Faculty Video: 120 Minutes (or so) on the First 120 Days: Biden and the Left

On Thursday, May 20th, BISR Faculty Ajay Singh Chaudhary, Alyssa Battistoni, Adriana Garriga-Lopez, and Rafael Khachaturian were joined by Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung’s Kazembe Balagun to take stock of the the Biden administration’s first 120 days in office. Among the points discussed: What kind of liberalism does the Biden administration represent? Is climate pragmatism doing a disservice to substantive policy change? How can we understand the increase in domestic spending and investment with respect to the administration’s aggressive foreign policy (particularly vis-a-vis China)? What political tactics, specifically around citizenry, are used suppress democratic participation in society? Can the process of decolonization occur free from the Democratic Party’s self-interest? How has the rise of the modern right been complementary to the rise of American neoliberalism? How does the relationship between social movements and state-oriented politics manipulate political opinion? And what new political formations and critical prospects are possible for the U.S. left?