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In this episode, part 1 of a 2-part miniseries on US labor and imperialism, Jeff Schuhrke joins us for a conversation on how US labor aided and at times even led the US's global fight against communism throughout much of the 21st century. Jeff Schuhrke is a labor historian, journalist, union activist, and assistant professor at the Harry Van Arsdale Jr School of Labor Studies, SUNY Empire State University. He's the author of Blue-Collar Empire: The Untold Story of US Labor's Global Anticommunist Crusade, and No Neutrals There: US Labor, Zionism, and the Struggle for Palestine. In this conversation we take a deep dive into Jeff's book Blue-Collar Empire, exploring US labor's role in fighting global communism during the 21st century. The conversation opens with a history of the early US labor movement, anchored by the AFL, the CIO, and the IWW which all presented different approaches and ideological orientations towards labor and capital. We then look at how labor was systematically deradicalized over the cours

This is a free preview of the episode "[TEASER] Mexico Pt. 2: Morena and The Fourth Transformation w/ Stephanie Weatherbee Brito." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You'll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In Part 2 of this new series, we're joined by Stephanie Weatherbee Brito to discuss the rise of Morena

Patreon: www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast Mazlo: https://donate.mazloweb.com/donate/xsKGfZHZFXvoNMzVKaSvH In this episode we're joined by Andrew Fanning for a conversation about doughnuts…no, not that kind of doughnut. We're talking about Kate Raworth's famous Doughnut from Doughnut Economics.  Andrew Fanning is an ecological economist exploring how to move our interconnected societies towards the goal of meeting the needs of all people within the means of the living planet. He is particularly interested in finding ways to visualise progress towards this goal in data. Andrew is Research & Data Analysis Lead at Doughnut Economics Action Lab, where he co-creates metrics and research-related tools that make visible the core concepts of Doughnut Economics, and convenes spaces to connect scholars putting these concepts into action. His research has been published in leading journals, such as Nature and Lancet Planetary Health, and he leads the ongoing development of an interactive website entitled 'A good life

This is a free preview of the episode "Mexcio Pt. 1: A Socialist Introduction w/ Cecilia Guerrero." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You'll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In Part 1 of this new series, we're joined by Cecilia Guerrero for a socialist introduction to Mexico. Cecilia Guerrero is chair and f

In this episode, part of our ongoing From the Frontlines series, Tara Raghuveer and Josh Poe join us for a conversation about tenant organizing. Tara Raghuveer is a tenant organizer with KC Tenants based in Kansas City, Missouri and with the Tenant Union Federation. Josh Poe is the organizing director with the Kentucky Tenant Union, formerly known as the Louisville Tenant Union and organizes with the Tenant Union Federation along with Tara. Our conversation opens with a introduction to tenants unions before diving into the specific work that is being done by our guests. We discuss some of the ongoing fights being waged against private equity and corporate landlords by the Kentucky Tenants Union across the state of Kentucky and by the Tenant Union Federation across the country. We explore the root causes of skyrocketing rents and the housing crisis, the idealogical and legal barriers to organizing in the south, and some of the false and real solutions. Finally, we explore what a logical and humane housing syst

This is a free preview of the episode "Imperialism in the Twenty-First Century w/ John Smith." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You'll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. The core capitalist countries no longer need to rely on military force and colonialism to increasingly extract profits from workers in the

In Part 8 of our ongoing series on China we're joined by Yueren Zhang to discuss Mao Zedong and the political philosophy of Maoism. Yueran Zhang is Assistant Professor in the department of sociology at the University of Chicago. He specializes in the comparative studies of capitalism, socialism, and transitions in between, with a special emphasis on political economy and the dynamics of development in the Global South.  The conversation opens by presenting a biographical and historical overview of Mao Zedong, the context in which the Chinese Revolution occured, and Mao's role in the Chinese Revolution. We then introduce Maoism as a philosophy and political practice and take a deep dive into how Mao's philosophy shaped his political practice—using the cultural revolution and building mass movements as examples. We explore Mao and his relationship to Deng Xiaoping, China's political system and whether we can view China as a socialist or capitalist state (Yueren holds a very different view from most of our previ

This is a free preview of the episode "Venezuela Pt. 4: The Empire vs. Venezuela w/ Jesus Rodriguez-Espinoza and Saheli Chowdhury." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You'll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In Part 4 of our ongoing series on Venezuela, Jesus Rodriguez-Espinoza and Saheli Chowdhury of Orino

In this episode, Timothée Parrique joins us for a discussion on degrowth. We begin the conversation with explaining the concept of degrowth, looking at its history, and really unpacking what it is and what it isn’t. We talk about degrowth’s two-fold agenda to both downscale production and consumption for environmental reasons, as well as its potential for removing the profit-motive as a central concern in how we organize society. We outline the differences between degrowth and recessions, the problem with GDP as a measurement tool for success, how degrowth can help to reduce poverty in certain contexts, the benefits of a dynamic steady state economy, where the degrowth movement is today, and much more.  Timothée Parrique is an economist originally from Versailles, France. He is currently a researcher at HEC Lausanne – The Faculty of Business and Economics of the University of Lausanne in Switzerland. He works on macro-ecological planning in Switzerland as part of the STRIVE research project. He's also the aut

We are publishing this episode a few days early. Solidarity with Venezuela! This is a free preview of the episode " Venezuela Pt. 3: Sanctions as Economic Warfare w/ Cira Pascual Marquina." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You’ll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In Part 3 of our ongoing series on Venezue

