Capitalist Racism and State Repression with Charisse Burden-Stelly

<p>In this episode, I’m joined by Charisse Burden-Stelly, associate professor of African American Studies at Wayne State University and author of <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/B/bo207945104.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Black Scare/Red Scare: Theorizing Capitalist Racism in the United States </em></a>(University of Chicago Press, 2023)—to discuss the connections between capitalism and racism and how the intertwined relationship between anti-Blackness and anti-communism has shaped the history of state repression in the United States. In particular, we situate the current moment of escalating state repression against activists and social movements within this longer history of what Dr. Burden-Stelly calls “the Black Scare/Red Scare longue durée.”</p><p><strong>About the show:</strong></p><p><em>Return to Bandung</em> is hosted by Pranay Somayajula, an Indian-American writer, researcher, and organizer based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His work explores themes of diaspora, (inter)nationalism, anticolonial politics, and the many lives and afterlives of empire. You can learn more about Pranay and read his writing on his <a href="https://www.pranaysomayajula.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">website</a>, as well as on his Substack blog, <a href="https://www.culture-shock.xyz/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>culture shock</em></a>.</p><p><strong>Support </strong><em><strong>Return to Bandung</strong></em><strong>:</strong></p><p>If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to leave a review or rating, and subscribe to the show on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! If you’re able, please also consider supporting my work—which encompasses both my writing and this podcast, as well as various other political education projects by signing up as a paid subscriber to my Substack or making a one-off contribution:</p><ul><li><p><a href="http://www.culture-shock.xyz/subscribe" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Become a paid Substack subscriber</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://buymeacoffee.com/returntobandung" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Buy Me a Coffee</a></p></li></ul><p><strong>Sources and helpful links:</strong></p><ul><li><p>Charisse Burden-Stelly — <a href="https://www.versobooks.com/products/600-our-history-is-the-future?srsltid=AfmBOoqbTfgW_VGJ-ZSW9TawP28N2wjKjzRRP4pNCVvKkb0ZP-aZ0r2K" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">⁠</a><a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/B/bo207945104.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Black Scare/Red Scare: Theorizing Capitalist Racism in the United States </em></a>(University of Chicago Press, 2023)</p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.returntobandung.com/episodes/venezuela-after-maduro-99rpt" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Return to Bandung</em> episode with Nick Estes on the federal occupation of Minneapolis</a> (August 2026)</p></li><li><p>Erik S. McDuffie — <a href="https://www.dukeupress.edu/sojourning-for-freedom" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Sojourning for Freedom: Black Women, American Communism, and the Making of Black Left Feminism</em> </a>(Duke University Press, 2011)</p></li><li><p>Carol Boyce Davies — <a href="https://www.dukeupress.edu/left-of-karl-marx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Left of Karl Marx: The Political Life of Black Communist Claudia Jones</em></a><em> </em>(Duke University Press, 2008)</p></li><li><p>U.S. Department of State — <a href="https://www.state.gov/cuba-the-capital-of-21st-century-communism" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism</em></a><em> </em>(July 2026)</p></li><li><p><a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/5nbe0qu0FQybQajVkUrafQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><em>Upstream</em> episode with Charisse Burden-Stelly on the S