I think as Marxist-Leninists we can all agree that organization is one of the most important if not primary struggle we engage. We want as many people in our cause as possible. The armed struggle is something we acknowledge to be a possibility in the future, once we’ve built dual power. But on the other hand we also have to do an analysis on the situation of our nations and what contradictions exist in them. In most cases one engages in the political and economic struggle at the same time but there is one case that flips this on its head. Fascism.
In a liberal democracy we are “free” to engage in our agitation and organization, well before armed struggle is needed. It takes time for revolutions to mature to an armed struggle. Fascism or rising fascism changes the struggle, it flips it from needed to organize to armed resistance. We know what happened in Germany and all other fascist countries to established left wing parties, so the political and organizational struggle is out of the question from a legal standpoint. In a relatively peaceful country, armed struggle is out of the question because it would distance the masses, but in a fascist state it’s the number one priority.
Up to the right wing shootings of protestors I thought that violence was a secondary action or tertiary one, but as I see things I’m beginning to flip what’s the primary form of struggle to the secondary ones. It increasingly seems like armed resistance is possibly taking precedence over organization and the mass line. I want to be careful with what I say here because I don’t want to put this site in jeopardy but, I don’t think the same tactics of “peaceful” organization under a liberal democracy would be a valid tactic in a fascist country. I feel America has gone well beyond the worth of fixating on unions, political organizations, etc. Going from defensive retaliatory actions to direct actions would separate us from the masses but did gaining the acceptance of the masses really matter in fascist Germany?
What I fear is this country pulling us into a war with China, going even more masks off than it already is. Even if we built enough support the government wouldn’t recognize it or negotiate with leaders in which case what is a secondary struggle that could only be done in the case that a movement has time to mature itself to dual power, instead becomes a primary struggle despite the lack of mass support, if only for the sake of resistance, or sending a message.
Just something I’ve been thinking about, do you folks think the possibility still exists to organize peacefully? Or has things changed beyond what we could do before?
Sure, but to do that requires the left to slip back into irrelevance. Reaction was always going to step up the larger and louder the left gets as we’ve seen so far in the US.
Regarding that paragraph about war with PRC, I’ll say that if you do indeed have enough support, you can technically stop it without firing a single bullet, although that might require some sacrifices (ok, potentially A LOT of sacrifices). This is done by disrupting logistical function, cutting off food, supplies and whatnot to the military by refusing to work and active sabotage in relevant areas. Of course the possibility of coercion at gunpoint is a thing so that’s why I said sacrifices may be needed. If we want to do logistical disruption without outright massacres, then the armed struggle will have to be included. All of this isn’t relevant without mass support though.
I guess what I’m really asking is whether it’s too late to engage in mass work or whether instead we’re going to have to have a Cuban style revolution working from the mountains etc. Fascism throws a big wrench in proper political organizational work unless we slip so far into fascism that political organization no longer is a valid option and instead insurgency is the only thing left. That is what specifically worries me, the hard work of mass organization is great, when fascism isn’t something we have to worry about. I personally believe America is too far gone from what I’ve personally seen here so it’s quite possible that insurgency will be the only form of resistance in the future, and that all we could hope for is the masses joining us.
In this exact moment? No, it’s not too late to engage in mass work. From what I’ve seen on twitter, there are still comrades doing such work in the US right now.
Now if you’re asking if it’s too late in an abstract “we must prioritize fighting fascists over feeding communities otherwise we all die” sense, then you and other US comrades would know better than me.