Vijay Prashad Explained

Vijay Prashad
Birth Place:Kolkata, India
Education:
Relations:Brinda Karat (aunt)

Vijay Prashad, born August, 1967, is an Indian historian, author, journalist, political commentator, and Marxist intellectual.[1] [2] He is the executive-director of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, editor of LeftWord Books, Chief Correspondent at Globetrotter,[3] and a senior non-resident fellow at Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University of China.[4] Ideologically a Marxist, Prashad is well known for his criticisms of capitalism, neocolonialism, American exceptionalism, and Western imperialism, while expressing support for communism and the global south.[5] [6] [7]

Previously, Prashad has been the George and Martha Kellner Chair in South Asian History and a professor of international studies at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, United States, from 1996 to 2017. Presently, he is an advisory board member of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, part of the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement,[8] [9] and co-founder of the Forum of Indian Leftists (FOIL).[10]

Prashad has provided reporting and political commentary for several publications, including Monthly Review,[11] The Nation,[12] and Salon.[13]

Early life and background

The son of Pran and Soni Prashad,[14] Vijay Prashad was born and raised in Kolkata, India.[15] He attended The Doon School as a child.[16] In the United States, he received a BA from Pomona College in 1989 as well as earning a PhD at the University of Chicago in 1994—writing a dissertation under the supervision of Bernard S. Cohn.[17] [18] [19] He is the nephew of Marxist Indian politician Brinda Karat.[20] Prashad identifies as queer.[21]

Political views

Vijay Prashad is a fervent proclaimer of democracy, Marxism, socialism, and communism.[22]

Criticism of capitalism is a recurrent theme throughout all of his work; one summary of such criticisms can be found in his 2002 book Fat Cats and Running Dogs. In addition, criticisms of imperialism, colonialism, neocolonialism and other such topics are regular themes.

Prashad's political views are paired with frequent calls for people to become activists, struggle, join movements, protest, organise in political parties, form trade unions and other such related activities.[23]

Elsewhere, he has stated that American leftists, specifically, are not as effective as they could be in situations where they win influence through community organising, such as in local governments, because they often do not appreciate ideas originating from other parts of the world. He also calls on leftists, in general, to have a long-term view of social struggle rather than a focus on short-term results; this short-term focus often results from an economic system where companies are incentivised to demonstrate quarterly profits.[24]

U.S. foreign policy

Prashad is an outspoken critic of American hegemony and imperialism.[25] [26] He debated historian Juan Cole on the 2011 US-French-NATO military intervention in Libya. Cole was for it, Prashad against.[27] Prashad argued that the genuine Libyan rising had been "usurped" by various unsavory characters, including some with CIA connections.[28] Prashad wrote the 2012 book Arab Spring, Libyan Winter, released through AK Press, on the topic.[29] [30]

Mother Teresa and Western charity

Prashad offered his analysis of Mother Teresa's missionary work in Calcutta, designating her as a representative of the collective "bourgeois guilt" of Western nations.[31] He argued that people like Mother Teresa obscure the tragedies of capitalism. For instance, "During the night of December 2–3, 1984, the Bhopal disaster poisoned thousands of people". He states that the Bhopal disaster, which was caused by Union Carbide, was the most flagrant example of a transnational corporation's disregard for human life in defence of its own profit. In 1983, Union Carbide's sales came to US$9 billion and its assets totalled US$10bn. Part of this profit came from a tendency to shirk any responsibility towards safety standards, not just in India, but also in their West Virginia plant. After the disaster, Mother Teresa flew into Bhopal and, escorted in two government cars, she offered Bhopal's victims small aluminium medals of St. Mary. "This could have been an accident," she told the survivors, "it's like a fire (that) could break out anywhere. That is why it is important to forgive. Forgiveness offers us a clean heart and people will be a hundred times better after it." Pope John Paul II joined Mother Teresa with his analysis that Bhopal was a "sad event" which resulted from "man's efforts to make progress."[32] [33]

In the same article he also commented on Mother Teresa's alleged links with Charles Keating and Michele Duvalier (wife of Haitian dictator Baby Doc Duvalier). Denouncing the "cruel rule of capital" he also offered the view that the communists of Calcutta were the "real nameless Mother Teresas who conduct the necessary work towards socialism, for the elimination of poverty forever."[34]

Resignation of Evo Morales

Prashad has written extensively about the removal of Evo Morales as President of Bolivia in 2019 and the 2020 Bolivian general election.[35] He described Morales' removal as a coup d'état and said the Organisation of American States had "legitimised" the coup with unsubstantiated conclusions in its preliminary report.[35] In March 2020, he wrote that Morales' removal from office was the result of his government's "socialist policy toward Bolivia's resources" which required that returns from mining resources such as lithium "be properly shared with the Bolivian people". He said that the government of Jeanine Áñez had extended a "welcome mat" to Tesla to establish a factory in Bolivia to manufacture lithium batteries from Bolivia's reserves.[35]

Israel-Palestine conflict

In 2010, as Prashad was appointed to head the newly formed Trinity Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies at Trinity College, a group of professors wrote a letter protesting the appointment based on "the prominent role he has played in promoting a boycott of Israeli universities and of study abroad in Israel".[36] After initially refusing to meet with them, Trinity President James Jones eventually met with representatives from Jewish organisations, including the Connecticut Jewish federation, the Anti-Defamation League, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford on 14 September 2010. One participant reported a "veiled threat" to have Jewish donors "weigh in". The university backed Prashad and rejected attempts to rescind his appointment.

