Radicalism and Conventional Politics

...There is an enormous amount to be done, and it is foolish to suppose that any particular strategic perspective charts the one true way...

...I think we can learn much by analyzing how this paradoxical situation has come about, and what it signifies...

...He may become a politically marginal man, existing powerlessly on the fringe of the re-emerging coalitions, waiting like a rebellious Micawber, for some "revolutionary" opportunity to turn up...

...Or he may simply end up on Madison Avenue...

...And on their left, expressing precisely the mood of total disengagement that they articulated in the mid-fifties, they find thousands who were well to their right during that period—those who form the Iargest element in the loose assortment of individuals that has come to be known as the New Politics...

...For those who have been radicalized will, in overwhelming numbers, move back into the conventional structures of political activity with predictable rapidity...

...They alone act in a morally authentic way...

...But if we somehow survive this war, then there is reason for a modest political optimism...

...Say what you will, during a major shooting war that has now lasted 2/Z years, the institutions that protect the rights of protest and petition, the rights of dissent and due pro cess, have held reasonably firm...

...He is Irving Howe, writing in DISSENT in the winter of 1955...

...All radicals have in common the belief that their society is so grossly defective that nothing less than fundamental reconstruction of basic institutions will provide an adequate remedy...

...but rather that I have chosen to focus on other aspects of the pattern more german to my present interest...

...Two different things are involved...

...But these initiatives turned out to be the last writhings of a social force increasingly committed to working within the twoparty system...

...And they will not do so unless they come to lose all confidence in the will or capacity for action of the leaders of the more "liberal" or "progressive" forces...

...The Administration seems determined to press this war until it forces the North to abandon the rebel forces in the South...

...But these tendencies will not result in significant political action of any sort, estranged or conventional, unless there is a widespread belief that the catastrophic conditions are remediable...

...In these circumstances those who have been radicalized may demonstrate, sit-in, teach-in, riot, rebel, form third parties, burn flags, picket, deliberately disobey laws of one sort or another, sponsor a happening, and so on...

...He may then become a celebrant of the American system and a relentless persecutor of those by whom he thinks he was duped...

...The author of this passage then goes on to inveigh against the idea that McCarthyism is dead—attributing the absurd belief to "the classical mistake of the liberal mind: the mistake of assuming that the essence of politics consists of parliamentary maneuvers, votes and resolutions...

...In the absence of such a belief, individuals angered and frustrated by events are more likely to engage in orgies or crime than in sit-ins or precinct politics...

...And yet, there are deeply ironical aspects to the present crisis, analysis of which reveals paradox and some basis for optimism...

...For better or worse, the trade union movement began to function as a force primarily dedicated to serving the interests of active members and to completing the welfare state, and is today only marginally committed to the full range of basic social programs that its original militancy might have led one to expect...

...In future issues we will publish other papers.—EniToxs For any rational man seriously committed to the values of an authentic liberalism or liberal socialism, the present mood must be one of despair, and even agony...

...And yet it is as important to face the fact that the future is not all black as it is to accept the present bleakness...

...significant civil rights progress is made...

...He moves from excessively estranged radicalism to indefatigable defense of the American Way of Life...

...I must not openly oppose the war because to do so would impair my ability to function effectively in my capacity as trade union leader, civil rights leader, judge, teacher, administrator, legislator, publisher, etc...

...Let me now apply the analysis to the paradox I posed at the outset—the fact that many who were "outside" men in the mid-fifties (and, presumably before) have become "inside" men today...

...My own preference is for the latter...

...V The history of the labor movement provides another illustration of the dynamic I have described...

...porting required change...

...In our society the appropriate tactics seem to range over various forms of legal disturbance and civil disobedience...

...They advocate a politics of coalition...

...Nevertheless another catastrophic evil may come along, and may fan the radical embers for a while...

...Neither of the first two factors will result in people taking the view that they must abandon conventional politics unless they also come to believe that the catastrophic evil is cause or symptom of social derangements so pervasive and deep that it is impossible to get any leverage by working for change in generally accepted ways...

...In their frustration and anger they are as likely as not to turn more vehemently against those who continue to try to work within...

...In any event, exaggerated polemics are not likely to produce concessions...

...Those newly estranged from conventional politics in turn comfort themselves with the thought that they are the only men of true conscience in the country...

...The idea that politics is the art of the possible may be the wardheeler's fallacy, but it is not an art that flourishes unless certain outcomes are believed possible...

...The important thing is not whether the situation is evil, but whether it is regarded as evil...

...Indeed, he may become increasingly conservative as more and more of his original program is realized...

...They moved into the Democratic party and began to throw their weight around there...

...He may come to believe that a man as remarkably wise and virtuous as himself could not conceivably have been so wrong without having been victimized by satanic forces...

