134-630: The Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGL ( The Left ) is a left-wing political group of the European Parliament established in 1995. Prior to January 2021 it was named the European United Left/Nordic Green Left (French: Gauche unitaire européenne/Gauche verte nordique , GUE/NGL ). The group is mainly composed of political parties with democratic socialist , anti-capitalist , and Eurosceptic orientations, as well as communist parties and
268-719: A Eurosceptic stance by some sources. However, others consider it to be a pro-European party and several academics have defined it as soft Eurosceptic . Podemos has called for a renegotiation of austerity measures and seeks to curtail the Treaty of Lisbon . It is also part of the European Left Alliance for the People and the Planet ; a pan-European party that supports an alternative to capitalism. Podemos has been accused of having ties to Bolivarian Venezuela and
402-768: A coalition government between Podemos and the PSOE, the first multi-party cabinet in the Spanish democratic era. The party took part in the Sumar coalition for the 2023 general election , but left it soon after. Podemos emerged from the Indignados movement against inequality and corruption in 2011. The group was inspired by the populist leaders of Latin America's Pink tide , which included Venezuela's Hugo Chávez and Bolivia's Evo Morales . In January 2014, it released
536-451: A mixed economy with an empowered public sector and a thriving private sector . Centre-left policies tend to favour limited state intervention in matters pertaining to the public interest . In several countries, the terms far-left and radical left have been associated with many varieties of anarchism , autonomism and communism . They have been used to describe groups that advocate anti-capitalism and eco-terrorism . In France,
670-478: A belief that there are unjustified inequalities that need to be reduced or abolished through radical means that change the nature of the society they are implemented in. According to emeritus professor of economics Barry Clark, supporters of left-wing politics "claim that human development flourishes when individuals engage in cooperative, mutually respectful relations that can thrive only when excessive differences in status, power, and wealth are eliminated." Within
804-639: A capitalist bourgeois ideology. Marxists were responsible for organizing the first International Working Women's Day events. The women's liberation movement is closely connected to the New Left and other new social movements which openly challenged the orthodoxies of the Old Left. Socialist feminism as exemplified by the Freedom Socialist Party and Radical Women and Marxist feminism , spearheaded by Selma James , saw themselves as
938-606: A central feature of political debates on the Left. During the French Revolution, nationalism was a key policy of the Republican Left. The Republican Left advocated for civic nationalism and argued that the nation is a "daily plebiscite" formed by the subjective "will to live together". Related to revanchism , the belligerent will to take revenge against Germany and retake control of Alsace-Lorraine , nationalism
1072-504: A collaboratively written programme for the 2014 European Parliament election in Spain . Some of the most important policies were emphasis on public control, poverty reduction , and social dignity via a basic income for every adult , including lobbying controls and punitive measures against tax avoidance by large corporations and multinational organizations, as well as promotion of smaller enterprises. It also included revoking or curtailing
1206-574: A desire for greater economic equality and workers rights with demands for environmental protection. Democratic socialist Bolivian president Evo Morales has traced environmental degradation to capitalist consumerism , stating that "[t]he Earth does not have enough for the North to live better and better, but it does have enough for all of us to live well". James Hansen , Noam Chomsky , Raj Patel , Naomi Klein , The Yes Men and Dennis Kucinich hold similar views. In climate change mitigation ,
1340-403: A direct intention of vote of 22.2%, compared to PSOE's 13.1% and PP's 10.4%. The party lost much support in the polls during the final months of 2015 when elections were approaching (sinking to 13%) whereas during the election campaign experienced a huge rise in support in the polls up to 20% of vote days before the election. According to Politico Europe's Poll of Polls , Podemos has remained
1474-737: A distinction is made between the centre-left and the left represented by the Socialist Party and the French Communist Party and the far-left as represented by anarcho-communists , Maoists and Trotskyists . The United States Department of Homeland Security defines "left-wing extremism" as groups that "seek to bring about change through violent revolution, rather than through established political processes". Similar to far-right politics , extremist far-left politics have motivated political violence , radicalization , genocide , terrorism , sabotage and damage to property,
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#17327718922001608-535: A firing squad, and children were deprived of any religious education outside of the home. Today in the Western world , those on the Left generally support secularization and the separation of church and state. However, religious beliefs have also been associated with many left-wing movements such as the progressive movement , the Social Gospel movement, the civil rights movement , the anti-war movement ,
1742-423: A force within left-wing politics. The influential Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels , published amidst the wave of revolutions of 1848 across Europe, asserted that all of human history is defined by class struggle . They predicted that a proletarian revolution would eventually overthrow bourgeois capitalism and create a stateless , moneyless and classless communist society . It
1876-1008: A founding member of the group, decided to leave and instead sit as Non-Inscrits . In 2019 no MEPs were elected from the French Communist Party , the Danish People's Movement against the EU , the Dutch Socialist Party , and from the Italian parties The Left and the Communist Refoundation Party . MEPs from the French La France insoumise , the Belgian Workers' Party of Belgium , the German Human Environment Animal Protection Party ,
2010-549: A left-wing response to The Limits to Growth model that predicted catastrophic resource depletion and spurred environmentalism, postulating that capitalist technologies were the key cause responsible for environmental degradation, as opposed to human population pressures. Environmental degradation can be seen as a class or equity issue, as environmental destruction disproportionately affects poorer communities and countries. Several left-wing or socialist groupings have an overt environmental concern and several green parties contain
2144-716: A motion in the Congress of Deputies together with ERC and EH Bildu that ended up being approved. Podemos has criticised Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip . On 16 October 2023, in response to Israel's bombing and blockade of the Gaza Strip , Podemos leader Ione Belarra accused the EU and the United States of "being complicit in Israel's war crimes " and called for Israel to be denounced before
