A couple times I’ve been asked what I would recommend reading if you want to know more about social justice, socialism or communism. I’m always happy to give recommendations, but I also liked the idea of having something more publicly available that I could link folks to or add to. This is that! It’s by nature very incomplete and limited, I’m still learning so much and have a ridiculous amount to read. All I can guarantee is that these texts helped me get started. I hope they do the same for you.
Theory and History
The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Frederich Engels
Imperialism: The Highest Form of Capitalism by V. I. Lenin
Socialism: Utopian and Scientific by Frederich Engels
The End of Policing by Alex S. Vitale (ebook currently free)
Are Prisons Obsolete? by Angela Y. Davis
The Autobiography of Malcolm X as Told to Alex Haley
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois
Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon
How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney
Films
I Am Cuba
Salt of the Earth
Black Panthers: Directed by Agnes Varda, on the Criterion Channel.
Organizations
Black Lives Matter: Donation and volunteer links related to Black Lives Matter.
Mutual Aid Hub: The best way to find your local Mutual Aid Network in my experience (if you are located in the US).
Mutual Aid India: A multitude of resources for assisting India during the ongoing Covid Crisis.
National Bail Fund Network: Find your local bail fund.
Red Canary Song: “We are a grassroots collective of Asian & migrant sex workers, organizing transnationally.”
Sylvia Rivera Law Project: “The Sylvia Rivera Law Project works to guarantee that all people are free to self-determine gender identity and expression, regardless of income or race, and without facing harassment, discrimination or violence.”
Fiction
Here’s some works that have helped me think through issues of Marxism and Social Justice. They range from the silly to the serious, from the fantastical to the grounded. These are definitely not a replacement for reading theory or lived experience, but can be a wonderful supplement.
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Grace In The Machine 