BLOCK AND BUILD: Left Strategy in the MAGA Era

A Convergence Syllabus

Hands raised and clasping, with the lettering "Block & Build" across the bottom and up the right side of the square.

This is a syllabus for an in-depth study of the Block & Build strategy. Convergence Magazine, along with many other social justice groups, believes this strategy best addresses the challenges of the current moment.

The main dynamic shaping this moment is the drive by a powerful right-wing bloc to impose authoritarian rule and a white Christian Nationalist agenda on the country. This bloc, gathered under the banner of “Make America Great Again” (MAGA), has already captured the Republican Party and the Supreme Court, and holds trifectas (governorships and legislative majorities) in 22 states. The drama being played out today centers on whether MAGA will succeed in gaining full federal power in 2024 or soon after; and, if they are beaten back, what will be the character of the anti-MAGA governing coalition.

The strategy elaborated in this syllabus is aims to block MAGA’s bid for power and while doing so build enough independent progressive clout to start the country down the road to a robust multiracial, gender-inclusive democracy and an economy that works for all on an environmentally sustainable planet.

To help participants grapple with the dramatic impact the Gaza crisis has had on US politics, Convergence added a special session to this study.

Syllabus Overview

Discussion groups and classes based on this syllabus would ideally hold seven 90-minute sessions. Each session is focused on a major component of the Block and Build strategy, with three to four key points identified ahead of time. Each session will include some discussion of how this approach differs from some other views on the Left. There are readings for each section. A set of sample discussion questions for each session accompanies this syllabus.

The points in different sessions overlap, but each session has a distinct focus. Here are the session headings and a recommendation for obtaining a general overview of Block and Build before beginning the study.

Pre-Study Preparation: For an overview of the Block and Build strategy that will help participants navigate the study, take a look at one or both of:

Building Power Against the Far Right (video), Rachel Herzing and Tarso Ramos in conversation, from the People Get Ready 3 Conference, December 12, 2020.
“Strategy in the Time of MAGA: Block and Build,” by Max Elbaum, Common Dreams, July 21, 2023.

You can also download a printable PDF version of this syllabus here.

We also held a webinar to introduce the concepts in the syllabus and discuss its application. You can watch the archived video here. The slide deck can be downloaded as a PDF.

Sessions

Shot from the back of a long room full of people in chairs.

Session 1: Unify and Expand the Broad Front Necessary to Defeat MAGA

Today’s MAGA bloc is the US manifestation of a global rise in right-wing authoritarian movements. MAGA is the current manifestation of a white Christian Nationalist trend that is deeply intertwined with capitalism and has existed in the US since its origins.

Session 2: The Crucial Role of a Self-Conscious Progressive Trend

Since the 2008 financial crash, and especially since Bernie’s 2016 campaign and Trump’s election that same year, a distinct progressive trend in US politics has begun to take shape. Developing the strategic perspective of this emerging trend and uniting as much of it as possible in some common organizational form or forms, is a prime task.

Session 3: Defend and Advance Democracy, Engage Elections, Fight for Governing Power

The fight for political democracy is integrally connected to—and an indispensable component of—fighting for a better life for all those who are exploited, oppressed, marginalized, and discriminated against. Because of the close interconnection between white Christian Nationalism and capitalism, democratic struggles are essential to opening up progressive resolutions to the crisis of neoliberal capitalism.

Group of canvassers for the DC Tipped Minimum Wage Campaign

Session 4: Progressive Agenda Imperative I: Working-Class Orientation, Special Place for Racial and Gender Justice

Because of the historic connection between White Christian Nationalism and capitalism, the emerging progressive current can be durable and effective only if it fights for the rights and interests of all who face injustice and discrimination in the US and around the world—and stands firm against attempts to fragment people using identity-based wedges.

Crowd of people posed with a long banner that reads "Solidarity." They're standing in front of a flat-roofed brick building, wearing T-shirts and shorts or pants. Crowd includes both men and women. Most appear to be white but a few are not.

Session 5: Progressive Agenda Imperative II: Internationalism and Protecting the Environment Are Essential

The power relationships between different states and the dynamics of global politics have changed dramatically since the period of the Cold War and the immediate post-Cold War years of capitalist triumphalism centered in the US.

Electoral Strategy

Session 6: The Democratic Party, the Balance of Forces, Breaking the Current Stalemate

We are now in the most intense phase of the backlash against the gains of the 1960s movements that has been underway for 50-plus years.

Statue of Liberty with banners at her base reading "Ceasefire Now" and "the Whole World Is Watching"

Session 7: Ceasefire Now! End US Backing for Israeli Apartheid; Make the Fight for Palestinian Rights an Integral Component of the Fight Against MAGA

The Gaza crisis has had a huge impact on US politics. Foreign policy has long been the biggest division within the centrist and progressive wings of the anti-MAGA coalition.

Crowd at a protest in orange duotone. In foreground, in black-and-white, view from the back of a dark-skinned woman with long braids holding a sign that reads, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everwhere."

Appendix: Resources for a Deeper Dive into Left Strategy

These readings are recommended for those interested in exploring in-depth approaches to left strategy that inform and/or are generally aligned with the Block and Build perspective.