America and the New Era

America and the New Era explained what Students for a Democratic Society , or SDS, meant by a “new insurgency.” Prepared at the June 1963 convention, it called for local work to give excluded people a stronger voice. Demands for immediate gains could also lead toward deeper changes in the economy and government.^[1][2]

The authors argued that American leaders sought to contain conflict and hold on to power. People needed personal freedom and a say in the decisions that shaped their lives. In the authors' view, the Cold War put national security ahead of social needs. It also taught people to trust those in charge.^[2]

The pamphlet attacked liberal groups for relying on access to officials and lobbying. They had neglected the work of building public support. Instead, people should organize around needs they could name and pursue themselves. The authors called this change a “new insurgency.”^[2]

Several kinds of activists could help. Civil rights workers were linking racial bias to jobs and poverty. Peace activists were looking at the domestic roots of military policy. Students were asking what higher education should do. These were SDS's views of groups it hoped to bring together. Those groups had not all adopted its account as their own.^[2]

The authors called for better public services, jobs and a more equal share of income. Their plans included national health insurance, more housing, shorter work hours and wider access to education. They wanted people to have a say in public plans for the economy.^[2]

Those reforms served a larger aim. The pamphlet described a “revolutionary strategy” that began with basic needs. Meeting those needs could require changes in who controlled wealth and made decisions. It urged experiments in democratic planning and public control. These would challenge the power of large firms. Reforms should do more than provide short-term relief. They should open the way to further demands.^[2]

The same argument linked policy at home and abroad. Arms spending should go to social needs. The authors urged nuclear disarmament. They opposed American intervention to suppress social revolution or protect American property abroad. Socialism and neutrality in poorer countries should not, they argued, bring American hostility.^[2]

These were aims, not proof that SDS could achieve them. The final pages said some first steps could fit within existing institutions. The eventual goals would require changes in those structures.^[2]

The text listed specific kinds of work. They included direct action, voter registration and challenges to local party groups. Discussion groups and research could help people understand local politics and the economy. Efforts to organize poor people and workers outside unions were only starting.^[2]

The authors hoped new groups would learn to speak and act for themselves. They could put pressure on parties, Congress and unions. Labor might help bring democratic change. Workers would need more say over workplace rules and the way their unions were run.^[2]

This took knowledge as well as protest. Students and scholars could study local power and the national economy. A housing campaign would need to know how the property market worked. Who made money from racial bias? What laws might help? Independent journalism could expose problems and give organizers a place to debate their plans.^[2]

Enthusiasm would not be enough. The authors warned that the energy of summer 1963 would rise and fall. Organizers needed money and other resources. They needed a fuller account of American society and a program to guide local and national action.^[2]

The text's later publication is clear; its effects are harder to trace. SDS reprinted it in New Left Notes in December 1966. The heading dated its origin to the June 1963 convention. The Michigan State University scan bears Chicago and Economic Research and Action Project addresses. Its printing date remains unknown. These copies show that people could still obtain the text. They do not show how many read it or which projects followed its advice.^[1][2]

The pamphlet explains the aim behind SDS's phrase. Local campaigns should bring new people into politics and challenge who controlled resources. Could organizers build lasting groups and keep people involved? That was the work still ahead.^[2]