A thought-provoking challenge for progressive activists to consider.
By Fredrik deBoer ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 5, 2023
DeBoer’s wide-ranging critique of leftist politics suggests that the great moment for the left should have been the summer of 2020, when the murder of George Floyd and the accumulated crimes of Donald Trump should have led to more than a minor upheaval. However, he argues that it is largely those who can afford it who populate the ranks of the progressive movement, and they find other things to do after a while. This leads to an “elite capture” of the Democratic Party, which is ineffectual in truly representing minority and working-class constituents. As a result, deBoer believes that no great American revolution is coming in the early twenty-first century, and accommodation to gradualism is likely the only available path toward even small-scale gains. He also scourges nonprofits for diluting the tax base, and argues that identity politics centering on difference will never build a left movement. Instead, he suggests that the left must find common cause against conservatism and fascism. To this end, he proposes that it would be better to tax those who can afford it rather than allowing deductible donations and reducing the availability of public funds for public uses.
Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781668016015
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023