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Teachers in Mexico See the Only Solution is to Destroy Capitalism and Build Communism

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Teachers in Nogales, Sonora, protest education reform law at the US/Mexico border check point

“It is a very difficult situation,” said a couple of teachers during a meeting in Oaxaca. They are beginning to suffer the effects of Education Reform passed last year. With low wages and multiple expenses, they barely have enough to eat every day. These teachers have been working for over 20 years. They began working as rural teachers when they graduated from high school, and now are threatened with losing their jobs because they don’t have teaching certificates. Their years of experience are not taken into account.
They belong to Section 22 of the National Coordinating Council of Education Workers (CNTE). In spite of the organization’s massive mobilizations against education reform, it was approved and is being implemented.
“The rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) which currently governs does not respond to the interests of the poor or teachers,” they said.
When comrades asked if other governments had responded to their interests, one of the teachers said that for two six-year terms the Party of National Action (PAN) governed and it was the same.
They recounted that for many years the teachers had fought against the government’s education reforms, for higher wages and improvements in rural education, but had won very little.
“We just need a leftist party to rule,” said one of them.
We asked if they believed that the Party of Democratic Revolution (PRD), which governed for two six-year terms in the state of Guerrero repressing and killing protesting students, teachers and workers, would benefit our class.
“All the rulers, from any electoral party, look to their own interests and not those of the poor,” they concluded.
“The same happens with our teacher union representatives,” said one of them.
Disillusioned, they commented, “You can’t trust anyone anymore. In Mexico everything is bad; every day life is harder.”

Capitalism is the Root of the Problem
After that, it was time to move the analysis forward. Are reforms like education, finance, energy and telecommunications only being applied in Mexico? Who benefits from these reforms? Are the rulers responsible for everything or are they servants of others who are more powerful? Why hasn’t the situation of the poor improved in spite of nationalist revolutions, protests, and social struggles? Who must we fight against? These were some of the questions put up for discussion.
After their analysis and reflections, comrades explained that the guilty party was the whole capitalist system, that through exploitation, poverty is generated, and a few bosses who dominate the world accumulate wealth in their hands.
“Then it is clear that the rulers serve the rich and not the poor,” said one of them.
“If the capitalist system is guilty, then similar reforms are being implemented in other countries,” said another.
 We explained that since World War II, the US capitalists have dominated the world, but in the last few years the Chinese capitalists want to take control. This dispute cannot be settled by peaceful means. It will lead to World War III, which is why the bosses need education reform to train the workers’ children for war. Both groups of bosses are pushing reforms such as energy, labor and finance in the countries they dominate to get more money for war.
“That is the reason why, despite the social protests, the reforms are approved,” reflected one of the teachers.
We clarified that many struggles, including that of the teachers, are reformist and do not aim to destroy the real enemy, capitalism. To put an end to all the evils we have to destroy the capitalist system and install communism.

Workers Need to Liberate Themselves
“But how will this be possible and who will do it?” asked one of them. We explained that no one will liberate the workers, that workers themselves organized internationally will do it. The International Communist Workers’ Party is mobilizing the masses to destroy capitalism and preparing for communist revolution in many countries.
“This is very good, but it will be slow and complicated,” commented one of them. We explained that as complicated as it appears, history has shown that the workers can organize to liberate themselves from capitalist exploitation. This will be sped up to the extent that the working class organizes and joins ICWP, participating in the reformist protests to build for communist political protests aimed at destroying capitalism and building communism.
After this, they said: “We have understood that as long as capitalism continues, the situation will get worse, so we only have one way out, to destroy capitalism and build communism no matter what it costs or how long it takes.”
Every one of them took Red Flag and promised to read the upcoming editions, and to discuss these ideas with their co-workers and the parents in the rural community where they work.

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