Appraisal

The historian Paul Buhle writes, "Vijay Prashad is a literary phenomenon."[37]

The writer Amitava Kumar notes, "Prashad is our own Frantz Fanon. His writing of protest is always tinged with the beauty of hope."[38]

Criticism

Prashad has come under international scrutiny for his association with Neville Roy Singham, who has been accused of funding and promoting pro-Chinese government messaging and causes via a network of organizations (including the Prashad-associated Tricontinental Institute, NewsClick, The People's Forum, BreakThrough News, and Globetrotter).[39] [40] Prashad has responded to the criticism, deeming it “scurrilous” and characterizing it as an attempt “to conjure a conspiracy from something that is no secret at all” as well as a pretended “scoop based on public statements that I – and others – have made. The [critics] … uncovered no conspiracy and had no scoop, only innuendo."[41]

Notable works

As author

As editor

Articles
Interviews
Talks

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 16 April 2013 . ZNet - Junevijayint . dead . https://archive.today/20130416081126/http://www.znetwork.org/zparecon/junevijayint.htm . 16 April 2013 . 24 November 2017 . ZNetwork.
  2. "I came to Marxism against my self-interest. Born into affluence, I was raised in an revolutionary city (Calcutta, India)" Left history, Volumes 11–12, pp 61, Department of History, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, 2006
  3. Web site: Prashad . Vijay . Vijay Prashad, Author at Globetrotter Media . 2023-06-28 . Globetrotter Media . en-US.
  4. Web site: Prashad . Vijay . 2022-01-21 . Morocco Drives a War in Western Sahara for Its Phosphates . 2022-01-28 . NewsClick.
  5. Vijay Prashad - Imperialism suffocates humanity like a Boa Constrictor . Nov 23, 2022 . Prashad . Vijay . Video . Left Bloc Ireland . Inis Oirr . YouTube.
  6. Vijay Prashad: Why Does India Remain Entrapped by the UK? . May 22, 2023 . Prashad . Vijay . Video . Wave Media . YouTube.
  7. Noam Chomsky & Vijay Prashad: American Exceptionalism is Imperial Policy . Aug 28, 2022 . Chomsky . Noam . Noam Chomsky . Prashad . Vijay . Video . . YouTube.
  8. Web site: 3 February 2009 . Advisory Board - US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel . 24 November 2017 . US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel.
  9. News: Guttman . Nathan . 26 August 2014 . Anti-Israel Professor Returns to Trinity College — Will Controversy Come Back Too? . 19 December 2020 . The Forward.
  10. News: Mathew . Biju . Biju Mathew . Prashad . Vijay . March 25, 2001 . Hindutva For a Few Dollars a Day . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080828130119/http://pd.cpim.org/2001/march25/march25_biju_vijay.htm . 2008-08-28 . 28 August 2008 . . 12.
  11. Web site: Monthly Review Vijay Prashad . 2023-06-29 . . en-US.
  12. 2010-04-02 . Vijay Prashad . 2023-06-29 . . en-US.
  13. Web site: Vijay Prashad's Articles at Salon.com . 2023-06-29 . Salon.com.
  14. Web site: Prashad . Vijay . 2013-05-31 . My Japanese parents: Remembering what Japan meant to those who dreamt of transforming India after Independence . 2024-11-20 . . en.
  15. News: Prashad . Vijay . 2020-07-13 . Columnist Vijay Prashad: Coronavirus and the virus of debt . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20200713191433/https://www.gazettenet.com/Prashad-column-35198515 . 2020-07-13 . 2024-11-20 . Daily Hampshire Gazette.
  16. News: Traub . Alex . 2016-07-19 . A nuanced gaze on West Asia . The Telegraph.
  17. Web site: 2011 Indian-American Achiever Awards . GOPIO-Connecticut . Global Organization of People of Indian Origin . 19 December 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130501005154/http://gopio-ct.org/images/GOPIO_Awards_2011.pdf . 1 May 2013.
  18. Web site: Vijay Prashad Video - Book Interviews . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20171201134501/https://www.ovguide.com/vijay-prashad-9202a8c04000641f8000000006b37a80 . 1 December 2017 . 24 November 2017 . OVGuide.
  19. Prashad . Vijay . 1994 . Revolting labor: The making of the Balmiki community. (Volumes I and II) . PhD . v . University of Chicago .
  20. Web site: April 20, 2022 . Who is Brinda Karat? All you need to know about CPI (M) leader who blocked bulldozer amid demolition drive in Jahangirpuri . 2024-11-20 . . en.
