This book explores the relationship between diverse social movements and Marxist historical cultures during the second half of the twentieth century in Western Europe, with special emphasis on the Federal Republic of Germany and Italy. During the Cold War, Marxist ideas and understandings of history informed not only the traditional Communist Parties in Western Europe, but also influenced a range of new social movements that emerged in the 1970s in the wake of the 1968 student rebellions. The generation of 1968 was strongly influenced by neo-Marxist ideas that they subsequently carried into the new social movements. The volume asks how Marxist historical cultures influenced third world movements, anti-fascist movements, the peace movement and a whole host of other new social movements that signaled a new vibrancy of civil society in Western Europe from the 1970s onwards.

Communism, society, and history -- History and history's problem -- Issues in the historiography of communism : part one -- Issues in the historiography of communism : part two -- Ideology and the metaphysics of content -- Society against the state : the fullness of the primitive -- Left futures (with Randy Martin) -- Rethinking the crisis of socialism (with Itin) -- Rethinking socialism.

In Marx Matters noted scholars explore the way a Marxian political economy addresses contemporary social problems, demonstrating the relevance of Marx today and outlining how his work can frame progressive programs for social change.

In this timely book, American Marxism: How a New Cold War Drives the Progressives' Agenda, author William Reeves takes a close look at the history of Marxism. It examines the evolution of socialism, how it was refined over the course of several decades by neo-Marxists from an economic theory to a social science to a political and cultural path to power. It highlights how today's progressives--who have overtaken Liberals in setting the agenda for the American Left--have used Cultural Marxism to construct a divisive and hypocritical platform that flies in the face of every ideal put forth by our Founding Fathers.Learn more about how the tenants of Marxism have been rebranded as progressivism, and how this tired and failed philosophy has enveloped a far left that is bent on the destruction of America. Discover what this toxic ideology means for the future of our country and how this movement is used by those in the arts, the media and academia to negatively influence what American's can and should believe about our nation. By discussing both the history of Marxism and how it is being applied by the leftist political movement in an effort to win the hearts and minds of Americans, we can better understand the intentions of their agenda and develop counter measures to expose it. William Reeves holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in urban studies and a Master of Arts degree in economics. He has enjoyed a lengthy career as a public policy and government relations consultant, writer and educator and lives with his family in Southern California.

In The American Communist Movement: Storming Heaven Itself, Harvey Klehr and John Earl Haynes trace the turbulent history of American communism as both political party and social movement. Drawing on a wealth of research, they follow the party's fortunes from its origin in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, through its heyday during the Depression years, to the gradual decline in the post-World War II era. The authors examine the effect of the party's ideas on groups more in the mainstream of American politics, as well as the influence of communist "popular front" culture on American culture in general. While duly acknowledging the idealism of many American communists, the authors also take a clear-eyed look at the disturbing aspects of the American communist movement: its subservience to Moscow, its penchant for conspiratorial machinations, its bitter internal disputes and purges, its always latent and sometimes virulent totalitarianism.

The Reagan era is usually seen as an era of unheralded prosperity, and as a high-watermark of Republican success. President Ronald Reagan's belief in "Reaganomics", his media-friendly sound-bites and "can do" personality have come to define the era. However, this was also a time of domestic protest and unrest. Under Reagan the US was directly involved in the revolutions which were sweeping the Central Americas- El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala -and in Nicaragua Reagan armed the Contras who fought the Sandinistas. This book seeks to show how the left within the US reacted and protested against these events. The Nation, Verso Books and the Guardian exploded in popularity, riding high on the back of popular anti-interventionist sentiment in America, while the film-maker Oliver Stone led a group of directors making films with a radical left-wing message. The author shows how the1980s in America were a formative cultural period for the anti-Reaganites as well as the Reaganites, and in doing so charts a new history.

The impact of Communism on the twentieth century was massive, equal to that of the two world wars. Until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, historians knew relatively little about the secretive world of communist states and parties. Since then, the opening of state, party, and diplomatic archives of the former Eastern Bloc has released a flood of new documentation. The thirty-five essays in this Handbook, written by an international team of scholars, draw on this new material to offer a global history of communism in the twentieth century. In contrast to many histories that concentrate on the Soviet Union, The Oxford Handbook of the History of Communism is genuinely global in its coverage, paying particular attention to the Chinese Revolution. It is 'global', too, in the sense that the essays seek to integrate history 'from above' and 'from below', to trace the complex mediations between state and society, and to explore the social and cultural as well as the political and economic realities that shaped the lives of citizens fated to live under communist rule. The essays reflect on the similarities and differences between communist states in order to situate them in their socio-political and cultural contexts and to capture their changing nature over time. Where appropriate, they also reflect on how the fortunes of international communism were shaped by the wider economic, political, and cultural forces of the capitalist world. The Handbook provides an informative introduction for those new to the field and a comprehensive overview of the current state of scholarship for those seeking to deepen their understanding.