2278-721: A part of the Left by their contemporaries. Feminist pioneer Mary Wollstonecraft was influenced by Thomas Paine . Many notable leftists have been strong supporters of gender equality such as Marxist philosophers and activists Rosa Luxemburg , Clara Zetkin and Alexandra Kollontai , anarchist philosophers and activists such as Virginia Bolten , Emma Goldman and Lucía Sánchez Saornil and democratic socialist philosophers and activists such as Helen Keller and Annie Besant . However, Marxists such as Rosa Luxemburg, Clara Zetkin, and Alexandra Kollontai, who are supporters of radical social equality for women and have rejected and opposed liberal feminism because they considered it to be
2412-482: A part of the Left that challenges male-dominated and sexist structures within the Left. The connection between left-wing ideologies and the struggle for LGBTQ rights also has an important history. Prominent socialists who were involved in early struggles for LGBTQ rights include Edward Carpenter , Oscar Wilde , Harry Hay , Bayard Rustin and Daniel Guérin , among others. The New Left is also strongly supportive of LGBTQ rights and liberation, having been instrumental in
2546-476: A pledge that, if the party won the election, it would hold a nationwide referendum on whether Spain should retain the Spanish monarchy or become a republic . The party also promised to increase public spending and ban job cuts in profitable firms. At the 2015 general election on 20 December 2015, Podemos received 21% of the vote and became the third largest party in the parliament, with 69 out of 350 seats,
2680-563: A position within the political mainstream that accepts capitalism and a market economy. The terms far-left and ultra-left are used for positions that are more radical , more strongly rejecting capitalism and mainstream representative democracy , instead advocating for a socialist society based on economic democracy and direct democracy , representing economic, political and social democracy. The centre-left includes social democrats , social liberals , progressives and greens . Centre-left supporters accept market allocation of resources in
2814-496: A positive sentiment towards Podemos and their appeal to the unsatisfied youth of Spain with an "irreverent style". Podemos also used its very well run social media presence to its benefit to find popularity. After it received the fourth highest number of votes in the European elections, news related to the growth of Podemos started to be published. The hashtag Pablo Iglesias was the number 1 trending topic on Twitter in Spain
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#17327718922002948-461: A ruling elite of individuals) while it prepares a population for capitalist exploitation. Within anarchism, this subject has been extensively discussed by Rudolf Rocker in his book titled Nationalism and Culture and by the works of Fredy Perlman such as Against His-Story, Against Leviathan and The Continuing Appeal of Nationalism . The failure of revolutions in Germany and Hungary in
3082-684: A strong socialist presence. The Green Party of England and Wales features an eco-socialist group, the Green Left , which was founded in June 2005. Its members held several influential positions within the party, including both the former Principal Speakers Siân Berry and Derek Wall , himself an eco-socialist and Marxist academic. In Europe, several green left political parties such as the European United Left–Nordic Green Left combine traditional social-democratic values such as
3216-404: A temporary state between the capitalist state of affairs and a communist society . Marx defined the proletariat as salaried workers, in contrast to the lumpenproletariat , who he defined as the outcasts of society such as beggars, tricksters, entertainers, buskers, criminals and prostitutes. The political relevance of farmers has divided the left. In Das Kapital , Marx scarcely mentioned
3350-531: A time when Spain is still struggling under a heavy debt burden". Vicente Palacio of Fundación Alternativas said that Podemos could have "very beneficial effects in terms of regenerating the Spanish democratic system", but is in danger of going "toward populism and demagogy , as has happened in the case of Beppe Grillo and his Five Star Movement in Italy". The leader of Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD) Rosa Díez said that similarities could be found with
3484-614: Is bourgeois nationalism . Some Marxists, together with others on the left, view nationalism , racism (including antisemitism) and religion as divide and conquer tactics used by the ruling classes to prevent the working class from uniting against them in solidarity with one another. Left-wing movements have often taken up anti-imperialist positions. Anarchism has developed a critique of nationalism that focuses on nationalism's role in justifying and consolidating state power and domination. Through its unifying goal, nationalism strives for centralisation (both in specific territories and in
3618-481: Is critical of capitalism , particularly the neoliberal kind. The party wants to increase public spending and ban job cuts in profitable firms. It supports redistributive fiscal policies and a bigger welfare state . Podemos wants to regulate rental prices so they do not surpass 30% of mean income. The party wants to increase the minimum wage . The party supports a universal basic income (UBI) for everyone over 18 years of age in Spain. In January 2023,
3752-560: Is a left-wing to far-left political party in Spain . Founded in January 2014 by the political scientist Pablo Iglesias Turrión as part of the anti-austerity movement in Spain , the party is currently led by Secretary-general Ione Belarra . Podemos arose in the context of the economic crisis at the start of the 2010s and the aftermath of the 15-M Movement protests against inequality and corruption. A fast growing movement,
3886-573: Is not just possible but necessary". It added: "Against the irresponsibility of the troika and the Eurogroup , against the Europe of financial lobbies and puppet representatives, a new democratic and social Europe is emerging, and Jeremy Corbyn's victory would be a great step in that direction". In the 2014 European Parliament election in Spain on 25 May, Podemos received 7.98% of the national vote, with 1,200,000 votes cast, electing five Members of
4020-499: Is opposed to the current parliamentary monarchy and wants to offer a referendum on its continuity, instead advocating for a federal , " plurinational " new republic . Furthermore, the party is supportive of direct democracy . The party and its former leader ( Pablo Iglesias Turrión ) support the right to self-determination of autonomous communities like Catalonia and the Basque Country . The party has called for
4154-421: Is sometimes used to justify hostility towards supranational organizations. Left-wing nationalism can also refer to any form of nationalism which emphasizes a leftist working-class populist agenda that seeks to overcome exploitation or oppression by other nations. Many Third World anti-colonialist movements have adopted leftist and socialist ideas. Third-Worldism is a tendency within leftist thought that regards
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4288-656: Is used for social and cultural politics. In the United Kingdom during the 1980s, the term hard left was applied to supporters of Tony Benn such as the Campaign Group and those involved in the London Labour Briefing newspaper as well as Trotskyist groups such as Militant and the Alliance for Workers' Liberty . In the same period, the term soft left was applied to supporters of
