Fighting Fascism Requires Communist Anti-Racist Unity

Washington, DC, April 2025— Students at Howard (a traditionally Black university) set up pro-Palestine encampment

Why I Went: Reflecting On Black Workers Sitting Out April 5th

“What you doing this weekend?” my sister asked

“I’m going to the Hands Off Our Rights rally,” I said, pulling out a stack of Red Flags. “We’re mobilizing folks, handing these out.”

She raised her eyebrows. “You sure that’s a good idea? It might not be safe for Black folks.”

It wasn’t the first time I’d had this conversation. “I get it. But this is bigger than one group or one protest. I organize workers—Black, white, brown, immigrant, citizen. All of us. If I sit this out because it’s risky, what does that mean for the folks who can’t?”

The April 5 protests stirred complicated and valid feelings among Black workers.

Many of us didn’t vote Trump into office. Many of us fought for our rights long before his name hit headlines. So when Democratic Party forces organize these rallies under banners of “defending democracy,” some Black workers ask: Where was this energy when we were being killed by police? When our housing was stripped from us? When we were locked out of union jobs?

Some are choosing to sit this one out—not because they don’t care, but because they’ve seen this movie before. The capitalist media have always been quick to portray Black protesters as “violent,” “aggressive,” or “a threat to public safety.” Even when we’re peaceful, even when we’re marching alongside others. And with the growing militarization of police and fears of martial law, I can’t blame anyone for choosing to stay home. Survival is also a political decision.

Another Black comrade told me: “I’m sitting this one out. I want to see if these white workers are really gonna show up when racism’s on the table too.”

That’s true. Solidarity gets tested when racial lines get drawn. Will the same people chanting “Hands off our rights!” march when a Black worker is targeted? Will they show up when it’s not just about reproductive rights, or trans rights, or workers’ rights generally—but about the specific ways Black people experience state violence, economic exploitation, and political neglect?

Her decision not to protest was a demand. A challenge. One I think we all need to sit with. Still, I participated, not as another voice to protect our rights, but as a communist organizer who wants to win workers, students, and soldiers to our side.  Not because I think we’ve already built the multiracial unity we need—but because we haven’t.

Class struggle across racial lines in America does exist. Period! That’s what gives our party confidence that the masses can defeat this divisive system.

And we have built that unity in our party, so we know it’s possible. But it’s not enough. Which is exactly why I go.

Capitalism thrives on division. Fascism feeds on fear. But workers—united workers—can burn it all down and build something new in its place. This is how our party operates.

An elder Black comrade was shocked that people said on social media that the ancestors were telling us to stay home. “We have learned from our ancestors,” she said. “But today we can see beyond what they saw. We can see the possibility of communist revolution. I would be out there talking about that if I were still physically able.”

That’s why I carry Red Flag. Not just for myself, but for every comrade who can’t be there. For every worker, student, and person who is questioning how we can change this capitalist system.

We’re not free until we all are. And we won’t get there unless we mobilize across differences to build a mass ICWP.

—Comrade in Los Angeles (USA)

Read our Pamphlet:

“To End Racism: Mobilize the Masses for Communism” here

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