"An extraordinary volume that provides nothing less than a detailed cognitive mapping of the terrain for everyone who wants to engage in radical politics."—Slavoj Žižek, author of Living in the End Times “Keywords for Radicals recognizes that language is both a weapon and terrain of struggle, and that all of us committed to changing our social and material reality, to making a world justice-rich and oppression-free, cannot drop words such as ‘democracy,’ ‘occupation,’ ‘colonialism,’ ‘race,’ ‘sovereignty,’ or ‘love’ without a fight. —Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination "From its thought-provoking Introduction though its energizing accounts of the tensions underlying our most prized concepts, Keywords for Radicals will be indispensable to any scholar or activist who is serious about critique and change."—Stephen Duncombe, editor of Cultural Resistance Reader “A primer for a new era of political protest.” —Jack Halberstam, author of Female Masculinity “This keywords upgrade puts powerful weapons into revolutionaries' hands. Unexpected entries expand into new terrain.… Indispensable.” —Jodi Dean, author of The Communist Horizon In Keywords (1976), Raymond Williams devised a "vocabulary" that reflected the vast social transformations of the post-war period. He revealed how these transformations could be grasped by investigating changes in word usage and meaning. Keywords for Radicals—part homage, part development—asks: What vocabulary might illuminate the social transformations marking our own contested present? How do these words define the imaginary of today's radical left? With insights from dozens of scholars and troublemakers, Keywords for Radicals explores the words that shape our political landscape. Each entry highlights a term's contested variations, traces its evolving usage, and speculates about what its historical mutations can tell us. More than a glossary, this is a crucial study of the power of language and the social contradictions hidden within it. Contributors include Patrick Bond, Silvia Federici, John Bellamy Foster, Joy James, Ilan Pappé, Justin Podur, Nina Power, Mab Segrest, and over forty others. Kelly Fritsch is a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow in Women's and Gender Studies at the University of Toronto. Clare O'Connor is a doctoral student in Communication at the University of Southern California. A.K. Thompson teaches social theory at Fordham University in New York. TABLE OF CONTENTS Editors—Introduction Kelly Fritsch—Accessible Clare O’Connor—Accountability AK Thompson—Agency Mab Segrest—Allies Maia Ramnath—Authority Anna Agathangelou—Bodies Christine Kelly—Care Johanna Brenner—Class Lorenzo Veracini—Colonialism George Caffentzis—Commons Sarah Lamble—Community Mandy Hiscocks—Conspiracy Robert McRuer—Crip Nina Power—Demand Donatella della Porta—Democracy Ruth Kinna—Domination Kate Kaul—Experience Simon Wallace—Friend Rasheedah Phillips—Future Tammy Kovich—Gender Richard Day—Hegemony Bryan D Palmer—History Ana Cecilia Dinerstein—Hope Himani Bannerji—Ideology Sumayya Kassamali—Intellectual Sam Gindin—Labor Joy James—Leadership Robin Marie Averbeck—Liberal Heather Davis—Love Rosemary Hennessy—Materialism Eliza Steinbock—Misogyny Sunera Thobani—Nation John Bellamy Foster—Nature Sara Matthews—Occupation Justin Podur—Oppression Deborah Gould—Politics Stefan Kipfer—Populism Christian Scholl—Prefiguration Douglas Williams—Privilege Natalie Kouri-Towe—Queer Conor Tomás Reed—Race Jaleh Mansoor—Representation Silvia Federici—Reproduction Miranda Joseph—Responsibility Thomas Nail—Revolution Rebecca Schein—Rights Markus Kip—Solidarity Stacy Douglas—Sovereignty Kanishka Goonewardena—Space Patrick Bond—Sustainable Dan Irving—Trans*/- David McNally—Utopia Alan Shandro—Vanguard Heather Hax—Victory Peter Gelderloos—Violence Neil Balan—War Illan Pappé — Zionism References Appendix About the Contributors