“The main argument is that capitalism is constituted by a varied of different practices, and so challenging capitalism needs to be about a variety of struggles. I draw on the important work of J.K. Gibson-Graham, who argues that we should model anti-capitalist struggle on feminist struggles.” NeedsShouldImportantDifferentChallengesPracticeStruggleModelsDrawsCapitalismArgumentFeministArguingVarietyCapitalistImportant Work Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“One of the problems with traditional anti-capitalist thought is that it defines capitalism as a totality, which encourages us to imagine another totality, socialism, which we can try to replace it with. This totalizing perspective has colonized the imagination of anti-capitalism and left us waiting for a revolution we can never have.” TryingProblemLeftWaitingImaginationImagineRevolutionPerspectiveCapitalismSocialismTraditionalCapitalistTotality Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“The way we get past capitalism is by building on the healthy non-capitalist aspects of our world while we also do pitched battle with the capitalist ones that we have a fair chance of winning against. In that way we build a better world and shrink the destructive capitalist practices that are part of the social fabric.” WorldWayPastWinningSocialChancePracticeBuildingHealthyBattleCapitalismFairsAspectDestructiveOur WorldCapitalistFabricShrinks Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“I tend to not use the word "socialist," because even though more young adults in the United States in a poll say they support socialism than do capitalism, the word socialism doesn't have a lot of meaning in this country.” CountryStatesUseYoungUnitedUnited StatesSupportAdultsCapitalismYoung AdultSocialismSocialistPolls Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“The terms socialist and communist are mostly about describing the world we want after capitalism, and I think they are both important.” ThinkingWorldWantImportantTermCapitalismCommunistSocialistDescribing Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“Communism then defines a society in which there are communal forms for dealing with resources. Many communal forms exist where there are not communist governments. The Mondragon cooperatives in Spain and the thousands of worker-owned cooperatives in the United States, are viable alternatives to capitalism.” StatesGovernmentFormUnitedUnited StatesCapitalismResourcesWorkersCommunismAlternativesCommunistSpainCooperatives Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“I think there is a legitimate critique of reformism, as a politics that is content with making small changes in society without asking for bigger and deeper changes. And revolutionary reforms, meaning actions that we take in small ways to make the world a better place and disrupt some of the ways that capitalism is reproduced.” ThinkingWorldWayActionCapitalismBiggerAskingDeeperReformRevolutionaryBetter PlaceCritiqueSmall ChangesChanges In Society Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“There is a cultural norm on the left of being afraid to declare victory, which is related to the binary of reform/revolution. Whereas reformists are winning small gains, revolutionaries don't want people to be satisfied with those small victories because they worry this will lead to acceptance of the bigger picture of capitalism domination, and so they find a way to turn every victory into a defeat. In the book, I call for a culture of declaring victory wherever we can.” PeopleWayWantBookTurnsCultureWinningLeftWorryAcceptanceRevolutionVictoryCapitalismGainsBiggerDefeatSatisfiedReformRevolutionaryRelatedNormDominationBeing AfraidDeclaringBinaryBigger PictureSmall Victories Author:Cynthia Kauffman
“Yes it is true that pro-capitalist forces have a lot of power. But so did slave-holding racists. We give ourselves hope when we conceptualize capitalism as a set of practices that can be challenged by fighting the piece of the puzzle we feel most compelled to fight.” GivingFeelsFightingForcePracticePiecesCapitalismSlaveRacistCapitalistPuzzlesCompelled Author:Cynthia Kauffman