Anwar Shaikh of The New School for Social Research Speaks in India
In November, Anwar Shaikh, professor of economics at The New School for Social Research, traveled to the University of Delhi to share his research on global economic theory in three appearances. Shaikh first delivered the Oliver Tambo Lecture, titled The Theory and Ideology of Neoliberalism,, at the Developing Countries Research Center. He then delivered a talk, The First Great Depression of the 21st Century,, at the International Conference on the Global Crisis and Hegemonic Dilemmas. Shaikh also took part in Globalization, Justice, and Democracy,, a symposium at the University of Delhi.
In all three appearances, Shaikh discussed his research on the global financial upheaval and the resulting crisis in economic thought. Shaikh argues that the recent financial collapse was precipitated by free-market policies inspired by the rightwing economist Milton Friedman, which have held ascendancy in the academy for decades. Shaikh believes that the lack of alternative perspectives has inhibited intellectual inquiry in the academy and damaged the global economy itself by fostering an inequitable distribution of wealth, unstable growth patterns, and high unemployment.