Woke - Plebity

Race, Identity politics, and the Traditional Left with Norman Finkelstein and Sabrina Salvati

Conference

Panelists: Sabrina Salvati, Norman Finkelstein

Moderator: Jyotishman Mudiar

Description: Recently on her podcast, Sabrina reacted to comments Norman made, which in her view minimized the relative differences in the lives and experiences of blacks and whites in the United States today. In that podcast, Sabrina expressed strong disagreement and mentioned an interest in talking directly with Norman about these issues. Today we bring them together as part of Plebity’s Conference.

Norman Finkelstein is a longtime author and scholar. His academic career has spanned many decades since his PhD from Princeton University in 1987. He has written numerous books, among them The Holocaust Industry, which generated significant controversy. Norman has written and spoken extensively on the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Norman is a lifelong scholar and activist of the left. His latest book, I Will Burn That Bridge When I Get to It, is a critique of current day identity politics and can be purchased here:
https://www.sublationmedia.com/books/i'll-burn-that-bridge-when-i-get-to-it

Sabrina Salvati is the host of Sabby Sab's podcast and the co-host of Revolutionary Blackout Network. She is an activist and former educator. Sabrina writes on her substack https://sabbysabs.substack.com/ and provides leftist commentary and interviews on her youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/sabbysabs.

Jyotishman Mudiar is a co-founder of the YouTube podcast India & Global Left (IGL).

Free speech and the left conference 2023 | Jun 3, 2023

The woke left is to left as ersatz coffee is to coffee

Woke

One of the hallmarks of today’s woke left is to conflate speech with violence. Fearful of the ‘harm’ that might be experienced from hearing certain words, the woke left has become widely confused about the issue of free speech in general and between speech and literal, physical violence.

In New Zealand this week, Posie Parker was assaulted as she tried to speak–a mob surrounded her and forced her off the stage and ultimately out of the country. The group that prevented her from speaking has taken to social media to declare a great victory.

Mark White | Mar 26, 2023

Butler, Sedgwick and Queer Theory – part 3 in the postmodernism series

REDLINE article

The most influential queer theorist is Judith Butler an American philosopher who draws heavily upon Foucault and Derrida. Butler’s chief contribution to queer Theory was to question the links between sex – the biological categories of male and female – gender- the behaviours and traits commonly associated with one sex or the other – and sexuality – the nature of sexual desire. Butler claims gender is wholly socially constructed, and developed her most well-known concept: gender performativity. She claims gender roles are taught and learned unwittingly through socialisation – as sets of actions, behaviours, manners, and expectations and people perform these roles accordingly.

Daphna Whitmore | Nov 7, 2022

Penn State Students Versus the Proud Boys–who won?

Article

If you want to fan the flames of fascism, keep doing things like this, Penn State students!

Several days ago Penn State, a top-ranked U.S. research university, known for its football team and its programs in engineering, business, and marketing, began trending on social media for something entirely different.

The event was to feature Gavin McInnes, cofounder of the right-wing organization Proudboys and comedian, provocateur Alex Stein. Student opinion was very strongly against allowing these individuals to speak, and violent protests developed.

Mark White | Oct 28, 2022

Queer Theory origins – part 2 in the postmodernism series

REDLINE article

Queer theory sees the concepts of sex – male and female – and gender – masculine and feminine- as oppressive. The main objective of queer theory is to subvert these concepts and to break them down. Rejecting the possibility of there being a knowable objective reality, queer theory asserts that language creates the categories, enforces them, and scripts people into them. The boundaries are arbitrary and oppressive according to queer theory. These boundaries can be blurred into apparent absurdity and thus erased.

MW | Oct 12, 2022

Postmodernism – the joke is on society

REDLINE article

Under postmodernism many ideas that were seen as objectively true came to be seen as mere constructions of language. Foucault refers to them as ‘discourses’ that construct knowledge. Consequently, since discourses are believed to create and maintain oppression, they have to be carefully monitored and deconstructed. This is not some obscure academic issue, it is the outlook that is behind calls for laws to outlaw speech which may cause offense.

Daphna Whitmore | Sep 28, 2022

Redline, a voice in the wilderness for leftists who believe in free speech

In these times, leftists who espouse free speech are like wanderers in the wilderness. The political sands may be swirling so intensely that they are unable to see clearly, but the desert is actually filled with like-minded wanderers, each mistakenly thinking they are alone.

That is why it is all the more important to discover and support a site like Redline. Redline is a blog collective in New Zealand that combines original content with a carefully chosen selection of re-posted articles.

The content on Redline reinforces a consistent editorial line centered on class, worker rights and feminism, grounded in the materialism of the traditional left and on the principle of free speech.

Plebity | Sep 17, 2022

On the Limitations of the ‘Lived Experience’

ARTICLE

For the better part of a decade, I immersed myself in social justice causes. I made sure I kept myself up-to-date with the latest social justice jargon, even when it was confusing and contradictory (though I wouldn’t admit to it at the time).

Rozali Telbis | Nov 11, 2021

The Wi Spa Incident

VIDEO

In this clip, Nesim and Sasha speak to their guests Charles Love and Wilfred Reilly about the recent Wi Spa incident, where antifa protestors violently harassed several individuals who oppose policies that allow transwomen to enter women's spaces (changing rooms and other areas where women are vulnerable or undressed).

Sasha White | Jul 16, 2021

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