The Failure and Success of the American Left

The distinguished historian Michael Kazin of Georgetown University provides a timely reminder of both the failures and achievements of the American left over time.

The right turn taken by American politics in the final quarter of the twentieth century and sustained in the early part of the twenty-first century has tended to obscure the diverse nature of the American political tradition. It is particularly important for overseas observers of the American scene not to lose sight of the reality that an American left has long existed and made a contribution to the historical fabric of the nation’s politics. Nor should Europeans assume that the experience of the American left has been one of unmitigated failure. If the American left has not held electoral power in the manner of a European Socialist/Labour Party, it has nevertheless helped to shape the reform agenda of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries to give expression to the interests of working-class and low-income Americans.

In this 2007 James Bryce Lecture on the American Commonwealth, the distinguished historian Michael Kazin of Georgetown University provides a timely reminder of both the failures and achievements of the American left over time. This address should offer important insights not only to scholars and students of U.S. history and politics but also those with a broader interest in the development of the left in the western world.

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