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Magda Portal

Published August 19, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

Magda PORTAL (1900–1989) was a Peruvian socialist poet and leader of the Aprista social democratic party (APRA). She contributed to the Peruvian literary movement of the early 1900s, which advocated for indigenismo, anti-imperialism, women’s rights, and property rights. The movement was inspired by other liberation movements, such as the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920) and Argentina’s University Reform Movement (1918). Her poetry incorporates romanticism with overtly socialist messages. Additionally, she wrote extensively about her own experiences, particularly exclusion from male-dominated politics.

Portal is notable as a founder of APRA, one of the oldest political parties in Latin America. With her influence, it became the first Peruvian political party to recruit women. However, she abandoned it when it shifted to the ideological center. She wrote her only novel, La Trampa, to represent her negative experiences with the party before joining Peru’s Communist Party. Although she is renowned for being a woman in leftist spheres, her writings on other issues are significant. One example of her socialist poetry is “Proletarian Song.” Its vivid imagery of manual labor expresses the necessity of class reform. Her poetry often advocated for indigenous people’s integration into the state and society as well. Furthermore, she valued unity. Her correspondence reveals her desire for Latin American unity against the imperialist United States. She saw the Mexican Revolution as the model that all Latin American countries should follow, in order to not only protect individual rights domestically, but also create ideological unity across the region.

FURTHER READING

Portal, Magda. “Magda Portal Papers,” November 29, 1913. University of Texas Libraries.

Weaver, Kathleen. Peruvian Rebel: The World of Magda Portal, with a Selection of Her Poems. Illustrated edition. University Park (Pa.): Penn State University Press, 2011.

Portal, Magda, and Daniel R. Reedy. Hope and the Sea by Magda Portal. Translated by Kathleen Weaver. Dulzorada, 2021.

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Graciliano Ramos

Published July 26, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

Graciliano RAMOS (1892–1953) was a modernist writer and politician from the Brazilian northeast, one of the poorest regions in the country. He was a noted Communist and his writings feature fictional livelihoods to showcase social and political concerns. He expresses pessimism about generational suffering, illiteracy, misogyny, indigenous dehumanization, and exploitation as a fact of capitalism. Additionally, he had an impact on Brazil’s developing cinema culture.

São Bernardo and Vidas Secas are two of Ramos’s most famous works. Vidas Secas, translated as Barren Lives, is the most accessible to English readers. It details the tragic lives of a migrant family trekking through a drought in search of labor. Its central messages are that exploitation is inescapable for the lower class, suffering has a legacy, and illiteracy is disempowerment. For example, the father worries for his children’s upbringing but cannot help that they were born to labor under somebody else. Moreover, he is arrested when he does not understand the upper-class language of the charges against him. The last chapter leads into the first chapter to demonstrate the cyclical nature of helplessness.

FURTHER READING

Scott, Paulo. “Paulo Scott on Graciliano Ramos.” Asymptote Journal. Accessed July 26, 2022. https://www.asymptotejournal.com/special-feature/paulo-scott-on-graciliano-ramos/.

Ramos, Graciliano. Barren Lives: Vidas Secas. Translated by Ralph Edward Dimmick. University of Texas Press, 2011.

Ellison, Harlan. Brazil’s New Novel: Four Northeastern Masters – Jose Lins Do Rego, Jorge Amado, Graciliano, Rachel De Queiroz. Paris: Les Humanoïdes associés, 1979.

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Mengzi 孟子

Published July 7, 2022 by John Lombardini

Mengzi (4th century BCE), better known in the West by the Latinized version of his name, Mencius, was a Confucian philosopher who lived during the Warring States Period (403-221 BCE) in China. The Mengzi, the collection of conversations that bears his name, is one of the Four Books canonized by Zhu Xi 朱熹 (1130-1200) that would constitute the core of the imperial civil service examinations in China from 1313-1905. According to tradition, he was a student of Kongzi’s grandson, Zisi 子思.

