I finally put down Between Two Fires. After reflecting on my critiques of the book I gave in last week’s book discussion thread, I decided to not finish it. But thankfully some of my comrades really wanted to read The Wretched of the Earth, so we’ve been reading that and, as expected, it’s amazing. I just listened to the On Violence section twice on audiobook and plan to go back and read through the PDF copy I have. I know Rev Left has a Red Menace episode covering the work but if anyone has any study guides or resources for Wretched of the Earth that my group and I could use, please send them my way!
In addition to WotE, my on again off again book is still Dialectics of Chinese Labor: Trade Unions Under Market Socialism by Immanuel Ness. I’m going to leave the summary and link to a free copy in this message below because I really do recommend this book (though i haven’t finished it yet). Like I said last week, the book is kind of repetitive in the way that it sets up each chapter but other than that I think it’s a good read.
Summary
A Marxist sociology of state owned enterprises (SOEs), trade unions, and workers in China’s gig and platform economy — from Mao Zedong to Xi Jinping. This book challenges the myth of the “passive worker” and argues that, against the grain, the labour movement is working.
It’s a book that rightfully criticizes western labor organizing and unions, but its main thesis is to challenge the western narratives made against the All-China Federation of Trade Unions. It talks about how Chinese workers have organized and adapted to reform and opening up, rural to urban migration, and the rise of the digital platform economy. It also discusses the relationship between the union and the CPC which is cool to hear explained as a transmission belt between the party and the workers.
I finally put down Between Two Fires. After reflecting on my critiques of the book I gave in last week’s book discussion thread, I decided to not finish it. But thankfully some of my comrades really wanted to read The Wretched of the Earth, so we’ve been reading that and, as expected, it’s amazing. I just listened to the On Violence section twice on audiobook and plan to go back and read through the PDF copy I have. I know Rev Left has a Red Menace episode covering the work but if anyone has any study guides or resources for Wretched of the Earth that my group and I could use, please send them my way!
In addition to WotE, my on again off again book is still Dialectics of Chinese Labor: Trade Unions Under Market Socialism by Immanuel Ness. I’m going to leave the summary and link to a free copy in this message below because I really do recommend this book (though i haven’t finished it yet). Like I said last week, the book is kind of repetitive in the way that it sets up each chapter but other than that I think it’s a good read.
Summary
It’s a book that rightfully criticizes western labor organizing and unions, but its main thesis is to challenge the western narratives made against the All-China Federation of Trade Unions. It talks about how Chinese workers have organized and adapted to reform and opening up, rural to urban migration, and the rise of the digital platform economy. It also discusses the relationship between the union and the CPC which is cool to hear explained as a transmission belt between the party and the workers.
The PDF is free on the authors website, linked below. https://labourdialectics.org/