris chapter at

https://www.instagram.com/platypusfrance

www.platypusfrance.org

Access our entire archive at www.platypus1917.org

Pam, Andreas, Bekah, and Itsï from our editorial team discuss the state of the Left, how Platypus proceeds in such an atmosphere, and the opportunities for education in the present.

This is a prelude to Lisa's conversation about a Reading Group on Chris Cutrone's book, The Death of the Millennial Left, organized by members Elli (Leipzig) and Nezam (Munich). They are joined by our contact Anna, as well as our Philly member Ethan K, who reflects on his teach-in on the Millennial Left back from 2022. They discuss their personal experiences and the relation of the Zoomers to the Millennial generation.

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Links:

Ethan‘s teach-in (2022): https://youtu.be/giFPwmi49Tk?si=ZC9OZDEgNu0KMM3u

Chris Cutrone, The Death of the Millennial Left:

US: https://www.amazon.com/Death-Millennial-Left-Interventions-2006-2022/dp/B0C7SH5XTY

EU/DE: https://amzn.eu/d/e4Ssu8s

Ethan‘s article (for the assiduous): https://platypus1917.org/2025/09/01/the-ends-of-abstinence/

Bekah welcomes back SPS's resident financial guru to discuss the impact of Trump's tariffs on the state of world finances, markets, and leftist politics on both sides of the Atlantic.

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Further Materials:

What is the Relevance of the EU for the Left? (Leipzig, 06/24): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DlJpbdI4rs

Tariffs, Trade War & the Working Class (Independent Labor Club of New York, 29.3.25): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anLh3-U9jKs

D.L. Jacobs' remarks published as Liberation Day: https://www.sublationmag.com/post/liberation-day

The Crisis of Neoliberalism (Vienna, 05/17): https://platypus1917.org/2017/05/03/the-crisis-of-neoliberalism/

The Millennial Left is Dead (10/17): https://platypus1917.org/2017/10/01/millennial-left-dead/

Beyond Left and Right? (London, 07/24): https://youtu.be/xschDfeBlDg?si=Ydiu0Ps7u5GaDsqR

Radical Interpretations of the Present Crisis Panel Series:

New York, 11/14/12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSUlDcXEnR8

London, 12/01/12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qH7ofme8_bE

Chicago, 12/03/12: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFepPXbu13o

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Original soundtracks by Tamas Vilaghy

Editing work by Michael Woodson

To learn more about Platypus, go to www.platypus1917.org

Lisa sits down with Erin, Danny, and Tim to discuss recent iterations of our Immigration & the Left Panel, as well as the trajectory of immigration politics from the Millennial Left to the present.

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IMMIGRATION & THE LEFT PANEL SERIES

UC San Diego (5/22/25) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_KvcJddPp4

Columbia University (4/28/25) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DG4vBqNDQ4w

University of Illinois in Chicago (11/07/16) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw9UbFW37U4

University of Houston (10/23/16) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyblZjZjBfs

Immigration and the Left: An Interview with David Wilson (Sep 2011) - https://platypus1917.org/2011/08/31/immigration-and-the-left-david-wilson/

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Summer Reading Group on pre-Marxian socialism: https://platypus1917.org/2025/05/22/summer-2025-readings-pre-marxian-socialism/

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News Coverage Source: CBS Evening News 9/7/25

We're back with a long episode in two parts.

In the first half, Pam, Natalie, and Ed reflect upon the closing plenary of the 2025 Platypus International Convention, "Is there a Left in the 21st Century?" which featured Andrew Hartman (author of Marx in America), Branko Marcetic (Democratic Socialists of America & Jacobin author), Chris Cutrone (Platypus), and Alex Higgins (Prometheus Journal).

In the second half, Tamas and Andony sit down with Doug Lain to discuss his experience of the 80s and 90s counter-cultural Left, and possible parallels with our current moment.

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Is there a Left in the 21st Century? (4/5/2025) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE0zr2hs8i4

SPS Intro to the Platypus International Convention

https://soundcloud.com/platypus-affiliated-society/2025-convention

Platypus Summer 2025 Reading Group: Pre-Marxian Socialism

https://platypus1917.org/2025/05/22/summer-2025-readings-pre-marxian-socialism/

The Legacy of the 1980s (3/31/22) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EG4uFkcNhHE

Why Does Society Have Politics? (4/5/25) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a_-4JRdi6c

The Left in the 1980s (2013) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhtI3AfGjcY

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Original soundtracks by Tamas Vilaghy

Editing work by Michael Woodson

To learn more about Platypus, go to www.platypus1917.org