The dormant US left has awoken, starting in 2015 and continuing every year, the left in the US seems to be making impressive strides. First there was the presidential attempt by Sen. Sanders, then there was the increase in economic awareness and now we are even seeing a re-kindling of the knowledge of class, class conflict and yes even class warfare. These things, while nice to see, can hardly by themselves alone allow one to safely label themselves as socialist as they have yet to touch upon a key question, one which vexed many before them and led to their fall, and as each day passes it becomes more important that they address this question because if they don’t or if they make the wrong choice, then is could see international left forced to carry the can.
What is this question, a question which I boldly state has vexed many left movements before? The question is, what do you as a left-wing party do with the colonies when you take power or when you speak? What is, in the end, your take on nationalism? The British Labour party faced this very question when it came to office in ’45 and how it answered not only dealt them a serious blow, but also dealt a major blow to the international left community.
Their response to the question of the colonies was to keep them, maintain the exploitation, and use the monies earned from the colonies to subsidise the social democracy they were aiming to build (most notably at the time the NHS). Their response was one of extreme nationalism and disregard for the colonies and the colonial question. This took the form of the suppression of independence movements, the non-existent investment in the colonies regarding infrastructure and education as well as the theft of the best and brightest who could staff hospitals and do other skilled labour beneath the British but oh so important in re-building a nation. And they in the end paid the price at both the ballot box and internally as the party haemorrhaged and many of its left-wing intellectuals as well as its radical core members left to join parties further to the left of labour.
But the bleaker and telling scenario is the one about the German socialist party on the eve of WWI. Everyone, particularly the 2nd international, knew that a war was imminent, it was in fact so obvious that they came to an agreement that no worker should partake in the upcoming war and they should let the imperialists kill themselves. The German socialists, that is the most organised, militant, educated in the end voted for the war. That is not to say that other parties didn’t also vote for the war, but if the German socialists voted along with the lines of the war, then the strongest potential opposition and bulwark for the global left anti-war movement was gone. They too fell on the colonial question as it was believed that (much like the British in ’45) that they could usher in socialism on the backs of the colonies.
This is not socialism, this is social chauvinism, in my opinion just a politer variation of fascism and it is something which I fear the Americans are already falling into. We see this with Russia gate, and we see this in their policies towards the global south. Why are so called socialists partaking in this hunt on against Russia? Are they not astute enough to realise that this is really two oligarchies arguing about if one (Russia) will open itself up to the other (America) for further plundering? Why are alleged socialists demanding the removal of the Assad government in Syria? Again, can they not see and have they not read the many pieces documenting how this conflict was fomented from the outside in order to further (wait for it) American regional goals? Why are they silent or slyly calling for the ouster of Maduro and his party? Do they not realise that this is simply a centuries old ruse (in modern clothes), a simple attempt to retain one’s dominance in their ‘backyard’?
They may be well intentioned, but the road to hell is paved by persons who only had good intentions and what they are doing is leading us to a form of hell. It can’t be naivety and it cant be ignorance (so many of them have studied in fields which touch upon this) and maybe they do think that socialism in America can be ushered in on the backs of the global south and then they can benevolently bestow upon us the ‘true’ trappings of socialism. If that is the case (and it certainly is among quite a few in the American left) then it is a flawed view, shows their chauvinism and will surely usher their demise.
They cant afford to think that way, global socialism wont be achieved by a ‘socialist America bestowing it upon mankind’ just as global capitalism wasn’t achieved by the ‘British granting it to nations’. It will only be achieved by the dismantling of the capitalist heartland, at this moment the US as once that brick falls the whole house starts to crumble. If, for example, an actual socialist came into office and ended the mad war on terror, it has the double advantage of freeing up capital at home for social projects while at the same time enabling left-wing groups in the countries being bombed (often times themselves being the recipients of said bombs) could focus on socialist projects in their countries (as they are more often than not fighting against the exploiter class).
The German worker and the broader global left suffered as a result of the decision in the great war, the German worker was crushed during the Spartacus revolt because they were divided and had split on the war issue. All over post-war Europe revolutions raged, and in only one country was it successful. All the failed revolutions can be traced back to the fateful decision on the matter of the war (see the national colonial question) and the social chauvinism in no small part helped give birth to fascism (note that Mussolini was a ‘socialist’ displeased with the less militant aspects and of his group and its drift further to the left). A core plank of any fascist is the betterment of the country and countrymen built on the backs of the colonies (see Italy, Germany, Japan, Spain etc), it is not a hard leap for a social chauvinist to make to become a true-blue fascist or at the very least sow the seeds for fascism.
Whatever their thinking they must stop and instead think about dismantling their empire, how to fund it without the colonies and assist those left movements in the global south in their respective fights and causes. Anything less is them doing exactly what the 2nd international did and what the ’45 UK Labour party did. It is a betrayal of the worldwide revolution and the world working class and poor. If they continue in this track, if they continue to insist on being the policeman of the world and the global benefactor then they lose all right to the label socialist or internationalist, they are nothing more than enlightened liberals a social chauvinist who will only usher in darkness for any left-wing group which comes in contact with them.
jamaicachange 