New Republic writer Sarah Jones joins Dan to talk about Trump’s invocation of the “alt-left” and to explain the term’s unseemly centrist history. And more. We’re gonna try doing two episodes each week now: the regular long Dig on Tuesdays and a shorter, hotter-take Diglet on Fridays. This will take more time and more money. If you listen to and love the show please support us at https://www.patreon.com/thedig

The FARC peace accord is a historic victory for Colombian society. But the struggle to build an urban left strong enough to take on the country’s powerful right remains a daunting one. Today’s guest is Forrest Hylton, the author of Evil Hour in Colombia. Check out a great article from Forrest here https://www.academia.edu/26907051/The_Experience_of_Defeat_The_Colombian_Left_and_the_Cold_War_that_Never_Ended And also Forgotten Peace: Reform, Violence, and the Making of Contemporary Colombia from our supporters at University of California Press http://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520293939

With Trump, Mexico is the symbol and source of so many things that are wrong with the United States. Oftentimes, these stories told about Mexico in the United States aren’t just wrong but serve to obscure the true source of our shared problems—which, more often than not, are both countries’ ruling classes. Today’s guest is Christy Thornton, a professor of history and international studies at Rowan University, and soon to be fellow at the Weatherhead Research Cluster on Global Transformations at Harvard. Thanks to our supporters at University of California Press.

We’re taking a quick break halfway into our four-part series of interviews on Latin America because this week is a big week for the American left: Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA, is holding its first national convention since the organization has undergone a massive explosion in size. This episode is long as hell and we apologize that some of the audio quality is a little crappier than normal. But the debate and discussion are great.

Hugo Chávez’s rise to power inspired leftists around the world. But today, Venezuela is in a profound economic and political crisis. A huge decline in oil prices gutted the revenue stream that Venezuela depended on to bankroll its social spending. The government led by Chavez’s successor Nicolás Maduro is increasingly turning to repression in response to constant, and often violent, protests from the opposition. NYU historian and NACLA Executive Editor Alejandro Velasco explains what’s happening in Venezuela, how it happened—and how the promise of the Bolivarian Revolution might still be salvaged. Thanks to our supporters at nacla.org, an unrivaled source for left-wing news on Latin America.