Mengzi is best known for his argument that human nature is good. According to Mengzi, all human beings are born with four sprouts (compassion, disdain, deference, approval and disapproval) that, if cultivated properly, will grow into the virtues of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom. In defense of this view of human nature, Mengzi offered the following thought experiment: if someone saw a child who was about to fall into a well they would react with a feeling of alarm and compassion. For Mengzi, that all human beings would experience such feelings of alarm and compassion indicated that these sprouts are innate and universal. The goal of education is thus to nurture and grow these sprouts in to full-blown virtues.

Mengzi’s theory of human nature undergirded his political philosophy, which centered on the idea of benevolent government. For Mengzi, benevolent government required rule by a virtuous king for the benefit of the people as a whole. This required providing the people with the basic necessities that they needed to live (and which Mengzi viewed as prerequisites, for most individuals, of ethical cultivation), as well instruction regarding the role-specific duties they ought to perform. Benevolent government thus required ethical cultivation by both rulers and subjects.

Further Reading

van Norden, Bryan, trans. Mengzi: with selections from traditional commentaries. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing, 2008.

van Norden, Bryan. Virtue Ethics and Consequentialism in Early Chinese Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Kim, Sungmoon. Theorizing Confucian Virtue Politics: The Political Philosophy of Mencius and Xunzi. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

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George W. Woodbey: Pioneering Black American Socialism

Published June 25, 2022 by Franchesca Johnson

In discussions of Black American activism following the emancipation of enslaved peoples in 1865, historians regularly overlook the prevalence of socialism and other progressive ideologies in shaping Black politics and Reconstruction. One Black American activist who embraced such socialist policies to do precisely this was George W. WOODBEY(1854-1937).

Born into slavery in Johnson County, Tennessee, Woodbey grew up conscious of the systems of oppression against Black Americans. However, it was not until after the Civil War that he entered politics and embraced an unconventional, socialist perspective. Latching onto the beliefs of Eugene Debs and the Socialist Party, Woodbey crafted a belief system that stressed socialism as the solution to the racism experienced within a post-slavery society. As is indicated in his novel, Black Socialist Preacher, he emphasized the necessity of eradicating “the watchdogs of capitalism”: the police. Altogether, George Woodbey was a highly influential Black socialist whose work inspired various other Black American activists and thinkers. Chiefly, his advocacy demonstrates how the African American political tradition employed socialism as a tool for tackling issues of race and labor exploitation.

FURTHER READING

George Washington Woodbey, George W Stater, and Philip Shelden Foner. 1983. Black Socialist Preacher: The Teachings of Reverend George Washington Woodbey and His Disciple, Reverend G.W. Slater, Jr. San Francisco: Synthesis Publications.

Heideman, Paul. 2018. Class Struggle and the Color Line: American Socialism and the Race Question 1900-1930. Chicago, Illinois: Haymarket Books.

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The Chicago Boys

Published June 24, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

The Chicago Boys (1970s–1980s) were a group of Chilean economists, named for their education under Milton Friedman at the University of Chicago. They enacted extensive neoliberal reforms in Chile, such as deregulation, privatization, and strict austerity. They provided an early example of shock therapy and influenced leaders around the world, including Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher.

It is controversial whether or not their reforms were effective toward improving Chile’s economy. The Chicago Boys’ supporters argue that their leadership produced “the Miracle of Chile” and point to their reforms as an explanation for Chile’s present day success. For example, Chile was ranked by the Heritage Foundation as the most economically free country in Latin America as of 2022, its GDP rose greatly, and it returned to a democracy after the Chicago Boys’ influence. However, detractors point out that the rise in GDP came at the cost of a rise in wealth inequality. Additionally, these reforms were largely carried out by the military dictator Augusto Pinochet, who committed severe human rights violations in order to implement those reforms. This controversy is still vital to Chilean politics because of the Chicago Boys’ long-term impacts.

FURTHER READING

Matamala, Daniel. “The Complicated Legacy of the ‘Chicago Boys’ in Chile – ProMarket.” ProMarket, September 12, 2021. https://www.promarket.org/2021/09/12/chicago-boys-chile-friedman-neoliberalism/.

Valdés Juan J. Pinochet’s Economists: The Chicago School in Chile. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2008.

