Next Left Notes
Encyclopedia
Next Left Notes is an independent radical publication and weblog connected to the 2006 re-incarnation of Students for a Democratic Society
. NLN began producing print versions in March 2008 - to mark its 4th anniversary.
Good and other NLN contributors were one source of the refoundation statement of SDS in January 2006.
Next Left Notes differs from New Left Notes, the publication of SDS in the 1960s from which it takes its name, in that it is not officially connected with SDS - although Good and other members of the NLN "collective" are members of Movement for a Democratic Society (MDS), the non-student entity that emerged from SDS at the National Convention in Chicago, IL in 2006.
Contributors have included 1960s SDS
veterans
(Bernardine Dohrn
, Bill Ayers
, Paul Buhle
, Mark Rudd
) and
young people who are involved in the new SDS (Allison Van Doren, Brendan Dunn, Brian Kelly
, Pat Korte
) and members of pacifist (Frida Berrigan
, David McReynolds
) and labor activist groups (Penny Rosemont of Charles H. Kerr, various members of the Industrial Workers of the World
).
Like the 1960s magazine New Left Notes, the publication's contributors and readers are largely New Left
and anti-authoritarian
. The articles written for NLN support participatory democracy
and direct action
. The original New Left Notes motto, "Let the People Decide", appears on the NLN masthead.
.
Students for a Democratic Society (2006 organization)
Students for a Democratic Society is a United States student organization representing left wing beliefs. It takes its name and inspiration from the original SDS of 1960-1969, then the largest radical student organization in US history...
. NLN began producing print versions in March 2008 - to mark its 4th anniversary.
Founding and new SDS
Next Left Notes was founded in March, 2004, by Thomas Good, its current editor.Good and other NLN contributors were one source of the refoundation statement of SDS in January 2006.
Next Left Notes differs from New Left Notes, the publication of SDS in the 1960s from which it takes its name, in that it is not officially connected with SDS - although Good and other members of the NLN "collective" are members of Movement for a Democratic Society (MDS), the non-student entity that emerged from SDS at the National Convention in Chicago, IL in 2006.
Contributors have included 1960s SDS
Students for a Democratic Society (1960 organization)
Students for a Democratic Society was a student activist movement in the United States that was one of the main iconic representations of the country's New Left. The organization developed and expanded rapidly in the mid-1960s before dissolving at its last convention in 1969...
veterans
(Bernardine Dohrn
Bernardine Dohrn
Bernardine Rae Dohrn is a former leader of the American anti-Vietnam War radical organization, Weather Underground. She is an Associate Professor of Law at Northwestern University School of Law and the immediate past Director of Northwestern's Children and Family Justice Center...
, Bill Ayers
Bill Ayers
William Charles "Bill" Ayers is an American elementary education theorist and a former leader in the movement that opposed U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. He is known for his 1960s activism as well as his current work in education reform, curriculum, and instruction...
, Paul Buhle
Paul Buhle
Paul Merlyn Buhle is a Senior Lecturer at Brown University, author or editor of 35 volumes including histories of radicalism in the United States and the Caribbean, studies of popular culture, and a series of nonfiction comic art volumes. He is the authorized biographer of C. L. R...
, Mark Rudd
Mark Rudd
Mark William Rudd is a political organizer, mathematics instructor, and anti-war activist, most well known for his involvement with the Weather Underground. Rudd became a member of the Columbia University chapter of Students for a Democratic Society in 1963. By 1968, he had emerged as a leader...
) and
young people who are involved in the new SDS (Allison Van Doren, Brendan Dunn, Brian Kelly
Brian Kelly
Brian Kelly may refer to:*Brian Kelly , television actor best known for his role in the US TV series Flipper*Brian Kelly , Australian rules footballer and coach...
, Pat Korte
Pat Korte
Patrick "Pat" Korte is an American political activist and a co-founder of Students for a Democratic Society . Korte and Jessica Rapchik led students across the United States in reorganizing SDS in 2006....
) and members of pacifist (Frida Berrigan
Frida Berrigan
Frida Berrigan is a peace activist and research associate at the World Policy Institute, specializing in arms trade.She is also a columnist for and Foreign Policy In Focus.She is the daughter of Philip Berrigan of the Catonsville Nine and Liz McAlister....
