Nearly a century ago, the working class of the Russian Empire stormed the palaces of their capitalist Russian bosses. The world changed forever. Led by the Bolsheviks, their revolutionary communist party, peasants and industrial workers turned the imperialist World War I into revolutionary war. They established the world’s first workers’ state over one-sixth of the globe.
Daring to struggle and daring to win, those communists led the first attempt by our class to wipe capitalism off the earth.
It’s cleanup time again. Each day, the world’s rulers intensify their racist and sexist oppression of the international working class. Each day, they move closer to the next world war.
Workers are increasingly fed up with deteriorating conditions and they are looking for solutions. Some are choosing the gutter racism of the right: Donald Trump swept the New Hampshire primary and fascist parties are on the rise in Europe. Some are choosing the fake left: socialist candidates are finding widespread support from Spain to the U.S. to Greece.
None of these options have anything to offer the working class. All they will do is win another generation of workers away from revolution and towards reform. The Progressive Labor Party is an international revolutionary communist organization fighting and build a mass party of millions in 27 countries to smash global capitalism.
Afghanistan: U.S. Bosses Can’t Stop Killing
U.S. imperialists are steadily losing ground to their Russian and Chinese rivals. Represented by liberal mouthpiece Barack Obama, the U.S. bosses signed a nuclear deal with Iran—not for peace, but to buy time to rebuild their war machine. To hold on to their embattled empire, the capitalists know they’ll need more viciously racist budget cuts—plus a military draft that will likely include the compulsory registration of women (New York Times, 2/2/16). To protect their profits, the rulers are ready and willing to spend millions of workers’ lives.
In Afghanistan, where the U.S. has been at war since 2001, the bosses’ bloody grasp is slippery at best:
Top U.S. military commanders… are now quietly talking about an American commitment that could keep thousands of troops in the country for decades (Washington Post, 1/26/16).
A follow-up (2/6/16) elaborated:
Senior Pentagon officials are now examining a range of steps…in what is expected to be a bloody 2016….Obama has already abandoned plans to end the military presence entirely by the time he leaves office…
Elections: Imperialist Tool
Whoever wins the next U.S. presidential election will be commander-in-chief of the occupation in Afghanistan—and nearly 800 military bases in more than 70 countries. In other words, the winner will be at the service of finance capital. As Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin pointed out in 1916, capitalism inevitably leads to imperialism—the exploitation of labor, resources, and markets outside a nation’s boundaries.
Lenin showed how the big banks, like today’s Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase, are directly tied to institutions like ExxonMobil. Finance capital depends on capitalist government’s capacity to control oil, minerals and workers in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Southern and Southeast Asia.
Sanders’ Blood-Soaked Liberalism
U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has seized the attention of masses of students and young workers and increasing numbers of Black workers. Hillary Clinton, the imperialist bosses’ candidate of choice, barely beat Sanders in the Iowa causes before getting trounced by the self-proclaimed “socialist” in the February 9 New Hampshire primary. Sanders’ talking points never vary; he denounces rising inequality and vows, if elected, to “break up” the biggest U.S. banks.
As it turns out, this position has been endorsed by many arch-capitalists. As the billionaire-owned Forbes noted (January 17): “Regulators and the stock market aren’t waiting for the election of President Sanders…Big banks would be more valuable if they were broken up into pieces rather than keeping them intact.”
By tightening financial regulations and disciplining the banks, the leading bosses would tighten their hold on the financial system. The dominant capitalist wing, aligned with ExxonMobil, could then channel profits into rebuilding a weakened U.S. military. For finance capital, the top priority is to occupy the Middle East and Central Asia and consolidate control over cheaply extracted oil.
As a congressman and U.S. senator, Bernie Sanders voted “yes” on the invasion of Afghanistan, for “regime change” in Libya, for the U.S.-led NATO devastation of Yugoslavia, and—after one initial “no” vote—for the ongoing war and occupation of Iraq. Appearing on “Face the Nation,” Sanders said he was “impressed by the quality” of assassin-in-chief Obama’s foreign policy. As Counterpunch observed:
Imperialism is like a tank parked in your living room, too big to ignore…[F]oreign policy cannot be separated from domestic policy. They are two sides of the same coin that directly affect each other. ….Supporting Bernie Sanders means ignoring — or minimizing — his imperialism…. (1/5/16).
