As I see it, a large part of the old Marxist Left disappeared during the 1980s and 1990s. Deeper ideas about class struggle, the labour movement, the welfare state, nationalisation and so on were consigned to the waiting room of ideologies.
The 1990s were characterised by a sort of apolitical left-wing movement, featuring figures such as Göran Persson (Swedish ex PM), Tony Blair and others, who may have been left-wing in a broader sense but were hardly Marxists or even socialists.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, a new kind of left-wing movement emerged, one that had its roots more in snobbish liberalism, a certain type of radical feminism and climate sectarianism. Where nose rings, pink hair, gender dysphoria and word censorship became more common. The old left had no problem with words like ‘Negro’ or ‘Gypsy’, not as far as I can remember, anyway.
And I cannot help but note that whilst the new left is admittedly a pastiche of the old, in many cases it is constructed and organised by external forces. Its members are being grossly deceived, and their leaders are likely on the payroll of various organisations, serving the interests of very specific factions within the business community.
For example, a quick bit of research shows that the left-wing activist in ‘Preserve Wetlands’ (Sweden) has links to ‘Extinction Rebellion’ and the ‘Climate Emergency Fund’, which receive funding from well-known names such as Disney, Getty, Hohn and other wealthy players. And this is how much of the New Left’s activism works, whether it concerns climate activism, BLM, No kings, etc or the appointment of “tolerant” prosecutors in California, and so on. Money, donations, bribes.
The old class struggle has been replaced by activism, which on the surface may resemble the methods of the old Left, but which in reality is controlled by wealthy individuals who ultimately pursue their own interests. Whether they are, deep down, convinced Marxists, techno-fascists, climate zealots or rights activists – we do not know – they may well be doing the bidding of big business. And so the ideological circle is complete: the labour movement, once created to liberate the poor and vulnerable, is instead being used to generate profit for a small, select elite.
