Viewpoint Magazine

Investigations in contemporary politics.

[probablyasocialecologist]

My name is Peter. Until recently I was a zone executive officer in a nationwide three percent movement.

“In the span of two hours, which is how much of his day off he donated to a complete stranger, my entire outlook on the threats facing the working class had been shattered. He was not a monster. He was not there to push his beliefs on other people. He was a poor man who was looking for a better life, just like me. I had more in common with this man than with many people of my own race. I honestly didn’t know what to do next. There I was, an executive officer in an organization that viewed the majority of Muslims as dangerous individuals whose only goal was to push the global caliphate and I was going to dinner with one next week. But these people weren’t the threat. So what was? I had to dig deeper.

…

“It was like someone flicked on a switch and illuminated a previously dark room. We shouldn’t be preparing to fight these people. We should be uniting with them. We should be teaching them how to arm and defend themselves, providing material and financial support, learning to live and work together as poor, working class people. We shouldn’t be dividing along racial, gender, sexual orientation or religious lines. We should be coming together to say “No more” with one, resounding voice. We should be ensuring that the government and the coastal elites know that we, the people, are sick and tired of being played against each other while they sit back and reap the benefits of hard work and struggles.”

[viewpointmag]

It is the theme of dissolving margins, and the many ways in which Ferrante grapples with it, that makes the Neapolitan novels a testament to the borderline experience between true and false, as categories of both the personal and the political.

[class-struggle-anarchism]

“What is the robbing of a bank compared to the founding of a bank?”

Happy birthday Bertolt Brecht, born 10th of February 1898

[viewpointmag]

Back in Black

Only a concrete analysis of our concrete situation can determine what role, if any, the black bloc can play in today’s movements.

Read more here.

[viewpointmag]

When the Cry Rings Out

As you would expect at an airport, the crowd was diverse, a global array of nationalities, ages, and dispositions. But in the place of exhaustion and anxiety, this crowd displayed energy and outrage. They shouted loudly, against Trump and his Muslim ban, that refugees are welcome here.

[viewpointmag]

by Asad Haider

In Trump’s America, I am afraid. Because of my name, because of my skin color, I am in danger. But more profound than my fear is my anger. I am outraged not at the risk I experience as an individual, but at the sharpening and deepening of the obscene inequality of the capitalist system, at the daily violence of deprivation that will be visited most harshly on the poor of this country — including the white poor — and at the divisions cultivated among us by fear, anger, and manipulation, that prevent us from forming the collective power that can overcome our subordination.

I am not interested in allies, in sympathy or protection. I am interested in comrades, of every complexion, who will fight alongside me for a better world.

[viewpointmag]

On the Black Bloc

The “internecine ultra-left argument of the moment,” says the Wall Street Journal, is the debate over the “black bloc.” And if this debate has led the WSJ to talk about “ultra-leftism,” it’s clearly a debate we have to address.

Much has changed since we published this piece nearly five years ago – including the use of Black Bloc in our movements – but the need to supplement militant tactics with a historically appropriate strategy remains even more urgent.

[viewpointmag]

White Purity

Among other things, whiteness is a kind of solipsism. From right to left, whites consistently and successfully reroute every political discussion to their identity.

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

You Don’t Call the Police on Poverty

That’s exactly how Black lives become hashtags.

By Lamont Lilly

I arrived at the Durham Co-op Market Monday morning January 02, 2017 for coffee and to finish some writing. As I approached the market’s front door, a middle-aged Black man standing on the side of the building stopped me and asked for “spare change.” Little did he know, I was four days from ‘pay day’ and had absolutely no money. I was living on a credit card for the next four days. I told him I was out of cash and kept walking.

As I entered the sliding glass doors, one of the cashiers asked, “Is that man still out there asking for money?” I said “Yes, but he’s not posing a threat to anyone. He’s just standing on the side, asking for spare change.” She then informed me that she had already spoken with him once that morning and that the manager had instructed her to call the police.

I said, “Sis, please do NOT call the police. You call the police and that man could lose his life just for asking people for ‘spare change’ this morning.” There were customers standing in line, but I was very adamant about not calling the police, because as I shared with her “that’s exactly how Black lives become hashtags.”

In reality, she was really just doing her job, as she was told. My job, however, was to speak up for the poor (and possibly, to save that man’s life). The LAST thing we need here in Durham is another Frank Clark or Jesus Huerta. I said “Look, don’t call the police. I’ll go out there and talk to him.” So I did.

