When Empires Decline

The increasing prominence of democratic socialist candidates within the U.S. Democratic Party, with recent electoral successes in New York and Colorado, marks an unprecedented development in the nation's political landscape. This phenomenon is prompting discussions in South Korea about whether local progressive forces should adopt similar strategies of operating within established parties or forming new, explicitly socialist movements.

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The most profound historical meaning that the impressive changes in American politics tell us is the fact that the decline of the American empire, which has supported the global capitalist order, has now reached an irreversible stage.

However, the author contends that these discussions overlook a more profound historical significance: the irreversible decline of the American empire. This echoes the early 20th century in Britain, when the rise of the Labour Party coincided with the waning of the British Empire. Initially a junior partner to the Liberal Party, Labour's growing influence, fueled by industrial labor movements and strikes, forced the Liberals to introduce rudimentary welfare policies.

By 1918, the Labour Party officially adopted socialism as its goal and by the 1920s, it had become the primary rival to the Conservative Party. A major general strike in 1926, involving industrial unions, paralyzed the country for a week. This internal pressure, coupled with the diminishing global power of the British Empire, contributed to its contraction. The rise of the Labour Party and the intensification of India's independence movement, for instance, were interconnected, as elites recognized the inevitability of imperial decline amid growing domestic demands for power redistribution.

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The rise of the left in the United States today is reminiscent of the changes that occurred within Britain a century ago.

Similarly, the current surge of the American left is occurring as the U.S. faces external challenges, notably from China and the Global South, and internal resistance to the sacrifices required to maintain imperial dominance. This internal "rebellion" interacts with external pressures, potentially shaping a post-imperial world that is more humane and civilized, as was the case after the British Empire's fall. The author suggests that the American left's role today is to fulfill this fated function.

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The empire's internal rebellion is intricately linked with external challenges, and the unexpected connection between the two contributes to making the world after the empire's withdrawal a more humane and civilized place.