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The Tyranny of Structurelessness

Sticking my finger to the wind, the wave of anti-authoritarian social movements that picked up steam from the late-90s through the September 11 attacks is exhausted. A fascination with meeting norms, immediatism, "affinity" based tactical organizations as the limit of what can be organized, and a party-line anti-communism have not born the promised fruit. Anti-vanguardism has fostered a subcultural milieu far weaker than the sum of its parts, which boasts strengths it doesn't possess by ideologically claiming cooperation, resistance and solidarity as "everyday" examples of their "all the good things, none of the bad shit" philosophy. Aesthetics and ethics, no time for politics... too cool for school.

Thousands of activists are still limited by self-imposed methodological constraints. None of these is more pernicious than the substitution of "space" for "movement." As if we could create private né pirate utopias in the midst of raging war and the darkening shadow of domestic fascism. Many of the best activists -- and those most enamored of "the new New NEW" return to 19th century anarchish sophistry -- are more disoriented and demobilized than challenged and learning. Some have even embraced this haplessness as a strategic virtue.

In place of this somatic boosterism, I'd offer that there's nothing wrong with getting disillusioned. Who needs utopia when revolution manifests in hand, when politics isn't a personalized moral commitment -- but is a living force that we can help bring to fruition.

Poltics is back on the agenda for resistance movements. Recent breakthroughs in Latin America, including the Zapatista re-orientation towards the left and Hugo Chavez's proclamation of "21st Century Socialism," and the stunning resurgence of revolutionary communism in Asia are locally accented by the fervent activism of several distinct left parties in the USA. This actual left turn has all combined to give what had become meta-narrative arguments some running legs to race,

How will social movements relate to political revolution in the coming days?

One place to start that discussion is by turning to an older feminist text, and a penetrating look directly at (some of) the everyday processes of New Left activism, The Tyranny of Structurelessness by Jo Freeman. It was mimeographed before it was photocopied. Here it is, again.

Often floated around by exasperated, movement-centered activists seeking to develop politics (and healthy accountability) amid the misconceptions of anti-authoritarianism, Freeman directly challenges the primative egalitarian myths of democratic fetishism as they manifested in the early women's liberation movement -- and in particular the ways that anarchist dogmas (unnamed as such) hobble what they intend to unleash. While Freeman's essay orients towards the horizontal organizing methods as demonstrated by women's consciousness-raising, she can't help but see the foibles in plain sight. The full text follows.

FBI barges into homes of Puerto Rican activists

From Puerto Rico IMC: On, February 10, FBI agents barged into the residencies of 5 known Puerto Rican independence activists with search warrants. They did not let the owners of the residencies to stay and see what the FBI officials were taking. The FBI claims that this was a preventive strike to avoid a supposed terrorist plan by people belonging to the “Macheteros”. They took computers, files, discs, CDs, DVDs. They left their homes a mess. In addition to the 5 residencies they also went to the office of one of the activists. All of these activists are known for their participation in the pro-independence movement in Puerto Rico, two of them are religious community organizers and all are close to different workers unions. For more information and visuals see Puerto Rico Indymedia

Prachanda's interview with The Hindu, speaks to the current situation in Nepal, and new beginnings

Communist Party of Nepal leaders are speaking directly to the situation in Nepal and South Asia, but also recognizing the mistakes that led to the defeat of 20th Century communism. Issues of power, sovereignty, leadership and the historic import in what looks to be the first successful communist revolt since the restoration of capitalism in the Soviet Union and China.

This series of interviews is earth-shaking. For anyone who thinks all communists want is everybody in khakis... the real deal is going to blow your mind. Anti-communism runs deep inside the bubble of Americanism. It's gone virtually unchallenged without a vital revolutionary communist movement. That's over, and not just in Nepal.

For communists... here's a highlight from the revolution's leader Prachanda with one of India's leading dailies, The Hindu:

Varadarajan: The question was raised of a cult of personality in the party. As you know, any objective evaluation of the experience of the 20th century communist movement has to consider the cult of personality as certainly one of the factors in the reversals.

Prachanda: That is correct. But I want to clarify one thing. Between Dr. Bhattarai and me, there was never any debate on the issue of leadership. He has never challenged my leadership. On the issue of leadership personally, there has never been a difference. There were differences on ideological questions, about what we should do now, and there was a debate. And this debate we solved in the Rolpa plenum in August. We took it to a higher level and our unity has become stronger.

