austerity

Clara Mattei on the History of Austerity Politics

A decade before the Great Depression, capital responded to a serious crisis of legitimacy by adopting measures that punished a restive working class through scarcity, argues a new economic history; maintaining hierarchy, not growing the economy, is the objective.

The Redistributive Agenda of the New International Economic Order, and How the IMF Thwarted It

by Sarah Babb

Henry Kissinger responded diplomatically to demands from Third World nations for changes in trade and investment rules to alleviate inequality with a pragmatic approach that recognized inequality as a major issue, but prevented poor nations from forming a united front or organizing around their more radical demands. 

Work More, Consume Less: The Coercive Nature of Austerity Politics

by Clara E. Mattei

Austerity politics isn't simply about balancing government's books; it is a political means of declaring the primacy of capital. 

Why Didn't Joe Biden Go to War with Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve?

The policies the Federal Reserve has pursued in response to inflation threaten to treat the problem with a recession that will harm working families and potentially doom the Biden administration. Why hasn't the President pushed back against the bankers? 

Tools and Resources for Faculty to Fight Austerity

by Aimee Loiselle and Jennifer M. Miller

Faculty and students concerned with influencing the operations of their own campuses need to understand how university budgeting and finance work, and not leave that knowledge in the hands of administrators alone. 

What if the Coronavirus Crisis Is Just a Trial Run?

by Adam Tooze

The disjointed and haphazard global response to the COVID pandemic bodes poorly for the world's capacity for coordinated action to face inevitable crisies in the near future. The problem isn't a lack of means but a lack of commitment to collective action.

Visions against Politics

by Eileen Boris and Annelise Orleck

Historians Eileen Boris and Annelise Orleck are the guest editors of the spring edition of the AAUP's magazine focusing on the need for a New Deal for Higher Education. This is their introductory essay. 

The Meaning of the Democrats’ Spending Spree

by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Joe Biden supported a balanced budget amendment in 1995, ran as the "establishment" candidate in the Democratic primaries, and has been a regular advocate of bipartisanship. So why is his administration proposing the massive American Rescue Plan Act, and showing a willingness to act without securing Republican cooperation? A tour of recent history can explain. 

SSU Faculty Retrenchment Plan Accidentally Released

Salem (MA) State University's General Counsel disputed that a spreadsheet accidentally relased in response to a records request and circulated by a faculty member constitutes a plan to terminate faculty positions for budgetary reasons. Faculty argue that it is consistent with pressure they face to accept furloughs and doubt administration assurances that retrenchment is off the table.

The Deficit Hawks That Make Moderate Democrats Cower

The Commitee For a Responsible Federal Budget has lobbied both parties toward austerity policies for decades. Writer Alex Yablon examines the group's origins and impact beginning in the Clinton era. 

Biden and the Fed Leave 1970s Inflation Fears Behind

Biden's economic advisors appear to be treating unemployment, eviction and poverty wages as more serious problems than modest inflation, reversing decades of austerity-driven guidance. 

The Growth Of Market-Oriented Urban Policy — A Review Of Neoliberal Cities

by Tracy Neumann

A new collection of essays seeks to develop a historical understanding and grounding for the often vague term "neoliberalism" through its transformation of urban space and politics. 

Even the Republican ‘Skinny’ Relief Bill Failed. How is Such Unnecessary Suffering Justified?

by Margaret Somers

How is it that extra money incentivizes the rich to become paragons of moral virtue and economic rainmakers, whereas for working people it incentivizes them to become social parasites and economic saboteurs? How can there be one human nature for the 1%, and another for the rest of us?

Those who Like Government Least Govern Worst

Both George W. Bush and Donald Trump represent a Republican Party soaked in contempt for, and mistrust of, the federal government. When you don’t respect, or even like, the institution you lead, you lead it poorly. When that institution is incredibly, globally important — as the US government is — leading it poorly can invite global catastrophe.

Stop Worrying about Protecting ‘Taxpayers.’ That Isn’t the Government’s Job.

by Lawrence B. Glickman

"Taxpayerism has perverted our political culture by denying the existence of a common good — or, perhaps, more accurately, by falsely defining that good, and even freedom itself, as low taxes for the rich and for corporations."

Of Course There Are Protests. The State Is Failing Black People.

by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

If there were ever questions about whether poor and working-class African-Americans were disposable, there can be none now. It’s clear that state violence is not solely the preserve of the police.

They Survived the Worst Battles of World War II. And Died of the Virus.

The virus has spread in more than 40 veterans’ homes in more than 20 states, leading to the deaths of at least 300 people.

The Neoliberal Era is Ending. What Comes Next?

by Rutger Bregman

From higher taxes for the wealthy to more robust government, the time has come for ideas that seemed impossible just months ago.

This is how Bad Things are for Museums: They Now Have a Green Light to Sell Off Their Art

The Association of Art Museum Directors has relaxed its guidelines against selling works of art for operating funds. Now, the notion of selling off a Claude Monet or two to plug a budgetary hole—or to fend off a total financial meltdown—is suddenly something to contemplate.

College Worth Fighting For

by Ryan Boyd

Professors are in a class struggle, a real fight that cannot be won with critique alone.