CONSTITUTION FOR THE NEW SOCIALIST REPUBLIC IN NORTH AMERICA (Draft Proposal)

from the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA

See Introductory Explanation:
On the Nature, Purpose and Role of this Constitution

On November 10, the Constitution for the New Socialist Republic in North America (Draft Proposal) will be officially released. Beginning on that day, everything that people think is possible, and impossible, will come under radical challenge.

Right in the middle of a cruel, rotting empire, a vision of something entirely new—something very radical and far better than the present way that people are forced to live—will be set forth from the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA.

There is great potential in this Constitution to impact and inspire a very wide range of people, including those who burn with the desire for a better world, but who will have differences or questions about aspects of this Constitution, or even the basic thrust of it. This should, and will, spark all-round debate and ferment over how we live today, and how we could live tomorrow.

This Constitution will present a very real alternative to the present system, a response to the argument—heard even from those with deep upset about the status quo—that there is nothing that can be done to really change things. And this can contribute in significant ways to the necessary repolarization for revolution in society overall by breaking people's inability to see beyond the way things are today... to a better world, an alternative that is not just desirable, but viable.

In the world today, the importance of this mustn't be underestimated.

GETTING THIS WAY OUT INTO THE WORLD

On November 10, join in release parties and celebrations at Revolution Books across the country. Celebrate the release of this historic document out into the world, pick up your copy, contribute to big promotional plans, and feed in your ideas and questions. Start inviting people now to be part of this.

In the week before this, pre-release copies will be available for sale. Starting on the weekend of October 30, we will be spreading out onto campuses and in neighborhoods, creating a big visual presence and selling lots of copies. The centerfold in this issue should go up in store windows and on bulletin boards. Book tables should sell lots of copies. There should be a presence on the campus quads. Palm cards^* with the cover should be put on every seat in important lectures or classes, in mailboxes of professors at key campuses and in key departments, and under every door in the housing projects where the revolutionaries are known. Get it to all the students who have been in touch with the movement for revolution in some way—including those who, for whatever reason, may not be interested in doing a lot right now, but think communism needs to be in the mix. A wave of visits to professors, lawyers, artists and other professionals with this—selling the Constitution, raising funds, and beginning what needs to be a widespread discussion about this Constitution and what it embodies.

We will be focusing on both getting this Constitution out very broadly as well as to key, influential people. We should begin now thinking about who needs to get this—visiting, calling or writing to them about pre-ordering, getting them this copy of Revolution newspaper and getting them the Constitution itself as soon as it's available.

In terms of broad impact, along with efforts at breaking this into the national and local press and on the net in different ways, creating a visual presence will be important and should involve a lot of creativity... light projections of the cover, self-made rolling billboards on the sides of trucks, bicycle displays... this could be an opportunity to involve artists and designers in coming up with simple but powerful displays. People need to see and hear about this Constitution from different angles, including in surprising ways.

In this whole mix, it'll be important to continue to let people know we are building a movement for revolution, and introduce them to the leadership for this, Bob Avakian. Backpack copies of the Message and Call from the RCP, "The Revolution We Need... The Leadership We Have" and continue to spread the Revolution talk from Bob Avakian—in particular, it would be good to encourage people to watch the clip "Imagine... A New Society."

Big funds are needed for major promotion of this Constitution upon release—for promotional materials, advertising, big mailings, many, many copies into the hands of prisoners. Putting this need to people should be a part of everything we're doing around this Constitution among all sections of people.

Later this month, we'll be having fundraising dinners nationally. Making these happen is a way for all kinds of people, including very new people, to be involved—selling tickets, making food, reaching out to others to contribute food, bringing their friends, helping to set up, etc.

And all this will lay the basis for more major efforts beginning in the new year. Get ready to be part of bringing something really precedent-shattering onto the scene. Join in getting deeply into this Constitution... and join in getting word of this way out into the world.

* Promotional materials will be available at revcom.us/socialistconstitution as early in the week as possible. [back]

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