The Imperative of Radicalism: Reimagining Society Beyond Establishment Limits

By Shanelle Matthews

I first heard the slogan, "Turn up on the state, not on each other," at the 2015 Movement for Black Lives convening in Cleveland. This affirmation was a critical reminder to be clear-eyed about who our enemy is and aware of how our opposition uses intra-movement conflicts to distract us from the tyranny of hegemony and the root causes of systemic oppression.?

We don't have to agree on every political opportunity or intervention to successfully combat oppositional forces; rather, our mandate is to unite toward a collective commitment to solidarity and collaboration.

"The left" represents a range of political ideologies and factions with varying approaches to achieving broad goals. While many organizations describe themselves as "progressive" or "leftist" and articulate visions of social justice, their tolerance for revolutionary-level transformation is low because of their proximity to establishment power. Many, if not most, democrats support the genocide against the Palestinians, often vote against the best interest of their constituents, and invest in companies and systems that exploit them. How many big nonprofits or philanthropic institutions have been explicit about the conditions in Gaza or called out the Israeli government? As unconscionable as their inaction is, and while we must push them toward radicalism, for the last 100 years, radical factions, Democrats, and the progressive Left have been mutually dependent on one another, often working in a united front and fighting for a common cause or against a common enemy despite having differing ideologies, goals, or tactics.?

A united front leverages its members' combined strength, resources, and diverse tactics to challenge a powerful opponent more effectively than any single group could. Given this, misaligned forces become part of our broader coalition against a more critical opponent. Whether we like it or not, our ideologies and strategies diverge. Sometimes, that fractionalizes us, and sometimes, it advances our goals. However, we must remain steadfast in our pursuit and remember that absolute consensus on each political initiative is unnecessary in order to challenge our opponents effectively.

Let us not forget that election outcomes—no matter who wins— have devastating material consequences on people's lives under capitalism.

We must not let bulwarks of neoliberalism or conservatism shame or bully us into believing that either party is advocating for the best interests of multi-racial, working-class people. We must not shame our comrades and community members who opt to abstain, vote uncommitted, or vote their conscience this election year. Electoral justice is essential, and building a radical democracy requires more than getting out the vote.

We must also continue to organize for the radical transformation of the systems and structures that impact our everyday lives. We must continue training and electing transformative policymakers from the communities they serve into office. We must harness the power of narrative to confront the specters of fascism, oppression, and systemic injustice.

Election years surface the worst of the Left, dramatically exposing the fractures among us with the illusion that we're trapped, forced to navigate a treacherous path between two equally bad choices.

But our assignment is clear, RadComms: delegitimize the myth of the binary choice laid before us, articulate a vision of a just society and governance that better serves everyone, illustrate how change is not only necessary but also possible, and provide a roadmap for achieving social justice.?

Despite our oppressive realities, revolutionary hope persists through the relentless efforts of leftist communicators, organizers, activists, and advocates. Our strength is recognizing the interconnectedness of our struggles for justice across various power domains. The Radical Communicators Network is pivotal in this process, nurturing a community of practice that wields narrative power to dismantle oppressive structures and foster global solidarity.

The role of the narrative practitioner in combatting oppressive forces is to advance counter-hegemonic values, frameworks, and practices across the domains of power that structure the organization of society and influence the experiences of individuals within it and to turn up on the state, not on each other.?

At this critical juncture, RadComms recommits to following the instructions of political philosopher Antonio Gramsci: "To reclaim and redefine democracy and economy in terms that relate to and inspire everyday people across all sectors of society …" As a community of practice and intervention for the social movement left, we are committed to transforming society through the power of narrative, storytelling, and strategic communications today and every day and realizing the imperative of radicalism by reimagining society beyond establishment limits.

ListServ Membership Update

Approximately one year ago, the RadComms Leadership Team and administration chose to close our ListServ to applications from prospective new members. We made this decision so we could take time to enhance security, clarify who RadComms serves, and ensure that the full user experience from application to membership served our goal of developing an intentional community of practice

We are thrilled to share that we will be reopening the ListServ to new member applications on Monday, May 6.?The new application form will prompt prospective members to reflect on their practice, values, and what they see themselves offering and receiving from the network and includes updated security measures and internal data management to ensure that our records are organized and accurate. In addition to the form, we will be debuting our new mission, vision, values, and theory of change as well as our updated Community Guidelines for ListServ participation.

RadComms has always moved nimbly to support the needs of our community members, many of whom have found a political home in the network, as well as meet the urgent political moment in which we work. But to move forward as a collective that seeds global connections to propagate radical solutions, we needed to invest in our infrastructure, which meant taking the time to fortify our systems and codify our principles.

The Leadership Team and administration brainstormed, drafted, and revised the network’s guiding principles over the course of several months. Through this process, we quickly saw a clear and resolute identity of RadComms emerge–one that has been cultivated by you, the members of this network, over the last eight years. Our role, then, was to formalize this existing understanding of what makes RadComms,?RadComms?and ensure it permeated throughout our mechanisms for bringing new radical communicators onboard. We can’t wait to share what we’ve created with you.

We have been moved by the many existing and hopeful ListServ members who have inquired about the group’s reopening timeline and appreciate everyone’s patience. Grounded in trust, rigor, and purpose, we look forward to building narrative power with this growing community.

?

?

?