4422-526: The Bible . In the late 19th century, the Protestant Social Gospel movement arose in the United States which integrated progressive and socialist thought with Christianity through faith-based social activism. Other left-wing religious movements include Buddhist socialism, Jewish socialism and Islamic socialism. There have been alliances between the left and anti-war Muslims , such as
4556-607: The Chavismo . Since 2024, said accusations have made a comeback following the party recognising the results of the 2024 Venezuelan presidential election (accused of fraud by the Venezuelan opposition ) by high ranking members such as Irene Montero and Juan Carlos Monedero . Podemos supports the right of self-determination for the Sahrawi people , seeking to establish high-level diplomatic relations between Spain and
4690-964: The Croatian Labourists – Labour Party also joined the group. In 2014 no MEPs were elected from the Irish Socialist Party , the Socialist Party of Latvia , and the Croatian Labourists – Labour Party . MEPs from the Spanish Podemos as well as EH Bildu and the Dutch Party for the Animals joined the group, while MEPs from the Italian Communist Refoundation Party and the Finnish Left Alliance re-entered parliament and rejoined. The Communist Party of Greece ,
4824-605: The Círculo de Enfermería ("Nurses' circle"). The technical details of the election and the deadlines generated discussion within Podemos. In a meeting of Podemos circles which took place on 8 June in Madrid, there was criticism for both the closed lists and the short deadlines, which allegedly led to fewer lists being presented. The electoral process in which 55,000 people participated gave the victory to Iglesias' list, with 86.8% of
4958-945: The Democratic and Republican parties, or as synonyms for liberalism and conservatism , respectively. Since the Right was populist, both in the Western and the Eastern Bloc , anything viewed as avant-garde art was called leftist across Europe, thus the identification of Picasso's Guernica as "leftist" in Europe and the condemnation of the Russian composer Shostakovich 's opera ( The Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk District ) in Pravda as follows: "Here we have 'leftist' confusion instead of natural, human music". The spectrum of left-wing politics ranges from centre-left to far-left or ultra-left . The term centre-left describes
5092-779: The General Council of the Judiciary Manuela Carmena in Madrid with Ahora Madrid , judge Xulio Ferreiro in A Coruña , doctor Martiño Noriega in Santiago , trade unionist Jorge Suárez in Ferrol , lawyer and activist Pedro Santisteve in Zaragoza with Zaragoza en Común and teacher José María González "Kichi" in Cádiz with Adelante Cádiz . In the lead up to the 2015 general election, Podemos adopted
5226-792: The Independent Labour Network , joined the group. In 1999 the German Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) and the Greek Democratic Social Movement (DIKKI) joined as full members, while the five MEPs elected from the list of the French Trotskyist alliance LO – LCR and the one MEP for the Dutch Socialist Party joined as associate members. In 2002 four MEPs from the French Citizen and Republican Movement and one from
5360-630: The International Criminal Court because of what she identified as ongoing "planned genocide " in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian peoples. In November 2023, Belarra called for sanctions on Israel and accused the European Commission of "hypocrisy". The support obtained by the new formation after the European elections in 2014 resulted in multiple analyses and reactions. While some sectors welcomed
5494-677: The Popular Unity Candidacy , the X Party , the Andalusian Workers' Union , Anova and the citizens' mareas ("tides"). The 50,000 signatures were obtained in less than 24 hours and the Podemos website crashed due to the high traffic. In August 2015, Podemos endorsed Jeremy Corbyn 's campaign in the Labour Party leadership election . The party's international secretariat released a statement that "In Podemos we share Jeremy Corbyn's view that another Europe
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5628-599: The Republicans and Eugène Etienne , the president of the Parliamentary Colonial Group. After the antisemitic Dreyfus Affair in which officer Alfred Dreyfus was falsely convicted of sedition and exiled to a penal colony in 1894 before being exonerated in 1906, nationalism in the form of Boulangism increasingly became associated with the far-right. The Marxist social class theory of proletarian internationalism asserts that members of
5762-674: The Respect Party and the Stop the War Coalition in Britain. In France, the left has been divided over moves to ban the hijab from schools, with some leftists supporting a ban based on the separation of church and state in accordance with the principle of laïcité and other leftists opposing the prohibition based on personal and religious freedom. Social progressivism is another common feature of modern leftism, particularly in
5896-762: The Roman Catholic Church and supporting atheism and the separation of church and state , ushering in a policy known as laïcité . Karl Marx asserted that "religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people ". In Soviet Russia, the Bolsheviks under Vladimir Lenin originally embraced an ideological principle which professed that all religion would eventually atrophy and resolved to eradicate organized Christianity and other religious institutions. In 1918, 10 Russian Orthodox hierarchs were summarily executed by
6030-792: The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and to expand the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara so that "it acquires competencies in the protection and promotion of the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Sahrawi population". Podemos reiterated its support for a referendum of self-determination after Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez supported Morocco 's autonomy proposal by presenting
6164-413: The Saint-Imier International and later the International Workers' Association (IWA–AIT) . The Second International (1888–1916) became divided over the issue of World War I . Those who opposed the war, among them Vladimir Lenin and Rosa Luxemburg , saw themselves as further to the left. In the United States, leftists such as social liberals , progressives and trade unionists were influenced by
6298-452: The Second Republic was an attempt by the Left to re-assert itself after the 1848 Revolution , but only a small portion of the population supported this. In the mid-19th century, nationalism , socialism , democracy and anti-clericalism became key features of the French Left. After Napoleon III 's 1851 coup and the subsequent establishment of the Second Empire , Marxism began to rival radical republicanism and utopian socialism as
6432-417: The Third Estate ) generally sat to the left of the presiding member's chair in parliament while the ones in favour of the royal veto privilege sat on its right. That habit began in the original French National Assembly . Throughout the 19th century, the main line dividing Left and Right was between supporters of the French republic and those of the monarchy 's privileges. The June Days uprising during
6566-457: The Treaty of Lisbon , abandoning the memorandum of understanding , withdrawing from some free trade agreements , and promoting referendums on any major constitutional reform. On environmentalism, it advocated reduction of fossil fuel consumption, promotion of public transport and renewable energy initiatives, reduction of industrial cash crop agriculture, and stimulating local food production by small and medium enterprises . Podemos
