Working on Red Flag
How would decisions be made in communism?” asked a new friend. We had just met at a party and she was looking at Red Flag for the first time. “By consensus? Or in popular assemblies?” she wondered.
I explained our view of a mass communist party, open to everyone who shares our goal and who we can convince to join. All comrades should be in a collective (sometimes more than one). Friends are welcome at the meetings where we try to discuss things until the political “line of struggle” is clear and we are close to a consensus. Then all of us agree to carry out the plan “each according to commitment.”
But, I admitted, it’s hard to do that with big issues that affect the work of the party as a whole. We have collectives on different continents. We can’t all meet. When the masses hold and exercise communist power, we’ll be able to use technology – but not yet. I said to my new friend that if she joins the party, she will help figure this out.
I thought about it more later. The main party-wide decisions we make regularly concern what to put in Red Flag. How do we decide?
First, we rely on the initiative of the collectives (mainly) and individuals. What do they need in the paper? What are they willing to write?
Next, we have an editorial collective. It tries to get input from many areas using social media. Then it meets to review all the articles. We struggle to keep the authors’ “voice” and main ideas. But we also try to make sure that the agreed-upon Party line is presented clearly. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out which is the main aspect – how much editing does a piece need? We discuss it until we are close to consensus, then make a plan.
And if we agree we need something that nobody has volunteered to write, we try to find someone with the commitment to come up with a draft – often on short notice. Others will contribute later.
It’s not easy, but this is one way we are learning how we’ll make decisions in communism.
But there’s more. Someone, somewhere, disagrees with something in the paper. We hope they are still distributing that issue! But we also want that comrade or friend to write a letter explaining their opinion. That way, the paper can unite the whole party, and all Red Flag readers, in the struggle to decide or sharpen our political line.
So, the process of producing and distributing Red Flag shows important elements of communist decision-making: Bringing more and more people into the process. Relying on their initiative and creativity. Struggling for consensus and acting on it collectively – sometimes when we don’t agree.
When we say “Join us!” this is what we’re talking about.
Front page of this issue