...that he was duped by sinister forces...

...Opposition to the catastrophic evil is thus fragmented, becomes even less effective than before, and intensifies the radicalizing processes...

...Moreover, they will insist on basic revision of America's cold war policies and of the anti-Communist posture of yesterday's liberalism—both welcome developments...

...To cut oneself off from these sources of energy and inspiration can be disastrous...

...I point the irony by way of a text: The two-party system which has become an object of veneration to numerous ex-radicals and liberals, continues to prevent any clear articulation of basic political choices...

...and it does little good to view the interlude in apocalyptic terms...

...Many protect their despair most vigorously...

...Now suppose the catastrophic evil abates or is eliminated...

...For under appropriate circumstances fired-up warhorses can coalesce with others to produce a new and effective militancy...

...The following article was presented as a discussion paper at an informal Conference for the Democratic Left held in New York City this past May...

...If the radicalization process has not affected them too deeply, they become the new militants—usually with the Democratic party...

...The more the intellectuals declare its virtues to be flexible, the more, in practice, does it make for an increasing homogeneity and conformism in American political life...

...A person's commitments, often reflectively achieved, are a very important consideration in determining who is and who is not radicalized by catastrophic evil...

...We may also take heart from the past that the war has sparked a chain reaction within the ranks of the "establishment" liberals...

...Nevertheless, McCarthy must have intensified their skepticism...

...It is not at all clear to me that it is a catastrophic evil worse than the Great Depression or destruction of lives and aspirations in America's ghettoes...

...In any event there is much we can do to prevent its being quickly patched over...

...A little over a decade ago Howe spoke for a group which was so inflexibly despairing of American society that they chose to take their stand outside the conventional political system —adopting the stance of maverick dissenters...

...436 IV I have tried to describe the abstract pattern by which men are radicalized...

...Eventually, the demands that had stirred men to action at the outset were sufficiently satisfied, so that increasing numbers of militant trade unionists began to play less inflammatory roles within existing political agencies...

...The preceding analysis has, as many of you have no doubt noted, omitted any reference to ideological considerations— to political theory, political philosophy, political reflection...

...They will, together with those of us waiting to receive them, form cadres of militants...

...Given their shared commitment to democratic socialism, they were predisposed to be skeptical about the possibility of moving toward radical goals even before the catastrophic evil of McCarthyism...

...They will assure their followers in private that they are doing everything in private to remedy the catastrophic situation...

...That threat is less imminent than it was during the McCarthy era...

...If, on the other hand, the impact of the radicalization has been "traumatic"— if an individual has reacted too strongly against the system—then one of two things is likely to happen...

...The great tragedy is that it may be too late...

...Nor are those who "accidentally" kill civilians in their bombing runs less callous or culpable than the millions of privately virtuous citizens who every day omit actions that could humanize the conditions of the ghettoes...

...And, as if determined not to be outdone, there are those who exaggerate its defects, underestimate its capacity for permitting and even sup...

...From the point of view of those who see the evil as catastrophic this kind of reasoning is likely to be interpreted as self-serving...

...Such in fact seems to me to be happening in relation to our most recent catastrophic evil—the Vietnam War...

...They stress the possibilities that inhere within our conventional political system...

...ii) Let us, when possible, coordinate our activities...

...Once again, as throughout American history, there are those who exhibit a positively indecent tendency to exaggerate the virtues of the American system, the American political order...

...He and his allies, having fought the good fight, and having much to show for their efforts, cease, out of tiredness or complacency, to function as militants...

...Partly in response to these extreme actions, partly because the evil that provoked the outbursts was one which more "respectable" and "moderate" people could no longer ignore, political programs were forced through in more conventional ways...

...It does not seem to me so deeply rooted in the American system as these other catastrophic evils were and are...

...It is not surprising that academic intellectuals and college students are among those most radicalized by the Vietnam situation...

...If, on many occasions, there is good reason to think that an unorthodox course of action is likely to be more effective than available alternatives in realizing radi cal goals in which someone professes belief, then, if he always finds some reason or other to avoid such actions, we may fairly doubt that he is genuinely radical...

...This is not the only way in which people are radicalized, but it is the pattern that is particularly relevant to this discussion...

...and they can provide an invaluable conscience for a movement whose members, in the attempt to be successful, are not always as careful as they might be to remain faithful to principle and basic aims...

...Masses of men within the conventional system begin to unfreeze and to act...

...III Americans are generally very reluc tant to abandon the more respectable ways of pursuing their ends...

...But one qualification is required...

...Let us refrain from acting out our frustration and anger at administration policy within the ranks of those opposed to the war...

...Nor is recovery of the old fire unimportant...

