Cosmopod

Parker and Matthew sit down with sociologist and labor activist Yueran Zhang to discuss workers' struggles in contemporary China. Topics discussed include public memory of Tiananmen Square, the Chongqing model, trade unionism and labor activism in the Pearl River Delta, the Jasic workers' struggle, and prospects for the revolutionary left. ------ Check out Yueran's articles on The Forgotten Socialists of Tiananmen Square and Leninists in a Chinese Factory

Alex, Rudy and Christian sit down to discuss the history of the German Democratic Republic from its foundation atop the ruins of WW2 to the prelude of reunification. They discuss the challenges of building socialism in the fourth of ruined country, the challenges of brain drain, the economy before and after the Wall was built, the intelligentsia/worker divide, the varying responsiveness of the ruling party to criticism and how the GDR was able to provide a normal life to most of its population for decades.   Main References: The People's State: East German Society from Hitler to Honecker - Mary Fulbrook A Socialist Defector: From Harvard to Karl-Marx-Allee - Victor Grossman The Human Rights Dictatorship: Socialism, Global Solidarity and Revolution in East Germany - Ned Richardson-Little Complementary references: The Making of the GDR, 1945-53 - Gareth Pritchard Where was the Working Class?: Revolution in Eastern Germany - Linda Fuller Dissolution: The Crisis of Communism and the End of Eastern Germany - Charles S. Maier

Jonah Martell proposes a radical New Union Act to throw the antiquated US Constitution into the dustbin of history. Cliff Connolly reads the article out loud.

Sam and Rudy join Ian Scott Horst, author of Like Ho Chi Minh! Like Che Guevara! The Revolutionary Left in Ethiopia, 1969–1979 (Foreign Languages Press) for a discussion on the 1974 revolution in Ethiopia and  the relationship to the Ethiopian present, as well as what we can learn and apply from it for today's world. We talk about the questions of Eritrean and Ethiopian nationalism, the role of the military in a revolution, the student  movements in Ethiopia and their role, with a comparison to the current young US left, definitions of fascism, the role of the USSR & Cuba in propping up the Derg military dictatorship and how to relate to past and failed socialist projects.   ---   Further reading:   Ian Scott Horst's Cosmonaut article on this topic "Which side are you on? The Challenge of the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution" as well as his translation "The struggle for democracy in Africa" by Iyasou Alemayehu.   John Markakis and Nega Ayele, Class and Revolution in Ethiopia is a good complement to Ian's book and goes deeper into the social classes that formed Ethiopia.

Lydia and Anne sit down with Daria Dyakonova to discuss the often neglected history of the Communist Women's Movement (1920-22). They talk about the origins of the movement, its most important figures, the debates around what the base of the CWM would be, and what would be the main issues it tackled, its changing relationship to the Comintern and its recurring fight against male chauvinism within the communist and broader workers movement. The discussion finishes with the slow eclipse of the CWM until its final demise and how that affected the future generations of communist women.   Daria and Mike Taber have an upcoming book on this topic through Brill's Historical Materialism series.   -------   Other resources:   Interview with Daria and Mike Taber on the CWM, and their upcoming book on it.   The Communist Women's Movement - John Riddell

Amelia, Jake, Steve and Rudy sit down for a discussion of what experiences in organizing brought them to be interested in Cybernetics and Beer's viable system model, and how they try to think through the structures of the organizations they currently are members of in Beerian terms. They discuss the dichotomies of centralization/de-centralization and here/now vs then/there, and how to balance them as well as the need for regulation in organization in the shape of arbitration and policies. ------------------ Stafford Beer's Designing Freedom Massey Lectures and his Falcondale Lectures are good places to begin with his work. A 10-min explanation is also provided by Auxiliary Statements. The General Intellect Unit podcast also features prominently in our discussion as a resource.

Cliff Connolly critiques CounterPower’s vision of the “party of autonomy” and offers an alternative vision of the mass party.  Cliff reads his article aloud.

Lydia, Isaac and Rudy join Emmanuel Farjoun from Matzpen for a discussion on his 1983  piece Class divisions in Israeli society and how the divisions have changed in the present day. We  discuss the changing strength of the Palestinians inside Israel and how that is reflected in their changing political aims, the differences between whiteness in the US and the construction of race in Israel, and the BDS movement internationally.

Matt Strupp reads aloud the a reprint of the mission statement of Marxist Unity Slate, a set of proposals for the 2021 DSA convention with the aim of fostering democratic discipline and principled election campaigns, as well as uniting Marxists in DSA around a vision of a mass socialist party. The proposals can be read and signed here, 100 signatures are needed to bring these to the convention. Most of the participants in Marxist Unity Slate are associated with Cosmonaut Magazine, either as contributors or board members. However, this should not be seen as an effort by Cosmonaut itself, but rather an attempt by like-minded comrades active in DSA to advocate for a specific direction. Cosmonaut hosts a diversity of views and Marxist Unity Slate is one of a number of personal initiatives of individuals associated with Cosmonaut.

Donald and Rudy sit down with Wayne Au, author of A Marxist Education. They discuss his experiences on providing a critical education, how education in the US currently stands and how Covid has just brought to the forefront issues faced by students. They discuss the Au's work on Paulo Freire and Lev Vygotsky, and end up envisioning how a socialist school could look like.