Professional Documents
Culture Documents
In Defense of Socialism
In Defense of Socialism
American Culture
English III
10/31/2021
IN DEFENSE OF SOCIALISM 2
For over a century, the topic of socialism has been a hot ticket issue across the
globe. The conversation around whether socialism is a good or bad thing has sparked
propaganda, sectarian violence, and in some places, war. In the USA, many self-
proclaimed patriots express their vehement disdain for socialism as an economic model,
despite the fact that it forms an integral part of the US’s economic infrastructure. These
very people defend capitalism as the model that most upholds the American value of
freedom, while seemingly unaware that capitalism is directly responsible for taking away
The first thing people forget when discussing economic models is that socialism
in the USA isn’t a debate – it’s an inherent part of the US economy. The US would not
exist as we know it without taxes being reallocated to public programs. While taxes
were originally a way for royalty to generate funds for things like strengthening military
or securing political power, with the help of socialism, taxes became a system by which
the public could benefit from the funds they contributed to the system. Without
socialism, there would not be a minimum wage, public schools, roads, or social security.
People would have to work until the day they died or survive exclusively through the
charity of others. There would be no one to call free of charge in case of an emergency
or fire because police and firemen would not exist as a public service. There would be
no way to reliably and safely travel on roads, or it would be a costly journey, not
including already costly gas and food. Without socialism, children who could not pay,
would not receive an education. There is simply no avoiding the positive impact that
A surprising fact is that most Americans already support the idea of socialism but
because of the way it is presented in politics and in the media, people don’t realize they
support it. According to recent studies, over half of Americans support socialist
programs or policies such as universal healthcare, free college tuition, raising the
for the wealthy, and paid leave to care for sick family members. Three quarters of
Americans or more support paid sick leave, paid maternity leave, and uncut social
security benefits. However, a recent study shows that over half of the US public views
socialism in a negative light – but how can this be if so many clearly support socialist
programs?
that the stronger a socialist model becomes, the more their freedoms guaranteed under
the US Bill of Rights will be reduced. Many also believe that capitalism promotes
economic prosperity and freedom, even though the wealth gap has increased
exponentially the past few decades under the capitalist model. The reality is that
corporate propaganda and smear campaigns have much to do with this disconnect.
century have affected the public perception of an otherwise helpful economic model.
Even FDR, the president who established policies like the federal minimum wage,
regulated work hours, weekends, and social security, would not refer to these policies
socialism is being controlled by people who prefer personal greed to general prosperity.
IN DEFENSE OF SOCIALISM 4
It is the only way to explain how this economic model is still so negatively viewed in the
U.S. despite being the backbone of its modern economy. As time passes, more and
more people side with a socialist perspective due to the suffering caused by capitalism,
but many of them do so unaware. If this miseducation of the American public continues,
they will further fall prey to the very thing they fear most: a loss of freedom.
IN DEFENSE OF SOCIALISM 5
References:
Aldred, J. (2019, June 6). 'socialism for the rich': The evils of bad economics. The
Guardian.https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2019/jun/06/socialism-for-the-rich-the-evils-
of-bad-economics
Canellos, P., White, J. B., Sitrin, S. S. and C., & Gerstein, B. M. and J. (2019, August 16). What FDR
understood about socialism that Today's Democrats don't. POLITICO Magazine.
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/08/16/democrats-socialism-fdr-roosevelt-
227622/.
Cray, C. (2011, September 21). The Lewis Powell memo: A corporate blueprint to dominate democracy.
Greenpeace USA. https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/democracy/the-lewis-powell-memo-a-
corporate-blueprint-to-dominate-democracy/.
PBS Digital Studios. (2020, September 22). Origin of Everything: History of Socialism in America
[Video]. PBS. https://www.pbs.org/video/history-of-socialism-in-america-frql1u/
Pew Research Center. (2020, August 25). Americans' views of 'socialism' and 'capitalism' in their own
words. Pew Research Center - U.S. Politics & Policy.
https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/10/07/in-their-own-words-behind-americans-views-
of-socialism-and-capitalism/.
ProCon. (2021, August 3). American socialism - top 3 pros and cons. ProCon.org.
https://www.procon.org/headlines/american-socialism-top-2-pros-and-cons/.