I wrote my first post for this website this morning, to say the least it caused some controversy (and produced a counter-diary which I enjoyed reading). Given that I am currently stuck in bed with a nasty fever, I will respond. I have been to a certain extent been swayed by some of the arguments made (especially to the point that I was over-generalizing). I nonetheless stand broadly by what I said: I believe a tendency towards extra-legal and divisive politics in the 1930s on the left failed to provide an effective opposition to fascism.
I am curious if the people who disagreed so vehemently with me after reading my previous post will disagree with what I hope is a more nuanced (and to some extent changed) recitation of my views:
- Trump has advanced a vision of nationalism focused on “blood and soil,” that ignores real American values in favor of racism and religious discrimination.
- To beat Trump we need to provide an alternate national identity, one based upon values of equality, tolerance, prosperity etc; a civic nationalism that brings Americans together rather than dividing them. These values transcend any policies and can be used to advocate pretty much any left-wing ideas, but we must hold true to them.
- This means we cannot resort to divisive tactics (including calling Trump supporters stupid, attacking them as racists etc.) or in writing off swathes of the country as irredeemable.
- An opponent in this regard is the small faction on the left (and this is not about policy differences but tactics) that has advocated or tended towards violence and anti-democratic behavior: riots, calls for revolution, street violence etc.
- There is no equivalency between this faction and its equivalent on the right which is larger, more pernicious and far more violent.
- Nonetheless we are the party of decency, equality and patriotism, any violence on our side undermines our message. And Trump provides an opportunity for anti-Democratic forces on the left (and these may be over-represented among my fellow students) to gain traction in a time of anger and fear.
- This does not mean we should not pursue very left wing policies, it just means we must do so with the right tactics, a $15 dollar minimum wage is a good policy, but I believe it would be easier to call for it using the language of patriotism and unity. We must not confuse extreme policies (which can be good) with extreme tactics (which almost never are)
- A lesson for this lies in the democratic leaders of the 2nd World War, especially Roosevelt, who advanced what many today would (wrongly) call an extreme-socialist agenda while keeping the country together. Sure, it took a time of crisis, but Trumpism also represents a national calamity against which we can, in the long run, unify America.
- This model, reclaiming the language of unifying patriotism for the left along with policies that actually help American workers, will allow us to defeat Trumpism.
- I should have been clearer in my first post, but this is not a criticism of the current left in this country, it is my idea of what could help it and what could hurt it. For too long Republicans have been the party of patriotism, and now that they have supported a profoundly un-American, Russian stooge, we cannot allow that to continue. We on the left, and especially the far-left, need to learn to talk like unifying civic nationalists again, whatever our policies are. If we don’t, I believe Trump will win.