Editing Old Left (section)

== Origins==
{{See also|Classical radicalism|Marxism}}
The Old Left originated in the [[19th century]] during the [[Industrial Revolution]]. At a time when few countries even had universal suffrage, the Old Left focused primarily on [[labor union|labor unions]] and [[social class]]. Their stances were economically left-wing, but largely ignored issues commonly linked to [[cultural liberalism]].<ref>{{cite book|editor=Paul McLaughlin, P. McLaughlin |title=Radicalism: A Philosophical Study |date=2012 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan }}</ref> 

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published ''[[The Communist Manifesto]]'' in 1848, during the [[Revolutions of 1848]]. They proposed the following policies: the abolition of [[private property]] in land and [[inheritance]]; introduction of a [[Progressive tax|progressive income tax]]; confiscation of rebels' property; [[nationalization]] of [[credit]], communication, and transport; expansion and integration of industry and agriculture; enforcement of universal obligation of labour; and provision of [[Universal access to education|universal education]] and abolition of [[child labour]]. The text ends with three decisive sentences, reworked and popularized into the famous call for solidarity, the slogan "[[Workers of the world, unite!]] You have nothing to lose but your chains".

The first [[Communist state]] was the [[Soviet Union]], led by [[Vladimir Lenin]] and the [[Bolsheviks]].