Michael Parenti

Last updated

Michael John Parenti
Michael Parenti, Democracy and the Pathology of Wealth, 44m30s.jpg
Parenti in 2012
Born (1933-09-30) September 30, 1933 (age 90)
NationalityAmerican
Education
Occupations
Notable work
  • Democracy for the Few
  • To Kill a Nation
  • Superpatriotism
  • Blackshirts and Reds
SpouseSusan Parenti
Children Christian Parenti
Awards
School Marxism
Institutions
Thesis Ethnic and Political Attitudes: A Depth Study of Italian Americans  (1962)
Doctoral advisor Robert E. Lane
Main interests
Socialism · Imperialism · Political economy · Ideology

Michael John Parenti (born September 30, 1933) is an American political scientist, academic historian and cultural critic who writes on scholarly and popular subjects. He has taught at universities as well as run for political office. [1] Parenti is well known for his Marxist writings and lectures, [2] [3] and is an intellectual of the American Left. [4] [5]

Contents

Education and personal life

Michael Parenti was raised by an Italian-American working-class family in the East Harlem neighborhood of New York City. [6] After graduating from high school, Parenti worked for several years. Upon returning to school, he received a BA from the City College of New York, an MA from Brown University and a PhD in political science from Yale University. [7] Parenti is the father of Christian Parenti, an academic, author and journalist. [8] [9]

Career

For many years Parenti taught political and social science at various institutions of higher learning, including at the University of Vermont. [ citation needed ] Eventually he devoted himself full-time to writing, public speaking, and political activism. [10]

His book Democracy for the Few is a critical analysis of U.S. society, economy, and political institutions.[ citation needed ] His book Blackshirts and Reds defended the Soviet Union and communist states of the 20th century from criticism, arguing that they were morally superior compared to capitalist states, that the problems of the Soviet Union were caused by the Russian Civil War and capitalist interference, and that "Left anti-Communist" and "pure socialist" critics failed to offer any alternatives to the Soviet Union's "siege socialism". [11]

In 1974, Parenti ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in Vermont as the candidate of the democratic socialist Liberty Union Party; he came in third place, with 7.1% of the vote. [12] [13] Parenti was once a friend of Bernie Sanders, but he later split with Sanders over Sanders's support for the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. [14] [15]

In the 1980s, he was a visiting fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C. [16] In 2003, the Caucus for a New Political Science gave him a Career Achievement Award. [7] In 2007, he received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from U.S. Representative Barbara Lee. [7]

He served for 12 years as a judge for Project Censored. [17] He also is on the advisory boards of Independent Progressive Politics Network and Education Without Borders as well as the advisory editorial boards of New Political Science and Nature, Society and Thought. [18] [19]

Appearances in media

Apart from several recordings of some of his public speeches, Parenti has also appeared in the 1992 documentary The Panama Deception , the 2004 Liberty Bound [20] and 2013 Fall and Winter documentaries [21] as an author and social commentator.

Parenti was interviewed in Boris Malagurski's documentary film The Weight of Chains 2 (2014) about the former Yugoslavia. [22] He was also interviewed for two episodes of the Showtime series Penn & Teller: Bullshit! , speaking briefly about the Dalai Lama (Episode 305 – Holier Than Thou) [23] and patriotism (Episode 508 – Mount Rushmore).[ citation needed ]

New York City-based punk rock band Choking Victim use a number of samples from Michael Parenti's lectures in their album No Gods, No Managers . [24]

Books

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

    Marxism–Leninism is a communist ideology that became the largest faction of the communist movement in the world in the years following the October Revolution. It was the predominant ideology of most socialist governments throughout the 20th century. Developed in Russia by the Bolsheviks, it was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, Soviet satellite states in the Eastern Bloc, and various countries in the Non-Aligned Movement and Third World during the Cold War, as well as the Communist International after Bolshevization.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernie Sanders</span> American politician and activist (born 1941)

    Bernard Sanders is an American politician and activist who is the senior United States senator from Vermont. Sanders is the longest-serving independent in U.S. congressional history but has a close relationship with the Democratic Party, having caucused with House and Senate Democrats for most of his congressional career and sought the party's presidential nomination in 2016 and 2020, coming second in both campaigns. He is often seen as a leader of the U.S. progressive movement.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Mountain Peace and Justice Party</span> Political party in Vermont, US

    The Green Mountain Peace and Justice Party, known as the Liberty Union Party(LUP) until 2021, is a political party active in the U.S. state of Vermont. It is a self-proclaimed "non-violent socialist party".