[viewpointmag]

Lynching: A Weapon of National Oppression (1932)

Lynching: A Weapon of National Oppression reminds us of an earlier generation of radicals who disidentified with liberal capitalist democracy and American exceptionalism to envision an end to imperial domination and economic exploitation. The pamphlet and the multi-racial struggles against legal lynching that inspired it are important tools as we heed renewed calls for black self-determination amidst a global reassertion of fascism and lynch law.

[viewpointmag]

C17 – The Rome Conference on Communism

Dal 18 al 22 gennaio, a Roma, un appuntamento internazionale sul Comunismo. Conferenze, workshop e una mostra. *** From the 18th to the 22nd January, in Rome, an international appointment on Communism. Conferences, workshops and an exhibition.

We are very excited to announce that Viewpoint is a co-sponsor of the Rome Conference on Communism, January 18-22, 2017. The conference will include a number of great speakers – including Antonio Negri, Ètienne Balibar, Jodi Dean, Jacques Rancière, Saskia Sassen, and Mario Tronti to name but a few – as well as young researchers, activists, and political groups. The conference is completely self-financed by the volunteers putting it together, so if you have the means, please consider donating to their crowdfunding campaign.

[reclaimingthelatinatag]

Guatemalan indigenous water protectors organize to challenge hydroelectric projects

Indigenous communities in Guatemala are mobilizing to protect their water, which is being threatened by the expansion of hydroelectric power.

‘Thousands of indigenous Q’eqchi, Achí and Pomcomchí Mayas took part in a series of protests on October 17 against hydroelectric projects along the Cahabón River in the Guatemalan department of Alta Verapaz. The simultaneous protests, which took place in Guatemala City and the municipality of San Pedro Carcha, aimed to force the government’s hand over a delayed consultation on the project in Santa María Cahabón.

“[The company] entered [our community] without advising anyone,” said Bernado Caal Xol, one of the organizers of the movement against the hydro project. “We filed this complaint in order that they inform us, and consult us about the project.”

Nearly 200 men, women and children traveled to the city to march through the streets to demand that the courts respect the community’s right to consultation prior to the construction of the hydroelectric projects along the Cahabón River. During the march in Guatemala City to the Constitutional Court, women carried inverted water containers to symbolize the loss of access to the water of the river.

Alta Verapaz is a place of natural beauty. Vast rivers, jungles and cave systems stretch across the rolling terrain of the territory. Here the lush forests still conceal the rare quetzal, the small green bird that is the national symbol of Guatemala. This natural beauty has brought eco-tourists, as well as adventure and energy companies interested in exploiting the vast water resources for hydro energy.’

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

Rockford, Illinois, organizes against racism

By Workers World Rockford bureau

More than 20 people gathered Dec. 3 in a local library to continue building a progressive movement in the wake of the Trump electoral victory. Hosted by Workers World Party youth members based in Rockford, participants were multinational, multi-gendered and largely youth.

Some participants traveled from Chicago and various cities in southern Wisconsin to deepen their political understanding and show support. Local community organizers, those with many years of experience and those new to organizing, shared ideas. They discussed the history of racism in the U.S., what fascism is and the diversity of tactics used in past civil rights and liberation struggles.

Many at the meeting said it was very encouraging for them to see such a large turnout interested in working together. The #J20Resist counterinaugural protests in Washington, D.C., and across the country were announced, and participants raised organizing an event in Rockford. A Rockford delegation will attend the Midwest Socialist Conference hosted by Workers World Party in Detroit on March 25-26.

[viewpointmag]

Introduction to the Archive of Feminist Struggle for wages for housework. Donation by Mariarosa Dalla Costa

Mariarosa Dalla Costa on the history of the international, militant, anti-capitalist Feminist Movement in Italy, who, through its various organizational permutations, led dynamic struggles for a radical change in the existing condition.

Full article here.

[fetuso]

Nondas Skiftoulis (greek anarchist) talks about the collaboration between police forces and Golden Dawn (Greek’s Neo-Nazi Party), in 2012 a senior police officer claimed that Golden Dawn has successfully infiltrated Greek’s police and polls from 2014 have shown that over 50% of police officers have voted for the openly fascist party. (x, x)

“The police attacked openly. However, this has nothing to do with the police leadership. Right now, the standard, active police force, namely the Riot Squad and the Delta Force, has established an identity, the Golden Dawn’s identity. They are essentially Golden Dawn, as far as their ideology and behaviour is concerned.”