, David McReynolds
David McReynolds
David McReynolds is an American democratic socialist and pacifist activist who described himself as "a peace movement bureaucrat" during his 40-year career with Liberation magazine and the War Resisters League...
) and labor activist groups (Penny Rosemont of Charles H. Kerr, various members of the Industrial Workers of the World
Industrial Workers of the World
The Industrial Workers of the World is an international union. At its peak in 1923, the organization claimed some 100,000 members in good standing, and could marshal the support of perhaps 300,000 workers. Its membership declined dramatically after a 1924 split brought on by internal conflict...
).
Publication and ideology
According to Next Left Notes, their role in the movement is to cover the New Left actions, conferences and other aspects of the struggle. They provide news articles on left wing events in the United States, as well as commentary and photographic galleries.Like the 1960s magazine New Left Notes, the publication's contributors and readers are largely New Left
New Left
The New Left was a term used mainly in the United Kingdom and United States in reference to activists, educators, agitators and others in the 1960s and 1970s who sought to implement a broad range of reforms, in contrast to earlier leftist or Marxist movements that had taken a more vanguardist...
and anti-authoritarian
Anti-authoritarian
Anti-authoritarianism is opposition to authoritarianism, which is defined as a "political doctrine advocating the principle of absolute rule: absolutism, autocracy, despotism, dictatorship, totalitarianism." Anti-authoritarians usually believe in full equality before the law and strong civil...
. The articles written for NLN support participatory democracy
Participatory democracy
Participatory Democracy, also known as Deliberative Democracy, Direct Democracy and Real Democracy , is a process where political decisions are made directly by regular people...
and direct action
Direct action
Direct action is activity undertaken by individuals, groups, or governments to achieve political, economic, or social goals outside of normal social/political channels. This can include nonviolent and violent activities which target persons, groups, or property deemed offensive to the direct action...
. The original New Left Notes motto, "Let the People Decide", appears on the NLN masthead.
Criticism
Some writers outside the new SDS have criticized Good and NLN as "militant", "sectarian" and too close to former members of the Weather Underground.Format
NLN has published as both a web based news site and, since March 2008, as a print publication. Its content, along with an increasing amount of video and photographic work, is largely released under the GNU General Public LicenseGNU General Public License
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
.
See also
- New LeftNew LeftThe New Left was a term used mainly in the United Kingdom and United States in reference to activists, educators, agitators and others in the 1960s and 1970s who sought to implement a broad range of reforms, in contrast to earlier leftist or Marxist movements that had taken a more vanguardist...
- Students for a Democratic Society (1960 organization)Students for a Democratic Society (1960 organization)Students for a Democratic Society was a student activist movement in the United States that was one of the main iconic representations of the country's New Left. The organization developed and expanded rapidly in the mid-1960s before dissolving at its last convention in 1969...
- Students for a Democratic Society (2006 organization)Students for a Democratic Society (2006 organization)Students for a Democratic Society is a United States student organization representing left wing beliefs. It takes its name and inspiration from the original SDS of 1960-1969, then the largest radical student organization in US history...
- Port Militarization ResistancePort Militarization ResistancePort Militarization Resistance is an anti-war organization in the United States. The organization began in May 2006, in Olympia, Washington, but also has chapters in Tacoma, Washington, Grays Harbor, Washington, and the Mid-Atlantic region. Port Militarization Resistance is also the name of the...
- March 17, 2007 anti-war protestMarch 17, 2007 anti-war protestThe March 17, 2007 anti-war protest was an anti-war demonstration sponsored by ANSWER Coalition that marched from Constitution Gardens in Washington, D.C. to The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The date was selected to coincide with the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, and also the 40th...
- Brian FlanaganBrian FlanaganBrian Flanagan is a former member of the American radical left organizations Students for a Democratic Society and the Weather Underground Organization .-Early life:...
- Jeff Jones (activist)Jeff Jones (activist)Jeff Jones is an environmental activist and consultant in Upstate New York. He was a national officer in Students for a Democratic Society, a founding member of Weatherman, and a leader of the Weather Underground....
External links
- nextleftnotes.net: official site
- newsds.org: Next Left Notes.