    The history of the socialist movement in the United States spans a variety of tendencies, including anarchists, communists, democratic socialists, Marxists, Marxist–Leninists, Trotskyists and utopian socialists. It began with utopian communities in the early 19th century such as the Shakers, the activist visionary Josiah Warren and intentional communities inspired by Charles Fourier. Labor activists, usually Jewish, German, or Finnish immigrants, founded the Socialist Labor Party of America in 1877. The Socialist Party of America was established in 1901. By that time, anarchism also rose to prominence around the country. Socialists of different tendencies were involved in early American labor organizations and struggles. These reached a high point in the Haymarket massacre in Chicago, which founded the International Workers' Day as the main labour holiday around the world, Labor Day and making the eight-hour day a worldwide objective by workers organizations and socialist parties worldwide.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 United States Senate election in Vermont</span>

    The 2006 United States Senate election in Vermont was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent independent Senator Jim Jeffords decided to retire rather than seek reelection to a fourth term, and Bernie Sanders was elected to succeed him.

    Socialist democracy is a political system that aligns with principles of both socialism and democracy. It includes ideologies such as council communism, democratic socialism, social democracy, and soviet democracy, as well as Marxist democracy like the dictatorship of the proletariat. It was embodied in the Soviet system (1922–1991). It can also denote a system of political party organization like democratic centralism, or a form of democracy espoused by Marxist–Leninist political parties or groups that support one-party states. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1945–1992) styled itself a socialist democracy, as did the People's Republic of Bulgaria (1946–1990) and the Socialist Republic of Romania (1947–1989).

    Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and supports a gradualist, reformist and democratic approach towards achieving socialism, usually under a social liberal framework. In practice, social democracy takes a form of socially managed welfare capitalism, achieved with partial public ownership, economic interventionism, and policies promoting social equality.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Left-wing populism</span> Political ideology that combines left-wing politics and populist rhetoric and themes

    Left-wing populism, also called social populism, is a political ideology that combines left-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric often includes elements of anti-elitism, opposition to the Establishment, and speaking for the "common people". Recurring themes for left-wing populists include economic democracy, social justice, and scepticism of globalization. Socialist theory plays a lesser role than in traditional left-wing ideologies.

    The American Left can refer to multiple concepts. It is sometimes used as a shorthand for groups aligned with the Democratic Party. At other times, it refers to groups that have sought egalitarian changes in the economic, political, and cultural institutions of the United States. Various subgroups with a national scope are active. Liberals and progressives believe that equality can be accommodated into existing capitalist structures, but they differ in their criticism of capitalism and on the extent of reform and the welfare state. Anarchists, communists, and socialists with international imperatives are also present within this macro-movement. Many communes and egalitarian communities have existed in the United States as a sub-category of the broader intentional community movement, some of which were based on utopian socialist ideals. The left has been involved in both the Democratic and Republican parties at different times, having originated in the Democratic-Republican Party as opposed to the Federalist Party.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1990 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont</span>

    The 1990 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 6, 1990 to elect the U.S. representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices.

    Democratic socialism is a left-wing set of political philosophies that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management within a market socialist, decentralised planned, or democratic centrally planned socialist economy. Democratic socialists argue that capitalism is inherently incompatible with the values of freedom, equality, and solidarity and that these ideals can only be achieved through the realisation of a socialist society. Although most democratic socialists seek a gradual transition to socialism, democratic socialism can support revolutionary or reformist politics to establish socialism. Democratic socialism was popularised by socialists who opposed the backsliding towards a one-party state in the Soviet Union and other nations during the 20th century.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Political positions of Bernie Sanders</span> Full coverage of the policies of Bernie Sanders

    The political positions of Bernie Sanders are reflected by his United States Senate voting record, public speeches, and interviews. He is a self-described democratic socialist. Bernie Sanders is an independent senator from Vermont who has served in government since 1981.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1996 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont</span>

    The 1996 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 5, 1996, to elect the U.S. representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Vermont</span>

    The 2018 United States Senate election in Vermont was held November 6, 2018, alongside a gubernatorial election, U.S. House election, and other state and local elections. Incumbent independent Senator Bernie Sanders was re-elected to a third term. The primaries were held on August 14.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Diamondstone</span> American politician

    Peter Isaac Diamondstone was an American lawyer and socialist politician from the state of Vermont, best known as a perennial candidate and co-founder of the Liberty Union Party. He ran for various Vermont political offices, always unsuccessfully, in every election cycle from 1970 until 2016.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1981 Burlington mayoral election</span> Election in Vermont, U.S., won by Bernie Sanders

    The 1981 Burlington mayoral election was held March 3, 1981. Bernie Sanders, who ran as an independent candidate, defeated incumbent Democratic Mayor Gordon Paquette, who was seeking a sixth term as Mayor of Burlington, Vermont, and Richard Bove.

    Democratic socialism represents the modernist development of socialism and its outspoken support for democracy. The origins of democratic socialism can be traced back to 19th-century utopian socialist thinkers and the Chartist movement in Great Britain, which somewhat differed in their goals but shared a common demand of democratic decision making and public ownership of the means of production, and viewed these as fundamental characteristics of the society they advocated for. Democratic socialism was also heavily influenced by the gradualist form of socialism promoted by the British Fabian Society and Eduard Bernstein's evolutionary socialism.

