Base and Superstructure

Alienation, autonomy, and ideology

Category: Activism (Page 9 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.

Book cover for Canceling Comedians While The World Burns by Ben Burgis.

Burgis on Canceling Comedians

June 12, 2023 /

Podcaster, author, and philosopher Ben Burgis recently published a short series of essays called Canceling Comedians While The World Burns. In this body of work, Burgis positions himself as a critic of certain tendencies on the left. But he critiques these tendencies from a strategic, (genuinely) sympathetic, and constructive perspective.

I think that’s a good idea. In fact, I try to do it myself from time to time. And not just because I’m also a philosopher and we like that sort of thing. Though I am also a philosopher, and we do like that sort of thing. Rather, because it’s a practical, useful skill for the left. We should think more deeply about strategy. And we should think about how our choices and public presentation affect how and whether we recruit new members, appeal to target audiences, and achieve results.

Burgis writes Canceling Comedians While The World Burns with these things in mind, and I’ll keep them in mind in discussing his book.

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Poster for the 2023 DSA Convention. It depicts roses on both side of a logo.

2023 DSA Convention Proposals

June 3, 2023 /

I know, I know. I’ve been writing a lot about DSA lately. But the 2023 DSA Convention draws near. And after writing about broader issues of DSA strategy, I wanted to say a word about the Convention proposals.

As I’m sure many readers know, we have lots of them still in play. Rather than try to address all of them, I’ll focus on ones I clearly support or oppose. To narrow things down a bit further, I’ll focus mostly on Resolutions rather than Constitutional or Bylaws Amendments. I’ll provide brief arguments for where I stand on each proposal I discuss, though readers should certainly reach out if they’d like more detail.

And, of course, comments always welcome!

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Pieces on a game board designed to represent DSA strategy.

DSA Strategy: Issues vs. Classes

May 29, 2023 /

As the 2023 DSA Convention approaches, let’s try to answer a strategic question. The question concerns a big picture issue, one that I think people tend to lose in the details of the various Resolutions on display.

So, let’s talk broad, national strategy. I have in mind DSA’s ‘decision’ – quotes because it’s perhaps more a starting point than a decision – to run priority campaigns around issues rather than people. DSA builds its recruitment model on attracting people to issues like Medicare for All rather than reaching out to members of target classes and building campaigns around their ideas. An org can do both, of course. But DSA probably doesn’t have the resources to do both well. And, at present, it only does the former.

I’ll argue in this post that DSA should run grassroots organizing campaigns built around classes first, rather than issues.

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About a dozen people sitting at a table for an activist meeting and watching a facilitator write on a board at the front.

Why Are Activist Meetings So Bad?

May 22, 2023 /

I’ve spent the last 20 years attending activist meetings, from my Bloomington days through my time in Iowa City. What almost all these meetings have in common is that they’re badly and ineffectively run.

Why?

Granted, most of them happened in college towns. So I could chalk it up to some kind of college town effect. But I’m not too convinced by that. In every other respect, the meetings vary quite a bit. Some involved putting together a new group. Others involved far more established groups. Some were meetings of socialist or anarchist groups, while others focused on identity- or issue-based activism. And attendees varied quite a bit in terms of age, gender, race, socioeconomic status, and other categories.

And still, most activist meetings stink. They start late, run over on time, and are facilitated badly. Many people come away frustrated. Maybe the issues they care about didn’t find its way to the agenda. Maybe there wasn’t an agenda at all. Meetings often feel more like friend hangouts than spaces where people do things. And many of these friend hangouts feel inaccessible to anyone not already part of the group.

Again, why? I don’t think it’s due to the intent of organizers. Quite the opposite. Most organizers want to create spaces accessible to new and diverse people. Most want meetings that are democratic and productive. And they use the methods they know in order to get there.

Indeed. I’ll suggest the methods are a big part of the problem here. The methods aren’t so great.

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How Do Culture and Politics Connect?

May 15, 2023 /

This is a collage of several figures from culture and politics in the U.S.: Donald Trump, Roseanne, Jordan Peele, and Kanye.

I often write in this blog about links between culture and politics. Indeed, we’ve even got a tag for ‘culture’ (see the bottom of this post). But I’ve never tried to systematize any of this, to tell a larger story about how culture and politics connect.

We need such a story. Over the years, I’ve seen a shift on the left in how we link culture and politics. And, for the most part, it’s a shift for the worse, not the better.

As I wrote a blog post and an article on Isaac Asimov and harassment, these broader issues rose to the surface. Does an author’s work provide insight into their politics? Does our study of culture provide us with political insights? More important for our present purposes – and for trends on the left – does our critique of culture provide us with political insights or breakthroughs? And do we do politics when we make or critique culture?

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