“All You Had to Do” here ♦ Organizing Inside Imperialist Armies here ♦
Letter: “All You Had to Do Was Pay Us Enough to Live”
“I do not think that life will change for the better without an assault on the Establishment, which goes on exploiting the wretched of the earth. This belief lies at the heart of the concept of revolutionary suicide. Thus it is better to oppose the forces that would drive me to self-murder than to endure them.” —Huey P. Newton
On April 7th, 2026, Chamel Abdul Karim set fire to a Kimberly-Clark Corporation paper goods warehouse. He filmed this, telling the capitalists, “All you had to do was pay us enough to live.” Since then there have been several more warehouse fires, some intentional, some undetermined, and other bold acts of resistance.
Social media comment sections have lit up with discussion of the fires. Whether a post was from mainstream news, leftist, right-wing, or liberal content creators, there was little criticism of the arsonist. There was a great deal of understanding, much glee, and even some gratitude. People spoke about the crushing weight of trying to survive the capitalist system. And how this was the first bit of hope they had felt in a long time.
Chamel had already been elevated to the same status on the internet as the existing meme hero Luigi Mangione. Luigi assassinated the CEO of the insurance company UnitedHealthcare in 2024 with three bullets etched with the words “Delay, Deny, Depose”.
I’ve spoken to some comrades who support these actions. I’ve heard from others who denounce them as “adventurism” and “individualism.” While it is true that collective action will always be more powerful than solitary acts of resistance, I believe they still have their value. The revolution will not come solely through the organizing of the workers. The fuse is often lit by spontaneous action.
A big benefit of the arson was people discovering how common anti-capitalist sentiments have become. Every article, every post has created yet another comment section where people share personal stories, education about workers’ rights and the stolen value of one’s labor, concerns about the rise of AI and data centers, and many other interconnected grievances.
This is a valuable propaganda opportunity for the Party. It has captured the imagination of workers across the US and made them hungry for action.
In such moments, we must not lead with criticism of actions that don’t align perfectly with the Party. We must not only ask others to join us, but also find ways to join the energy of our allies and build a large tent. We must “yes and” those who are excited about the individuals sacrificing themselves to fight back against the capitalist class.
We must say, “Yes, it’s exciting that people are rising up. After feeling alone and scared, it’s exciting that so many people have had enough. And we must join together to demand much more than a living wage.” “Yes, this act of vandalism cost a corporation 15% of its annual profits, and we can do much more with collective action. Let me tell you how.”
—Comrade in Los Angeles (USA)
Letter: Organizing Inside Capitalist Imperialist Armies Is Crucial for Revolution
I think it’s important that Red Flag not be one sided when reporting on people trying to get out of the military. It shows people are justifiably angry at US imperialism. But we need to point out that this won’t stop the war. That they would be much more useful joining or staying in the army to fight for communist revolution.
During the US war on Vietnam, a popular saying in the US anti-war movement was, “What if they gave a war and nobody came?” As if people refusing the draft or leaving the military could prevent imperialist war. It was idealism. It went against the iron (materialist) laws of capitalist development, which make imperialist war inevitable.
What actually made the difference was soldiers and sailors organizing rebellions inside the US armed forces.
As long as they have state power, the rulers will field their armies. Some people will “opt out.” But that will not end imperialist war. Communist organizing will. To end imperialist war we must end capitalism with communist revolution. Soldiers, sailors, marines, and industrial workers are at the center of the contradiction between the working class’s needs and the imperialists’ needs. They have been in the past and will be open to fighting and producing for our class instead of for the imperialists.
Soldiers, workers, and youth can use their unity, solidarity, and weapons against the bosses, instead of against our class siblings.
Angry Russian sailors mutinied in 1905 on the Battleship Potemkin against rotten meat and the Russo-Japanese war. They won the support of workers in the port city Odessa. Their mutiny showed the potential of organizing inside the rulers’ militaries. It spurred the Russian communists to increase their revolutionary organizing among sailors and soldiers.
During World War I, Russian communists organized in the government’s military. After three grueling years of war, Russian soldiers were key in massively leaving the front and going to the cities to join with industrial workers to overthrow the capitalist government. They used their weapons for revolution.
The imperialists sent soldiers from fourteen armies to attack the new workers’ state. The Russian communists called on these soldiers to refuse to attack them and instead support the revolution. Many soldiers in every army refused to attack their Russian brothers. The Russian Red Army defeated the imperialists’ attack.
During the US war on Vietnam, there were rebellions against the US army’s racism and their war by US soldiers and sailors on every military base and ship including in Vietnam. The US rulers faced a military in rebellion and a fierce Vietnamese resistance. Some communist soldiers recruited fellow soldiers to fight for communism. The US withdrew from Vietnam.
Today, the US rulers face the threat of the end of their petrodollar privilege. An end to their hopes of re-gaining their lost hegemony. They will continue this war.
Being inside the military and factories to counter the rulers’ racism and fascism and mobilize angry, frustrated, and overworked soldiers, sailors, and workers looking for solutions is key to mobilizing to turn their imperialist war into communist revolution.
—A Comrade