...It is a mystery to me why literally thousands who did not lose faith in the American system while it perpetrated great iniquities on fellow Americans should at this moment begin to talk about a "fascist takeover" of the United States...

...It is not that they abandon the old rhetoric...

...Perhaps the most unwelcome gesture of all in the present situation is to express even a feeble note of optimism...

...Confronted by an implacably hostile corporate elite that seemed to be in firm control of the major agencies of political and industrial change, the labor movement resorted to every kind of "kooky" action, picketing, massive demonstrations, sit-ins, riots, wanton destruction, maybe even flag burnings, and other forms of civil disobedience that were the moral equivalents of draft-card burnings...

...The size and intensity of the demonstrations have grown...

...But, as I there argue, those who practice the politics of selfindulgence are more capable than most people of sustained, serious effort despite absence of conventional political rewards, and are often initiators of new and immensely significant departures from the normal processes...

...For my purposes a left-wing radical is one who seriously and persistently aims at fundamental reconstruction of basic institutions whether he deems it desirable to work within or outside of the conventional political process...

...The pattern can be applied, with little modification, to reactions to McCarthyism, the civil rights struggle, and now Vietnam...

...On the other hand, these leaders will normally be able to make a convincing case why they should not be outspoken or publicly active in opposing the catastrophic evil...

...The Vietnam War is a particularly obscene, cruel and dangerous misuse of vast power...

...Suppose this reversal is brought about in part by a more effective functioning of conventional political processes...

...Ideology and reflection figure in the pattern of analysis in two ways...

...For the processes of American democracy have proved inadequate to the task of restraining our government from embarking on a course in Vietnam that is as barbaric as it is pointless...

...Some of our best friends are the privately virtuous men who encourage public vice knowing what they do...

...Since the week after the initial escalation, most of my political activity has been directed to ending that conflict...

...They fully sympathize with the bind the leader finds himself in...

...And America's inability or unwillingness to des troy the historic disabilities of black men confirmed them in the conviction that fundamental reconstitution of the processes of American democracy was required...

...iii) Those of us who continue to hold different strategic concepts must articulate those differences firmly, responsibly, but without an overload of contempt and disdain...

...The paradox consists in the fact that these radicals have moved to their present position during the very period in recent history in which has occurred the most dramatic evidence for their earlier mood of skepticism and rejection...

...If we are right in our basic calculations others will hopefully discover that we are and will become our future allies—always provided we all survive...

...Each individual saves his political substance, the cumulative effect being to squander political opportunities...

...a way of avoiding anything that threatens one's career...

...I say this so that I will not be misunderstood in what I say next...

...They do not gloss over what is deranged and corrupt, but they refuse to participate in the fashion of a total repudiation of the American system...

...Those who have been radicalized and have opted out begin to be reabsorbed by the normal political structures...

...I cite the passage, not for the purpose of picking a fight with Howe, whose recent writings do, I believe, exhibit discriminating intelligence, remarkable in these times of contaminating stress...

...These activities may be as mild as picketing or as severe as full-scale organized revolt...

...They emphasize the promise as well as the sickness of American liberalism...

...McCarthy's decline and fall, mitigation at least of the most visible and worst manifestations of McCarthyism, and significant initial progress in the struggle for civil rights led to a revised estimate both of the potentialities of American democracy and the moral seriousness of at least a segment of those who call themselves liberals...

...It may be that this happens as a result of the outside pressure...

...For in matters of foreign policy almost the only ones who are radicalized are those who have commitments that withstand the pressures of the patriotic pitch...

...i. A situation exists, usually but not necessarily some datable event, which is viewed as catastrophically evil...

...For what is at issue is no mere policy of international extent and significance...

...That war seems less obnoxious only because the United States had less power at its disposal...

...Of course the fact that they retain the old rhetoric keeps alive the possibility that they will recapture the old spark —but it is an increasingly remote possibility...

...It is not, then, that I think ideology and reflection unimportant...

...Secondly, under the impact of the radicalizing experience, one is often impelled to think more deeply about political matters than previously...

...Three factors will normally be present when individuals become convinced that it is right and necessary for them to work outside the established political structures in order to achieve radical goals...

...And so in little more than a generation the trade union movement moved from a position outside conventional party politics to a position in which it became one of the great stabilizing forces within the society and the political system...

...The writer is not a member of today's estranged Left...

...It is important to anticipate and encourage that development—something that can be done in three ways: (i) Let us prevent internal squabbles from becoming rancorous...

...The normal processes of American democracy come to be regarded as so defective that reliance on them is futile...

...First a word or two about the idea of radicalization...

...They stress opportunities as well as harsh realities...

...We are, hopefully, living through an episode in the development of a decent society...

...In my essay "Where Shall Liberals Got"* I tried to characterize the three distinctive political styles— the politics of pseudo-realism, the politics of self-indulgence, and the politics of radical pressure—that one finds on the American Left...

