Revolution #277, August 12, 2012
Take Out BAsics 3:22
Unleash the Fury of Women as a
Mighty Force for Revolution!
“You cannot break all the chains, except one. You cannot say you want to be free of exploitation and oppression, except you want to keep the oppression of women by men. You can’t say you want to liberate humanity yet keep one half of the people enslaved to the other half. The oppression of women is completely bound up with the division of society into masters and slaves, exploiters and exploited, and the ending of all such conditions is impossible without the complete liberation of women. All this is why women have a tremendous role to play not only in making revolution but in making sure there is all-the-way revolution. The fury of women can and must be fully unleashed as a mighty force for proletarian revolution.”
—BAsics, 3:22
It’s August and all across the country, it’s the month to get BAsics 3:22 far and wide. It’s time to reach many, many more people with BAsics, from the talks and writings of Bob Avakian, and get this book into their hands. And, related to this, it’s time to set big fundraising goals and meet them!
Right now, take the time to think about and discuss every line in BAsics 3:22... reflect on how decisive this outlook and understanding is for making revolution, transforming the whole world and emancipating all of humanity.
Then, find the ways to tap into the deep and visceral hatred both women and men from all different backgrounds have for the horror of what happens to women here and around the world every day. The oppression of women is a pillar of, a product of, and completely bound up with the illegitimate system that rules over us. And the struggle against this oppression is critical to preparing the ground for revolution when the time is ripe.
We also know as we go out with BAsics 3:22, there will be polarization among the people! People throughout society—and especially men—actively buy into and participate in the degradation and subjugation of women in thousands of ways and this must be challenged. Winning people to radically break with this must be changed through struggle; this is essential to building the movement for revolution.
Challenging the “way things are” is much needed... and the debate should jump off in unexpected and intense ways. Let’s welcome the back-and-forth swirl around taking out quotes from BAsics and the campaign to get BA Everywhere. And let’s advance through this controversy. Because all of humanity will not be emancipated as long as half of humanity is degraded and demeaned, brutalized and oppressed in unspeakable ways. The fury of women must be unleashed as a mighty force for revolution—and people everywhere should join with us in this revolutionary struggle.
In recent months, the quotes from BAsics have gone out broadly. They have touched and connected with people in many ways. Take a look at the responses to BAsics 1:13... and to the BAsics quotes 5:7 and 5:8 that were gotten out broadly in July. To see how deep this went, look at the pages of this paper at revcom.us. Look at all the pictures and writings on basicsbustour.tumblr.com. As the talk, “The BAsics Bus Tour, Scientifically Founded Hope, Defending Leaders and Fighters... and Making Revolution,” we are printing in this issue of Revolution says (see above), taking up the distribution of these quotes has been a way into this campaign and the movement for revolution for hundreds of people.
Now, envision this: multiplying the impact of BA Everywhere in August. Getting out hundreds of BAsics 3:22—and the BAsics book—in the neighborhoods of Black, Latino, and other people on the bottom where this campaign has touched, and new neighborhoods as well. Envision palm cards and books getting passed hand to hand. Think about people who have connected with this campaign taking stacks of the palm card with this quote, getting them out all over, leaving them in coffee shops, laundromats, and on bus and subway seats. And as these go out all over, money is being raised to get BA Everywhere.
Envision this quote finding its way into circles of artists and cultural scenes during these first weeks of August. Think about the importance of this quote circulating among young people of all strata. Imagine knots of women and men in the ’hoods and all over the cities vigorously discussing and debating it. Think about the impact this will have as people debate the big questions of how to look at and understand what happens in this society and the world—and what to do about the horrors people contend with every day.
Together with BAsics 3:22, we are publishing complementary quotes. And, as all these quotes go out far and wide, this movement can be gathering people together and making plans to go onto the college campuses in a big way when the fall semester commences...
Then, when the colleges open at the end of August and into September, crews of people with experience in circulating the palm cards in the neighborhoods and to the youth broadly, people who have been joining in the movement for revolution and discussing the quotes far and wide, can organize to go onto the campuses in a big way. Getting out BAsics 3:22—and selling BAsics. Once again, people can make big posters (look for PDF’s at revcom.us) and generally find the ways to stir up debate and work with a wide range of people to take the palm cards and BAsics into classrooms and dorms, student unions, and hangouts. No one should underestimate the impact it has on people from different parts of the city and different experiences to mix it up. For people from the ’hoods to go to the campuses—and for students to go into the neighborhoods.
Now let’s talk about fundraising, which should run through all these efforts. The aim of this campaign is to raise big money to get BA’s vision and works into all corners of society. A national movement is being born. And as it grows and turns up new ground, both the need and the potential to raise money pose themselves in new ways. August should mark a real leap in fundraising. We can all learn from the inspiring efforts in Harlem (in the penny drive described on basicsbustour.tumblr.com) and the open air meetings in other cities... and find very creative ways to raise money from a wide range of people. Let’s range from those with little resources and means to those with more ability to contribute. Let’s get out there in a big way and talk to people we know—and people we have never met before. Let’s talk to people about the difference getting BA Everywhere can make in the whole social and political culture of this society. If we collectively raise enough money to make it concretely possible to project the works and vision of BA into all corners of society... if this work becomes increasingly debated and wrangled over by thousands and by millions of people from all walks of life... society can resonate with big dreams for fundamental change.
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