    Social democracy originated as an ideology within the labour whose goals have been a social revolution to move away from purely laissez-faire capitalism to a social capitalism model sometimes called a social market economy. In a nonviolent revolution as in the case of evolutionary socialism, or the establishment and support of a welfare state. Its origins lie in the 1860s as a revolutionary socialism associated with orthodox Marxism. Starting in the 1890s, there was a dispute between committed revolutionary social democrats such as Rosa Luxemburg and reformist social democrats. The latter sided with Marxist revisionists such as Eduard Bernstein, who supported a more gradual approach grounded in liberal democracy and cross-class cooperation. Karl Kautsky represented a centrist position. By the 1920s, social democracy became the dominant political tendency, along with communism, within the international socialist movement, representing a form of democratic socialism with the aim of achieving socialism peacefully. By the 1910s, social democracy had spread worldwide and transitioned towards advocating an evolutionary change from capitalism to socialism using established political processes such as the parliament. In the late 1910s, socialist parties committed to revolutionary socialism renamed themselves as communist parties, causing a split in the socialist movement between these supporting the October Revolution and those opposing it. Social democrats who were opposed to the Bolsheviks later renamed themselves as democratic socialists in order to highlight their differences from communists and later in the 1920s from Marxist–Leninists, disagreeing with the latter on topics such as their opposition to liberal democracy whilst sharing common ideological roots.

    References

    1. "How Bernie Sanders, an Open Socialist, Won Burlington's Mayoral Election". jacobinmag.com. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
    2. Parenti, Michael (January 1, 1998). "The Increasing Relevance of Marxism". Socialism and Democracy. 12 (1): 115–121. doi:10.1080/08854309808428215. ISSN   0885-4300.
    3. Boggs, Carl (June 1, 2012). "Reflections on Politics and Academia: An Interview with Michael Parenti". New Political Science. 34 (2): 228–236. doi:10.1080/07393148.2012.676401. ISSN   0739-3148. S2CID   147258248.
    4. Lattin, Don (April 5, 2010). "Review: 'God and His Demons,' by Michael Parenti". SFGATE. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
    5. Carr, Paul R. (2011). Does Your Vote Count?: Critical Pedagogy and Democracy. Peter Lang. p. 274. ISBN   978-1-4331-0813-6.
    6. Parenti, Michael (August 2007). "La Famiglia: An Ethno-Class Experience". Contrary Notions: The Michael Parenti Reader. City Lights Books. pp.  403. ISBN   978-0-87286-482-5.
    7. 1 2 3 "Michael Parenti – The Humanities Institute – The Humanities Institute". Scripps CollegeScripps College. April 17, 2018. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
    8. Bergman, Tabe (January 1, 2019). ""Old-New" Directions in Political Communication: Taking Michael Parenti's Media Criticism as a Guide". Frontiers in Communication. 4. doi: 10.3389/fcomm.2019.00023 . ISSN   2297-900X.
    9. "Christian Parenti". John Jay College of Criminal Justice. January 31, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
    10. Parenti, Michael (1996). "Struggles in Academe: A Personal Account". Dirty Truths. ISBN   0-87286-317-4.
    11. "Worker's ice pick". The Anarchist Library. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
    12. "Elections Results Archive". VT Elections Database.
    13. Sanders, Bernie (1997). "You Have to Begin Somewhere". Outsider in the House .
    14. Zeitlin, Matthew (June 13, 2019). "Bernie's Red Vermont". The New Republic. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
    15. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : "Michael Parenti on Bernie Sanders". YouTube.
    16. Parenti, Michael (September 2, 2013). "The State of the Discipline: One Interpretation of Everyone's Favorite Controversy – PS: Political Science & Politics". PS: Political Science & Politics. 16 (2): 189–196. doi:10.1017/S1049096500015043. ISSN   1537-5935. S2CID   155444644 . Retrieved January 13, 2022.
    17. "Michael Parenti". Project Censored. May 24, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
    18. Parenti, Michael. "The Michael Parenti Political Archive" . Retrieved January 2, 2008.
    19. "Political Scientist Michael Parenti To Speak At Muhlenberg". Muhlenberg College. Muhlenberg College. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
    20. "Liberty Bound (2004)". BFI. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
    21. "Fall and Winter on iTunes". iTunes. December 1, 2013. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
    22. "The Stars of the Film – The Weight of Chains 2010 – - Boris Malagurski films". The Weight of Chains. September 18, 2019. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
    23. "Michael Parenti on Penn & Teller: Bullshit! (2005)". youtube.com.
    24. Manner, Lauri (June 14, 2001). "Choking Victim – No Gods / No Managers". Punknews.org. Retrieved January 13, 2022.