Are we Becoming more Radical? The Rise of Democratic Socialism in America

The Institute of World Politics

About the lecture: Thirty years ago last fall we celebrated the fall of the Berlin wall. Many thought this represented the end of history–capitalism had won and socialism had been swept into the dustbin. Today, we see that a growing segment of the American population favors “democratic socialism” and we see American members of Congress who proudly claim this ideology. We will discuss how we have gotten here and why Democratic Socialism can’t work both on economic grounds and moral grounds. About the speaker: Dr. Anne Rathbone Bradley is the George and Sally Mayer Fellow for Economic Education and the academic director at The Fund for American Studies. Through this position, Dr. Bradley works to enhance the impact and reach of TFAS and FTE economic education programs through courses, seminars, videos and social media. She also delivers lectures around the country and oversees curriculum development and evaluation for economics courses. Previously, Dr. Bradley served as the vice president of economic initiatives at the Institute for Faith, Work & Economics, where she continues research toward a systematic biblical theology of economic freedom. In addition to her work with TFAS, she is a professor of economics at The Institute for World Politics and Grove City College. She is a visiting professor at George Mason University and has previously taught at Georgetown University and Charles University in Prague. She is currently an Acton Affiliate scholar and a visiting scholar at the Bernard Center for Women, Politics & Public Policy. She is a lecturer for the Institute for Humane Studies and the Foundation for Economic Education. Dr. Bradley serves on the James Madison University Executive Advisory Board and is the President-Elect for the Society of the Development of Austrian Economics. She served as the associate director for the Program in Economics, Politics and the Law at the James M. Buchanan Center at George Mason University. Dr. Bradley’s academic work ranges on the question of income inequality and economic freedom as well as the political economy of terrorism, with specific emphasis on the industrial organization of al-Qaeda. Her academic research has been published in scholarly journals and edited volumes. She is currently working on a book that analyzes the Political Economy of Terrorism. Based on her academic research, she also worked as an economic analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency’s Office of Terrorism Analysis.