Political Economy and Algorithms Collective
The Political Economy and Algorithms collective, also known as Political Economy and Computation or Political Economy and Computer Science, is an interdisciplinary and multi-institutional academic, activist, and organizer collective working at the intersection of politics, economics, and computing. We started as a small reading group across the Boston University and University of Michigan campuses, and are now primarily based in Ann Arbor, with members from across the world.
Our collective shares a political commitment to building a more just and liberatory world, with a particular interest in understanding how computing technologies are situated within the current racial capitalist social order and how we might use computing technologies towards liberatory ends. We like to draw on thinkers like Karl Marx, Silvia Federici, or Cedric Robinson (etc.) and most of our members tend to be engaged in liberatory social movements, whether that be through workplace organization (such as graduate student and faculty unionization), internationalist solidarity movements (such as solidarity with Palestinian liberation).
Organizers and intellectuals from all walks of life, all geographic contexts, all flavors of Marxist inquiry, and all institutional or non-institutional contexts are welcome to join. We ask that those who join identify themselves among the political and intellectual commitments outlined above.
To join, first send us an email at [email protected], or fill out an onboarding form here. We may request to have a brief, informal conversation or email exchange with you prior to onboarding. Alternatively, talk to a member you know — anyone can add comrades to the group.
We have many ways that our members can participate. The primary way to engage with the collective is to attend our weekly meetings on Thursdays, 10:00 to 11:00 am (Eastern Time) on Zoom and in person at the University of Michigan. Asynchronous participation is also possible through our listserv and group chat. Finally, we host several public-facing events a year, thanks to funding from the University of Michigan through the Rackham Interdisciplinary Workshop grants and MDemocracy grant.
"Reason is negative and dialectical, because it resolves the determinations of the understanding into nothing."— Hegel, The Science of Logic (1812)