Those who enjoy the wages of imperialism are more likely to have disdain for, or disinterest in, the complex struggles for national liberation in the periphery, which is dismissed as “the savage barbarism of the East,” in the choice words of Max Horkheimer.

This chauvinistic attitude has become so foundational to Western Marxism that theorists in this tradition often behave as if there were no need to actually study the history of socialist states in any serious manner. In fact, the attempt to do so is often looked upon with suspicion, as a sign that one might be a boor siding with the slaves, rather than a professional intellectual with a keen sense of what is worthy of scholarly inquiry.

  • Gabriel Rockhill - From the introduction to Losurdo’s Western Marxism
  • ☭ 𝗖 𝗔 𝗧 ☭@mastodon.social
    8·
    8 months ago

    @dessalines
    This is why I don’t think there’s much revolutionary potential in imperial core nations among the working classes outside of the very most oppressed, in America, the African and Native populations who, while also benefitting from imperialism, benefit far less than the white population since they are colonized people within America. If any revolutionary socialist movement springs fourth in America, it will likely come from either of those two groups, in my opinion.

    • Dessalines@lemmy.mlOP
      6·
      8 months ago

      Absolutely. The black panthers were the last best attempt, and the FBI killed or imprisoned most of them. Highly recommend the book black against empire for the full history of this.

      IMO the imperial core countries, and especially the united states would be dead last on the list of countries most likely to have a revolution.

      The global south has and will continue to lead the way and provide the main hope for humanity.

        • ☭ 𝗖 𝗔 𝗧 ☭@mastodon.social
          5·
          8 months ago

          @for @dessalines
          America isn’t having any kind of revolution currently. It’s having a reactionary movement to prevent revolution from happening. It’s not a coincidence that the MAGA movement is happening at around the same time that socialism started to become more popular. The same thing happened in Italy and Germany in the 20s and 30s. Wherever socialism becomes popular, even a little bit, fascism also appears because fascism is a response to socialism.