“Our socialist challenge is to tackle what I have called the economic question. This fundamental question is about economic power, and who will wield it. It is about our national priorities, and who will decide them.”
For Ed Broadbent, the rights and norms of the United Nations covenants and declarations represented the practical application and sum value of social democratic principles.
Ed Broadbent’s rich vision of democratic equality can and should continue to be our compass in this era of uncertainty and crisis. A barren technocratic liberalism may be ill-equipped to carry this out — but democratic socialism can.
“Social democracy remains the form with the greatest potential, no more, no less, for liberating the creative, cooperative and compassionate possibilities of humanity and offering dignity to all.”
« La social-démocratie reste, ni plus ni moins, la forme qui offre le plus grand potentiel pour libérer les possibilités créatives de concertation et de compassion de l’humanité et pour assurer la dignité à tous et à toutes. »
The 2024 Ellen Meiksins Wood Lecture was delivered by economist Isabella Weber, demonstrating how economic shocks and corporate profits have affected our affordability crisis. From gas to groceries, this lecture provides valuable context and a policy toolkit for helping ordinary Canadians through economic crisis.
The 2023 Ellen Meiksins Wood Lecture was delivered by economist Armine Yalnizyan—a leading voice on Canada’s economic scene.
By decommodifying health services, pensions, the right to unions, and other social services, they showed that with political will in these aspects of life the power of the market could be and should be broken if real democracy is to be achieved.
It’s not right for us to think that we Canadians are immune to a radical right wing fanning intolerance and hate. We cannot be complacent. We need to change the game.
