first posted 9 May 2010; last revised 3 January 2011

Fifty Political Manifestos and Platforms of Our Time

by Mark Satin

Our world is bursting with new political energies.  That’s the good news brought to you by our list of contemporary political manifestos and platforms below, not to mention our list of 100+ contemporary readings illustrating 50 political ideologies elsewhere on this website.

Obviously, this list of manifestos and platforms is incomplete.  If you’d like to suggest one to be added, please email me at msatin (at) radicalmiddle.com.  But you should also tell me which text below it would replace, and why (I’m not looking to overwhelm viewers with quantity here).  And you should note my six criteria:

• at least one document from each of the five BRISC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, South Africa, and China), at least five from Western Europe, and at least five from elsewhere outside the U.S.;

• at least three documents under each sub-head below;

• all documents should have been produced after 1990;

• each should be in current use, i.e. should be of more than just historical interest;

• each should be the work of a collective (party, organization, gathering, etc.), or should have been accepted by a collective; and

• that collective should have some political weight.

So . . . enjoy this list!  And USE it to help the world become fairer and kinder to us all (yourself included).

ANARCHISM

Communalism Journal / Institute for Social Ecology [Janet Biehl], Theses on Social Ecology and Deep Ecology, 2006

First North American Secessionist Convention [Kirkpatrick Sale et al.], Burlington Declaration, 2006

Zapatista Army of National Liberation (Mexico), Sixth Declaration of the Lacandon Jungle, 2005

CONSERVATISM

Conservative Party (Britain), Invitation to Join the Government of Britain, 2008

Republican Party (U.S.), Platform, 2008

United Russia Party [platform not yet available on Web in English, but the party and its platform are discussed in Wikipedia, “United Russia,” n.d.  See also Ivan Krastev, “Reading Russia: The Rules of Survival,” Apr. 2009]

ECOLOGISM

Bioregional Congress [David Haenke et al.], Welcome Home Statement, orig. 1984, reaffirmed 2009

U.S. Green Party, Platform, 2004

United Green Parties of Europe, A Green New Deal for Europe, 2009

(NEO)FASCISM / RACIALISM

American Third Position [William D. Johnson et al.], Program / Policies, 2010

European-American Unity and Rights Organization [David Duke et al.], Principles, 2005

National Party (Britain), Democracy, Freedom, Culture and Identity, 2010

New Black Panther Party, 10 Point Platform, 2010 [& compare the original Black Panther Party’s Ten Point Plan, 1966, rev. 1972]

FEMINISM

National Organization for Women, National NOW Conference Resolutions, 2000

National Organization for Women, National NOW Conference Resolutions, 2009

World Conference on Women, Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, 1995

GLOBALISM (PRO-)

Council on Foreign Relations with the Canadian Council of Chief Executives and the Consejo Mexicano de Asuntos Internacionales, Building a North American Community, 2005

Project for the New American Century, Statement of Principles, 1997

World Economic Forum [Klaus Schwab, Exec. Chair] (Switzerland), Global Corporate Citizenship, 2008

GLOBALISM (CONDITIONAL ON GLOBAL JUSTICE)

Earth Charter Initiative [activists from around the world], Earth Charter, 2000

Millennium Forum [NGOs from around the world], We the Peoples: Declaration and Agenda for Action, 2000

Report of the U.N. Secretary-General, Keeping the Promise: [Achieving] the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, 2010

LIBERALISM

AmericaSpeaks, Demos, and Everyday Democracy, An Agenda for Strengthening Our Nation’s Democracy, 2008

Communitarian Network [Amitai Etzioni et al.], Responsive Community Platform, 1991

Congress Party (India), Manifesto of the Indian National Congress, 2009

Democratic Party (U.S.), Renewing America’s Promise, 2008

LIBERTARIANISM

Campaign for Liberty [Ron Paul et al.], Mission and Statement of Principles, 2009

FLOW [John Mackey et al.], Worldview, c. 2009

Libertarian Party (U.S.), Platform, 2008

MULTICULTURALISM

Honor the Earth [Winona La Duke et al.], Sustainable Tribal Communities, 2010

Unity Blueprint collaborators [Alliance for Human Rights et al.], Unity Blueprint for Immigration Reform, c. 2007

World Conference Against Racism, Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, 2001

NATIONALISM / POPULISM (RIGHT)

Bharatiya Janata Party (India), Manifesto, 2009

FreedomWorks et al., Contract from America, 2010

The 9.12 Project [Glenn Beck et al.], 9 Principles, 12 Values, 2009

Wilders Group [now Party for Freedom, Geert Wilders et al.] (Netherlands), Dutch Declaration of Independence, 2005

NATIONALISM / POPULISM (LEFT)

African National Congress (South Africa), Working Together We Can Do More, 2009

Congressional Populist Caucus [Rep. Bruce Braley et al.], Strengthening the Middle Class / Platform, 2009

United Socialist Party of Venezuela [platform not yet available on Web in English, but the party and its perspectives are discussed in Hugo Chavez’s speech “For a New United Socialist Party of Venezuela,” 15 Dec. 2006.  See also Steve Ellner, “Hugo Chavez’s First Decade in Office: Breakthroughs and Shortcomings,” 23 Apr. 2010]

RELIGIO-POLITICAL PERSPECTIVES

Christian Conservatism: Focus on the Family, Social Issues, 2008 [click on the topics on the left-hand side of the "Social Issues" page]

Radical Islam: World Islamic Front [Osama bin Laden et al.] (Afghanistan?), Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders, 1998

Post-Zionism: Olga Document collaborators [Prof. Anat Biletzki et al.] (Israel), The Olga Document, 2004

SOCIALISM (BUT NOT UNFRIENDLY TO CAPITALISM)

Labour Party (Britain), A Future Fair for All, 2010

Communist Party (China), Hu Jintao’s Speech at the Meeting Marking the 30th Anniversary of Reform and Opening Up, 2008

New Democratic Party (Canada), Jack Layton and the New Democrats, 2008

Workers’ Party (Brazil) [platform not yet available on Web in English, but the party and its perspective are discussed in Wikipedia, “Workers’ Party (Brazil),” n.d.  See also Valter Pomar [Secretary of International Relations of the WP], “Workers’ Party of Brazil: The Different Strategies of the Latin American Left,” 10 Oct. 2009]

SOCIALISM (ANTI-CAPITALIST)

Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism [Carl Davidson et al.], For a Democratic and Socialist Future, 2009

Die Linke Party (Germany), Programme: First Draft, 2010

Left Front collaborators [Party of Socialism and Liberty et al.] (Brazil), Manifesto of the Left Front, 2006

INTEGRATIVE PERSPECTIVES

New America Foundation, Ten Big Ideas for a New America: Executive Summary, 2007

One Senator, one Governor, and one Congressman, The Road to Generational Equity, 1995

Vasconcellos Project [John Vasconcellos et al.], The Expanding Human Agenda, c. 2001

//////////

APPENDIX. DIALOGUE ACROSS CULTURES & IDEOLOGIES

U.N. General Assembly, Resolution 56/6: Global Agenda for Dialogue among Civilizations, 2001

World Public Forum: Dialogue of Civilizations, Rhodes Declaration 2009

World Public Forum: Dialogue of Civilizations, Rhodes Declaration 2010