Episodes
Comrades! We are hard at work on the Stalin Eras, as you all know. Part 3 in particular, given the Moscow Trials, The Military Trial, Ezhovchina, and other major topics, this episode in particular has taken a LOT of work. We have also uncovered a bunch of archival material that we hope will create context that we believe has never been presented in the English language.  On top of that, a few listeners have given us feedback that, particularly given the very dense nature of the material,...
Published 11/11/24
Published 11/11/24
In the discussion for Part Two of “The Stalin Eras”, the gang responds to questions from Jen (aka Big Nasty), host of How the Red Was Won and overall badass comrade. The years in focus are, again, 1930-1934, and based upon the previous episode (which you should listen to if you haven't already). We talk Stalin's sigma male grindset, writing letters to the man himself, the rise of fascism, and the contradictions facing the USSR at this time. The Stalin Eras, inspired by the classic RevLeft...
Published 11/04/24
In the narrative for Part Two of “The Stalin Eras”, Justin and Jeremy detail Soviet society and all that comes with it under Stalin’s leadership from 1930-1934. This narrative, titled “Stewards of the Human Soul”, covers the varied personal experiences of Soviet citizens from the center to the periphery of the USSR, the winding down of rapid industrialization and collectivization, the controversial anti-religious and anti-kulak campaigns, the so called “show trials” on industrial sabotage,...
Published 10/28/24
Breht O’Shea, host of Revolutionary Left Radio, joins to guide a discussion based on the events covered in the narrative for Part One (which you should listen too first, if you haven’t already!).  In this discussion, the gang led by Rae and Jeremy answer wide ranging questions about the nature of Stalin’s rise to prominence in the party, Lenin’s death, the dreaded NEP Men, the first five year plan, and the trials, tribulations, and triumphs in everyday life of Soviet citizens. The Stalin...
Published 10/21/24
In the narrative for Part One of “The Stalin Eras”, Rae and Jeremy detail Joseph Stalin’s life within the context of Soviet history through the monumental years of 1917-1929.  This narrative, titled “Reconstruction In One Country”, covers Soviet history from the early days of the October Revolution, through the Civil War and Imperialist interventions, the Volga Famine, Stalin’s rise in party leadership, the New Economic Program, ultimately ending with the start of rapid...
Published 10/14/24
In this introductory episode we cover the who, what, where, and why of “The Stalin Eras”, a multi-part series on the life and times of Joseph Stalin. In addition, we also lay the foundations of young Stalin’s life: from his humble birth in 1878 to his revolutionary career leading into the October Revolution of 1917.  This first narrative of the series, “From Soso to Stalin”, begins with his childhood, before movin into his time in church school followed by seminary,  and finally his early...
Published 10/09/24
Hey comrades! This update covers the relaunch of the Patreon. We lost all of our subscribers and stuff, so PLEASE resubscribe if you are able, even to the Free Tier. And if you're thinking of subscribing for the first time... thank you!  This is the perfect time because, despite having to push the release of the Stalin Eras - An Introduction (1878-1917) back for general release, it is now up for all paid tiers on our Patreon page, with the Backstage Pass bonus episode hitting it in the VERY...
Published 09/28/24
In this episode, we apologize for completely messing up. Our Patreon account got deleted. We are currently figuring out what the damage is, and will update as soon as we have a definite path forward.
Published 09/23/24
As we are VERY busy working on the Stalin Eras series which premiers as early release for paid Patreon subscribers on September 18, and for the main feed September 23, we did not feel that we could do a typical episode justice. Instead, we decided to put together an episode of short clips from almost all of our bonus content that is available to paid subscribers over on the Patreon page. There are timestamps below in case you have already heard some of the content or want to easily...
Published 09/09/24
Join the Proles and friend of the pod, Joel, for our first ever episode focused solely on a theory text. If you’ve been following along with the TheoryBeats project on Patreon, you already know the text. It is the the monumental "Foundations of Leninism" by Joseph Stalin. Rae takes the lead on this one.  We’ll take you through each of the nine sections of this text, unpacking the history and context while making connections to other thinkers, theorists, and movements both historically and...
Published 08/26/24
CW: This episode contains frank discussions of murder, torture, and sexual assault of both adults and children, primarily in the context of anti-semitic pogroms against Jewish people. Please proceed carefully through the episode or skip it entirely if any of these things may be difficult for you to hear.   Justin picks up where Jeremy left off to cover the development of OUN/UPA, Stepan Bandera's insecure self-promotion, and how the Ukrainian Nationalists were no better than the Nazis....