Revolution and Reform
For the moment, there is no place in the world where workers hold state power. In general, the mass movements addressing racism, sexism and imperialism are misled by liberal capitalist stooges, from Bernie Sanders to the fake-left Pakistan People’s Party.
PL’ers and friends are hard at work within these movements to struggle for communist ideas and win workers to organizing a mass, international, fighting PLP. Even as our class suffers attack after attack, even as we face the worst refugee crisis in history, we have the power to build a new Red Army and seize state power. Learning from both the mistakes and triumphs of the working class in the Soviet Union and China, let us transform the bosses’ imperialist bloodbaths into revolutionary war. Let us smash all racist borders, and take the revolution all the way to communism. Join us—and help lead us!
The bosses are blaming nature (the climate change by El Niño) on the Zika virus epidemic. Zika has become an international working class crisis not by nature, but capitalism. Poverty, inadequate water supplies, viciously racist and sexist health care systems, neighborhoods littered with rubbish, polluting river systems, and more are the real causes. The Zika virus is expected to infect as many as 4 million workers throughout Latin America (see map, page 5). These millions are victims of capitalism’s sexist and racist neglect.
In such a setting, it is virtually impossible to establish a public health infrastructure that might help contain the Zika outbreak. Workers understandably do not trust the governments, and the governments put a low priority on public services.
Bosses’ Main Concern: Dip in Profit
Medical access for pregnant women and babies are the least of the capitalists’ concerns. What they are really worried about are its impact on their businesses.
“Containing and managing an outbreak is expensive, as is dealing with large numbers of dead and infected. This can lead to severe disruptions in trade…And then there is the loss of productivity resulting not only from sickness but those refusing to work and those taking time off to care for the infected” (Stratfor, 2/1).
And so, in the interest of capitalism, Obama will request $1.8 billion in emergency funding to fight Zika in the U.S. and internationally. If Ebola, Cholera, and Hurricane Katrina is any indication, “humanitarian aid” translates to fascist policies, ramping up of the military, and practicing for controlling the working class. Obama has responded to Ebola with increased military presence in West Africa (Washington Post, 10/26/14).
Women Workers Hit the Hardest
The Zika virus is linked to birth defects in babies born to infected mothers. Over 4,000 babies have already been born with microcephaly, a congenital disorder associated with an abnormally small head and impaired brain development.
Even the health ministry in Brazil, where the disease has hit 1.5 million, admits, “most mothers with children with microcephaly have come from poor communities” (The Guardian, 2/6).
The governments of El Salvador, Colombia, Jamaica and Honduras have a solution: abstinence. They are telling women to delay pregnancy until the virus is under control. Working-class women are criminalized for abortions and have little access to contraceptives, not to mention pathetic maternal healthcare.
When the UN’s World Health Organization labeled the Zika outbreak an international health emergency, it was one more reminder that the world’s working class must move swiftly to overthrow the perversity of the capitalist profit system by building a revolutionary Progressive Labor Party for communism. Communism will empower the masses, build social infrastructure to cope with any challenges, and crush the sexist, racist structures that murder and demobilize the working class. With the leadership of Progressive Labor Party, it is time to build on that history and smash capitalism once and for all!
BROOKLYN, January 30—”Workers’ struggles have no borders!”
“Amnesty yes! Deportations no!”
“We are workers, not illegals!”
Chants in Spanish and English rang out today through an immigrant neighborhood. Members and friends of the Progressive Labor Party led a lively, multiracial march against the surge in deportations under Barack Obama’s racist administration. We drew attention from workers and youth, many of whom raised fists and nodded their heads in agreement. Some even joined us for a time.
The march consisted of immigrant and native-born women and men marching shoulder to shoulder. We distributed a thousand bilingual leaflets headlined “Fight Racism—Stop Deportations,” and over 650 CHALLENGEs. Eager to organize with an international communist group like PLP, many workers gave us their contact information.