6700-400: The Unidos Podemos electoral alliance with the United Left , Equo , and regionalist left-wing parties. After the fall of government talks with the PSOE after the April 2019 Spanish general election , the November 2019 Spanish general election , in which the party and its allies won 12.9% of the vote and 35 seats in the Congress of Deputies , resulted in the Sánchez II Government through
6834-490: The Western world include strong opposition to the death penalty , torture , mass surveillance , and the war on drugs , and support for abortion rights, cognitive liberty , LGBTQ rights including legal recognition of same-sex marriage , same-sex adoption of children, the right to change one's legal gender , distribution of contraceptives , and public funding of embryonic stem-cell research . The desire for an expansion of social and civil liberties often overlaps that of
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#17327718922006968-416: The centre-left , especially social democrats who adopted the Third Way . Left-wing politics are typically associated with popular or state control of major political and economic institutions. Other leftists believe in Marxian economics , named after the economic theories of Karl Marx . Some distinguish Marx's economic theories from his political philosophy, arguing that Marx's approach to understanding
7102-411: The displacement of Keynesianism and post-war social democracy . One of the first actions of Ed Miliband , the Labour Party leader who succeeded Blair and Brown, was the rejection of the New Labour label and a promise to abandon the Third Way and turn back to the left. However, Labour's voting record in the House of Commons from 2010 to 2015 indicated that the Labour Party under Miliband had maintained
7236-452: The far-left of the political spectrum , Podemos has been described as a democratic socialist and left-wing populist party which holds anti-austerity , anti-corruption , and anti-establishment views. It promotes direct democracy , federalism , patriotism , republicanism , and an alternative social democracy to that of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) through populist rhetoric. Podemos presented
7370-719: The government of Venezuela following allegations of "murky" funding since many Podemos leaders were linked to Venezuela and other "revolutionary" governments in Latin America. Consulting work by several party members, including Iglesias, in leftist Latin American governments earned their consulting organisation, Center for Political and Social Studies Foundation (CEPS Foundation), €3.5 million, which helped fund their television debates. Juan Carlos Monedero , one of Podemos' founding members, received €425,000 for political consultancy work for Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and Nicaragua. Podemos called for an external auditor to observe accounts from February 2014 to December 2014, which showed that
7504-417: The left–right political spectrum , Left and Right were coined during the French Revolution , referring to the seating arrangement in the French National Assembly . Those who sat on the left generally opposed the ancien régime and the Bourbon monarchy and supported the Revolution, the creation of a democratic republic and the secularisation of society while those on the right were supportive of
7638-413: The libertarian movement. Public education was a subject of great interest to groundbreaking social progressives such as Lester Frank Ward and John Dewey , who believed that a democratic society and system of government was practically impossible without a universal and comprehensive nationwide system of education. Various counterculture and anti-war movements in the 1960s and 1970s were associated with
7772-410: The right to housing (38%), on improving public healthcare (31%) and on auditing and re-structuring the debt (23%). The ethical, political and structure documents proposed by the " Claro que Podemos ", which included Luis Alegre, Carolina Bescansa , Íñigo Errejón, Pablo Iglesias and Juan Carlos Monedero were approved by 80.7% of the vote, surpassing " Sumando Podemos " 12.3% of the vote, promoted by
7906-481: The upcoming general elections just hours before the deadline for the registration of coalitions with electoral authority. Podemos immediately came into conflict with Sumar and its leader Yolanda Díaz over the inclusion of Podemos candidates on the electoral lists . The main point of conflict was the supposed veto of Díaz over the prominent Podemos politician and Minister for Equality, Irene Montero , wife of Podemos founder and former leader, Pablo Iglesias . Montero
8040-403: The welfare state through industrial democracy and the social market to the nationalization of the economy and central planning , to the anarcho-syndicalist advocacy of a council-based and self-managed anarchist communism . During the Industrial Revolution , leftists supported trade unions . At the beginning of the 20th century, many leftists advocated strong government intervention in
8174-476: The working class should act in solidarity with working people in other countries in pursuit of a common class interest , rather than only focusing on their own countries. Proletarian internationalism is summed up in the slogan: " Workers of the world, unite! ", the last line of The Communist Manifesto . Union members had learned that more members meant more bargaining power. Taken to an international level, leftists argued that workers should act in solidarity with
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#17327718922008308-399: The " proletariat can and must build the socialist society in one country". In April 1925, Nikolai Bukharin elaborated on the issue in his brochure titled Can We Build Socialism in One Country in the Absence of the Victory of the West-European Proletariat? , whose position was adopted as state policy after Stalin's January 1926 article titled On the Issues of Leninism (К вопросам ленинизма)
8442-411: The "Likes" of the rest of the parties combined, having 708,763, with more than 2.6 million views on its YouTube channel. In September 2014, the interview of Iglesias in Viajando con Chester had almost 3 million watchers, being the most watched programme in its timeslot with 14.5% of the audience share. In October 2014, Iglesias' participation in La Sexta Noche (in which he was also interviewed) rose
8576-399: The 1918–1920 years ended Bolshevik hopes for an imminent world revolution and led to the promotion of the doctrine of socialism in one country by Joseph Stalin . In the first edition of his book titled Osnovy Leninizma ( Foundations of Leninism , 1924), Stalin argued that revolution in one country is insufficient. By the end of that year in the second edition of the book, he argued that
8710-537: The 1970s onwards, environmentalism became an increasing concern of the left, with social movements and several unions campaigning on environmental issues and causes. In Australia, the left-wing Builders Labourers Federation , led by the communist Jack Mundy, united with environmentalists to place green bans on environmentally destructive development projects. Several segments of the socialist and Marxist left consciously merged environmentalism and anti-capitalism into an eco-socialist ideology. Barry Commoner articulated
