r/leftist

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez may be the first politician in a generation with a real chance to turn a scattered left insurgency into a national project. An AOC presidential run has the potential to completely reshape the terrain of American politics, on socialist lines. In his latest, Nik M. argues that 2028 isn’t a guaranteed victory nor a looming failure—but a rare political opportunity.

I don’t know where else to post this but I was just reminded of it and my blood is boiling. Not only did three hundred seventy fucking officers show up and weren’t able do to shit, but a teacher got f*cking blamed in the end because she didn’t leave the school door propped open. So it’s her fault but not the fault of the cops because cops technically aren’t legally obligated to help or protect citizens when they are in danger? I do not believe the conspiracy theories that suggest this was orchestrated, but like this is so horrific a case of police negligence that I genuinely cannot blame people for coming up with conspiracies that suggest the CIA orchestrated it, because those officers quite literally stood there and let the shooter gun down those kids.

I really don’t understand why other leftists can’t just accept that somewhere like the DPRK for example isn’t a utopia where everyone loves their life. It’s not to say that the DPRK is as bad as western propaganda points it out to be, but I feel like a lot of other leftists are very much either “North Korea bad” or “North Korea best place on Earth” It has it’s flaws, and It’s not perfect. But whenever I seem to say this, I get called a liberal because I’m “trying to stay in the middle.” Is this really a liberal take? My thoughts on the DPRK are pretty varied but I feel like It’s just a country in the end.

im new to socialism and i consider myself to be more of a libertarian market socialist or democratic socialist and was wondering what books you guys would recommend reading

hi, so i’m a new leftist. i’ve always been faintly anti capitalist but never read too much into like communism and socialism. and i’m here to change that. i’ll be honest the manifesto was SUCH a hard read 😭

i’m assuming i’d get better replies here instead of on tiktok, so i’d like to ask for books on communism/socialism to get me introduced to core concepts and things of that nature because i wanted to get on international archive n start reading until i realized i didnt understand anything i was reading. i’d also like it if anyone has good recommendations for books on marxist feminism and simply whatever you guys think is important to know when reading theory. thank you!!!

The working class and youth must draw from the war the necessary conclusions. It is not enough to be appalled. Horror, left to itself, exhausts itself in impotent frustration or isolated episodes of individual resistance. What is required is the development of a mass working class socialist movement, which is guided by an internationalist socialist program, infused with genuine revolutionary morality, and opposed in every respect to the depravity of the ruling class.

Such a morality has nothing in common with the smug sermonizing of the academies or the selective outrage of hypocritical liberalism. It arises from the struggle against capitalist exploitation and oppression. It is a morality of open class struggle, grounded in solidarity, in truthfulness, in the defense of the oppressed, in uncompromising hostility to cruelty and domination, in the conviction that human beings cannot be treated as expendable objects in the service of profit and power. Within it are contained the highest principles of civilization and the deepest aspirations of humanity.

This is the answer to the old slanders against Marxism. The real “amoralists” are not the revolutionary socialists, but the ruling classes and their accomplices, who arm, finance and implement genocide. The criminality of the American ruling class and its international collaborators is being exposed before the eyes of the world. Against that criminality there must be mobilized a force guided by a higher social principle and a higher moral conception. That force is the international working class. Its struggle for socialism is not merely politically necessary. It is the indispensable expression of all that is humane, decent and emancipatory in modern civilization. The survival of humanity depends upon its victory.

I've been friends with this guy for about a year and a half and up until a couple of months ago, we used to be really close. We definitely never agreed politically but I used to think we had similar values.

He was the type of person I could have a conversation about socialism with and as long as I never mentioned the word socialism, he'd agree with what I was saying. I even felt like I was able to make him rethink a few strongly held beliefs and nudge him to the left.

He's been going through it a bit recently (being unhappy at work was the main catalyst, I think) and his solution was to join the army reserves. For context, we live in the UK. It honestly shocked me a bit. I'm obviously anti-imperialist and I would also consider myself a pacifist.

I don't even know how to interact with him anymore! I can't force myself to be happy for him when he tells me he's gotten through to the next stage of the application process. And I really didn't know how to respond when he talked about needing to decide between two different regiments (or whatever they're called) but he wasn't sure how to choose between learning to shoot people with rifles or learning to shoot them with drones.

On top of all that, he's been making comments that have me worried he's getting radicalised by the people he's interacting with in the army. For example: I'm an immigrant and I've recently been dealing with a lot of bureaucracy to get my immigration status changed. I made a comment about how the government is deliberately making the process difficult to shut people out simply for not understanding complicated bureaucratic processes.

My friend said that it's ridiculous that they're making it difficult for someone like me who's here legally while "it's so easy for the people that come in boats to stay here and get on benefits". In a different conversation, he started talking about how "English people need to start having a sense of national identity again and be proud to be English".

