Cold War, Golden Age, Third Way - How did Left Movementschange their Discourse?
Workshop 1
The first panel will focus on the historical developments of the left movements since the end of the Second World War and the foundation of the Socialist International in 1951. In the beginning of the Cold War the social democratic parties had to position themselves in regard to their political and economic standpoint. Though they agreed on the liberal and democratic values of the West and denounced communism, they also condemned pure capitalism. Concerning the economic sphere they opted largely for an endorsement of Keynesianism. Some scholars argue that there has been a "golden age" of social democracy during the 1970s, until the economic crisis of this decade led to a rise in neoliberalism and the Reagan and Thatcher era. The end of the Cold War however, posed opportunities especially for new social democratic parties in Eastern Europe. Later the third way politics as followed by Tony Blair in the UK, Gerhard Schroeder in Germany and Bill Clinton in the US caused many controversies and discrepancies among social democrats, which are not yet resolved.
Guiding Questions:
- Has there been something like a "Golden Age" of social democracy? From when to when, where, how did it end?
- What role played the end of the Cold War, was it a chance or a challenge? How did social democratic parties react and position themselves afterwards?
- Did the third way politics strengthen the left movements by adapting policies to current challenges or weaken them by dividing the movements?
Speakers: