"An original and cutting-edge exposé of the radical transformation of global capitalism now underway, driven by new digital technologies and turbo-charged by the pandemic. Critically-acclaimed scholar and activist William I. Robinson provides shocking data and analysis on the concentration of power and control in the hands of corporate conglomerates, tech giants, mega-banks, and the military-industrial complex. The book documents the extent of unprecedented global inequalities as the mass of humanity faces violent dispossession and uncertain survival. Enabled by digital applications, the ruling groups, unless they are pushed to change course by mass pressure from below, will turn to ratcheting up the global police state to contain the global revolt. If the book issues a dire warning against the emergence of a dystopic digitalized dictatorship it also finds great hope and inspiration in the burgeoning social movements of the poor and the dispossessed as humanity descends into global civil war. While deeply analytical and theoretically sophisticated, the study is written in such a style that it is eminently accessible to a wider public beyond the academy. While the work will satisfy scholars, it is destined to become a companion text to those struggling on the frontlines for global social justice and a more hopeful future."

"Global capitalism is facing an unprecedented crisis. The global economy is mired in prolonged stagnation. The worldwide social fabric is in decay. Civil strife and social upheaval are tearing up political systems and, in some cases, leading to the collapse of states. The planetary ecosystem is breaking down. Millions are fleeing, displaced by climate change, transnational corporate land grabs, wars and political persecution. How far into the future can global capitalism endure? In this urgent new study, sociologist William I. Robinson presents a "big picture" snapshot of the crisis of capitalism and the battle for the future of humanity. Drawing on 30 years of scholarship and activism, Robinson applies his original theory of global capitalism to the emerging digital age. He shows how global elites have pinned their hope on economic reactivation through the application of radical new digital technologies and financial strategies to the global economy and society. The rulers will turn to enhancing a global police state to contain mass rebellion as humanity enters a season of chaos and global civil war. The capitalist class and privileged strata of humanity may be able to survive collapse for decades to come even as a majority of humanity faces desperate struggles for survival that lead many to perish in the coming years. But there is eventually a terminal point to capitalist expansion as mass extinction and the radical alteration of the natural environment make life for our species and most others impossible. The only solution is a reversal of escalating inequalities through a radical redistribution of wealth and power downward as a first step in replacing the capitalist system, with its relentless pursuit of private profit at all cost, by an ecosocialism that prioritizes social need and harmony with the rest of nature. Theoretically sophisticated and engaging, this concise study will be satisfying to scholars yet accessible to a broader public concerned with the urgent political affairs of our day"--

In this critical new work, sociologist William I. Robinson offers an engaging and accessible introduction to his theory of global capitalism. He applies this theory to a wide range of contemporary topics, among them, globalization, the trans- national capitalist class, immigrant justice, educational reform, labor and anti-racist struggles, policing, Trumpism, the resurgence of a neo-fascist right, and the rise of a global police state. Sure to spark debate, this is a timely contribution to a renewal of critical social science and Marxist theory for the new century. William I. Robinson's many award-winning books include: Global Capitalism and the Crisis of Humanity (2014), Latin America and Global Capitalism (2008), and A Theory of Global Capitalism (2004).

In this timely and provocative study, William I. Robinson challenges received wisdom on Central America. He starts with an exposition on the new global capitalism. Then, drawing on a wide range of historical documentation, interviews, and social science research, he proceeds to show how capitalist globalization has thoroughly transformed the region, disrupting the conventional pattern of revolutionary upheaval, civil wars, and pacification, and ushering in instead a new transnational model of economy and society. Beyond his focus on Central America, Robinson provides a critical framework for understanding development and social change in other regions of the world in the age of globalization. Demonstrating how the very forces of capitalism have brought into being new social agents and political actors unlikely to acquiesce in the face of the emerging order, Transnational Conflicts shows why the Isthmus, along with other regions, is likely to return to the headlines in the near future.