[lbo-talk] Boots Riley on Occupy vs Decolonize

Carrol Cox cbcox at ilstu.edu
Tue Dec 6 14:00:01 PST 2011


I think Riley is fighting against the sort of Identity politics (and their threat to a developing movement) that Carl posted on yesterday.

I have some disagreements with Carl, but his post makes an important case and I hope gets some response on this list. Riley is confronting the identity politics of people of color, but there is also an identity _class_ politics, reflected (for example) in that academic discipline known as "Working Class Studies." Those "studies," which treat "workering class" as an identity, are in sharp contrast to the conception of class needed for the struggle against capitalism. (One can certainly raise theoretical questions about the 99% metaphor, but it is an effective mobilizing slogan.)

Carrol

P.S. I think it is a variety of Identity Politics which led to Doug being harassed at WBAI. But one can't fight identity politics by ignoring or denying the necessity to fight structural racism, since that fight is central to the class fight.



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list