What is Democratic Socialism?

Democratic Socialists advocate for radical democracy in all aspects of society, including political, economic, and social spheres. We believe that the economy and the state should operate under the control of the workers that ensure their continued operation, that said workers are entitled to the full fruits of their labor and the means by which these fruits are produced. In accordance with these principles, Democratic Socialists work to implement social ownership over production and exchange of goods and services - whether that take the form of direct worker ownership, worker councils, or indirect control via a democratic state.

As socialists, we reject the profit motive, instead advocating for an economic system that incentivizes human need; we fight for a horizontal redistribution of wealth and power across the masses; and we struggle for a society in which the needs of the many are sated rather than the desires of a few, understanding that the system we currently live within is impotent toward achieving this goal. Further, we stand in solidarity with all marginalized people across the globe, whether their struggle is racial, economic, or anti-imperialist.

Democratic Socialism is often conflated with Social Democratic states such as Sweden, Norway, and Finland. While we are not opposed to welfare reforms and concessions for the working-class such as those found in the Nordic model, we do not believe that friendlier forms of Capitalism will be our saving grace. As Socialists, we understand that Capitalism’s contradictions cannot be reformed, as the system inherently results in large-scale crises and the funneling of vast amounts of wealth upward; leaving the working-class families, whose calloused hands created this wealth, destitute and struggling for subsistence. Further, as a system, capitalism can only maintain itself off of the backs of communities in the Global South, a practice to which we are vehemently opposed.

At this point in human development, our societies are marked by inequality, injustice, and constant contradiction. We affirm the adage of those previous revolutionaries in whose footsteps we follow. At this point in history, a choice must be made. At this point, we understand that it’s either “Socialism or Barbarism.”

We look forward to your joining the struggle.