In the summer of 2022 I published my first book Millennial Marxist, which was a culmination of about four years of political commentary I had written between 2017 and 2021 (you can read the conclusion here). The book covered topics ranging from U.S. foreign policy and neoliberalism to Israel/Palestine, the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the problems with American policing, the inherently capitalist nature of America’s two-party political system, and much more. During the subsequent years since publication, I have received invaluable positive feedback from many comrades and strangers, and am truly grateful that my contribution resonated with so many people. In addition to promoting Millennial Marxist on social media and discussing it with friends and family members, I had the privilege of talking about my book on two of my favorite podcasts: Revolutionary Left Radio and What Radicalized You?
A tumultuous period of my life ensued shortly after Millennial Marxist was released. I had ended an untenable relationship, moved across the country with whatever I could fit in my car, encountered depression, financial precariousness, multiple health issues, and perpetual uncertainty. More than a year went by and I suddenly fell deeply in love, moved to a different state once again, remarried, made progress in addressing my undiagnosed chronic illness, and have become relatively financially stable after nearly a year and a half of steady employment with a union job in the public transportation sector. I am even paying my goddamn student loans. During this time, however, writing had mostly been on the back burner. Even journal entries were a bit rare. More than three years have passed, and I am finally “settling down” as I find myself in a comfortable, sustainable, and loving environment. The time has come for me to launch my next large-scale writing project. I am finally ready.
As anyone who has followed me regularly on social media knows, I have been collecting educational resources on socialism and communism for years. I also have dozens of voice recordings on my phone of me just ranting endlessly about things I want to write my next book about. This process has been going on practically since Millennial Marxist originally came out. I have changed my mind many times, but after some recent conversations and much consideration, I finally settled on a rather simple concept: I will attempt to concisely articulate why Western capitalist propaganda about socialism and communism is wrong. That’s pretty much it. I want to play my role in settling this score.
If more Americans become aware of this specific realm of misinformation, they can become more open to socialism. I’m aware that the vague concept of socialism has been gaining more traction lately, but this newfound consciousness is in its infancy. We are still at the naive juncture of believing we can reform this hyper-capitalist nightmare; this juggernaut of voracious imperialism and exploitation; this, as Dr. King put it, greatest purveyor of violence in the world. Reform ain’t it. We need to embrace revolutionary politics, but a prerequisite is the recognition that socialism has succeeded before and it can succeed again. After all, who’s going to read Marxist theory and help chart a path forward when they believe proletarian revolution “always results in despotism”?
Ah yes, “socialism works on paper, but in reality it always leads to totalitarian regimes who murder 100 million people and steal everyone’s toothbrush.” We’ve all heard this before. And this notion is extremely harmful, to use a term that’s popular with the kids these days. It is a narrative that leads only to political nihilism and despair. It reinforces capitalist domination in the bleakest of ways. It kills hope and entrenches the status quo; a status quo that is so profoundly malevolent and deadly, it could lead to the end of humanity as we know it. If we are ever going to save ourselves, if we are ever going to liberate ourselves, we will need a grounded historical perspective. If we are ever going to achieve socialism in the United States, the people need to know that it’s worth fighting for. And that requires a clear-eyed appreciation for socialist and communist history and a strong refutation of insidious bourgeois propaganda.
My second book will be quite the undertaking and I am extremely excited to embark on this journey. While this does mean my online presence (including here on Substack) will be greatly reduced while completing this project, I do intend to resume writing short-form political commentary after the book is released. It is also possible that I will publish excerpts or sections of the book here during the process (specifically, a piece debunking the “Uyghur genocide”). But I must admit it feels a bit unfortunate that, shortly after creating this new Substack page, it will become mostly dormant for an upwards of two years. That is one of the main reasons I wanted to make this post (to inform readers that there is a reason they will not be seeing regular posts here for the time being). This also reminds me that both main articles I have released on this page - the USAID piece and the Tiananmen piece - will likely be repurposed for the new book. So, I have the contents of these two recent articles I have written, tons of notes and sources, a rough outline, and a sufficient level of motivation. I just need to sit down and write the damn thing.
All that being said, I hope all is well with everyone who is reading this. Please continue to follow this page (as well as my two Instagram pages) for updates and possible book excerpts. And feel free to check out Millennial Marxist if you haven’t already. Now, I must get to work.
Cheers, comrades!
-Matthew
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