
Proles Pod
A podcast about history, politics, and culture... without the liberalism
Latest episodes

Oct 1, 2019 • 1h 48min
Ep 38: Burkina Faso
In this one, the crew sat down to discuss the history of Burkina Faso, what created the atmosphere of revolution, some of Sankara's legacy, and what happened after his assassination. CORRECTIONS: - Jamaica was never a French colony; it was a British colony. - "The US is a one-party state[...]" quote was from Julius Nyerere, the president of Tanzania and not Kwame Nkrumah. - It may have been implied that Structural Adjustment Programs involved implementing privatization and austerity after the loans are paid back, but those are preconditions that must be met before and during the disbursement of the loan. If you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Suggested Reading: "A Certain Amount of Madness: The Life, Politics and Legacies of Thomas Sankara" - Amber Murrey, ed. "Thomas Sankara Speaks" - Thomas Sankara ”A United Front Against Debt”: Speech to the Organization of African Unity - Thomas Sankara "Burkina Faso: A History of Power, Protest, and Revolution" - Ernest Harsch "Burkina Faso: Processus de la Revolution" - Babou Paulin Bamouni (in French) "Thomas Sankara: The Upright Man" (documentary) "The CFA Franc: French Monetary Imperialism in Africa" - Ndongo Samba Sylla Thomas Sankara - Revolutionary Left Radio (podcast episode) Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: National Anthem of Burkina Faso

Sep 25, 2019 • 45min
UNLOCKED - "We Could Do A Whole Episode" on John Brown
HEADS UP: One of the voices on mic here, Hayder, has been accused of sexual harassment in a university position in Lahore. We’re discussing what to do with this episode, but for right now, please be aware of this and choose to listen accordingly. Way back in November of 2018, before we got mics that sounded good, we did an installment of our Patreon-exclusive Dialectics After Dark episodes and we had a lengthy segment talking about the biography of John Brown and the raid on Harper's Ferry. John Brown is back in the news, so we wanted to release that segment for popular consumption! (Also, when Ethan starts talking about wool-buyers vs. wool-growers/sellers, he meant the opposite; as in, John Brown unionized people who owned sheep and sold wool. Fuck the wool-buyers) Outro: "John Brown's Body" by Pete Seeger

Sep 15, 2019 • 1h 53min
Ep 37: Communist Democracy
In this one, we sat down with Colette to discuss the history of democratic centralism, and how it has been developed over the years, as well as other forms of democracy from ostensibly socialist origins. If you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Suggested Reading: Constitution of the Communist Party of the Philippines: https://bit.ly/2MojGOC Constitution of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union: https://bit.ly/33IRj30 Parliamentary System of the DPRK: https://bit.ly/2H9bo91 The Soviets and Ourselves: Two Commonwealths by K.E. Holme: https://bit.ly/2YXEYt5 Stalin and the Struggle for Democratic Reform by Grover Furr: https://bit.ly/2ZclRef Anarchists in the Russian Revolution: The Makhno Myth by Jason Yanowitz: http://www.isreview.org/issues/53/makhno.shtml Democratic Centralism by Bay Area Socialist Organizing Committee: https://bit.ly/2Owsq1U Who runs China? https://bit.ly/2THbQAL Left-Wing Communism: An Infantile Disorder by Lenin: https://bit.ly/2YYuhq8 Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: Vladimir Konovalov Jazz Orchestra "The Legend of the Araratsky Valley"

Sep 1, 2019 • 60min
Ep 36: Canadian Communists
In this one, we sat down with Clara Sorrenti of the Canadian Communist Party to talk about a few important historical figures in the Canadian Communist movement, as well as answer some AMA questions. Editor's note: We're aware that in January, Clara has renounced her former political beliefs and has developed an unhelpful online presence, to put it mildly. We'll leave the episode up for now, but just know before you listen that she has turned out to be quite a clown (a chauvinist and ableist one at that). **Correction: Canada entered WW2 when Britain did, but the Communist Party didn't support the war until after the Soviet Union was invaded** f you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: "The Communists Have the Music" by They Might be Giants

Aug 20, 2019 • 49min
SPECIAL RELEASE: Ad Vincere Mundi Ep 1: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Histomat
In the first episode of Ad Vincere Mundi and the first episode in the How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Histomat arc, which deals with the history of Classics as a discipline, Colette breaks down what dialectical and historical materialism are, and then confronts one of the most egregious and poisonous myths about the field: that of classical history as ‘white history’. Intro Music: Pines of Rome: Pines of the Villa Borghese, by Ottorino Respighi. Riccardo Muti conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra. Musical Interlude: Ύμνος του Εθνικό Απελευθερωτικό Μέτωπο (Anthem of the Greek National Liberation Front). Maria Dimitriadi, Afroditi Manou. Outro: Roman Festivals: The Epiphany, by Ottorino Respighi. Sergiu Comissiona conducting the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Sources for today’s episode: Dialectical and Historical Materialism, Joseph Stalin; The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World, by GEM de Ste. Croix; Black Marxism: The Making of the Black Radical Tradition, by Cedric Robinson Recommended further reading: Peasant-Citizen and Slave, by Ellen Meiksins Wood; Invention of the White Race, by Theodore W. Allen; The Agrarian Sociology of Ancient Civilizations, by Max Weber