  21. 1787312533516193894 . vijayprashad . Almost thirty years ago - 'queer, radical, and 100% South Asian' (largely due to the climate after the nuclear tests in Pokhran, Rajasthan). That was my slogan then, mouth full of paan and head full of Marxism. . Vijay . Prashad . May 5, 2024 . 2024-11-20.
  22. Prashad . Vijay . What's the Left to Do in a World on Fire? . China and the Left: A Socialist Forum (conference) . 18 September 2021 . 28 June 2023 . YouTube.
  23. The Dragons, Their Dragoons. Vijay. Prashad. 17 March 2009. The Nation. 19 December 2020. 13 November 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191113151030/https://www.thenation.com/article/dragons-their-dragoons/. dead.
  24. Against the Grain – October 18, 2004 . October 18, 2004 . Podcast . KPFA. Retrieved 28 November 2018
  25. "Vijay Prashad has come to be known for his expert critical analysis of US imperialism and war", Chopping Through the Foundations of Racism With Vijay Prashad, Joel Wendland, 8 August 2003, Friction Magazine
  26. Web site: Prashad . Vijay . August 16, 2003 . Casual Imperialism . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090610191048/http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/155/25963.html . 2009-06-10 . 24 November 2017 . . People's Weekly World.
  27. Web site: March 29, 2011 . A Debate on U.S. Military Intervention in Libya: Juan Cole v. Vijay Prashad . 24 November 2017 . Democracy Now!.
  28. News: April 2, 2011 . Professor: In Libya, A Civil War, Not Uprising . 24 November 2017 . . NPR.
  29. Web site: Vijay Prashad: Arab Spring Libyan Winter - Part I. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/AmDFE-9YV74. 2021-12-12 . live. 18 July 2012. 24 November 2017. YouTube.
  30. Web site: Vijay Prashad: Arab Spring Libyan Winter - Part II. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/OkcHWEdqvBs. 2021-12-12 . live. 18 July 2012. 24 November 2017. YouTube.
  31. White Women in Racialized Spaces: Imaginative Transformation and Ethical Action in Literature, Samina Najmi, Rajini Srikanth, Mother Teresa as the Mirror of Bourgeois Guilt - Chapter 4, pp 67, Published by SUNY Press, 2002,,
  32. News: Hazarika . Sanjoy . Dec 12, 1984 . MOTHER TERESA CARRIES HER MESSAGE TO BHOPAL . New York Times.
  33. Web site: 1986-02-07 . POPE REMEMBERS BHOPAL DEAD . 2024-11-20 . Chicago Tribune . en-US.
  34. Prashad . Vijay . September 1997 . Mother Teresa: A Communist View . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080724153535/http://www.cpa.org.au/amrarch/40vp.html . 2008-07-24 . . Australian Marxist Review . 40.
  35. Web site: Prashad . Vijay . Bejarano . Alejandro . Elon Musk is South America's neo-conquistador . Salon . 19 August 2020. 11 March 2020.
  36. Prashad, Vijay. "Understanding the boycott of Israel's universities" Washington Post, 24 January 2014
  37. Buhle . Paul . 1 January 2014 . Prashad at Large . . 65 . 8 . 58 . 10.14452/MR-065-08-2014-01_5 . 19 December 2020.
  38. Web site: Rana . Aziz . 18 March 2014 . Break the Silence: An Interview with Vijay Prashad . 16 July 2019 . Asian American Writers' Workshop.
  39. News: Hvistendahl . Mara . Fahrenthold . David A. . Chutel . Lynsey . Jhaveri . Ishaan . 2023-08-05 . A Global Web of Chinese Propaganda Leads to a U.S. Tech Mogul . 2024-05-16 . The New York Times . en-US . 0362-4331.
  40. Web site: Ross . Alexander Reid . Dobson . Courtney . 2022-01-18 . The Big Business of Uyghur Genocide Denial . 2024-05-16 . New Lines Magazine . en.
  41. News: Prashad . Vijay . 2022-07-02 . Genocide Denier? Not Me, Pal. Try the White House Instead . 2024-07-18 . . en-US. The reference is specifically to the New Lines piece.
  42. News: Prashad . Vijay . Reality Asserts Itself - Vijay Prashad . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170619115826/http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=832&Itemid=74&jumival=1038 . 2017-06-19 . The Real News Network.
  43. News: Hedges . Thomas . Prashad . Vijay . February 23, 2015 . What Was Missing from Obama's Anti-Terrorism Speech . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160619222614/http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=13282 . 2016-06-19 . The Real News Network.

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