Sigmund, Paul E. “The Rise and Fall of the Chicago Boys in Chile.” SAIS Review 3, no. 2 (1983): 41-58. doi:10.1353/sais.1983.0040.

British Online Archives. “Miracle of Chile? The Legacy of the Chicago Boys | British Online Archives,” 2020. https://microform.digital/boa/posts/category/articles/378/miracle-of-chile-the-legacy-of-the-chicago-boys#_ftnref13.

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Eduardo Galeano

Published June 22, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

Eduardo Galeano (1940–2014), best known for Open Veins of Latin America, was a leftist Uruguayan writer. His works are significant because they aim to tell history through the lens of the oppressed. He describes histories of oppression, both economic and cultural, in order to explain the present state of the developing world. He is widely known for his contributions to Latin American dependency theory. A dichotomy between oppressor and oppressed is a key aspect of his beliefs.

While Open Veins is Galeano’s most famous work, Mirrors: Stories of Almost Everyone provides a broader survey of his ideas. Mirrors includes more than 600 vignettes, each one documenting an incident or historical trend that depicts oppression. He addresses structures of racism, misogyny, homophobia, and classism. Furthermore, he references countless cultures for his stories and extends past his reputation as a theorist on Latin America. For example, he recalls Ancient China’s family structures, the development of African American jazz music, and the Turkish origin of the croissant—all written as demonstrations of oppression. Galeano’s critics argue that his stories are largely apocryphal and it is unfair to divide the world into oppressor and oppressed.

FURTHER READING

The New York Times. “Author Changes His Mind on ’70s Manifesto (Published 2014),” 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/24/books/eduardo-galeano-disavows-his-book-the-open-veins.html.

Galeano, & Belfrage, C. (1997). Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent (25th anniversary ed.). Monthly Review Press.

Galeano, Eduardo, and Mark Fried. Mirrors: Stories of Almost Everyone. New York, NY: Nation Books, 2010.

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Dependency Theory

Published June 20, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

Dependency theory (1960s–Present) is the idea that developed countries obtain their wealth at the expense of developing countries and, as a result, make developing countries unnaturally poor. Dependency theorists underline how export-based economies limit development. They explain that developing countries export raw goods to developed countries and then must purchase it back after manufacturing at a higher price, leading to dependence and impeded growth.

Open Veins of Latin America, published by Monthly Review Press

While it is applicable to many former colonies, Latin America is a common focus. Open Veins of Latin America by Eduardo Galeano is a renowned example of dependency theory literature. Galeano challenges the idea that a lack of resources or innovation is the reason behind Latin America’s limited development. Rather, the cause is a history of slavery, imperialism, and exploitation. For example, he argues that the 18th century silver trade, and the slavery it accompanied, led to contemporary working conditions and ecological devastation of Latin America. Critics question the continued relevance of dependency theory due to the successful modernization of former colonies, such as India.

FURTHER READING

Galeano, & Belfrage, C. (1997). Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent (25th anniversary ed.). Monthly Review Press.

Bernecker, Walther L., and Thomas Fischer. “Rise and Decline of Latin American Dependency Theories.” Itinerario 22, no. 4 (1998): 25–43. doi:10.1017/S0165115300023494.

Glennie, Jonathan. “Dependency Theory – Is It All over Now?” The Guardian, March 2012. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2012/mar/01/do-not-drop-dependency-theory.

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Zitkala-Sa

Published June 20, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

Zitkala-Ša (1876–1938) was an activist for indigenous and women’s rights, born on the Yankton Indian Reservation in South Dakota. She was also known as Red Bird and Gertrude Simmons Bonnin. She played a significant role in the Society of American Indians (SAI), whose purpose was to “help Indians help themselves”. She wrote speeches, recorded tribal traditions, and collected statistical reports. Furthermore, she journaled her own experiences in an assimilation school and described its cultural suppression, but also the formative educational opportunities it provided.