Aug 17, 2019 • 1h 36min
SPECIAL RELEASE: Bands of Turtle Island Ep 1: Fort Laramie Treaty
Thank you for downloading the episode please share and review the podcast, and email them at bandsofturtleisland@gmail.com or on twitter @BandsIsland. You can see transcripts, sources, and other miscellaneous things on their website here. Keep an eye on their twitter for update on episodes, new projects, and other important information. Suggested Reading: Fort Laramie Treaty: https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=42&page=transcript AIM Quotations, sources, etc. http://www.aimovement.org/csi/index.html http://www.aimovement.org/ggc/trailofbrokentreaties.html http://www.aimovement.org/ggc/history.html https://prolespod.libsyn.com/episode-22-indigeneity Black Elk Speaks by John Neihardt Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Browns Down with Colonialism by Ho Chi Minh Sitting Bull: The Collected Speeches by: Mark Diedrich Settlers by J.Sakai https://onkwehonwerising.wordpress.com/

Aug 15, 2019 • 56min
Ep 35: Indie Music in the Modern Age
In this deviation from our normal formula, we sat down with the lead singer/songwriter for Craig's Brother to have a brief, informal conversation about their past, present, future, as well as ideas about what happened and what indie music looks like now in the U.S. If you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: "Follow Your Heart" by Craig's Brother

Aug 1, 2019 • 1h 54min
Ep 34: Eugenics and Reproductive Rights (Or Lack Thereof)
In this one, we sat down with Pres to discuss the long and depressing history of Reproductive Rights, Patriarchy, Eugenics and how they all tie together. SPOILER ALERT: deathtoamerica CORRECTION: The Proles were lied to; Dep (Depo Prevera) is an injection that is re-administered every three months, whereas the arm implant referred to in the episode is Nexplanon (formerly Implanon) which lasts three years. IUDs can last three to ten years depending on the type. @marxymarx2 to contact Pres. If you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Suggested Reading: Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, Ibram X. Kendi The Counter-Revolution of 1776, Gerald Horne When The Welfare People Come: Race and Class in the US Child Protection Service, Don Lash Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty, Dorothy Roberts Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present, Harriet Washington Body and Soul: The Black Panther Party and the Fight Against Medical Discrimination, Alondra Nelson The Social Transformation of American Medicine: The Rise of a Sovereign Profession and the Making of a Vast Industry, Paul Starr (More liberal standard academic text) Labor's Love Lost: The Rise and Fall of the Working-Class Family in America, Andrew Cherlin (more liberal standard academic text) The Zero Trimester: Pre-Pregnancy Care and the Politics of Reproductive Risk, Miranda Waggoner Women, Race, and Class, Angela Davis On how men's reproductive health is under represented: sci-hub.tw/10.1177/1557988314556670 On China's One Child Policy (Warning! This paper is super orientalist/racist and very liberal--read at your own peril. Only snippets of what comes out of this paper are actually interesting and what Pres used in the episode): sci-hub.tw/10.2307/3115224 On Puerto Rico's sterilization program: sci-hub.tw/10.1177/0094582X7700400405 Sterilization as part of plea deal for man: https://insider.foxnews.com/2014/06/24/va-man-required-get-vasectomy-part-plea-deal Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: "A Single Spark" by Xiangyu (you can order the album here)

Jul 15, 2019 • 1h 53min
Episode 33: Argentina Part 1: Colonialism Takes Hold
In this one we sat down with Joel from Anti-Imperialist Parentiposting to discuss the colonial period of Argentinian history, how freedom of slaved was raffled off by the British government, the codification of racism, and how the indigenous groups were targeted and assimilated. If you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Suggested Reading: Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: Silvio Rodriguez "El Necio"

Jul 1, 2019 • 2h 8min
Episode 32: Soviet Spies
In this one, the Proles talk about 5 of the most interesting communist spies and the lies, philandering, and political maneuvers that shaped the 20th century! If you haven't already, go to www.prolespod.com or you can help the show improve over at www.patreon.com/prolespod and in return can get access to our spicy discord, exclusive episodes, guest appearances, etc.! All kinds of great stuff. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast apps and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate our facebook page at facebook.com/prolespod and follow us on Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on either of those platforms or email us at prolespod@gmail.com All episodes prior to episode 4 can be found on YouTube, so go check that out as well! Suggested Reading: "My Cambridge Friends" by Yuri Modin "My Silent War" by Kim Philby "True Believer" by Kati Marton "Operation Splinter Factor" by Stewart Steven "An Impeccable Spy: Richard Sorge, Stalin's Master Agent" by Owen Matthews "The Man With Three Faces: The True Story of a Master Spy" by Hans-Otto Meissner Anna Filoneno-Kamayeva Wiki (portugese) http://agesmystery.ru/rubriki/lica-razvedki/razvedchiki-nelegaly-maxail-i-anna-filonenko/ "Ningen Zoruge" by Ishii Hanako Intro music: "Proles Pod Theme" by Ransom Notes Outro music: "Secret Agent Man" by Johnny Rivers