History and Traditions

Long before the fall of the Berlin Wall, there was a history of workers' struggle against the self-described Communist regimes of Eastern Europe. November 6, 2009

The regimes of Eastern Europe that collapsed 20 years after a series of mass rebellions were the opposite of what we mean by socialism. November 3, 2009

Socialism is a system in which people democratically come together to determine how to structure our society so everyone can reach their real potential. October 29, 2009

Non-human animals don't possess the attributes that would allow them to engage in activities we associate with "liberation" and "rights." October 26, 2009

When politicians gathered at the Capitol for the unveiling of a statue of Helen Keller, they left out an important fact--Keller was a socialist. October 19, 2009

One hundred and fifty years ago today, a band of men led by John Brown launched an armed attack they hoped would spark an uprising against slavery. October 16, 2009

The myths taught to America about Christopher Columbus' "discovery" of America are a cover for inconceivable acts of violence. October 15, 2009

China recently marked the 60th anniversary of a 1949 "peoples' revolution" that kicked out foreign powers--but workers there have never really held power. October 13, 2009

Marek Edelman, the last surviving leader of the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, passed away on October 2 at the age of 90. October 12, 2009

Capitalism depends for its survival on divisions created in the working class, so the struggle for a new society must challenge those divisions. October 9, 2009

Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story is an incredible indictment of the current system. But what should replace it? October 8, 2009

The three victorious strikes that paved the way for the struggles to come in the 1930s were led by radicals dedicated to solidarity and rank-and-file democracy. October 6, 2009

The history of the Teamster Rebellion in Minneapolis is packed with lessons, especially the importance of mobilizing a militant rank and file. September 29, 2009

The San Francisco General Strike in July 1934 involved 200,000 workers up and down the West Coast, making it the largest general strike in U.S. history. September 21, 2009

The 1934 Auto-Lite strike in Toledo, Ohio showed how workers could unite, employed with unemployed, to defeat the power of the bosses. September 15, 2009

Marxists reject the idea that history is made by charismatic "great men." But that doesn't mean they view individuals as cogs in the machine. September 11, 2009

There's a misconception that Marxists believe history follows a predetermined course as a result of economic laws, which human beings can't affect. August 28, 2009

Long omitted from the history books, the Seattle General Strike of 1919 offers an inspiring view of what it would look like if workers took power in the U.S. August 27, 2009

The Industrial Workers of the World based itself on the idea of industrial unionism--of organizing all workers together, regardless of skills, craft, sex, nationality or race. August 20, 2009

Anti-imperialists don't pick and chose what countries to defend against the U.S., but we also should not allow ourselves to ignore the nature of regimes like that in Iran. August 18, 2009

The writer who helped create the fictional character that Chicago's Bud Billiken parade is named after was a militant fighter for civil rights. August 6, 2009

"Common sense" says that there isn't enough to go around, and this is what accounts for famines and poverty in the world. But common sense is wrong. August 3, 2009

What you think about the Tiananmen uprising 20 years ago goes to the heart of what you think about socialism today. July 21, 2009

Leon Trotsky's theory explained how the working-class struggle for socialism could develop in countries that were economically backward. July 15, 2009

Forty years ago, a police raid on a New York City gay bar, the Stonewall Inn, sparked nights of rioting--and the start of a new LGBT movement. June 25, 2009