Correct me if I’m wrong. The vanguard party theory states that evidently, not every single proletarian will have class consciousness at the point of the revolution, therefore the class-conscious proletarians should lead it, no matter if it’s a relatively small group, right?
There are so many radlibs despite worsening material conditions that sometimes I wonder if these people will ever be able to gain class consciousness. As far as I understand, the whole point of a vanguard party is that we can do without these people on our side, right?
From what I’ve heard from older party members here (P de los C and original PCM), they operate under the idea that a vanguard doesn’t need to be a specific size. Their strength instead comes from their capacity to educate, organize, and lead the masses that have recognized them as capable of doing so. Larger numbers of cadres are, of course, preferable to smaller (ideological and organizational coherence being equal), but increasing numbers also increases the likelihood of crackdowns by the state terror apparatus.
In this sense, it doesn’t matter if your party only has a couple hundred members if your work is sufficiently well known and trusted that you can mobilize thousands if not millions through connections with syndicates, popular organizations, etc. A vanguard party that says they have no need for the masses is no vanguard at all.
And don’t worry about winning over radlibs if, as you say, they’re that far from class consciousness. That just means the squeeze hasn’t happened to them yet.
Furthermore, I consider that America must be destroyed.
Great to see an answer from a fellow Mexican comrade specifically! It’s a lot more clear to me now. Thanks :)