Base and Superstructure

Alienation, autonomy, and ideology

Category: Activism (Page 7 of 30)

These are posts on activism from the blog Base and Superstructure. This takes many forms. The focus here is on political activism, above all on activist organizing and base-building. One concern is how to build effective movements. There’s also a need to create solidarity with fellow members and build coalitions with other groups. The main aim of good movements is to work together to advance material interests. This section also includes critiques of electoral work, and discussion of how and when to use elections to advance activist goals. Navigating the balance between grassroots work and electoral work is difficult for everyone.

Images of two questions from the Implicit Association Test. The images show a person at a computer looking at photos of a black person and a white person.

Two Deeper Problems for the Implicit Association Test

October 16, 2023 /

Anyone following the replication crisis (and other debates) in the social sciences knows about one key problem with the implicit association test. In short, it’s not clear whether the test predicts anything. That is to say, ‘implicit bias,’ as measured by the IAT, might not predict prejudice or discriminatory behavior.

That’s a problem for the IAT for the obvious reason that its creators intend it as a major tool in the fight against racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression.

But I want to suggest that the IAT has even deeper problems. At least two of them. Even if the IAT does predict behavior, it still doesn’t explain a lot about why racism and sexism and happen. Nor does it tells us how to fight them.

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Cover for the book New Lefts by Terence Renaud. Cover depicts the title and a swirl of bright colors.

Rethinking the New Left?

October 9, 2023 /

As readers may have noticed, I have a habit of writing about the New Left in a derogatory way.

I complain about its bad habits. I lament its navel gazing, its development of alienating leftist subculture, and its embrace of open-ended, structureless meetings. And more than anything, I think it’s unfortunate the New Left still influences new activist groups.

So, it’s fair to say I was overdue for a correction from more sober historians.

Never fear, dear reader. That day has arrived!

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A protest sign that says Shut It Down! It has an image of a fist.

Iowa City’s Anarcho-Liberalism

September 11, 2023 /

Bhaskar Sunkara kicked up a bit of a storm when he first wrote about ‘anarcho-liberalism’ in 2011. Sunkara wrote about this odd term as an extension of the politics of the New Left.  Specifically the anti-globalization movement of the late 1990s and early 2000s. And when he used the term, Sunkara called to mind two things: first, a rejection of the mass working class institutions and politics of the left, and second, ‘revolutionary’ critique and action from people and small groups.

Let me narrow this down a bit in a way that readers might apply to their local situations. Anarcho-liberalism often amounts to a kind of knee-jerk cynicism and opposition toward government, especially at the local level. And it lacks any serious plan to build a movement to take power in the interests of the working class.

Insofar as anarcho-liberalism allows for an alternative, it falls back on NGOs, non-profits, or ‘mutual aid.’ And these are the best options. At its worst, it fails to go beyond ‘pestering’ local officials with no deeper goal.

In short, it’s a mess. And it has its backers in Iowa City.

Let’s talk a bit about that.

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Book cover for The Idea of Prison Abolition by Tommie Shelby.

The Idea of Prison Abolition

August 28, 2023 /

I recently read The Idea of Prison Abolition, a book by Tommie Shelby collecting his remarks in the Carl G. Hempel Lecture Series at Princeton. It’s a book on a polarizing issue, and its conclusions will satisfy few participants.

But that need not trouble us.

Shelby isn’t an abolitionist. Rather, he sets out to study the work of abolitionists in order to draw philosophical and practical insights about prisons. He draws insights both for our society and for the better societies we seek to build. Along the way, he draws key distinctions and offers sympathetic criticism of abolitionism. He also situates abolitionism within both black Marxist and black radical traditions.

It’s a worthwhile project, and I’ll take an extended look at it. I’ll also say a bit about how it clarifies and expands upon what I wrote about prison abolition some time ago.

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2023 DSA Convention Reaction

August 14, 2023 /

I wanted to check in with a quick post laying out a few reactions to the 2023 DSA Convention. This isn’t meant to substitute for a more in-depth analysis of the Resolutions passed and the changes to the NPC. But I’m laying it out as an overview of the big picture.

1. By electing a ‘left’ NPC majority of 10-6 (with ‘left’ in quotes because it’s a contested term in DSA, to put it mildly), delegates signaled dissatisfaction with the 2021-2023 NPC. Particularly with the Socialist Majority and GND/Groundwork coalitions.

2. Delegates offered some clarity around key debates, e.g., BDS Working Group and Palestinian liberation, but they did so via compromise rather than by settling the issues for one side or another. This shows, I think, political maturity.

3. Finally, I think that by funding all current priority campaigns (Electoral, GND, Housing, International, Labor, M4A) and adding yet another priority campaign, i.e., trans liberation and reproductive rights, delegates punted on important political debates about prioritizing work. The org simply doesn’t have the money and capacity to run all these campaigns, so the NPC will ultimately have to decide which of these to prioritize. More importantly, the Convention locked in the current ‘issue’ strategy rather than switching to a more advisable ‘class’ strategy.

I suspect readers already know which campaigns I think we should prioritize: Housing, International, and Labor.

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