The Italian Disaster: Tariq Ali and Alberto Toscano in conversation

The vicissitudes of Italian history is full of lessons for the contemporary left. From the early days of Italian Communism under Gramsci and Bordiga, through the Communist-lead resistance to Italian Fascism, the emergence of Operaismo, the pathbreaking work of Italian feminists and the building of the largest Communist party in Europe in the post-war years, the country was once an inspiration for the radical left throughout Europe. Yet, in recent years many have struggled to understand what is happening politically in Italy with “berlusconismo” and the rise of Renzi and the Five Stars Movement

To discuss the past and present of the Italian left, Tariq Ali interviews Alberto Toscano, author of Fanaticism and reader in critical theory at Goldsmiths University in London.