On the issue of leadership I want to say that our party will be the first communist party in the 21st century which has picked up on a clue from the 20th century - where it had got stuck - and we are going to open it. At our plenum, we placed a resolution on the question of political power and leadership. That when we go for state power and are in power, then we will not do what Stalin or Mao did. Lenin did not have time to deal with issues of power. Although Stalin was a revolutionary, his approach, was not as scientific as it should have been, it was a little metaphysical, and then problems came. We also evaluated Mao in the plenum. If you look at his leadership from 1935 to 1976 - from when he was young to when he was old and even speaking was difficult - must he remain Chairman and handle everything? What is this?

So we decided that when we are in power, the whole team of our leadership will not be part of day-to-day power. Not just me but our team. Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, Badal, Mohra, others, we have a leadership team which arose from the midst of the struggle. When we go to Kathmandu, we will not be involved in power struggles or day-to-day power. That will be for the new generation, and we will train that generation. This is a more scientific approach to the question of leadership. If we don't do this, then we will have a situation where as long as Stalin is alive, revolution is alive, as long as Mao is alive, revolution is alive.

This will be a big sacrifice for our leadership. Of course it does not mean we will be inactive or retire from politics. Our leadership team will go into statesmanship. We are hoping that by doing this we will solve a very big ideological problem of the communist movement. This is not only a technical question but a big ideological question. There can be no question of concentrating power in the hands of any individual or group. When we placed this resolution before the plenum, then our entire leadership team gained confidence in themselves, the movement and the line. Our unity has become much stronger. Now we are in an offensive mood.

We feel we have contributed to the ideological development of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism. Traditionally, in the international communist movement there are two types of revisionism - right revisionism of class collaboration, and the other, dogmato-revisionism, of turning certain ideas into a dogma and getting stuck to them. This is more among the Maoists. Those who call themselves Maoists are more prone to dogmato-revisionism, and we have to fight against this too. [emphasis added — Red Flags]

Okay. I have tried to take this slowly.,,

These ideas will be tested in the days to come, and there are some ambiguities about what is expected from the proposed constituent assembly. But these are living ideas, with respect for the sovereignty of the people and an eye towards exactly how the people can come to rule. This is the essence of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, what Bhattarai called the philosophy of the wretched of the earth.

Follow the jump for the full text of Prachanda's interview in The Hindu.

 

Prachanda speaks to the BBC: "Exile or Trial" for Nepal King

Prachanda's interview-a-thon continues. Next stop? The dear old BBC, England's voice to the world. Their coverage of the people's war has been consistent (and shallow) for several years. Now they have an "exclusive" interview with Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) chairman Prachanda, the man in whose name their "Path" is graced.

They've also broadcast video of the man speaking, an apparent first.  Click on the picture.

21st Century Communism: An interview with Baburam Bhattarai

The flow of interviews continues from the top leaders of the Nepalese revolution. Nepal's censorship has been the worst in the world since "King" Gyanendra dissoloved the democratic government for the consolidation of absolute power against the rising People's War. The recent series of interviews conducted in the Indian and Nepalese press should be viewed in that context. The revolution is winning, the monarchy has no legs to stand on after its failed municipal show elections and the political terms of the people armed can no longer be ignored.The only forces with real direction and motion in Nepal are the Maoist rebels under the leadership of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist).

Should the People's War succeed, Nepal will witness the first communist victory since the restoration of capitalism in China. The content (and context) of that victory are in mighty flux. Both Prachanda, the Chairman of the CPN(M) and Baburam Bhattarai, who looks to be something like the future prime minister, speak of open political competition and that the revolt is primarily against the autocracy and not "competitive" democracy itself. They are discussing a living, multi-polar socialism.

This is a major departure from the way in which 20th century revolutions installed one-party states, which in the case of the Soviet Union went so far as to outlaw explicit factions under the institutional control of the party's central committe -- and eventually individuals. Without abandoning the principle of power in fact resting among the common people, the rebels of Nepal are putting out a socialism based on hope instead of fear. Every piece of information deserves to be forwarded as widely as possible. And debated among the ranks of communists. If Venezuela's insurgent president Hugo Chavez is speaking of a "21st Century Socialism," then the men and women fighting the People's War in Nepal look to build a 21st Century Communism.

Maybe we don't have to let the tactical necessities of decades past dictate the realm of the possible. Maybe we can learn from our failures and rise stronger. Maybe the people really can win instead of lighting candles in the storm. They said it was the end of history. In truth, its the beginning of the end of the infinite present.

