Political Ideologies II

Political Ideologies II

Overview

• Feminism and its variants

• Environmentalism and its variants

• Populism

Recapping "Ideologies"

• Pros:

  • Simplifies complex political issues.

  • Makes politics more accessible; allows lay people to engage.

  • Aids in building coalitions that could transcend class, gender, race, religion.

• Cons:

  • Over-simplification of complex political issues.

  • Can lead to an unchallengeable orthodoxy, stifling compromise.

  • Justified terrible atrocities (e.g., colonialism, slavery, the Holocaust).

• Definition of Ideology:

  • "A set of factual and moral ideas that form the basis of a political or economic system and provide guidance and direction for political leadership and collective action" (MacLean et al 2020, 56).

Feminism

• Definition:

  • "A perspective that views society as patriarchal and seeks to achieve full independence and equality of women" (Mintz et al., 2021: 56).

• Aims of Feminism:

  • Achieve equality for women and men.

• Debates:

  • How to achieve equality (politically, socially, economically, etc.).

• Concept of Patriarchy:

  • A social system wherein men dominate positions of power and privilege in the state and civil society, controlling women’s lives in both public and private spaces.

Variants of Feminism

Liberal Feminists

• Core View:

  • Liberals see individuals as capable of self-determination.

• Historical Context:

  • Women historically excluded from political and economic decisions.

  • Philosophers rarely considered women in their ideological theories.

• Activism:

  • Early feminists (e.g., Susan B. Anthony) engaged in activism to secure rights for women, starting with suffrage.

  • Source: Liberal Party of Canada (2022).

Socialist Feminists

• Critique:

  • Merely adding women to politics does not address underlying economic problems (capitalism and division of labor).

• Economic Issues:

  • Women viewed as part of a "reserve army" of low-cost labor (e.g., homemakers, reproductive labor).

• Advocacy:

  • Key issues include equal pay, the "glass ceiling," and broader economic equality.

  • Example: Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada (1970).

Radical Feminists

• Perspective:

  • Reforming capitalism does not solve fundamental oppression issues.

• Historical Context:

  • Male supremacy predates capitalism and is entrenched in all social organizations which reproduce sexual exploitation.

• Liberation Needs:

  • True women’s liberation requires comprehensively restructuring society, not merely replacing men in power.

  • Advocates for sexual liberation, change in gender norms and relationships.

• Key Quote:

  • Carol Hanisch (1970): "personal problems are political problems."

Three Waves of Feminism

• The First Wave (1840s - 1920s):

  • Focus on political rights.

  • Key movement: Suffragette Movement.

• The Second Wave (1960s - 1980s):

  • Focus on social and economic rights alongside political rights.

  • Issues of sexual independence (e.g., contraception, abortion).

• The Third Wave (1990s - present):

  • Focus on freedom from sexual violence (e.g., Anita Hill's exposure of systemic rape culture).

  • Emphasizes intersectionality (considering gender, sexuality, race, and economic class).

Thought Exercise

• Question: Are Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion feminists?

  • Cardi B's Perspective:

  • "My music is always going to make a woman feel like a bad bh. When you make a woman feel like she's the baddest bh in the room, to me, that's female empowerment." (Marjon Carlos, 2020).

Environmentalism

• Definition:

  • Humanity is responsible for ecological changes threatening all life on Earth.

• Core Principle:

  • Humanity must fundamentally change its relationship with the natural world to sustain life.

• Key Figures:

  • Greta Thunberg, David Suzuki, Wetlands Conservation Group.

Environmentalism and Capitalism

• Impact of Industrialization:

  • The combination of capitalism and the Industrial Revolution led to significant increases in GHG emissions and human consumption of natural resources (e.g., sixth mass extinction).

• Anthropocene Epoch:

  • Defined as the geological period characterized by human actions reshaping Earth’s geography and climate.

• Principal Goals:

  • Limit growth: Current human consumption levels suggest we live as if we have 1.75 Earths (Footprint Network 2022).

  • Shift to sustainable societies:

  • Ensuring consumption is less than or equal to regeneration rates.

  • Focus on renewable resources (e.g., solar instead of oil & gas).

  • Reduce pollutant emissions to levels manageable by ecosystems.

Types of Environmentalists

• Reform Environmentalism:

  • Advocates for modifications within existing systems.

• Deep Ecology:

  • Argues for significant systemic change and establishing oneness with the natural environment.

• Social Ecology:

  • Seeks to dismantle hierarchies between humans and nature; advocates for cooperatives to end environmental domination.

Populism

• Definition:

  • A vague ideology opposing a virtuous 'people' against a corrupt ruling 'elite'.

• Origins:

  • Emerged from agrarian progressive movements in the USA and Canada.

• Main Problem:

  • The public will is manipulated by elites (e.g., bankers, politicians, special interests).

• Historical Context:

  • High-interest bank loans and low crop prices contributed to loss of family farms.

• Proposed Solution:

  • Restore “the common sense of the common people.”

  • Implement direct democracy through ballot initiatives, referendums, and recalls.

  • Examples: Social Credit in Canada or Greenbacks in the USA—conceptually similar to a universal basic income.

Prairie Populism in Canada

• **Notable Figures: **

  • Tommy Douglas (Premier of Saskatchewan).

  • William Aberhart (Premier of Alberta).

  • Louis Riel (advocate for Métis homeland).

Different Types of Populism

• Left-wing Populism:

  • Sees elites as big businesses and corporations.

  • Advocates for the nationalization of key economic sectors to help the working poor.

• Right-wing Populism:

  • Views elites as ‘bleeding heart’ liberals promoting equality.

  • Emphasizes draining the swamp to protect jobs from undeserving politicians and equity-seeking groups.

Homework Exercise

• Tasks:

  • Analyze how modern ideologies (liberalism, socialism, conservatism) influence 20th-century ideologies (populism, feminism, environmentalism).

  • Compare western ideologies (liberalism, socialism, conservatism) with non-Christian ideologies (e.g., Islam, Confucianism).

Key Takeaways

• Feminism, environmentalism, and populism draw upon early ideological frameworks but represent coherent worldviews.

• Each ideology exhibits notable variants.

• They gain prominence in contemporary political discourse despite their roots in earlier ideologies, making them complex to categorize along a left-right ideological spectrum.