8844-526: The 19th and 20th centuries. In addition, the term left-wing has also been applied to a broad range of culturally liberal social movements, including the civil rights movement , feminist movement , LGBT rights movement , abortion-rights movements , multiculturalism , anti-war movement and environmental movement as well as a wide range of political parties . The following positions are typically associated with left-wing politics. Left-leaning economic beliefs range from Keynesian economics and
8978-482: The 9th European Parliament was determined at the first meeting on 29 May 2019. Left-wing politics Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism , often in opposition to social hierarchy as a whole or certain social hierarchies. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in society whom its adherents perceive as disadvantaged relative to others as well as
9112-406: The British Labour Party who were perceived to be more moderate and closer to the centre, accepting Keynesianism . Under the leadership of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown , the Labour Party adopted the Third Way and rebranded itself as New Labour in order to promote the notion that it was less left-wing than it had been in the past to accommodate the neoliberal trend arising since the 1970s with
9246-449: The Danish People's Movement against the EU also joined the group. In 2004 no MEPs were elected from LO–LCR and DIKKI — which was undergoing a dispute with its leader over the party constitution — and the French Citizen and Republican Movement did not put forward candidates. MEPs from the Portuguese Left Bloc , the Irish Sinn Féin , the Progressive Party of Working People of Cyprus, and the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia joined
9380-434: The Earth. This principle is reflected in much of the historical left-wing thought and literature that came afterwards, although there were disagreements about what this entailed. Both Karl Marx and the early socialist philosopher and scholar William Morris arguably had a concern for environmental matters. According to Marx, "[e]ven an entire society, a nation, or all simultaneously existing societies taken together, are not
9514-475: The European Parliament (MEPs). Iglesias chose Dina Bousselham to lead his cabinet of advisors as an MEP. El País described Pablo Iglesias Turrión as pessimistic about the outcome of the election: "We have lost these European elections. They have been won by the People's Party. We cannot be happy about this". He stated that his objective is to "move forward until we throw the PP and the PSOE out of power" and that "[w]e will now work with other parties from
9648-969: The Finnish Left Alliance , the Swedish Left Party , the Danish Socialist People's Party , the United Left of Spain (including the Spanish Communist Party ), the Synaspismos of Greece, the French Communist Party , the Portuguese Communist Party , the Communist Party of Greece , and the Communist Refoundation Party of Italy. In 1998 Ken Coates , an MEP expelled from the UK Labour Party and who co-founded
9782-842: The Greek left-wing coalition Syriza , with the Five Star Movement of Beppe Grillo and even with the French right-wing National Front of Marine Le Pen . The spokesman for the People's Party María Dolores de Cospedal said that poll results show a radicalisation of the left vote. Esperanza Aguirre , another prominent member of the People's Party, accused Pablo Iglesias of "being with the Castrismo , with Chavismo and ETA ", which Iglesias responded to statements described as "slander" and announced he would consider legal action. The leaders of Podemos also tried to distance themselves from
9916-578: The Irish Independents 4 Change , and the Danish Red-Green Alliance joined the group. In 2024 MEPs from the Italian parties Italian Left and Five Star Movement joined the group. According to its 1994 constituent declaration, the group is opposed to the present European Union political structure, but it is committed to integration. That declaration sets out three aims for the construction of another European Union,
10050-987: The Italian Five Star Movement . In 1995, the enlargement of the European Union led to the creation of the Nordic Green Left (NGL) group of parties. The NGL merged with the Confederal Group of the European United Left (GUE) on 6 January 1995, forming the Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left. The NGL suffix was added to the name of the expanded group at the insistence of Swedish and Finnish MEPs. The group initially consisted of MEPs from
10184-448: The Left is also divided over how to effectively and equitably reduce carbon emissions as the center-left often advocates a reliance on market measures such as emissions trading and a carbon tax while those further to the left support direct government regulation and intervention in the form of a Green New Deal , either alongside or instead of market mechanisms. The question of nationality , imperialism and nationalism has been
10318-573: The MEPs Pablo Echenique , Teresa Rodríguez and Lola Sánchez in the vote for the structure document. In October 2014, Podemos decided not to stand candidates in the 2015 Spanish local elections . Instead, it decided that its members would support local grassroots candidacies,where the so-called "mayors of change" were successfully elected: anti-evictions activist Ada Colau in Barcelona with Barcelona en Comú , former member of
10452-477: The Madrid Press Association (APM), accusing Podemos of intimidating them because they published articles that were critical of the party. The Economist magazine has described the party as far-left . According to GlobalPost , Podemos and other parties of the left have suddenly grown because of Europe's economic difficulties. Unemployment, especially among young Spanish adults, has created
10586-485: The New Left. Unlike the earlier leftist focus on labour union activism and a proletarian revolution, the New Left instead adopted a broader definition of political activism commonly called social activism . The New Left in the United States is associated with the hippie movement , mass protest movements on school campuses and a broadening of focus from protesting class -based oppression to include issues such as gender , race and sexual orientation . The British New Left
10720-653: The UCM and a TV presenter, was announced as the head of the movement. The movement was organised by the party Anti-Capitalist Left ( Izquierda Anticapitalista ), the Spanish section of the Trotskyist Fourth International , which had written the Mover ficha manifesto. One of the points highlighted by Iglesias was the derogation of the 135th article of the Constitution, which was made in 2011 by
10854-553: The United States, where social progressives played an important role in the abolition of slavery , the enshrinement of women's suffrage in the United States Constitution , and the protection of civil rights , LGBTQ rights , women's rights and multiculturalism . Progressives have both advocated for alcohol prohibition legislation and worked towards its repeal in the mid to late 1920s and early 1930s. Current positions associated with social progressivism in
10988-457: The anti- capital punishment movement and Liberation Theology . Early utopian socialist thinkers such as Robert Owen , Charles Fourier and the Comte de Saint-Simon based their theories of socialism upon Christian principles. Other common leftist concerns such as pacifism , social justice , racial equality , human rights and the rejection of capitalism and excessive wealth can be found in