Obama Targets Women and Children FirstThe U.S. has ratcheted up its sexist, racist terror campaign against mainly Latin women and children. Jeh Johnson, Obama’s Secretary of Homeland Security, announced that more than 100,000 families would be deported because asylum-seeking mothers and children are fleeing violence in too large a number. Many of these refugees hail from El Salvador, the murder capital of the world. After 121 were deported earlier this year, causing public outrage, the raids were allegedly halted, but the government could resume them at any time. In his seven years as deporter-in-chief, Obama has kicked out 2.5 million people.
Capitalism continues to cause suffering and death for immigrant workers and families, from refugees fleeing imperialist-backed wars in Syria and Yemen to mass deportations in the U.S. Now the rulers are singling out women and children from Central America, those who fled violence and economic deprivation in 2014. Under the capitalist profit system, racism is always at center stage; anti-Black, anti-Arab, anti-Muslim and anti-Latin slander and attacks.
Embolden Workers to Fight Back
As our PLP collective continues the slow, sometimes difficult, process of building our Party, it is important to note the pressing needs of the working class and encouraging to see their openness to the Party’s ideas. Workers in this neighborhood face a daily struggle. They work long hours, sometimes two jobs, to pay super-high rents. They live in fear of racist terror from the police, the courts and immigration raids at their homes, shopping areas or job sites.
In such an intimidating, racist climate, workers in the neighborhood were inspired to see a group proudly declare solidarity with undocumented families. The international working class needs to build the communist Progressive Labor Party to lead workers to revolution, smash capitalism, and establish workers’ power and an egalitarian society. Our task is both short- and long-term. It requires both urgency and patience.
Wherever and however we can, our PLP collective is taking our ideas directly to the working class. We are planning more actions like today’s. Small struggles have the potential to grow!
PAKISTAN, February 9—The working class here is facing the terrible exploitation. Pakistani bosses are trying to make the lives of poor working class more miserable by privatizing big industries and business. Actually Pakistani bosses are acting upon the instructions of world imperialists. On the advice of IMF, World Bank and other monetary institutions, Pakistani bosses are increasing tax over the salaried individuals and working class people (and giving tax amnesty to rich people), taking back the subsidies and privatizing schools, hospitals and other big industries.
Pakistan International Airlines has more than twenty six thousand employees in Pakistan. Government’s decision to privatize PIA fueled the strikes all over the Pakistan. Joint Action Committee of PIA (which is formed by different unions in PIA) launched big demonstrations in different cities of Pakistan. In one of the largest demonstration in Karachi some “unknown” people killed three employees of PIA. After this horrible incident workers decided to suspend all flight operation because of that there was no flight for four days. Subsequently government decided to impose “Essential Services Act” which bans all the union activities and strikes. With the help of some so called union misleaders and “Essential Services Act” bosses are trying to resume the flight operation.
Doctors and other health employees are also striving against bad working conditions, low wage and harassment at work places in Khyber Pukhtoon Khawa province of Pakistan. Draconian law of “Essential Services Act” has also been imposed in KPK to prevent doctors and health employees to organize strikes but it is difficult for the bosses to prevent big strikes of working class in KPK.
Teachers are also organizing strikes in Punjab province of Pakistan. They are demanding an increase in pay, security at work places and free health and educational facilities for them and their families. Bosses are using tear gas, baton charge and jails to keep the teachers away from strikes.
Health Employees association in Kashmir and Paramedical Association in Baluchistan is striving against exploitation, price hike and low wage. Misleaders are playing the role to keep the bosses rich by breaking the strikes but anger of workers is proving that nobody can stop them.
Terrorism is playing vital role to strengthen the bosses by giving them an excuse to use power against poor working class.
MEXICO, February 10— The crisis of overproduction hits Mexico, driving bosses to attack workers. The working class is fighting back!
The overproduction of oil is causing a worldwide crisis for capitalist bosses, and the bosses of Mexico are in crisis, too. As always, the bosses are increasing their attacks against the working class to try and salvage their unjust and criminal system, and at the same time increase their enormous wealth.
Bosses Try to Centralize Control
In Mexico, the local capitalist class is using a new law, Pact for Mexico, in order to unify the capitalist class and more efficiently attack workers. The Pact has support from all levels and branches of government across the political spectrum, from the ruling right-wing party PRI to the fake-left Green Party. They hope that by getting all the bosses on the same page, they can crack down on worker resistance and restore profits, thus furthering the attack on students.
With this law, the federal and state governments are trying to reassert control over the unions. Part of this law affects the education workers and the teacher’s union. Teachers are being forced to participate in punitive job evaluations and they are losing their power of collective bargaining. All of this translates to attacks on job benefits and wages, and therefore a lower quality education for students. They are attacking teachers with the military, the bosses’ media, and freezing of the union bank accounts, arresting union leaders, and the orders to jail union leaders, amongst other strategies.
To confront these fascist policies, the teachers union (CNTE) and its Oaxaca local Section 22 called for walkouts, marches, and strikes. As state intimidation increases, teacher participation in these actions is declining. In response, Section 22 of the teachers union organized a Political Congress in January 2016, with the main objective of reorganizing and strengthening the resistance movement.
Union Leaders Con Workers into Electoral Farce
What did the union leaders decide at the Political Congress? Not organizing for more fightback! The union misleaders, phony communists, and reformist groups are once again trying to lead the workers of Section 22 into bourgeois electoral politics, which can never serve working-class interests. They are organizing a “punishment vote” by urging workers to vote against the dominant parties. History has shown time and time again that voting for different parties can never bring change. Only with fightback and communist revolution can the working class get what they deserve: a world where they are the decision makers. In that fightback spirit, teachers burned electoral papers (see front page photo).
Among these opportunists are Aristarco Aquino Solís, ex-General Secretary for PRD, a leading liberal political party. In 2006, the PRD approved the deployment of the federal police (Policía Federal Preventiva, PFP). These police arrested and jailed hundreds of teachers, students and farm workers in Nayarit and other states. In 2007, they used Section 22 to make a pact to vote for Gabino Cue for governor of Oaxaca, as “punishment vote to [dominant parties] PRI and PAN”. Gabino betrayed the teachers in 2015 accepting the Education Reform, the punitive evaluation, and the teachers have not been paid more than 5,000 pesos since then. He called for the arrests of leaders of the teachers strike and jailed Othón Nazariega, Roberto Jiménez, Efraín Picasso y Juan Carlos Orozco.
Other misleaders are Zenén Bravo, militant for the UTE-FPR-Communist Party of Mexico and Perfecto Mesinas Quero (local legislator for Convergencia, the actual party of the governor of Oaxaca Gabino Cué Monteagudo).
In 2015, these parties joined to sign the Pact for Mexico and the approval of the structural reforms that the national and international bosses are using to take over natural resources like oil, beaches, mines, and water. Most of the working class is now suffering from high unemployment, low salaries and hunger.
History shows that these misleaders do not serving working-class interests. They are colluding with the bosses in attacking the movement in exchange furthering their electoral career ambitions.
Don’t Vote, Organize for Workers’ Power
The participating delegates in the Political Congress and its working class base must avoid being part of this illusion of democracy. It is nothing more than a bourgeois dictatorship oppressing and exploiting us with their reforms, their laws, institutions, jails, police, border patrol, and its army.
The working class will advance when we break the political and ideological chains that tie us to this capitalist system. The working class must depend on creating its own process of liberation, building towards a communist society without oppressors or oppressed.
The bosses have an open reign if the working class is not organized. They can take over our energy resources, our minerals, our water and much more. They can exploit us without mercy in exchange for a miserable salary.
The Progressive Labor Party is calling all the teachers, students, and workers, to fight for communism, a system organized and led by the workers, where the exploitation and violence against our working class will be outlawed. Smash this capitalist system that exploits, jails, and kills teachers, workers and students! Join us!