...I cite it rather in order to highlight the irony that concerns me here...

...It is not worse than a number of other obscenities that have occurred in the history of this nation— the Mexican War was a much more direct and brutal use of American power...

...Among the situations that have produced radicalizing tendencies in American history are constriction of credit, slavery, sweated labor, the Great Depression, McCarthyism, and Vietnam...

...iii...

...At the very moment in history when, on any surface analysis, they should have moved even more firmly to a posture of dissent outside the conventional political system, they have done just the reverse...

...And in all of this I believe they are right...

...In my own town, Ann Arbor, many would rather beat the other faction, also opposed to the war, than elect a dove from the other camp...

...DISSENT, September—October 1966...

...The situation may be a depression, war, or tyrannical crusade, or it may be a system of slavery or systematic exploitation of some other sort...

...Despair and disillusionment then reach such proportions that masses of people lose all confidence in the resilience and integrity of conventional political processes...

...a fact to which I'll return...

...Alternatively, he may come to feel that he was gulled into overreacting...

...They will point out that they have official positions that impose multiple obligations— and that to be publicly identified with the cause that generates major concern would be to forefeit all ability to work for beneficial outcomes in other respects...

...For there is no a priori reasoning by which one mode of action as against another can be presumed to be most effective in relation to radical ends...

...ii...

...McCarthy is crushed...

...But my reason is simple...

...The deepening split will not be easily healed when and if the war ends...

...these established structures than against their common adversaries...

...Alternatively, the catastrophic evil may reach so deeply into the society, affect so many, that it becomes politically advantageous to resist — as the military did during the McCarthy era...

...In either case the belief that catastrophic evil is occurring normally results from the fact that those who so view matters have beliefs and expectations that are violently at odds with their view of existing reality...

...And in this their experience does not quite fit the pattern...

...But they nevertheless lose confidence because though each particular act of non-commitment seems defen sible, the cumulative impact of all these omissions is massive failure to operate the conventional agencies of political power so as to effect desired change...

...Of course, the destiny of a new militant is not necessarily one unsullied by vice...

...One might even claim that there has never been an occasion in American history when belief in the total corruption of American society, lack of faith in the promise of the American constitutional order, is more justified by events...

...V1 Today we have a new catastrophic evil, a new process of radicalization occurring...

...The Congressional dissent has enlarged as the war has enlarged...

...The CIO fought the more complacent segments of the trade union movement...

...The revised judgment, though severely shaken, has so far withstood the pressures generated by the Vietnam outrage...

...The growing division within the labor movement, within ADA, within the Democratic party, within religious groups, and, in a way, within the civil rights movement are symptoms of this development...

...If we fail to thwart that ambition, if more tragically we fail to avert a larger conflict, then those who failed to grasp the normal levers of political power in an effort to end the war will bear a heavy share of the fault...

...But it is also often thought that to be radical one must be ready to engage in forms of political activity that are unorthodox and disreputable by conventional standards...

...The phenomenon I'm interested in is the process by which large numbers of people are radicalized on the Left in a way that results in their adopting a posture outside the political system, and are subsequently absorbed as militants into that system...

...But deep commitment to democracy and to other liberal values forestalled extreme disenchantment with the conventional processes...

...This makes tolerable the painful fact that they have abandoned any effort to gain control of existing levers of political power, and that they often undermine the work of organizations that could be effective in more conventional ways...

...Every now and again, as with Reuther before the '48 elections, they toyed with the idea of a third force— a farmer-labor party that would supplant the Democratic party in the way that Britain's Labor party eventually replaced the Liberal party...

...But I think these two ideas— radical reconstruction of institutions and unorthodox tactics and strategies —must be kept distinct...

...Some are more charitable...

...what is at issue is the very integrity of the liberal ideal that has guided the more progressive factions within American political life since the inception of the American experiment...

...But the rhetoric becomes a mere, often self-deceptive cover for participation in that institutional indifference which, besides being the source of much comfort, is the ultimate disorder in American society...

...Nevertheless, it is important to stress the value as well as the defects of those who tend to abandon conventional politics...

...Leaders stop saving their substance and start grasping opportunities...

...That is, there is an enormous gap between the ideals they profess and the facts as they view them...

...The very civil rights leaders who use this mode of reasoning to explain silence in relation to the war were once as vehement as their present critics in attacking trade union leaders, local politicians, Southern intellectuals, and the like for failing to stand up for racial justice—though the latter used exactly the same sorts of arguments in replying to the urgings of the civil rights leaders...

...The irony consists in the fact that he, and many who shared his views in 1955, are today among the most eloquent and persuasive advocates of the importance of working within existing political structures so as to shape and reshape them...