11122-475: The audience share of the programme to 16,2%, which is its historical maximum. Iglesias' interview in Salvados also made the programme have its best ever audience, with a 23.8% and 5 million watchers. In late October, Podemos had more than 200,000 members. On 2 November 2014, El Pais published an opinion poll which gave Podemos 27.7% approval rating, compared to PSOE's 26.2% and PP's 20.7%; and gave Podemos
11256-406: The austerity policies of the government. In order to run in the European elections of 2014, the members of the bare bones of Podemos set themselves three conditions: to receive the support of at least 50,000 people; that both the programme and the lists of candidates be prepared through open participation; and that unity be sought with other parties and movements of the left, such as United Left ,
11390-457: The autumn. Iglesias also announced that a team of twenty-five people would be responsible for preparing the assembly, to be chosen in open elections in which anybody could participate, with closed lists, with no limit to the number of lists which could be presented. The vote took place over the Internet on 12 and 13 June. Two lists were presented, one headed by Iglesias and the other promoted by
11524-399: The day after the elections; Iglesias also appeared on the front page of prominent Spanish newspapers. Before the elections, Podemos was already the most popular political force within social networks, but it had increased from 100,000 to 600,000 "Likes" on Facebook between May and July 2014. The CIS' quarterly survey, polling over July 2014 (two months after the elections) showed Podemos as
11658-928: The developing world such as the Zapatista Army of National Liberation in Mexico, the Abahlali baseMjondolo in South Africa and the Naxalites in India have argued that the First World and the Second World Left takes a racist and paternalistic attitude towards liberation movements in the Third World. The original French Left was firmly anti-clerical , strongly opposing the influence of
11792-489: The division between First World and Second World developed countries and Third World developing countries as being of high political importance. This tendency supports decolonization and national liberation movements against imperialism by capitalists. Third-Worldism is closely connected with African socialism , Latin American socialism , Maoism , pan-Africanism and pan-Arabism . Several left-wing groups in
11926-422: The economy is independent of his advocacy of revolutionary socialism or his belief in the inevitability of a proletarian revolution . Marxian economics do not exclusively rely on Marx and draw from a range of Marxist and non-Marxist sources. The dictatorship of the proletariat and workers' state are terms used by some Marxists, particularly Leninists and Marxist–Leninists , to describe what they see as
12060-554: The economy, preferring social ownership and local control in which a nation of decentralized regions is united in a confederation . The global justice movement , also known as the anti-globalisation movement and the alter-globalisation movement, protests against corporate economic globalisation due to its negative consequences for the poor, workers, the environment, and small businesses. Leftists generally believe in innovation in various technological and philosophical fields and disciplines to help causes they support. One of
12194-404: The economy. Leftists continue to criticize the perceived exploitative nature of globalization , the " race to the bottom " and unjust lay-offs and exploitation of workers. In the last quarter of the 20th century, the belief that the government (ruling in accordance with the interests of the people) ought to be directly involved in the day-to-day workings of an economy declined in popularity amongst
12328-427: The failure of the 2015–2016 Spanish government formation negotiations to create a stable coalition government, on 2 May 2016 a second general election was called for June 2016. To contest the election, Podemos formed an electoral alliance with United Left , Equo and regional left-wing parties, the official name being announced on 13 May 2016 as Unidos Podemos ("United We Can"). The coalition received 21.2% of
12462-409: The first decade of Soviet rule, before Joseph Stalin attacked ecologists and the science of ecology, purged environmentalists and promoted the pseudoscience of Trofim Lysenko during his rule up until his death in 1953. Similarly, Mao Zedong rejected environmentalism and believed that based on the laws of historical materialism, all of nature must be put into the service of revolution. From
12596-493: The foremost left-wing advocates was Thomas Paine, one of the first individuals since left and right became political terms to describe the collective human ownership of the world which he speaks of in Agrarian Justice. As such, most of left-wing thought and literature regarding environmentalism stems from this duty of ownership and the aforementioned form of cooperative ownership means that humanity must take care of
12730-408: The formation of militant organizations, political repression , conspiracism , xenophobia , and nationalism . In China, the term Chinese New Left denotes those who oppose the economic reforms enacted by Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s and 1990s, favour instead the restoration of Maoist policies and the immediate transition to a socialist economy. In the Western world , the term New Left
12864-606: The former leader of the Left Trade Union Current Cándido González Carnero and Bibiana Medialdea, associate professor of applied economy at the UCM. Podemos' manifesto stated that it was necessary to create a party list for the 2014 European Parliament election , with the goal of opposing the dominant policies of the European Union from the left. On 14 January, Pablo Iglesias Turrión , a professor of political science at
12998-620: The founding of the LGBTQ rights movement in the aftermath of the Stonewall Riots of 1969. Contemporary leftist activists and socialist countries such as Cuba are actively supportive of LGBTQ+ people and are involved in the struggle for LGBTQ+ rights and equality. In politics, the term Left derives from the French Revolution as the political groups opposed to the royal veto privilege ( Montagnard and Jacobin deputies from
13132-720: The group's 37 voted against the parliament's resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine , while 10 also abstained in the vote that passed 637–14. Even before the war, there have been tensions in the group, especially with the Irish MEPs Mick Wallace and Clare Daly working to defuse sanctions on Russia placed because of the downing of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 . MEPs may be full or associate members. National parties may be full or associate members. The initial member parties for
13266-620: The group. The Danish Socialist People's Party , a member of the Nordic Green Left, left the group to instead sit in the Greens–European Free Alliance group. In 2009 no MEPs were elected from the Italian Communist Refoundation Party and the Finnish Left Alliance . MEPs from the Irish Socialist Party , the Socialist Party of Latvia , and the French Left Party joined the group. In 2013 one MEP from
13400-422: The international proletariat in order to further increase the power of the working class. Proletarian internationalism saw itself as a deterrent against war and international conflicts, because people with a common interest are less likely to take up arms against one another, instead focusing on fighting the bourgeoisie as the ruling class . According to Marxist theory, the antonym of proletarian internationalism