Here's a quick sample before the jump:

The Nepali Times: Maoism is regarded as an obsolete ideology in most parts of the world including in the land of Mao’s birth. What makes you think it has relevance in Nepal?
Bhattarai: Marxism-Leninism-Maoism (M-L-M) is a class ideology of the proletariat and the wretched of the earth. It is thus natural that the ruling exploiting classes would wish it did not exist or got perished. But what is the current state of the ideology of the ruling classes? The religious fundamentalism and neo-liberal market fundamentalism, the ruling ideology of the feudal and imperialist classes, is in greater crisis. The so-called ‘end of history’ and ‘clash of civilisation’ hypotheses have already wrecked havoc upon the world over the past decade. The raging battlefields of Iraq and the left-ward wind sweeping across Latin America in recent years are a case in point. It is quite ironical that those who are themselves increasingly taking recourse to Christian or Muslim or Hindu fundamentalism are pointing an accusing finger towards the most scientific, secular and progressive ideology of dialectical & historical materialism, which is the cornerstone of M-L-M, as ‘obsolete’.

Say word. You know, Denmark has a monarchy. So does bloody England. And from recent years, the USA isn't too far from that with King George the Lesser still rolling backwards. Talk about "obsolete."

On to the interveiw with Baburam Bhattarai. L'al Salaam and up the rebels!

This Is Your Motherfucking Party

Everything by The Coup  ||  Illustration found at Marxist Community Journal|| Mutilage by the Burningman

Rules of the road & Introductions

Welcome to Red Flags, the best commie blog on the net. Focused on what's happening in the world communist movement, Red Flags will also include a wide selection of current writing from across the left, reporting and interviews from social movments, insurgent art and literature, as well as short histories of the human struggle for liberation.

This is a check-in. In lieu of a registration system, regular participants can sign-in with a short description of who they are and roughly where you're coming from. You need not use your actual name, but a short bio will help others disentangle what promise to be (sometimes) complex discussions. Just leave a comment with as much as you feel like saying about yourself. If you'd like to make any changes later, just post a new version and the old one will be removed. Checking-in is obviously optional.

Beyond digesting interesting articles, Red Flags hopes to foster an open space for debate and discussion online, where superficiality and slagging often rule the roost. Site traffic has grown enough to justify the work and I'm really happy that most of the commentators have aimed to inform. There is currently nothing like this online. My hope is that the powerful ideas of the communist movement, which I firmly believe promise to solve the most basic and intractable problems of humanity, will find a flower.

Maoists & Parliamentary Parties Boycott Nepal Vote, Important interveiw with Prachanda & Bhattarai

The king's municipal elections in Nepal have been a fiasco for the autocracy. Massive abstention and Maoist attacks greeted the first polls since Gyanendra assumed absolute power two years ago. According to the Washington Post, half of the candidacies in cities and towns were not filled. On Sunday, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) called for a bandh, or general strike, which brought the country to a standstill while democratic protest continued throughout the country. The king has no legs to stand on.

So what's going to happen? Aside from Katmandu and the district capitols, the Maoists have freedom of motion throughout the country. Katmandu itself is boiling with protests and insurgence widespread. Maoists and the seven parliamentary parties have reached an agreement and the status quo is not going to last.

Into this, the Katmandu Post released a major interview with Prachanda, leader of the CPN(M), with Dr. Baburam Bhattaria, the public face of the Maoist movement. Their lack of orthodoxy is startling. They seem to have a minimum program for a democratic republic, offer to open the people's army up to other political factions and have a keen appreciation for the international balance of forces. It's definitely worth the read.

ANOTHER interview with Prachanda in one of India's leading dailies The Hindu was just brought to my attention. It will also be re-posted here in the coming days. For now, here's the link: Prachanda interviewed in The Hindu  -- The Katmandu Post interview follows after the jump.

World Can't Wait activist disrupts Rumsfeld rant

Talk about taking it to The Man! Heather Hurwitz, an activist with World Can't Wait disrupted one of Donald Rumsfeld's Penatagon press conferences (where he had the cajones to equate Hugo Chavez's election to Hitler's!).

Heather Hurwitz : "You have committed crimes against humanity and BushCommission.org and thousands are coming this weekend to drive you out of office, You and you whole administration. Step down Mr. Rumsfeld, Bush administration step down and take these programs with you. You are torturing people signing off on torture. It's happening. This world needs to wake up, stop this war, this criminal war."

You go. This people must get no rest. Much respect for the rebels.

(tip: Paneru and Democracy Now! for video)

The anti-Islam cartoons controversy – Not about “freedom of speech”

Editorial from A World to Win News Service: Last September the editor of a rightwing Danish newspaper, the Jyllands-Posten, commissioned cartoonists to draw pictures of Muhammad, and published a dozen of them. As he has explained in interviews, he deliberately set out to affront observant Muslims, many of whom believe that it is wrong to depict the face of those they consider prophets. But more than that, some of these drawings are very deliberately insulting to Islam as a religion and to those who believe in it, depicting it as the faith of mad bombers and bloodthirsty barbarians. Taken as a whole, they are meant to humiliate and demean a large part of the earth’s population.