Class

On this episode, Luke talks with Michaela about DSA’s new Workers Deserve More Program. We talk about the program’s origins, the drafting process, and all of the cool demands it contains. We also discuss some of our favorite parts, the initial media reaction, future political education opportunities revolving around Workers Deserve More, and how DSA’s elected officials can support the program. Check out a recording of the mass call announcing the program. And of course, the program itself! 

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It's the summer of sports and socialism! Connell (River Valley DSA) and Jason (Connecticut DSA) join us to talk about socialist fandom, the political economy of sports in the US, and how sports can bring us together as an organization.

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Right-wingers have attacked public schools for decades as training grounds for future “woke” Marxists. Our guests Kevin, Mie, and Sudip turn that on its head with their new study, identifying what they’ve termed “social justice nationalism," a pedagogy that avoids class analysis and a real critique of power, and isolates social activism and politics from collective action. 

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Check out Kevin's book, I Guess This is Activism? here

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Right-wingers have attacked public schools for decades as training grounds for future “woke” Marxists. Our guests Kevin, Mie, and Sudip turn that on its head with their new study, identifying what they’ve termed “social justice nationalism," a pedagogy that avoids class analysis and a real critique of power, and isolates social activism and politics from collective action. 

Join the National Political Education Commission 

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Sign up to receive NPEC's newsletter, Red Letter. 

Jalil Muntaqim and Sid C. W. discuss the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, national liberation struggles, and the Spirit of Mandela coalition's July 4 National Mobilization Against Genocide. Jalil is a member of the Spirit of Mandela coalition, and Sid is a member of DSA's National Political Committee (NPC). 

Information about the mobilization can be found here. DSA is one of many organizations endorsing the mobilization, and members interested in attending or hosting a watch party can email Sid at sid@dsacommittees.org

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How should socialists position ourselves and our movement in the face of American decline and ongoing threats to democracy? Aziz Rana, DSA-endorsed candidate for Congress Oliver Larkin, and St Petersburg, FL’s socialist in office, Richie Floyd, discussed the current political terrain on a mass call recorded Weds 05/20, presented here as a podcast. 

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Gabriel from Portland DSA joins Class to discuss the complex political and class struggles around unpopular hyperscaled data center construction in Oregon, and how the moratorium campaign influenced the State House primaries happening now, where a DSA candidate, Tammy Carpenter, is competing against the Democratic establishment and tech capitalists.

Read about the OR data center struggle in PDX DSA’s blog here. The two Jacobin articles mentioned in the episode include Holly Buck's “Democratic Governance of AI is the Real Solution" and Aaron Regunberg's “Stop the AI Build-out, Start the Fight." 

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Cerena and Griffin, two DSA labor leaders from Houston and DC, join us to discuss the meaning and history of May Day for the socialist and labor movements and how, in this disorganizing time, we can still organize towards higher worker militancy and struggle to fight the right and capital.  

This year, our May Day demands are NO WAR, ABOLISH ICE, TAX THE RICH! Now, over 150 DSA chapters are doing something for May Day — we hope your local DSA is too. 

This site shows May Day actions all over the country — find yours! 

Here is...

Class is taking a spring break and will be back with our regular programming on April 20th. For now, enjoy a moment of seasonal poetry with a few comrades across time and space: Rosa Luxemburg, Bertolt Brecht, Langston Hughes, and Ada Limón. Happy early Earth Day and May Day, listeners! 

Read on this episode:

- Rosa Luxemburg’s letters to Hans Diefenbach, March 30, 1917 & Sophie Liebkecht, May 2, 1917

- Bertolt Brecht, "Morning Address to a Tree Named Green" (1927) & "Spring 1938" (1938). These are casual links for convenience; official English translations for these aren’t readily available online...

David (Socialist Majority, NYC-DSA) and Ramsin (Bread and Roses, Chicago DSA) discuss their perspectives on party-building, political independence, and the democratic road to socialism.  

Read David’s piece comparing the SPA and DSA, “The Long Reroute,” published by the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung here.

Read Ramsin’s pieces about how and when to advance socialist political independence, here and here.

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In this episode, we talk with Lisa from Labor Notes and Scott from the IBEW reform caucus CREW about the new guide on building rank-and-file reform caucuses in existing unions. Reform caucus organizing is one of the primary strategies within DSA and the broader American labor left to support the growth of a militant, democratic workers' movement. 

Find the new Labor Notes guide, “How to Build a Union Reform Caucus,” here. 

