Is There a Left-Wing Revival in the US?

Some say that it died, while others say it is being reborn as a progressive people’s movement. Resistance is coming from immigrants, minimum-wage workers, defenders of fundamental rights and freedoms, and teachers. However, nothing exists that could be called a left-wing people’s movement.

Jefferson warned that the tree of freedom must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is a natural fertilizer. He argued that no country can preserve its political freedoms if its leaders do not understand that its people will maintain their spirit of resistance and, with it, ready access to gunpowder. Jefferson added that he wished a rebellion would happen at least every 20 years. He saw it not as illegal insurgency, but as legal recuperation.

The unarmed social movements of the 1950s and 1960s refreshed the tree of freedom with their devotion and sacrifice. However, the system amplified the fear of violent rebellions, making public and private industry repressive and highly controlled for its own good.

Much debate was provoked among liberals when it was written that the left wing gave in to the country by declaring itself as liberal rather than radical, and taking a defensive stance that is solely seen in the electoral arena. That made the left wing move closer to the center, putting it second to the Democratic Party, meaning that the left wing’s social vision was repressed, and its political imagination was wrecked. People criticized the left wing for its love-in with Obama, saying that playing second fiddle to him fundamentally shows its limits.

The crucial task for an engaged left wing in the United States is to admit that it does not exist as an effective political force. It has to build that force. That requires founding it on a vibrant workers’ movement, which must resurrected. It must also reject the idea that one spark will magically set off a mass movement. This will not be achieved through progressive blogs either, but through the good old way of creating and establishing relationships with other groups that are not part of the comfortable inner circles of the left wing.

There are optimistic people. They see a progressive rebirth. There are signs of a new movement centered on the recent surge of left-wing populist fervor. When you say “populist” in the United States, it refers not to demagogy, but to a historical political movement that defends and promotes the peoples’ interests against political and economic leaders.