It's honestly baffling. He's never said anything like this before. I don't want to lose my friend but if he keeps going down this road I can't keep him in my life with a clear conscience, either. At the same time, I'm scared that I'll just leave him to get radicalised further if I stop talking to him.

I used the "Debate Help" flair but I'd be happy with any kind of advice you have, or any similar experiences you can share!

Adding for context to help me communicate: I am autistic, if I've misunderstood or taken a bad stance, please tell me, I want to learn and grow.

When I was a teenager, I agreed with any take the collective left had and never fact checked anything I found while scrolling online, and now that I'm older I agree with most and still consider myself a leftist. I'm hopping between a few subreddits rn with questions, but I do want to learn more. I'm tired of just seeing ragefarming pretending to be leftist politics.

here's my concern. I want to help, be part of the cause, feel like I'm standing for something. But it was easier when I was a kid. As an adult, I feel like I'm arguing for an idealized version of the world. Social media has turned activism into "I say my opinion online" and that's it.

When the BLM protests happened, one was down the street from me. Old friends were states away in their own protests, and I was stuck at home, with a baby and another on the way. I remember feeling disappointed in myself, like I was going against what I'd preached for years. Then stuff started getting worse online, headlines sounded like a dread randomizer, and all I could do was be mad. My days were being spent miserable focusing on the hate in the world I couldn't fix. (I know it sounds like a pity party, it doesn't compare to the people who have to endure it online and in their daily lives)

I used to be in more left spaces, but I noticed it was getting more and more rigid. we couldn't disagree within the space, and I don't mean a disagreement over human rights or something that fundamentally goes against the movement. For example:

- If you vote Green/Independent, does that make you as bad as MAGAts? (I can see the point being made, but I'd argue we shouldn't be restricted to two parties, it defeats the point)

- If you're white and have no POC in your circle, does it not make it performative to seek out POC to have around you for the sake of being "informed" (this was a real argument, the " " is for lack of better wording. This was confusing because it felt backhanded)

- Knowing the origins and current use of "dumb" and "lame", are those ablist terms? (I do not think using these words is enough to condemn someone. Even if you tell someone the origins, I don't see why this makes someone bad enough to be removed from the community.

- Is this type of rigidity commonplace on the left or did I just end up in an extreme group? Is there progress being made anywhere?

Sorry for how long this is. I want to be a good person, but as soon as I figured out the controls, they released new rules. People are just too complex to force everything into little compartments, I didn't want people doing that to me. Thank you for reading, just for fun I'll list my firm stances that seem impossible:

- Anti-War. Rock paper scissors for all I care you can never convince me of any "good" that comes from war

- You can express yourself however you want. Gender conforming pressure is a parasite. Make sure we keep it appropriate in kids' spaces (they really don't have many innocent spaces anymore. I think kids are being normalized to sex and violence, which doesn't feel fair to them.)

- If you're cruel to kids because they're kids, gross

- It really may have been them damn phones

- Pro solution to the problem. Don't like abortions? Fight for something that would reduce them, like proper sexual education, accessable protection, and even support for expecting mothers who may not want to abort but feels it's the best choice. Screaming about something being "evil" doesn't do anything but stop any communication.

- protect children from Hollywood, the internet, social media, and mommy-bloggers. We're building a market off of child exploitation it's disgusting

Sorry if this is an odd post, or if I’m overthinking. I’m QTBIPOC an so is my spouse. We have a very nontraditional relationship and we have had family friction because of it. I live in a very leftist city. My friends are leftist and mostly queer or trans and leftist as well.

Even though we are both not cis and operate non traditionally, I feel like people look at me sideways when they find out I am married. We already knew we were life partners for a while now and have been together for coming up on 6 years. The decision to get married was mainly to consolidate and save money on benefits like healthcare (we live in the US), and because I’m chronically ill, I want my spouse to be able to come into the hospital and help out with the logistical side of things if we need to. Though my hope is that I don’t need to go to the hospital often and haven’t had an ER visit in about a year.

Even though we incorporated a lot of ancestral traditions that honor marriage outside of the state (ie broom jumping etc), I still feel judged at times. To be clear, we are married on paper. Which is probably where the disconnect is with the community.

Is it inherently wrong to be married due to the institution of marriage? Is this something I should address with my friends? This seems more like a political bone to pick with some friends, which is why I’m asking in the leftist sub.

*I am going to post this on three subreddits that I think most will get a good laugh out of it*

We have known for some time that Trump and his cronies are lying about the U.S. Economy and the associated data.

At this point they should be awarded the Michelin Star because they are cooking the books at a fantastical level lol

This moron is going to cause another 2008 great financial crisis.

This "Everything Bubble" economy is gonna burst.

I’m hoping to see how others who celebrate Easter will plan to do so in a way that upholds leftist values and rejects any kind of Christian nationalism.

Does he vape?? He's always acting like he's hitting a vape on his channel and stream. And is like taking a huge breath when hiding it. I do this too when I hit my cart I was just curious because it's definitely distracting during the debates when he's huffing a vape every couple minutes.