Check out the classic Secrets of a Successful Organizer here, as well as Ellen David Friedman’s new book, Keep Going: A Guide to Organizing...

NPEC member and former chair Evan (Mid-Hudson Valley) talks about his journey into socialism and garden knowledge, and how our hopeful politics of renewal, intention, collectivity, and cooperation are made practical and material by digging around in the dirt.

Evan recommends the book Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer for anyone interested in knowing more about his own learnings, and where he started to become interested in growing things in our world. You can find it for sale from the publisher here.

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We’re joined by Nick and Tyler from Louisville DSA to talk about being socialist poets and glimpsing beauty in a chaotic, capitalist world. 

Nick and Tyler’s occasional podcast, Poetry is a Destructive Force, is here.

Oscar Wilde's "The Soul of Man Under Socialism” is here.

Oscar Wilde's “Lecture to Art Students” is here.  

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We are pleased to present “Stop the Siege on Cuba,” a mass call from February 22nd by DSA’s International Committee and Cuba Solidarity Working Group, along with an interview with Claire from Boston DSA, a co-chair of the working group. Listen and learn how to get involved with democratic socialist activism in support of Cuban self-determination and freedom from imperialist violence and oppression. ¡Cuba sí, bloqueo no! 

Find out how to help stop the siege on Cuba with DSA here. 

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In this episode of Class, we talk to Sarah, chair of DSA’s National Grievance Panel, about the contradictions and openings of conflict within a socialist organization. We walk through some of the political and affective distinctions that must urgently be drawn to effectively struggle together as comrades and build the truly free world we want to live in. 

Read a review of Jodi Dean’s Comrade: An Essay On Political Belonging by NPEC alum Mie here. Buy Comrade here. 

Check out Gracie Lion's Constructive Criticism here.

Read Jo Freeman’s classic essay "Tyranny of...

On this episode, we talk with Colin from DSA’s National Tech Committee about becoming a socialist and doing socialism on the internet. This episode will kick off what we expect will be a regular discussion on the wide topic of “digital socialism.” 

NPEC/NTC Training 02/19: Socialist Archiving 201: The Digital Deep Dive

Get involved with DSA’s National Tech Committee! 

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On this episode, we talk to Megan, one of DSA’s national cochairs, about her political journey from early-00s girlboss feminism to Marta Harnecker’s mass-protagonist vision of a socialist future, and how collective political education was crucial to her transformation. 

Find Marta Harnecker’s writings in the Monthly Review online archive HERE.

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In this episode, Luke talks with Edward about the Socialist Party of America's (SPA) 1912 Program and its role in his political development. Luke concentrates on two aspects of the platform: its programmatic character and democratic political demands, including the demand for a democratic constitution. This is the first of several conversations we hope to host with NPEC members about texts that played an important role in their political development and current orientation. 

Luke mentions the SPA's Program, DSA's 2024-25 Workers Deserve More Program,  Aziz Rana's The Constitutional Bind, and Rana's interviews on Class. 

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In this episode, we talk to Ashik, one of DSA’s national cochairs, about how he grew into socialism over time through organizing and political education, from growing up Muslim in Bay Ridge during 9/11, to participating in the Occupy and environmental movements, to becoming a leader of the biggest socialist organization in the United States. 

Ashik’s picks:

Naomi Klein's books: https://naomiklein.org/books-and-films/

Ecology as Politics by Andre Gorz on Open Library: https://openlibrary.org/works/OL1390039W/Écologie_et_politique?edition=key%3A/books/OL14718425M

Reform and Revolut...

On January 6th, DSA’s International Committee (IC) and National Political Committee (NPC) organized an emergency mass call to discuss the Trump administration’s provocations in Venezuela, and socialists’ role in leading the fight against imperialist aggression. Class is pleased to present Hands Off Venezuela! as a podcast episode, following up on our episode on Cuba. 

Apply for DSA’s International Committee: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/dsa-international-committee-application

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DSA regularly sends large delegations of members to Cuba to distribute aid and learn about Cuban politics, government, and society. Last fall, National Political Committee (NPC) members Cliff and Daniel went on one such delegation. They join us to share their individual perspectives on the value of this trip for a socialist political education. 

Note: We recorded this episode a week and a half before its release, just prior to the American invasion of Venezuela, which is why it is unmentioned here. Solidarity with the working classes resisting US imperialism in Latin America and beyond! ¡Cu...