13534-401: The major parties People's Party (PP) and Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE); full application of the 128th article of the constitution ("All wealth of the country in all its forms and no matter who owns it, is subordinated to the people's interest"); and maintaining abortion rights. They also demanded Spain exit from NATO and support self-determination rights. The Podemos movement
13668-475: The manifesto Mover ficha: convertir la indignación en cambio político ("Move A Piece: Turn Indignation Into Political Change"), which was signed by thirty intellectuals and personalities, including Juan Carlos Monedero , Alberto San Juan , associate professor of political science at the National University of Distance Education (UNED) Jaime Pastor, the writer and philosopher Santiago Alba Rico,
13802-521: The manner they deem best suited to achieve their aims. As such, it has simultaneously positioned itself as insiders within the European institutions , enabling it to influence the decisions made by co-decision ; and as outsiders by its willingness to seek another Europe, which would abolish the Maastricht Treaty . GUE/NGL has been split on the issue of Russia. On 1 March 2022, 7 MEPs out of
13936-494: The matter of prostitution , the party is split between abolitionists and those seeking to better regulate prostitution. Podemos supports LGBT rights . The party is responsible for the Ley Trans , a law focused on gender self-determination and trans rights that has created a rift in the government. Podemos supports the right to vote for immigrants, particularly Moroccans, as part of their "political rights", and
14070-499: The new alliance of left-wing parties for the upcoming general election scheduled for December 2023. Poor results for the ruling PSOE , Podemos and other left-wing parties in the Spanish local and regional elections held on 28 May 2023 led to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez calling for a snap general election, five months earlier than originally planned. This resulted in a speeding up of the negotiation process with Sumar. On 9 June, Podemos came to an agreement to run together with Sumar at
14204-533: The owners of the earth. They are simply its possessors, its beneficiaries, and have to bequeath it in an improved state to succeeding generations". Following the Russian Revolution, environmental scientists such as revolutionary Alexander Bogdanov and the Proletkult organisation made efforts to incorporate environmentalism into Bolshevism and "integrate production with natural laws and limits" in
14338-529: The participation of all members of Podemos, to fill the positions defined by this structure. The citizens' assembly held a meeting in Madrid on 18 and 19 October. On 19 October, Podemos membership was 130,000 and on 22 October it was 170,000. The citizens' assembly adopted five resolutions, all of which were submitted by circles, based on the votes of Podemos members, each of whom could vote for five resolutions. The approved resolutions were on improving public education (45%), on anti-corruption measures (42%), on
14472-493: The party has called for the regularisation of over half a million of illegal immigrants . According to Okdiario , Podemos "tries to revitalise its electoral expectations in a coveted voting camp: the immigrant one". Podemos supports legalising and regulating cannabis in Spain . The party also supported the legalisation of euthanasia , which was legalised in Spain in March 2021. Podemos opposes economic inequality and
14606-454: The party proposed the amount to be between €700 and €1,400 a month. The party is opposed to climate change and wants to create laws against "energetic poverty". Podemos is opposed to any increases in military spending and supports the withdrawal from NATO of Spain. Podemos considers itself a pro-European party, but has expressed displeasure with the current functioning of the European Union , and has been described as taking
14740-469: The party took part in the 2014 European Parliament election , winning almost 8% of the vote and five seats out of 54, outperforming the polls. The party would go on to take part in the 2015 and 2016 Spanish general elections , becoming the country's third largest political force, but underperforming against the PSOE in the battle for the hegemony in the Spanish left. On 9 May 2016, Podemos formed
14874-480: The placement along the political spectrum in a given time and place. At the end of the 18th century, upon the founding of the first liberal democracies , the term Left was used to describe liberalism in the United States and republicanism in France, supporting a lesser degree of hierarchical decision-making than the right-wing politics of the traditional conservatives and monarchists . In modern politics,
15008-493: The release of jailed Catalan separatist leaders on trial in Spain's Supreme Court. Podemos supported the exhumation of Francisco Franco . Podemos has been described as a progressive party. The party considers itself egalitarian , secularist , anti-racist , anti-fascist and environmentalist . The party is strongly feminist and has advocated for feminism as a subject in schools. The party supports abortion being legal, even without parental consent. On
15142-513: The results, there were also expressions of concern. Pedro Sanchez , Secretary General of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) since July 2014, branded Podemos populist on numerous occasions at the beginning of his term while much of its electorate opted for the new party. The New York Times stated that "the party's 36-page campaign program reads like a wish list, with little detail about how it could be financed at
15276-673: The same distance from the left as it did under Blair. In contrast, the election of Jeremy Corbyn as the Labour Party leader was viewed by scholars and political commentators as Labour turning back toward its more classical socialist roots, rejecting neoliberalism and the Third Way whilst supporting a democratic socialist society and an end to austerity measures. Podemos (Spanish political party) Podemos ( Spanish: [poˈðemos] , translated in English as "We Can")
15410-669: The second most popular party regarding direct intention of vote, surpassing the PSOE, but being a 0.9% behind the PP. In late July, Podemos started to allow individuals to sign up, with 32,000 people registering as members in the first 48 hours through Podemos' website for free. In the first 20 days, Podemos already had about 100,000 members, becoming the third largest Spanish party by membership, surpassing United Left (IU), Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD), Convergence and Union (CiU) and Basque Nationalist Party (PNV/EAJ). In August 2014, Podemos already had 442,000 more "Likes" on Facebook than
15544-431: The source for a better kind of social revolution . This view has been criticized by several Marxists , especially Trotskyists , who characterized this approach as "substitutionism" which they described as a misguided and non-Marxist belief that other groups in society could "substitute" for and "replace" the revolutionary agency of the working class. Many early feminists and advocates of women's rights were considered
15678-525: The south of Europe to make it clear that we don't want to be a German colony". Iglesias said Podemos MEPs would not take the standard MEP salary of more than € 8,000 a month, stating that "not one of our MEPs will earn more than €1,930, an amount that's three times the minimum wage in Spain". On 5 June 2014, Pablo Iglesias Turrión announced that the Asamblea Ciudadana "Sí se puede" (Citizens' Assembly "Yes, It Can Be Done") would take place in
