The problem with this narrative that elections are won by appealing to the mushy centre is that it fails to come to grips with the electoral appeal of Donald Trump and other right-wing populist.
Aivalis’ argument that Pierre Trudeau was a “Constant Liberal” is subtle, and acknowledges that organized labour and the NDP were not always consistently advocating policies well to the left of the Liberals.
Canadian social democrats, simply put, need to re-embrace the value in challenging private property’s dominance over the state.
What was innovative was the way Layton talked about social democratic ideas as pragmatic solutions to everyday problems that bring hope and optimism to average Canadians.
We can envision how Canada might shift to an electricity system which is inherently decentralized and democratic but still provides efficient and reliable services to a wide range of users.
For workers, trade unions and social democrats, the answer to achieving greater social justice is in imagining a closer relationship between social democracy, trade unions and the state.
Creating the social partnership that is the core of social democracy—in the Nordic model, anyway—is a provincial undertaking which can greatly benefit from a strong federal ally.
Social democratic visions of a “democratized” economy have too often paid scant attention to the enduring role and impact of European racism, imperialism, nationalism, and colonialism in modern capitalism and in social democratic reforms.
What we urgently need is a recreation of the effective politics of post-War social democracy. But we can’t just return to the past.