Zitkala-Sa and her violin, 1898. Photo by Gertrude Kasebier, Smithsonian — Zitkala-Ša, 1898

Zitkala-Ša’s speeches and writings reached a vast audience, including with the federal government, due to her rhetorical skill. Her speeches centered around colonization and loss of property as the cause of suffering for native people. She believed self-determination, citizenship, and property rights were the key to improving conditions on reservations. Zitkala-Ša pointed to rampant sexual abuse as a long-term impact of indigenous oppression and collected studies to show the extent of the problem. Another of her commitments was to advocate against peyote, which, while being part of a native cultural tradition, also brought destruction to their communities.

FURTHER READING

Lewandowski, Tadeusz, ed. Zitkala-Sa : Letters, Speeches, and Unpublished Writings, 1898-1929. Boston: BRILL, 2017. Accessed June 18, 2022. ProQuest Ebook Central.

Zitkala-S̈a. My Life: Impressions of an Indian Childhood ; the School Days of an Indian Girl ; Why I Am a Pagan. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2014.

Nps.gov. “Zitkala-Ša (Red Bird / Gertrude Simmons Bonnin) (U.S. National Park Service),” 2014. https://www.nps.gov/people/zitkala-sa.htm.

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Hispanidad, or Spanishness

Published June 9, 2022 by Amy Weitzman

Hispanidad (1910s–Present), or “Spanishness”, is a Hispanic American nationalist ideology that seeks a restoration of Spanish spiritual identity. It rests upon the belief that a Catholic spiritual identity has united Latin America since the time of early Spanish missionaries. Hispanidad officials aimed to eliminate the rising Communist, secular, and anti-clerical ideas of the 20th century. Ramiro de Maeztu exemplifies Hispanidad as a prominent thinker who argued that Enlightenment thought was the source of Latin America’s weaknesses.

Francisco Franco’s fascist regime in Spain introduced the ideology into Latin America. In order to spiritually unify the region, Franco not only appointed Spaniards into Latin America’s political positions, but also invited several far-right Hispanic Americans into Spain for their input on expanding the ideology. Hispanidad likewise influenced the Philippines in both culture and government. Gradually, Latin American cultures began to associate with Latinidad instead—a unity among all Latin Americans regardless of an ethnic background. However, it remains a component of far-right ideologies.

FURTHER READING

http://filosofia.org. “Ramiro de Maeztu, La Defensa de La Hispanidad.” Filosofia.org, 2022. https://www.filosofia.org/hem/193/acc/e05449.htm.

‌BOX, ZIRA, and Wendy Gosselin. “Spanish Imperial Destiny: The Concept of Empire during Early Francoism.” Contributions to the History of Concepts 8, no. 1 (2013): 89–106.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/43610933.Diffie, Bailey W. “The Ideology of Hispanidad.” The Hispanic American Historical Review 23, no. 3 (1943): 457–82. https://doi.org/10.2307/2508538.

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Fred Hampton: A Black American Martyr for Socialist Liberation

Published June 8, 2022 by Franchesca Johnson

Fred HAMPTON(1948-1969), known by most people exclusively for his assassination in 1969, was a revolutionary activist in the Black American struggle for liberation who utilized socialist ideas as a form of resistance against a racially and economically oppressive America. Born Fredrick Allen Hampton in Chicago, Illinois, he began his progressive activism at a young age. Through studying communist revolutionaries from around the world and providing for members of his community, Hampton developed an ideology rooted in combatting capitalism. Moreover, as he later became an influential leader of the Black Panther Party (BPP), he began to further value revolution and the strength of the masses.

In particular, in his book, I Am A Revolutionary: Fred Hampton Speaks, Hampton’s famous orations reveal this groundbreaking response to the racism in America. Knowing of the oppression of minorities in America, Hampton firmly believed in the necessity of an “international proletarian revolution” and “[fighting] capitalism with socialism.” Therefore, even though the police ended his life at the young age of 21, Hampton’s legacy reveals the actuality of socialist policies as a perceived solution to racial oppression in America.

FURTHER READING

Hampton, Fred. 2023. I Am a Revolutionary: Fred Hampton Speaks. Edited by Fred Hampton Jr. Pluto Press.

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