What do we talk about when we talk about socialism in the US? The Big Scary “S” Word explores the rich history of th | dG1faXhvWlZEYlZDM2s
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00:00We could begin with the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag, written by a democratic socialist.
00:04Walt Whitman, Martin Luther King Jr.
00:07Albert Einstein, socialist to the core.
00:11Socialism is as American as apple pie.
00:16Most socialists begin with a critique of inequality.
00:19Basic human rights need to be provided for.
00:22Teachers are buying supplies out of our own pockets.
00:26I can't cover my basic expenses.
00:29I decided to run for office.
00:31I saw what can happen when the systems that are designed to protect working people fail us.
00:36Society changes when people who otherwise don't have power stand up.
00:41Five individuals own more wealth than the entire bottom half of the human population.
00:48We got sold out!
00:50There is an outrage on the part of the people, Mr. Chairman, that is not necessarily perceived here in Congress.
00:56We believe in democracy.
00:58The problem with the word socialism is that it's been equated with totalitarianism.
01:03I'm 30. I was born in 87.
01:05I don't remember the Berlin Wall falling.
01:09The Red Scare. Anybody who uses the big scary S-word is automatically Stalin.
01:13It doesn't work anymore.
01:15We've got thousands of teachers who've come to this building demanding answers.
01:19When you can't do your job without having to have a second job, which I have, to pay the bills, that's bullshit.
01:28Democratic socialism is the value that in a modern, moral, and wealthy society, no person in America should be too poor to live.
01:37Our job is to change the world in the United States of America.
01:43It's possible to design a society and economy based on people's most pressing needs.
01:50More voice from the workers.
01:52Actually benefits the company.
01:53Yes!
01:55Socialism is really at heart the ultimate expression of democracy.
01:59If that's not American, I don't know what is.