The Socialist Program

Journalist Abby Martin, the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund (PCJF),  and CAIR won a major victory for free speech and the right to protest in  solidarity with Palestine in a May 24 federal court ruling. A judge  ruled that Georgia’s law against the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions  movements was a violation of constitutionally guaranteed free speech  rights. PCJF Execu...

Brian and Prof. Wolff continue a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. Today, they discuss the role of finance and the big banks. Why does Wall Street reign supreme in the capitalist system? Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author...

On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem, Nicole  Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss the one year anniversary of the  murder of George Floyd, the Palestinian people's continuing resistance  after 11 days of massacres by Israeli forces, and how the mass movements  that developed around the issues of racist police violence and the  oppression of Pal...

On today's episode, Brian and Dr. Gerald Horne talk about the dramatic changes brought about by the evolution of the role played by China in the world economy and world politics. As the United States' power declines, the managers of U.S. empire are scrambling to come up with new approaches to maintain their dominant position around the globe.   Dr. Gerald Horne holds the Moores Professorship...

Brian and Prof. Wolff continue a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. Today, they discuss the theory of surplus value. Why do Marxists believe that anyone who works for a wage is being stolen from by their boss?   Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Dem...

On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem, Nicole  Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss Palestinians' general strike today  as fierce resistance continues to the increasingly brutal Israeli  attack, the possibility that the right-wing Supreme Court will  eviscerate the right of women to control their own bodies, the criminal  injustice system and ano...

The Israeli government is waging war against the  Palestinian people and attempting to carry out mass ethnic cleansing of  the city of Jerusalem as part of ongoing historic efforts to evict the  Palestinian people from their homelands. This has led to a historic  level of resistance in Jerusalem, Gaza, the West Bank and in Palestinian  communities within the current Israel...

Brian and Prof. Wolff begin a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. Today, they discuss what a monopoly is, and how there is a natural tendency to monopoly under capitalism. Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, t...

On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem, Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss the assault being waged by the Israeli military on Palestinians following intense fascist attacks and ethnic cleansing efforts directed against Palestinian residents of Jerusalem by ultra-right settlers. And in domestic news, the Biden administration’s economic program continues to draw at...

Today's episode is the second in a multi-part series that takes an in-depth look at the history of China's foreign policy. We discuss how U.S. imperialist pressure on China and the Soviet Union lead to a breakdown in relations between the two socialist giants, Soviet efforts at peaceful coexistence with the United States, the China-India war of 1962, the Soviet-U.S. 1963 nuclear test ban treaty, t...

Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss the deadly consequences of  the U.S. government's stubborn refusal so far to waive patents  preventing developing countries from producing their own Coronavirus  vaccines -- all to protect the profits of the big pharmaceutical  corporations. Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization  Democracy at Work and the author of many books, th...

On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss where the Biden administration is headed politically and why. In his address to a joint session of Congress last Thursday, Biden appears to have signaled a significant turn towards a program aimed at providing substantial benefits to working people.

Today's episode is the first in a multi-part series take an in-depth look at the history of China's foreign policy. As the U.S. war machine ramps up aggression towards China, understanding the history of the country's engagement with the world is more crucial than ever. In this section, we discuss the early phase of foreign policy pursued by the People's Republic of China, characterized by fervent...

Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss the latest efforts by the Biden administration to put severe economic pressure on Germany to back out of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, an infrastructure project that would deliver Russian gas to the European market competing with big U.S. oil and gas monopolies.   Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, th...

On  today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss how the U.S. government is hoarding vaccine doses and prolonging the suffering of people all around the world in defense of big pharma’s profits. They also discuss tensions between Russia and NATO over Ukraine, a new court ruling in Los Angeles on the rights of the homeless, and more.

The fate of the JCPOA Iran nuclear agreement hangs in the balance. The United States broke the agreement during the Trump administration and reimposed sanctions that caused great suffering to Iranians, but negotiations are now underway for the United States to rejoin. Meanwhile, Israel is upping its aggression against Iran. Brian is joined by Professor Mohammad Marandi, an expert on American...

Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss how the tobacco industry built an extremely profitable business model based on addiction, and what they're doing to try to keep it going. Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself”. You can check out his work...

On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss the historic people's victory in  the trial of Derek Chauvin, which resulted in guilty verdicts on all three counts thanks to the mass movement that swept the country and the world demanding justice for George Floyd. They also discuss laws being considered across the country to repress...

In this January 2021 patrons-only seminar, Brian and the crew talked  about the January 6th fascist insurrection, delving into the details and  the historical context of fascism in the United States. Check out the preview now and subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest!

The Biden administration has announced that the United States will be withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan by September 11 of this year, and that this withdrawal will take place regardless of conditions on the battlefield. What's behind this move? Is the U.S. empire's longest war really coming to an end? Continuing last week's episode about the history of U.S. intervention in Afghanistan, Brian...

Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss the push for a global minimum tax on corporations. What prompted this move -- which is supported by the Biden administration -- and what does it say about how global capitalism works? Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pa...

On today's "In the News" roundtable, Brian Becker, Esther Iverem Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek discuss the police murder of Daunte Wright  outside of Minneapolis as the trial of Derek Chauvin continues, the Pentagon's latest statement on "extremism" in its ranks, the brutalization of Army lieutenant Caron Nazario, the cyberattack on a key Iranian nuclear facility, and more.

In this December 2020 patrons-only seminar, Brian and the crew talked about the big picture of US imperialism from World War II to today, including what the Biden administration means for US foreign policy. Check out the preview now and subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest!

The United States has been intervening in Afghanistan since 1979. Trump and now Biden promise to end U.S. involvement in the Afghanistan war. But imperialist domination in the country continues. Brian is joined by Sohrob Aslamy, a doctoral student at Syracuse University in the Department of Geography and the Environment.

Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss the Biden administration's next big priority -- passing an infrastructure plan his administration says will create a huge number of jobs. What’s in the proposal, will it pass and what does it mean for the working class? Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When...