I have often heard ultra-lefts describe Marxists who oppose settler-colonialism and uphold AES as being “Third Worldists”.
Looking at what people like Jason Unruhe have to say about the topic, Third Worldism does not seem entirely baseless (e.g. the proletariat in the imperial core more often being labor aristocrats).
So, what are our thoughts on Third Worldism?
I don’t think it’s baseless at all. But things aren’t binary nor static, they’re flows and tensions in a constant state of flux.
Western individualism takes third worldist thought and transforms it into “there’s no hope, only options are escapism or adventurism”. Rather than taking it to mean class consciousness isn’t a given in the imperial core, it’s something we must fight for and cultivate.
It’s also a good temper to the Trotskyist chauvinism I’m growing ever more tired of.
I really appreciate this comment. It basically puts my general direction into words. I have constant discussions with healthy white folks with a bachelors degree and nearly six figures who say socialism is a nice idea but… It makes my skin crawl. I have lived through starvation and homelessness. it is incredibly hard to stay friendly in the face of such privilege.