history

The Enduring Lessons of the Russian Revolution

The Enduring Lessons of the Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution, which took place 107 years ago, stands as the only time in world history that workers took power and began the transition to a socialist mode of production. That shining epoch offers many enduring lessons for today’s revolutionaries — including the Bolsheviks’ reliance on democratic-centralist organization and their intolerance of reformism within their ranks.

The Civil War in the United States: Marx and Engels on the Revolution Against Slavery

The Civil War in the United States: Marx and Engels on the Revolution Against Slavery

The US Civil War was a major influence on the development of Marxism. For Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, the war against chattel slavery was an important phase in the global struggle against human bondage. Their commentary on the war is compiled in The Civil War in the United States, an essential volume for those seeking a Marxist understanding of the most pivotal conflict in US history, as well as the relationship between oppression and labor.

Wandering in the Void: The Dead End of National Bolshevism

Wandering in the Void: The Dead End of National Bolshevism

National Bolshevism originated during a brief, disastrous moment in the 1920s when the German Communist Party attempted to appeal to working-class Nazi supporters with nationalist or even anti-semitic rhetoric. As Marxist historian Doug Enaa Greene shows, this shameful chapter still resonates today. Marxists should never be tempted to set aside our internationalism or anti-oppression principles in hopes of reaching the most backward workers.

The French Turn, the DSA, and Revolutionary Regroupment

The French Turn, the DSA, and Revolutionary Regroupment

In March 2020, several longtime members of the Democratic Socialists of America published an essay entitled “The Dangers of Factionalism in DSA,” warning about the dangers of entryism by organizations such as Socialist Alternative. Using the example of the “French...

Why We Support Palestinian Armed Resistance

Why We Support Palestinian Armed Resistance

In the wake of the events of October 7 and the genocidal aftermath, there is a growing divide on the left between those who unconditionally support the right of Palestinians to fight back against their oppressors, and their critics. Support on the left for resistance...

Palestine, Prisons, and Settler-Colonial Incarceration

Palestine, Prisons, and Settler-Colonial Incarceration

A political prisoner is typically defined as someone imprisoned for their political activity, or who is imprisoned on an official charge that is sometimes unrelated to their actual activity. While the exact meanings of the term are contested, conventionally it refers...