Nothing says "workers of the world, unite" quite like gathering at a Chicago Hyatt to discuss revolution while actual hotel workers picket outside.
Socialism 2026 attracted thousands of activists over Labor Day weekend for four days of panels on Marxism, abolition, anti-ICE organizing, "collective liberation," and other subjects unlikely to appear on the agenda at your local Rotary Club.
Then Butch Ware took the rhetoric somewhere darker.
UC Santa Barbara professor Dr. Butch Ware at 'Marxism conference' says Democrats "must be destroyed."
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) September 6, 2026
"They are going to keep giving us the Mamdanis and the Abdul El-Sayeds...because they are there to contain radicalism."
“The Democrats cannot be reasoned with. They must be… pic.twitter.com/USKxfFSkZc
Ware, an associate professor of history at UC Santa Barbara and former Green Party write-in candidate for California governor, told attendees Democrats "cannot be reasoned with" and "must be destroyed."
He warned that America was approaching "gunfights" and "war in the streets."
Those aren't phrases requiring a decoder ring.
From Jonathan Turley:
“You better get ready for … war.” Across the country, radicals are openly planning for the next stage of their movement, and notably, the Democratic establishment is not part of their plans. Despite the talk of a “Big Tent Party,” socialists are riding high on a surge of support and talking purges and revolution.
In Chicago, radicals gathered for a conference on Marxism during what many view as the heyday of socialism in the United States. The Democratic Socialists of America is now larger and more powerful than at any time in our history. Socialist candidates are winning elections across the country as Democratic establishment figures from Sen. Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) to Gov. Gavin Newsom pander to the movement.
Speakers in Chicago used the conference to push supporters to the next stage in the movement, including some openly calling for violence and the end to capitalism.
University of California Santa Barbara History Professor Butch Ware said Democrats “must be destroyed” and urged attendees to be ready for “war in the streets.” Notably, in postings on X, Ware has said that candidates such as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed are too restrained and are being pushed by the establishment “to contain radicalism.”
The professor “of Africa and Islam” whose faculty page is appropriately found under “bware” is the latest radical to dismiss the “Big Tent Party” rhetoric of establishment figures like Schumer. He declared, “The Democrats cannot be reasoned with. They must be destroyed.” There is little subtlety in the message, Ware has explained: “You cannot call yourself a revolutionary and not be talking about training with weapons.”
It is another example of the delusion that establishment Democrats have that they will be able to use these radicals to destroy their political enemies but not themselves.
Ware doesn't speak for the Democratic Socialists of America. California DSA has criticized him, and its Los Angeles chapter explicitly urged voters not to support his gubernatorial write-in campaign.
Good. Accuracy requires saying so.
It also makes what Ware said more interesting.
DSA enters the 2026 midterms with roughly 120,000 members and a growing collection of elected allies. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is its greatest trophy. DSA's own California voter guide calls Mamdani's victory proof that democratic socialism is "not only popular but powerful."
We, in 2026, are in a new era for democratic socialism. Zohran Mamdani’s win has shown that a politics grounded in working people, in solidarity and collective action, and in democratic socialism, is not only popular but powerful. DSA chapters across the country, as well as other leftist and progressive groups and candidates, have seized this moment and are running more ambitious and plentiful campaigns than ever before.
However, the socialist analysis of our election ballots must extend beyond just DSA endorsements. DSA’s endorsements are rare and special. They are democratically decided upon by chapters and mean that chapter is committing to devoting time and resources to that campaign.
However, there is still value in recommending certain candidates, largely to contextualize the choices on our ballots. Who are these candidates and how did they build power? What are the dynamics of the races they’re running in? Will their priorities build socialism, or at least help California’s working class? We hope this guide will function as an educational tool to understand what it takes to bring working class power to the state, as well as help you fill out your ballot.
For some races, CA DSA opted to issue no recommendation. The reasons for these vary from race-to-race, and will sometimes be explained by a write-up. However, most “no recommendation"s stem from the simple fact that no candidate in the race, which is usually filled by Corporate Democrats or MAGA Republicans, is progressive enough to be recommended.
Yet Ware has complained that figures such as Mamdani are too restrained and risk becoming vehicles for containing radicalism.
Apparently becoming mayor of America's largest city isn't revolutionary enough for everybody.
There's a cheerful thought.
Political movements always contain factions. Republicans have them, Democrats have them, and socialists could probably create three factions while arguing over who gets the last doughnut.
But Ware's rhetoric points toward a serious question about what happens when revolutionary expectations collide with governing.
Mamdani now has potholes, police, budgets, unions, garbage collection, housing, schools, and millions of residents who expect New York City to function.
His administration opened a new Office of Worker Power Monday, another significant step toward the agenda that helped elect him.
What happens when even those accomplishments aren't enough?
What happens when governing requires compromise and activists decide compromise is betrayal?
Ware has already supplied his vocabulary: destruction, gunfights, and war in the streets.
Nobody would pretend his words establish what DSA believes or predict what its members will do.
They don't.
But Americans should pay attention to the argument developing on the socialist left between people trying to win elections and govern and people who believe electoral success can tame radicalism instead of advancing it.
The Socialism Conference describes itself as a gathering where activists debate "strategies for organizing today." That's legitimate political activity.
So is electing socialists, so is criticizing capitalism, and so is trying to defeat Democrats.
Talking about Americans shooting one another in the streets deserves a different response.
Ware is free to believe the revolution hasn't gone far enough.
The rest of us are free to hear exactly what he's saying.
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