A timely and persuasive discussion of the circumstances, challenges, and possibilities facing the new socialist movement in the US.

In his latest book, veteran socialist writer Kim Moody masterfully analyzes the political impasse which has shaped the rise of a new socialist movement in the United States: recurring economic and political crises, sharp inequality, state violence, and climate catastrophe proceed apace as the right ascends across the world. Moody situates the historic electoral campaigns of Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and other self-described “democratic socialists” and the growth of organizations like the Democratic Socialists of America in this context, and incisively assesses the revived movement's focus on electoral strategies.

Offering an important account of left attempts to intervene in the American two-party electoral system, Moody provides both a corrective and an alternative orientation, arguing that the socialist movement should turn its attention toward a politics of mass action, anti-racism, and independent, working-class activity.

Introduction

1. The Impasse
2. “Upward“ and Rightward
3. The History and Future of the 2020 Elections
4. The New Social Democratic Nostalgia: Class, Race, and “Coalition Politics”
5. The Politics of Winning: How Mass Action Brought Victory
6. Reversing the “Model”: How Will the Millions Get Organized?
7. A Season of Inflammable Materials, Economic Dislocation, and Political Instability