In part, the motivation for this book comes from observing the ahistorical nature of discussions about technology. This has, at best, led to a benign yet thoughtless form of technological optimism. “When you give everyone a voice and give people power, the system usually ends up in a really good place,” declared Mark Zuckerberg back in the early days of Facebook, with an impressive combination of naiveté and disingenuousness. At worst, and dismayingly, this sees revolutionary moments recast as cultural shifts generated by disruptive thought leaders: history understood as the march of great entrepreneurial CEOs. This kind of thinking sees the future as defined by universal progress—rather than by a messy, contradictory struggle between different interests and forces—and never driven by the aspirations of those from below. It reduces the value of human agency to entrepreneurialism and empty consumerism.

History has a role in telling us about the present but not if we use a frame that valorizes those who currently hold positions of power. We need to reclaim the present as a cause of a different future, using history as our guide.