 A quick but important announcement: if you’re a recurring donor through Flipcause (not Patreon, but Flipcause) please check your spam folder for an email from upstreampodcast.org because we’ve sent out some important emails regarding your donation and the Flipcause platform. Check your spam for the subject line “Action required: your Upstream donation.” And just a reminder that this is only for Flipcause donors, not Patreon subscribers—if you're a Patreon subscriber please completely disregard this announcement.  In this episode, Immanuel Ness joins us for a discussion on migration as economic imperialism. We begin the conversation looking at the causes of migration—both intentional, structural parts of the global capitalist economy and also as certain consequences of this economic system, things like wars, sanctions, and ecological devastation. Immanuel then discusses the various ways in which migration is a function of imperialism, dispelling the myth among Western economists and the development industria

This is a free preview of the episode "Venezuela Pt. 2: Socialist Communes and Anti-Imperialism w/ Chris Gilbert." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You’ll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In Part 2 of our ongoing series on Venezuela, Chris Gilbert joins us to discuss Venezuela's socialist communes from a M

In this episode, Part 5 of our ongoing Post Capitalist Parenting series, Jo delAmor joins us for a wide-ranging conversation about raising children in the midst of a global crisis. We open our discussion with a nod to the late scholar and activist Joanna Macy and the Work That Reconnects which she developed and which has shaped and influenced both Jo and Della's work. We then talk about Jo's framing of the power over and thriving life paradigms and the role they play in how we parent under capitalism. Della and Jo talk about the false paradigm of separation and how this can be overcome through a deep understanding and practice of interconnectedness and how this can be imparted to our children. And finally, Jo invites us to see parenting as activism and to relearn the world alongside our growing children, partnering with them on behalf of life. Jo is the author of Raising Children in the Midst of Global Crisis: A Compassionate Guidebook for New Paradigm Parenting. She is also a mother, coach, and Work That Rec

This is a free preview of the episode "Alliance of Sahel States Pt. 3: Hyperimperialism w/ Mikaela Nhondo Erskog." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You’ll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In this episode, Part 3 of our series on the Alliance of Sahel States, Mikaela Nhondo Erskog joins us for a wideranging

In this episode, Part 4 of our ongoing Post Capitalist Parenting series, Robina Khalid joins us to talk about the process of birthing from the perspective of a midwife. Robina is a mother of four, a writer, former academic, and activist. In this conversation, Robina shares with us the fascinating history of the field of obstetrics and its white supremacist, colonialist, and capitalist roots. We explore what midwifery is, the role it has traditionally played in society, and how capitalism's devaluing of this important health science and profession has negatively impacted the birthing experience in the contemporary world. Additionally, in this episode, Della shares about her recent birthing experience and Robina describes how we can simultaneously hold an appreciation for modern medicine while being critical of Western medicine under capitalism. Finally, Robina shares with us her vision of what post capitalist birthing could look and feel like and provides some invitations for everyone listening.  Further resou

This is a free preview of the episode "Venezuela Pt. 1: A Socialist Introduction w/ Vijay Prashad." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You’ll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In Part 1 of our new, ongoing series on Venezuela, Vijay Prashad joins us to discuss Venezuela’s history, politics, and its ongoing fi

In this episode, Part 15 of our ongoing Palestine series, we've invited on two guests for a wide-ranging conversation around the Gaza Freedom Flotilla and the movement it's part of: Chris Smalls and Huwaida Arraf. Chris Smalls is a labor organizer, founder and former President of the Amazon Labor Union, and was a member of the most recent Freedom Flotilla voyage to Gaza. In this conversation, Chris shares about his experience on the Handala—the boat that sailed from Italy to the coast off of Gaza in an attempt to break Israel's illegal siege and blockade of food, medicine, and other lifesaving necessities in Palestine. We talk about the IOF's siege of the Handala in the waters of the Mediterranean just off the coast of Gaza and Chris's treatment after being kidnapped by Israel. We also explore the connection between working class politics in the United States and the struggle for liberation in Palestine, the complicity of the Western labor movement and the Democratic Party in the Palestinian genocide, the nee

This is a free preview of the episode "China Pt. 7: A Socialist Response to the COVID Pandemic w/ Creighton Ward, Alessandro Zancan, and Kevin Li." You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You’ll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. In this episode, Part 7 of our ongoing series on China, we take a deep dive into one o

In our inaugural episode on Marx’s Capital, we took a deep dive into Capital Vol. 1, the first of three volumes on political economy written by Karl Marx in the late 19th century. Capital Vol. 1, though, is just the beginning—and unfortunately most people stop there. But Vol. 1 really just looks at one aspect of capitalism—how surplus value is produced. It doesn’t dive into the entire circulation process—or what we refer to as the circuits of capital. Vol. 2 provides the full picture of how capitalism functions—and we’ve brought on two terrific guests to help us make sense of it all.   Richard Wolff is an economist, Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, currently a Visiting Professor in the Graduate Program in International Affairs of the New School in New York, host of the Economic Update and The Dialectic at Work podcasts, and founder of Democracy at Work.  Shahram Azhar is a political economicst, musician, Associate Professor of Economics at Bucknell University and hos

This is a free preview of the episode "Third Worldism and the Bandung Spirit w/ Pranay Somayajula" You can listen to the full episode by subscribing to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/upstreampodcast As a Patreon subscriber you'll get access to at least one bonus episode a month (usually two or three), our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, early access to certain episodes, and other benefits like stickers and bumper stickers—depending on which tier you subscribe to. access to bi-weekly bonus episodes ranging from conversations to readings and more. Signing up for Patreon is a great way to make Upstream a weekly show, and it will also give you access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes along with stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. You’ll also be helping to keep Upstream sustainable and allowing us to keep this project going. Third Worldism—a term that might feel outdated but which is anything but—is on the rise. When we talk about the Third World, or the Glo