#trotskyist

[socialismforall]

Lenin on "Socialism in One Country" | The Social-Democratic Deviation in Our Party (1926) by Stalin. Human-read Marxist/communist audiobook

[elyseesarchive]

im so socialist that even my red blood cell levels are high

[redbannerbutch]

URB#1

Reform or Revolution

American liberal democracy is a system built by rich white men to serve rich white men. Over its 250 years of existence, reforms have been implemented to make the system more "equal".

Growing up in America you are taught these reforms were won with peaceful demonstrations and government benevolence; erasing the fact that each concession was achieved by the blood sweat and tears of our predecessors. It erases the battles fought to free the slaves, erases the riots that spawned the voting rights act of 1965, erases Stone Wall and the AIDs epidemic.

Modern progressive movements seem more than happy to buy into this sanitized history, rejecting any resistance that is more than token.

To make a sweeping generalization there are two flavors of leftism, Reformist and Revolutionary.

Reformists want to end capitalism peacefully using existing political systems. They are of the opinion that slow, steady, and above all orderly progress is more sustainable than rapid chaotic change.

In contrast, revolutionaries believe that any political system created to function under the capitalist structure is inherently oppressive and must be supplanted using any and all means. 

Among the American left, reformism is dominant. The DSA (by far the largest socialist organization in America) broadly follows a reformist program with its original mission to pull the democratic party to the left being replaced with a strategy of hostile takeover, primarying establishment democrats with their own candidates. It's an undoubtedly bold move but one that still buys into the idea that real lasting change is possible in a system created under and in service of capitalism.

Is this a workable strategy? As discussed earlier the "reforms" carried out on the American system weren't won at the ballot, they were won on the streets, and those achievements are proving to be temporary. Sure slavery is banned, expect if you are in prison in which case its legal, sure Jim Crow is dead and buried, just don't look over at all the reactionaries working towards his resurrection, sure you can be openly gay, just be "respectful", don't wear clothing that makes people question the institution of gender, and don't be a loud queer.

Over the past three decades the servants of reaction have been systematically undermining and repealing the victories won by our forbearers, their pace has only accelerated over that past few years; as a leftist you should be angry about this but not surprised. This was always going to happen, a system built to exploit and disenfranchise will always strive to exploit and disenfranchise with maximum efficiency; no amount of voting or lawful activism is going to change that fact, no amount of reforms are going to fix this system. The system isn't broken, it's evil. The only way we are gonna fix it is by tearing this system down and building a newer fairer one from the ground up.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that voting is unimportant, or that peaceful activism is useless. Participating in elections is vital for winning over the working class, even if the leftists don't win, it gives the people a familiarity with leftism that they otherwise wouldn't have. Peaceful demonstrations build working class solidarity and teach the people that when the situation becomes intolerable it's time to take to the streets. Both of these strategies are parts of a larger whole, not the whole itself.

This isn't going to be an easy fight, but it's our only hope for a better future. Real change won't come from a lawmaker's desk, it will come from people in the streets.

[oceanicmarxist]

A march by the Democratic Socialist Party (DSP) in the 90s supporting East Timor and Cuba, in Newcastle, NSW.

[druggonaut]

Revolutionary Communist Party

So I recently saw a newspaper stand in a town near me, they were there on a recruitment drive too. So I figured fuck it, and joined up. Yesterday I went to their weekly meeting.

Leftist organising is rare around here and at the very least I need a foot in the door.

This Trotskyist party splintered off from the Labour party after Kier Starmer ousted Jeremy Corbyn and started cracking down on the leftist side of the party. So they've branched out on their own and are currently recruiting like crazy. I'm swept up in this now.

They have an event in November called the Revolutionary Festival that is hosting 3 days of multiple overlapping talks ranging from US imperialism, Dialectical Materialism, Fascism and how to fight it, Bangladesh revolution and the Arab spring histories, World War 1 and it's radicalising effect on soldiers, History of the Labour party, Art and revolution, Ai and Consciousness and a bunch of others.

I'm going to go to it for at least one of the days I think, mostly for networking and learning more about them.

On Reddit they seem to be very divisive among leftist circles for being empirically anti Stalin and for seeming to be well funded. I know now that they reject donors and fund themselves from members and after going to and sitting in on a local branch meeting yesterday I have a better idea of who these guys are and what they're about.

Mostly consisting of University students and student union members but not entirely; the group focuses on theory and education above most else. Importantly they seem to understand that Post Revolution and Societal Building is as important as the vague concept of Revolution itself. A breathe of fresh air from the typical leftist group. ("Uh so now what" mentality when the revolution is successful).

I'll come back to this post soon, after the November "festival" and see if there's anything to add or change.

But so far I'm not seeing many red flags and am quite glad to see a well organised Communist group.

[marcellseyes]

karl radek

[defleftist]

Just casually reminiscing about my early college days when I was in the ISO (right before the org dissolved). My intro into leftist politics being primarily with Trotskyist’s is a hoot to think about.

[chewyeyeball]

“Every revolution seems impossible until it’s inevitable.”

(picture i took today at the anti fascist/pro democracy protest)