Published 08/12/24
CW: This episode contains frank discussions of murder, torture, and sexual assault of both adults and children, primarily in the context of anti-semitic pogroms against Jewish people. Please proceed carefully through the episode or skip it entirely if any of these things may be difficult for you to hear. To signal the depravity of racist language in quotes used in this episode we have used a bleep instead of "contextually stating" the slur or "n-wording" it.   Jeremy leads us in a...
Published 07/29/24
For this episode we’re joined by guest expert Beth Pitts for a journey into the heart of the Ecuadorian Amazon. We’re talking about the past, present, and future of indigenous resistance in Ecuador to begin to think about what their struggle can teach us, the benefits and limitations of taking legal action against the imperial nation-state, and the ways in which we can broaden our understanding of the frontline of struggle. For our full interview with members of the Siekopai Remolino...
Published 07/15/24
Charles Xu joins the show to give us a whirlwind tour of the history of Taiwan starting from about 15,000 years ago to the late 1980s to explain to us the origins of the current tensions between China and the West (led by the United States of America, ofcourse) that has been recklessly escalating to a war! The history covered here is covered in much more detail on the Qiao Collective website which hosts their outstanding Taiwan: An Anti-Imperialist Resource. Charles Xu is a member of the...
Published 07/01/24
CW - This episode, almost from start to finish, tells a lot of horrific stories of both physical and mental abuse and mutilation of some of the most marginalized and at-risk types of folks. If this is something that will be difficult to get through for you, please skip the episode or take it slow.  In this episode, we discuss a topic that is widely known but often skimmed. Instead of focusing on the people involved or the "funny" cases, we talked more about the monstrous nature of the...
Published 06/17/24
We are joined by Iskolat to discuss the heroric struggle of Latvia's Red Partisans during World War II - also known as the Great Patriotic War. For years this communist resistance stifled and sabotaged the Nazi occupation of Latvia.  Focusing on the rarely discussed era of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, we connect it's past to it's present working class struggles.  Note: This episode was filmed before before Rae and Martín joined the Prolespod.  Sign up at Patreon where you can get...
Published 06/03/24
The unveiling of TheoryBeats, a new project by ProlesPod and DJ DTA. Let us know what you think!   To get all future TheoryBeats, you can sign up for any paid tier at the Patreon. There are a number of other cool perks and more on the way!    FoL Pt 1 Read by - Jeremy Music by - DJ DTA
Published 05/27/24
In this episode of the podcast, we are joined by Evan from Left of the Projector Podcast to delve into a Marxist analysis of the new animated series X-Men '97. We explore the show's portrayal of the mutant struggle through a Marxist lens, examining characters like Magneto and Professor X as representations of different revolutionary strategies. We discuss the complex dynamics of Genosha, a nation of mutants, as it transitions from slavery to liberation, drawing parallels to real-world...
Published 05/20/24
  In this episode, we're joined by our two newest co-hosts, Rae and Martín, to take the Proles' first trip to Mexico. In this wide-ranging episode, we cover a (brief) workers' history of Mexico, the rise of the current president AMLO, what his presidency has meant for Mexican people, and some insight on the upcoming presidential election. There were a shocking number of resources consulted for this episode, but those specifically referenced (in English) are here: ...
Published 05/06/24
In this episode, the Scottish comrades return to discuss the revolutionary life of John Maclean. No, not that one... or that one. The Scottish revolutionary that spent his entire life fighting for the proletariat and who was in jail when British fascist Winston Churchill rolled tanks on Glasgow during the Battle of George Square to destroy the voice of the oppressed.    Please subscribe on your favorite podcast catcher and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate us on...
Published 04/22/24
In this episode, El discusses the birth and development of the proletariat within Scottland, as well as the ways in which the nobility and the British empire sabotaged them time and again. Thank you for listening!   Please rate and review to help us extend our reach. You can follow us on the socials. If you'd like, you can sign up for free at our patreon. We have some cool stuff on the way, as well as some posts we make only there. You can email us at [email protected].     
Published 04/08/24
In this long awaited return of the show the gang revisits East Germany, with new Proles co-host and host of Actually Existing Socialism - Tony -  giving us a guide through attempts by Western capitalist nations to subvert the East German state from the post-war period to the installation of the Berlin Wall. Spoiler alert: It all goes back to the 5 Ds! Please subscribe on your favorite podcast catcher and rate or review to help extend our reach. For early and exclusive content, sign up for...
Published 03/25/24
In this episode, the new gang (so far) introduces themselves, and Jeremy briefly recounts the history of Proles as well as what we're doing differently this time, based on lessons we learned. Please subscribe on your favorite podcast catcher and rate or review to help extend our reach. Like and rate us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @prolespod. If you have any questions or comments, DM us on those platforms or email us at [email protected] All episodes prior to episode 4 can be...
Published 03/11/24
...wait for it.
Published 03/05/24