Why is the right so fixated on whoever or whatever it is they think is Marx or “Marxism”? Why do they conflate Marx with everything else they don’t like? We are starting our second semester of Capital this week, and joining Michaela is fellow NPEC comrade Ed, who shares his perspectives on a formal and political education under Reagan, and how socialist struggle has prepared him for yet another age of repression under Trump.  

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Michaela speaks with Ashwin, a River Valley DSA member and current researcher in Mexico City, about the social movement running UTOPIAs: experiments in providing services, education, and pleasure in the poorest district of the city backed by MORENA, the current ruling party, which promotes “Mexican Humanism” as a core principle of governance. 

“Mexico City’s UTOPIAs” by Ashwin R https://socialistforum.dsausa.org/issues/fall-winter-2025/mexico-citys-utopias/

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Edward and Michaela share their experiences as long-time readers and guides to Capital Volume One, at a time when socialism is on the rise, and curiosity about this difficult but key work is growing. 

Join NPEC’s current Capital group (familiarity with Part One of the text is highly recommended, but you can get caught up): https://actionnetwork.org/events/capital-reading-group-fall-semester-2025/

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In this episode, Michaela and Darren talk about socialist perspectives on archival research. DSA's next Archives Training Project is on Wednesday, the 29th. You can register here. Whether you're a chapter chair or secretary wondering how best to approach records, a comrade with a lot of socialist swag and no idea what to do with it, or just someone curious about how archives work, you're welcome to come to this online workshop where we discuss why we care about archives as socialists, best practices for starting an archive, and how institutions take in materials for socialist, left and labor...

This is a recording of NPEC's panel event with Aziz Rana and Matt McManus about the left's approach to the Constitution. Topics include how the left navigates terms like “bourgeois democracy," and how it should approach the upcoming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, with its promises of equality and universal rights. The conversation asks us to push beyond conventional framings of constitutionalism and question what a genuinely democratic politics should look like today. A question-and-answer period follows the conversation.

Aziz Rana is a professor of law at Boston College. He is the author of The Co...

Since at least 2015 in the US, American Socialism has been growing again, and DSA is currently the largest organized socialist formation in the country, by far. But what about the vast majority of… well, everyone else, of all different inclinations? What role does political education have in bringing non-socialists into DSA to build our party — or at least, bringing them closer to us, or not in opposition? 

Michaela and Guy chat about the current political moment and how it’s affecting this basic but crucial task. They also give a preview of NPEC’s upcoming training, “Talking to Non-Soci...

Libraries are quintessentially public goods and common spaces in the US, and are generally appreciated, if not beloved, by the vast majority. As a store of human knowledge and a free site of learning and literacy access supported and funded by the state, they often become ideological battlegrounds, especially in times of political strife. What role can a socialist librarian play as a worker and advocate, particularly at a moment when broad swathes of the public education infrastructure in America, including the public library, are under relentless attack by the right? 

In this episode, Michaela speaks with E...

Class is back after a break, and we're excited to share what's new. Starting today, new episodes will be released biweekly, transitioning to a weekly schedule in January. We're expanding our content to include interviews with DSA members about ongoing projects and initiatives, as well as discussions on topical articles and current events. In other words, we aim to integrate more of DSA's ongoing projects and initiatives into Class. 

In this episode, I'll be speaking with Michaela B about the panel that NPEC hosted at the Socialism Conference in Chicago in July, titled "Socialist Humanism or Barbarism: O...

This is Class, the official podcast of the National Political Education Committee of the Democratic Socialists of America. This is the second of a two-part conversation with Alina Herrera Fuentes about the feminist movement in Mexico. 

Alina is a lawyer, feminist, and Marxist. She is a member of Morena's National Institute for Political Formation. Currently, Alina is the educational content coordinator for the comprehensive gender program. In this episode, we talk about Morena´s success and challenges in the feminist struggle, the next step for the feminist movement, and some observations and advice for leftists in the U...

This is Class, the official podcast of the Democratic Socialists of America’s National Political Education Committee. This is the first of a two-part conversation with Alina Herrera Fuentes about the feminist movement in Mexico. 

Alina is a lawyer, feminist, and Marxist. She is a member of Morena's National Institute for Political Formation, or INFP. Currently, Alina is the educational content coordinator for the comprehensive gender program run by INFP. In this episode, we talk about the history of Morena — Movimiento de Regeneración Nacional — and Morena's and Alina's vision for a more just and gender-equal Mexico. This int...

This is Class, the official podcast of the Democratic Socialists of America’s National Political Education Committee. This is part two of our conversation with Rodrigo Nunes about what Lenin can teach us about pontaneity, organization, strategic thinking, and the current moment. Part two will be released in two weeks.

