Let’s Eliminate the Imperialists with Communist Revolution
In 1916, during World War I and before the Russian revolution, the Bolsheviks attacked both the German imperialists and the Russian government. Many criticized the Bolsheviks, but 3 years later the Bolsheviks seized power with the support of workers and soldiers.
Los Angeles, USA-”We have to make it clear that the fight in Venezuela is between capitalists from different groups,” said an industrial worker when we were discussing the Venezuelan crisis.
The main reason why the U.S. imperialist bosses are fighting in Venezuela is for control of its oil and reserves, the largest in the world. They want to avoid at all costs these reserves falling into the hands of their adversaries the Chinese and Russian imperialists, who already have a foothold there.
Venezuela is a key part of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico and Panama Canal maritime area where strategic U.S. commercial and military routes lie. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Republican Senator Marco Rubio refer to this area as untouchable since it is the gateway to the country via the Atlantic Ocean.
Venezuela is one more front in the inter-imperialist struggle, as are Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, Kashmir and other parts of the world. These fights have left only death and destruction for our class.
The working class in Venezuela is under attack. These men and women workers and their families are suffering from the hunger and stress of the crisis created in the fight between bosses for control of oil and the mines of gold and other materials.
These masses who are affected are our class brothers and sisters. But, because of the poisonous ideology of nationalism we often think in terms of it being a problem of other people and not of our class. We must struggle with our base and be clear that to defend our class is to fight for communism, not to ally with the “lesser evil” enemy.
Many hate Guaido for being the representative of the interests of the U.S. empire. His closest allies are a group of bosses and upper-middle class people who consider themselves to be white and who use racism openly. In a BBC documentary in London, during a demonstration this group was shouting, “We’ll get that monkey out of the presidency.” They have managed to deceive a section of the working class with anti-communism, portraying the failures of socialism (state capitalism) as failures of communism.
Many believe that supporting Maduro’s bosses’ group in their struggle against US imperialism is supporting the working class. But Maduro is not part of the solution. He is part of the same problem. Both sides defend the basic elements of capitalism: exploitation, money, banks, wage labor, racism, and sexism.
Communism represents the struggle to end all these evils. And the workers will produce to meet the needs of the workers at the international level, no longer for a handful of rich people.
Valuable Lessons to Learn
“I believe that the siege of Venezuela is a good opportunity to discuss how we (ICWP) would depend on the masses internationally to break that blockade,” said a transport mechanic in Los Angeles.
He was referring to the US trade blockade and military siege. He concluded, “The liberated areas with a communist system will be attacked even more fiercely by the capitalists. But we will depend on our internal strength and the support of the international working class, attacking their own bourgeoisie and fighting for communism.”
Part of the main base that supports Maduro’s government are industrial workers, including workers of PDVSA Venezuela’s oil company. The other part is the army, where so far the officers are loyal to Maduro and have won the soldiers to stand firm. These two sectors are key to maintaining power.
In our struggle for communism we will win a large part of these sectors to the construction of communism, not out of nationalism or obedience, but out of class consciousness.
We must be bold in putting communist ideas forward and unmasking both Guaidó and the U.S. imperialists and Maduro and the imperialists of Russia and China. We must trust that the masses can understand our analysis and fight for it.
In 1916, during World War I and before the Russian revolution, the Bolsheviks attacked both the German imperialists and the Russian government. Many criticized the Bolsheviks, but 3 years later the Bolsheviks seized power with the support of workers and soldiers.
The Venezuelan and international working class can turn this imperialist dogfight into a fight for communist revolution. Let’s help distribute Red Flag and participate in the activities of ICWP to massively create that alternative of a communist society. Let’s sweep away once and for all the alternatives of being a slave of one imperialist or another.
For more about Venezuela, see the following Red Flag articles published from 2015 to 2019:
- Venezuela Crisis
- Currency Wars Will Lead to Shooting Wars
- Socialism vs. Communism: Answering Workers’ Questions
- Constituent Assembly in Venezuela: Power to Reform Capitalism
- Failure of Cuban Socialism Shows: Fighting Directly for Communism is the Sole, Urgent Alternative
These are available at icwpredflag.org/vene/