In this book, Garry Leech addresses a pressing and necessary topic: the nature of contemporary capitalism, and how it inherently generates inequality and structural violence.
Drawing on a number of fascinating case studies—including the forced displacement of farmers in Mexico, farmer suicides in India, and deaths from preventable diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as the unsustainable exploitation of the planet’s natural resources—Leech provocatively argues that capitalism constitutes a form of genocide, and that this genocide is inherent in any social system that adheres to the logic of capital.
Essential and eye-opening, the book questions the legitimacy of a system that inevitably results in such large-scale human suffering, while going beyond mere critique to offer a more democratic, egalitarian and sustainable global alternative.
Reviews
“With the precision of a skilled prosecutor and the moral force of an Old Testament prophet, Garry Leech reveals the power that moves the world to be actively and structurally genocidal, responsible in its greed and cold calculation for no less than ten million excess deaths a year. As people take on this deadly system, they will find Capitalism an indispensable guide.” – Joel Kovel, author of The Enemy of Nature
“Leech argues, using convincing empirical evidence, of the destructive effects of contemporary capitalism, showing that the only plausible alternative is a socialist perspective.” – Samir Amin, author of Global History: A View from the South
“This is a must read for those participating in the Arab Spring, the Occupy movement, the Latin American revolutions, the anti-austerity protests in Europe, and for all those fighting against the depredations of the genocidal system that is global capitalism.” – William I. Robinson, author of Latin America and Global Capitalism
Author: Garry Leech
Publisher: Zed Books
Published: May 2012
Paperback, 192 pages
ISBN: 978-1780321998
Garry Leech 