Rodrigo Nunes is a senior lecturer in political theory and organisation at the University of Essex and the author of Organisation of the Organisationless: Collective Action After Networks (Mute, 2014), Neither Vertical Nor Horizontal: A Theory of Political Organisation (Verso, 2021) and The View from Brazil: Neoliberalism, the Far Ri...

This is Class, the official podcast of the Democratic Socialists of America’s National Political Education Committee. This is part one of our conversation with Rodrigo Nunes about what Lenin can teach us about pontaneity, organization, strategic thinking, and the current moment. Part two will be released in two weeks.

Rodrigo Nunes is a senior lecturer in political theory and organisation at the University of Essex and the author of Organisation of the Organisationless: Collective Action After Networks (Mute, 2014), Neither Vertical Nor Horizontal: A Theory of Political Organisation (Verso, 2021) and The View from Brazil: Neoliberalism, the Far Ri...

This is Class, the official podcast of the Democratic Socialists of America’s National Political Education Committee. My name is Luke Pickrell. This is part one of our conversation with Daphna Thier about the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee (EWOC)

Daphna is an organizer and educator at EWOC. In the last couple of years, she's trained a few hundred workers on the basics of workplace organizing. She is also a contributing writer and the editor of Unite and Win: the Workplace Organizer's Handbook. She's a DSA member based in Brooklyn, New York. In part two, Daphna di...

This is Class, the official podcast of the Democratic Socialists of America’s National Political Education Committee. My name is Luke Pickrell. This is part one of our conversation with Daphna Thier about the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee (EWOC)

Daphna is an organizer and educator at EWOC. In the last couple of years, she's trained a few hundred workers on the basics of workplace organizing. She is also a contributing writer and the editor of Unite and Win: the Workplace Organizer's Handbook. She's a DSA member based in Brooklyn, New York. In part one, Daphna discusses EWOC's or...

This is part two of our two-part interview with José Luis Granados Ceja and Kurt Hackbarth about politics in Mexico. José Luis and Kurt are journalists and activists based in Mexico and the co-hosts of Soberanía: The Mexican Politics Podcast. José Luis has written for Venezuela Analysis, and Kurt has written for Jacobin, including a recent article, “Mexico’s Lessons for the International Left.” In part two, José Luis and Kurt discuss outgoing (former as of October 1) president Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s proposed constitutional reforms, discourse around immigration in Mexico, and what activists in the U.S. should kno...

In this episode, we talk with José Luis Granados Ceja and Kurt Hackbarth about politics in Mexico. The interview is divided into two parts, and part two will be released in two weeks. José Luis and Kurt are journalists and activists based in Mexico and the co-hosts of Soberanía: The Mexican Politics Podcast. José Luis has written for Venezuela Analysis, and Kurt has written for Jacobin, including a recent article, “Mexico’s Lessons for the International Left.” In part one, José Luis and Kurt discuss Claudia Sheinbaum’s victory in the June presidential elections, the reaction to her victory in Me...

We're happy to share a bonus episode with you: the first episode of Haymarket Book’s Originals project, Fragile Juggernaut. 

Haymarket Originals brings in-depth, series-length audio treatments of a wide range of historical and contemporary political subjects to podcast listeners worldwide. Haymarket Originals is a new home for audio deep dives, by and for the left. The first Haymarket Originals project is Fragile Juggernaut: What Was the CIO? — an important collaboration with labor writers, historians, and organizers.

Through a limited run of twenty episodes, they will revisit and reflect on the near-mythical history of the Congr...

This is part two of our two-part conversation with Manisha Sinha about Reconstruction. Part one is here. In part two, Manisha discusses the historiography of reconstruction, the afterlives of “reconstruction and its discontents,” the eventual defeat of Reconstruction as the U.S. rose to become an imperial power, and the lessons contemporary activists can draw from the Reconstruction period.

Dr. Manisha Sinha is a history professor at the University of Connecticut. She is the author and co-author of several books, including The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition (2016) and The Rise and Fall of the Second American Repu...

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Manisha Sinha about Reconstruction and the interconnectedness of social movements between the beginning of the Civil War in 1860 and the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920.  The interview is split into two parts.  Part two will be released in two weeks.  You can now click on the “Send us a Text Message” link at the top of the episode description to share your thoughts on the episode.  This episode's prompt: Do you think the history presented by Manisha is relevant to current political and social struggles in the U.S.? If so, how?