[commune-or-nothing]

Sisi came to power in Egypt after millions of people took to the streets to protest over declining living standards and the rising instability and increasingly authoritarian nature of the Muslim Brotherhood government of Mohamed Morsi. He came to power promising political stability and the raising of living standards. But far from solving anything, Egypt under Sisi has entered its deepest crisis in decades.

Scratches on the Surface

Sisi’s facade as the strong and intelligent military commander has been shattered time and time again as he has hopelessly failed to tackle even the most simple of problems. His violent crackdowns on protests to quash the revolutionary mood has only managed to embitter the masses even more. The random torture, arrest and disappearance of thousands of young people on the pretext of fighting the Muslim Brotherhood has in fact partially served to give a new lease of life to the Islamist organisation.

In the Sinai Peninsula a few hundred Islamists connected to ISIS and with next to no popular support, have been spreading terror and killing scores of civilians and armed personnel. The mighty Egyptian army has pathetically failed to do anything about it. In fact the army is killing more civilians than terrorists with its indiscriminate bombing. This is a completely counterproductive tactic which has only lead to more anger towards the army.

Together, with the rise of ISIS and Islamic fundamentalist groups in Libya, this insurgency is becoming a seriously destabilising factor in Egypt. The illusion that a powerful army could guarantee the safety of the people and act as a stabilising force has been totally undermined and it is clear that the generals are now worried about the morale within the army itself.

Two Left Feet

With regards to foreign policy Sisi has not been any more lucky. The relationship with its long-time US ally had been weakened due to Barack Obama’s heavy criticism over Sisi coming to power. However, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states filled in the vacuum left by the US by stepping in with $31 billion worth of aid in the past 3 years. This was the key to initially stabilising the Sisi regime. When it came to paying back the Saudis, however, Sisi could not offer much. First he had to hastily draw back from early promises of support for the kingdom over their war in Yemen. Besides regarding the Houthis as a good buffer against Al-Qaeda and other Islamic Fundamentalist organisations, the Egyptian ruling elite knew that the unwinnable conflict in Yemen - where Egypt has already lost one costly war in modern times - would only lead to further instability. The Egyptian masses have no appetite to send their children to fight and die on behalf of the hated Saudi monarchy.

Then, in April, during a visit by Saudi King Salman, Sisi made the surprise announcement of handing over the Red Sea islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia. This humiliating act of submission to the Al-Saud family caused huge uproar throughout Egypt. Small protests mushroomed all over the country leading to hundreds of arrests and a war of words began between Egyptian and Saudi journalists and TV presenters. In the end, sensing rising tensions, the ruling class had to retreat and a court reversed the decision. Needless to say King Salman was not pleased. The authority of the regime suffered a blow by this affair which also revealed serious fissures within the ruling class.

The Saudi-Egyptian crisis has since then further escalated. The final straw came over the summer as Egypt began a process of rapprochement with Russia . Seeing the relative decline in the role of the US in the region and the rise of Russia, the Sisi regime wants to use the renewed US-Russian conflict to its advantage by using Russia as a means of getting more concessions from the US. Hence the Egyptian navy held its first naval exercise ever with the Russian navy in September followed by other exercises in October. The Egyptian regime has also made several arms purchases from Russia as well as having discussed a possible joint strategy in Libya. All of this was topped by Egypt voting with Russia and against the Saudi/French proposals in the October UN security council meeting which discussed the situation in Aleppo, Syria.

As explained above, the war in Syria and the rise of ISIS and Islamic fundamentalist groups pose a concrete threat to stability in Egypt and the generals are eager to end the crisis as soon as possible. This puts them at odds with a Saudi regime which backs several Islamist proxies in Syria, one of which is ISIS itself. For the Saudis, defeat in Syria poses a serious threat to the future of the kingdom itself. The Saudis demand full loyalty as a minimum return for their financial aid but for Sisi the requests of the al-Saud’s could have explosive domestic consequences. The Egyptian “betrayal” at the UN led Saudi Arabia, suddenly and without giving an official reason, to stop the vital supply of refined oil - a part of a $23 billion aid package - to Egypt in October.

[viewpointmag]

No Need to Choose: History from Above, History from Below

by Geoff Eley

In these most fundamental of transitive terms, how should we think about the politics of working-class formation today?

Read the full article here.