Laurie Penny, The New Statesman: No, identity politics is not to blame for the failures of the left
All politics are identity politics, but some identities are more politicised than others. The notion that the politics of identity and belonging have been allowed to overwhelm seemingly intractable issues of class, power and poverty is, in fact, entirely correct – but this is not a problem for the traditional left. It is a problem for the traditional right, which has pursued a divide-and-conquer strategy for centuries, pitting white workers against black and brown workers, men against women, native-born citizens against foreigners in a hierarchy of victimhood that diverts energy and anger away from the vested interests bankrolling the entire scheme.
Tell me who in the current group of Democratic elected officials understands that in practical terms at the core of their being. Note that Bernie Sanders is still independent, was savaged for not having this at the core of his being, and although an important voice in the Democratic caucus (in contrast with the Democratic Party), has influence really only among 10% of the people required to win national elections.
This goes again to the question of who is the opposition coalition and what they stand for.
What won the election was the idea of exclusion and the freedom to exclude. Laurie Penny rightly asks who really benefits from that result? The cabinet appointments should make the answer to that question pretty apparent.
Who will stand against that idea of exclusion for the sake of collective bargaining in real populist power?
