This July marks the 20th anniversary of the death of American democratic socialist Michael Harrington.  Harrington was a best-selling author, a principled political activist and the standard-bearer for American democratic socialism throughout his lifetime. Harrington was also the catalyst behind the formation of the Democratic Socialists of America, the parent organization of the Young Democratic Socialists.  The Activist invites members of the progressive community to contribute 500 to 1000-word essays reflecting on Harrington’s life and legacy or more generally on the future of the American socialist movement to which he committed himself.

Please send all submissions to admin@theactivist.org.  We will be publishing entries from July 20th until the end of the month. [Illustration by Scott Laumann]

 Entries:

Michael Harrington and the Twilight of Capitalism – Jason Schulman

A Life Assessed – Joseph Schwartz

The Future-Past of the Next Left – Matt May

After Michael Harrington – David Duhalde

The “Vulture Theory” of Socialism – Bhaskar Sunkara

Responsible Radical: Reflections on Michael Harrington’s Legacy – Ben Kreider