International Viewpoint

“There's been no other country — certainly no European country, or Australia, New Zealand or Canada — that has seen such a powerful resurgence of the left, or one that is so solidly, generationally specific and anchored. And of course, youth of colour, the coming plurality of the American population, played a central role in this — particularly the Black women who built Black Lives Matter.”

“[R]egardless of what government is formed after the elections, mistrust of benefit recipients and institutional racism are likely to remain deeply entrenched in government and in Dutch political culture for some time.”

“Above all, we need to build socialist, left, and worker power from the ground up, focusing on local and state government and on our workplaces. That's the only way we can ensure that future generations will be able to expect better than Joe Biden, liberal edition. We cannot allow this complicated and chaotic moment to go to waste.”

Russia has had an eventful week and it's not even finished. First, Alexey Navalny flew back to Moscow, then he was immediately arrested upon crossing the border, and the next day his team published a video illustrating Vladimir Putin's own corruption and calling upon all citizens to come out to the streets against the government on January 23. What is the Russian left to think of all this? Navalny is certainly not its own, but should it stay away from the protests and the brewing political crisis?

The inauguration of Joe Biden as the USA's 46th president on 20 January 2021 was characterized as a “return to normality” and that “democracy had prevailed”. What lies ahead?

“There's still a very long way to go in this long-term revolutionary process. The good news is that people are learning what they're up against and drawing lessons from both defeats and victories.”

“It is clear that if the SP persists in its current course, further isolation and decline are unavoidable. Forcing changes in orientation will be a difficult struggle. Considering the structural weakness of the Left, there is no guarantee of success.”

“It is necessary to make 2021 a year of resistance and unitary action, on the streets - while respecting health standards - against this genocidal government. ”

“If a solid leftist electoral front can be built while maintaining the pressure of street mobilization on a much weakened colonial capitalist regime, a true sea change is not just possible but within reach.”

“Wherever one stands on Evo Morales, and despite the challenges ahead, it is clear that at least for the moment, Bolivians continue to challenge capitalism and its orthodoxies.”

In the current political climate, witnessing an ascendance of far-right parties across Europe, and a more general shift to the right in mainstream politics globally, Romania was often pointed out as an exception in this respect, certainly when it came to the area of Central, Eastern, and South-Eastern Europe. Since 2008, when the Greater Romania Party (Partidul România Mare, PRM) failed to meet the 5% electoral threshold for entering Parliament, there had been no far- or radical-right (...)

Failed beer hall putsch re-enactments aside, Donald Trump will be leaving the White House on January 20 if not sooner—at least for the next four years. The focus now shifts to the post-Trump world: what can we expect from the incoming Biden administration?

“Our next problem will be Biden and the Democrats' neoliberalism, but Trump is still the issue for the moment.”

“Taking control of the AN from the right was vital for the Bolivarian revolution, with elections in the midst of a serious economic crisis, mainly the consequence of the blockade imposed by imperialism. ”

“We believe that the new National Assembly can be an instrument of the Revolution, but we will not encourage false hopes among the ranks of the peasants, workers and communities.”

“Our response must be different. It must emerge from our understanding of how this racist, anti-worker, anti-poor capitalist death machine can actually be overcome. That will require organizing, not lobbying. ”

The lessons learnt from the recent government closure of schools in England.

Decaying Institutions, Rightwing Insurrection, and the Need for a Mass Movement

“Humanity's future also rests on the emergence and consolidation of a new and independent Black, Latinx and Native American leadership to champion the struggles of the most oppressed and exploited and establish democratic control of their communities while opening the way to the formation of independent Black and Brown parties in the political arena.”

“Unifying people across racial lines on a national basis has not just resulted in the harmful othering of non-nationals, it has placated us so that we don't think about how our lives are completely in the service of capital.”