Setting the Record Straight on Communism and Socialist Revolution

REFUTING THE BIGGEST LIES AGAINST COMMUNISM

Updated October 23, 2017 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

Now let’s imagine, let’s step out of this world that they keep us chained in. And let’s imagine what this future can and will be like.

When we finally get to the final goal of communism, there won’t be the relations of exploitation and oppression that are so commonplace and that mark all of society today and that we are told over and over again are just the natural order of things and the way things have to be. As Karl Marx pointed out, the communist revolution leads to what we Maoists call the “4 Alls”—that is, the abolition of all class differences among people. The abolition or the end to all the production or economic relations underlying these class differences and divisions among people. The ending of all the social relations that go along with these economic or production relations. Oppressive relations between men and women, between different nationalities, between people of different parts of the world, all that will be put an end to and moved beyond. And finally, the revolutionizing of all the ideas that go along with this whole way, this whole capitalist system, these whole social relations. In place of this, what will be the guiding principles in society consciously and voluntarily taken up by people...not forced on them, but consciously and voluntarily taken up as the basis for having abolished exploitation, oppression and inequality? In its place will be collective and cooperative principles aiming for the common good and at the same time, within that, individuals and individuality flourishing in a way that has never been possible before.

Bob Avakian, BAsics 2:3

Introduction to new series Setting the Record Straight

The revolutions in Paris in 1871, in Russia in 1917 (to mid-1950s), and in China in 1949 (to 1976)—were all great historic breakthroughs. Hundreds of millions rose up and gained precious experience as to what it would take to get to a world without exploitation, without oppression, without destructive violent clashes among humans, without enforced ignorance and superstition. These first attempts to emancipate humanity were defeated.

History is being written by the victors—the imperialists. The oppressors issue endless lies on what “the wretched of the earth” were trying to do, what brutal forces lined up against these heroic attempts, and why there were limitations and even secondary errors in their theory and practice.

Bob Avakian (BA) has not only defended these pathbreaking experiences, and shown a way to truly understand them, but most importantly, he has developed a new communism based on a much deeper and more scientific view of what is involved in emancipating ALL humanity. The new communism of BA breaks with and is a leap beyond the previous understanding of communist revolution and “represents and embodies a qualitative resolution of a critical contradiction that has existed within communism in its development up to this point, between its fundamentally scientific method and approach, and aspects of communism which have run counter to this.” (From Resolution 1 of Six Resolutions of the Central Committee of the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA, January 1, 2016)

Along with bringing out the positive achievements of socialism and communist revolutions, and critiquing these previous revolutions through the prism of the new synthesis—how to do better next time around—there is a real need to boldly challenge the flow of lies, slanders, distortions, and phony representations of this history that has lowered sights and shut down discussions over how the world should/could be radically different. The lies serve to reinforce the rotten status quo and its conformist wisdom that the best we can do is adjust or reduce the misery in today’s capitalist world order. This series aims to answer the most widespread lies about communist revolution.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LIE #1: Human nature undermines and invalidates the aims of communism, no matter how noble are its principles, or how sincere are the intentions of its advocates. Read more.

LIE #2: Because Socialism-Communism Goes Against Human Nature, It Resorts to State Violence and Mass Killing to Enforce Its Ideals. Read more.

LIE #3: The 1917 October Revolution in Russia was a “coup” staged by Lenin and the communist Bolshevik Party. They were power hungry and grabbed power for themselves. Read more.

Lie #4: Communism is a form of totalitarianism. Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin sought to impose total domination over society—through repression that invaded every aspect of society and individual life, and mind-manipulative ideology. Read more.

Look back here often for refutation of more LIES!

Volunteers Needed... for revcom.us and Revolution

Send us your comments.

If you like this article, subscribe, donate to and sustain Revolution newspaper.