Episode 73: Furedi’s Long Journey from Revolution to Reaction (interview with Ravi Bali)

Brendan and Andrew welcome Ravi Bali, author of “Ex-Marxist Furedi Joins Racist Authoritarians at CPAC Hungary.” They discuss the devolution of Frank Furedi and his following. Once the leader of Britain’s third-largest Marxist organization, to which Ravi belonged, Furedi now calls himself a conservative, abets Viktor Orbán’s far-right authoritarian regime in Hungary, and dispenses “free speech” and “anti-woke” apologetics on behalf of white nationalism and Putinism. Ravi and the co-hosts discuss Furedi’s influence within his old milieu and outside it, why this should concern people outside the UK, and how to combat it.

What went wrong––and what was wrong from the start? Can Furedi be dismissed as a mere sellout? Much of the discussion focuses on continuities between “Furedi then” “Furedi now,” including the drive for political power and the adoption of extreme contrarian positions for the sake of having a “unique selling point.” In addition, Ravi and the co-hosts discuss Furedi’s ties to Orbán’s regime and why it is viewed as a model by Trumpites and far-right forces internationally. They also discuss a recent piece, “Stop Calling Putin ‘Fascist,’” in which Furedi tries to sharply divide “populism” from “fascism,” and whether that division is tenable.

Plus current-events segment on Trumpism after Trump. If Trump goes down, Trumpism will persist––but can it reconquer State power without him?

Special announcement: Upcoming MHI Meetings on Marx’s Critique of the Gotha Program. Click link for more information. Application deadline is July 24.

Radio Free Humanity is a podcast covering news, politics and philosophy from a Marxist-Humanist perspective. It is co-hosted by Brendan Cooney and Andrew Kliman. We intend to release new episodes every two weeks. Radio Free Humanity is sponsored by MHI, but the views expressed by the co-hosts and guests of Radio Free Humanity are their own. They do not necessarily reflect the views and positions of MHI.

We welcome and encourage listeners’ comments, posted on this episode’s page.

Please visit MHI’s online print publication, With Sober Senses, for further news, commentary, and analysis.

Click here for more episodes.