15812-687: The strongest performance for a third party in Spain since the Transition - with the previous one being 23 seats for the PCE in the 1979 elections . The party was the most voted force in the provinces of Barcelona , Tarragona , Gipuzkoa and Alava , and surpassed the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party also in Madrid , A Coruña , Pontevedra , Navarre , Castellón , Valencia , Alicante , Las Palmas and Balearic Islands . Following
15946-462: The subject. Mikhail Bakunin thought the lumpenproletariat was a revolutionary class, while Mao Zedong believed that it would be rural peasants, not urban workers, who would bring about the proletarian revolution . Left-libertarians , anarchists and libertarian socialists believe in a decentralized economy run by trade unions , workers' councils , cooperatives , municipalities and communes, opposing both state and private control of
16080-489: The term Left typically applies to ideologies and movements to the left of classical liberalism , supporting some degree of democracy in the economic sphere . Today, ideologies such as social liberalism and social democracy are considered to be centre-left , while the Left is typically reserved for movements more critical of capitalism , including the labour movement , socialism , anarchism , communism , Marxism and syndicalism , each of which rose to prominence in
16214-440: The theory of socialism in one country. European social democrats strongly support Europeanism and supranational integration within the European Union , although there is a minority of nationalists and Eurosceptics on the left. Several scholars have linked this form of left-wing nationalism to the pressure generated by economic integration with other countries, often encouraged by neoliberal free trade agreements. This view
16348-575: The total change of institutions to make them fully democratic, breaking with neoliberal monetarist policies, and a policy of co-development and equitable cooperation. The group wants to disband the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and strengthen the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The group is divided between reformism and revolution, leaving it up to each party to decide on
16482-404: The total income from both private donations and state subsidies was at about €947,000. Among the largest donors to the party were Podemos' own five MEPs, who donated €52,000 in 2014 from their salaries. Since March 2015, journalists have been critical of the relationship between the political party and the traditional media. In March 2017, around a dozen Spanish journalists filed a complaint with
16616-594: The traditional institutions of the Ancien Régime. Usage of the term Left became more prominent after the restoration of the French monarchy in 1815, when it was applied to the Independents . The word wing was first appended to Left and Right in the late 19th century, usually with disparaging intent, and left-wing was applied to those who were unorthodox in their religious or political views. Ideologies considered to be left-wing vary greatly depending on
16750-449: The vote. A major part of the citizens' assembly involved the writing of documents defining the political and organisational principles of the party as well as resolutions the party would adopt. Any member of Podemos could present a document and these would be adopted or rejected in a vote with all members of Podemos participating. These documents would determine the structure of the party. Internal elections would then take place, again with
16884-525: The vote. Podemos formed the Adelante Andalucía coalition with the left, the Greens and Primavera Andaluza to contest the 2018 Andalusian regional election . In April 2023, Podemos declined to join left-wing alliance with new party Sumar because of differences over how candidates are selected. It was intended that these differences be resolved and negotiated on before Podemos would join
17018-597: The works of Thomas Paine , who introduced the concept of asset-based egalitarianism which theorises that social equality is possible by a redistribution of resources. After the Reconstruction era in the aftermath of the American Civil War , the phrase "the Left" was used to describe those who supported trade unions, the civil rights movement and the anti-war movement . More recently, left-wing and right-wing have often been used as synonyms for
17152-583: Was also excluded from the lists. Ione Belara , the General Secretary of Podemos, was placed fifth on the list for Madrid. In the election, Podemos won five seats in the Congress of Deputies, out of 31 for Sumar in total. On 5 December 2023, Podemos announced that they had broken with Sumar, and its five MPs moved from the Sumar group to the mixed group in Congress. A party on the left-wing or
17286-485: Was an intellectually driven movement which attempted to correct the perceived errors of the Old Left . The New Left opposed prevailing authoritarian structures in society which it designated as " The Establishment " and became known as the "Anti-Establishment". The New Left did not seek to recruit industrial workers en masse, but instead concentrated on a social activist approach to organization, convinced that they could be
17420-474: Was in this period that the word wing was appended to both Left and Right. The International Workingmen's Association (1864–1876), sometimes called the First International, brought together delegates from many different countries, with many different views about how to reach a classless and stateless society. Following a split between supporters of Marx and Mikhail Bakunin , anarchists formed
17554-405: Was not to be included on the Sumar list for the Madrid constituency. This move was widely condemned by the leadership and supporters of Podemos, with former leader Iglesias calling it "a political mistake"' and asking Díaz to rectify it; he stated that he found it hard in the situation to separate "the personal from the political". In addition, Podemos spokesperson in the Congress, Pablo Echenique ,
17688-583: Was officially launched on 16 January 2014 in the Teatro del Barrio in the Lavapiés neighbourhood of Madrid, with a press conference attended by hundreds of people. The speakers at the launch included Pablo Iglesias, Juan Carlos Monedero, Teresa Rodríguez , psychiatrist and member of the Marea Blanca Ana Castaño, Íñigo Errejón and Miguel Urbán . The party's fundamental goal was to oppose
17822-410: Was published. This idea was opposed by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, who declared the need for an international " permanent revolution " and condemned Stalin for betraying the goals and ideals of the socialist revolution. Various Fourth Internationalist groups around the world who describe themselves as Trotskyist see themselves as standing in this tradition while Maoist China formally supported
17956-700: Was sometimes opposed to imperialism . In the 1880s, there was a debate between leftists such as the Radical Georges Clemenceau , the Socialist Jean Jaurès and the nationalist Maurice Barrès , who argued that colonialism diverted France from liberating the "blue line of the Vosges ", in reference to Alsace-Lorraine; and the " colonial lobby " such as Jules Ferry of the Moderate Republicans , Léon Gambetta of
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