On The Foundations of Good Praxis
Getting Back On My Feet
It would be absurd to assert that recent events in my life have not taken a severe toll on me.
It’s a difficult thing to discuss without getting into far too much detail, but in essence, for the past three or so years I’ve been very involved in my community. I had a political party of fellow Marxist-Leninists, all working together towards similar revolutionary goals. I had several fundraising groups that I was known to be an excelling member of. My ambitions included feeding the people of Palestine, fighting for renter’s rights in my area through direct action and tenants’ unions, and building up a revolutionary movement in my local space that would indeed be a force to be reckoned with.
In the blink of an eye, it was all gone. Interpersonal conflicts will forever be the number-one enemy of the left, second only to the capitalist class. I will continue to assert that I did nothing wrong, but neither did my political party in requesting my resignation, nor the fundraising groups I was expelled from. It was simply a horrific situation.
That party itself is a local amateur security posse, communist organizing group, and revolutionary study locale all in one. I’d like to discuss why their efforts are stellar, and why you should join or support a party like theirs.
Democratic Centralism: The Organizational Backbone of Good Praxis
My party was democratically centralized; being both a method of strengthening individual and group discipline and of enabling collective learning, this is a powerful structure for contemporary revolutionary collectives. There were strong mechanisms for bottom-up input built-in to our bylaws; even candidate members could submit party line proposals and bylaw revisions.
This is crucial, and anyone who tells you otherwise is dead wrong. Lenin nearly directly quoted Engels when he said: "We are not doctrinaires. Our theory is not a dogma, but a guide to action." By keeping this centralized structure in place, my party was able to change as needed, and grow enormously over time as a result.
Through centralism, once a democratic decision is achieved, unified action can be ensured. This enabled the party to act quickly in times of administrative overload or even emergency.
The overall structure of the party was dynamic and responsive to both internal and external stimuli. This led to our reputation in the Salt Lake Valley being overwhelmingly positive, with even our most dire political enemies admitting to the party’s excellent organizational and cumulative capability.
Mass Line: The Party’s Organic Link to the Proletariat
The party worked with the population of the Valley in a way that was awe-inspiring to any member of the larger collective. Mao said: "In all the practical work of our Party, all correct leadership is necessarily 'from the masses, to the masses.'" (“Some Questions Concerning Methods of Leadership,” 1943). The party itself was indeed formed according to the needs of the people; in particular, there was and always will be a profound need for security at queer events.
The cadre was embedded in workplaces, event spaces, and nearly the entire scope of the left in Utah. We listened. We learned. And we responded to the material needs of the people around us.
To ever achieve a true vanguard, the party must not be disconnected from the people, but must answer directly to them. To that end, our efforts were never financial in nature, aside from directly fundraising for revolutionary events, like sending our comrades along to the Cuban Brigades. In this way we avoided the larger problems of elitism and adventuristic vanguardism.
Ideological Clarity and Theoretical Development: Guiding Revolutionary Action
My party employed the continuous study and application of classical Marxist texts, dialectical and historical materialism, and the lessons of past revolutions. In all our amateurishness, it really was a sight to behold: constant debates impacting an ever-evolving overall understanding, actively struggling against deviations from revolutionary theory, and effectively combating dogmatism and revisionism.
As membership grew and the knowledge base grew alongside it, we gradually gained the ability to apply theory to concrete conditions. It’s a necessity: analyzing the specific historical, economic, and social conditions of the given society, and avoiding mechanical application of past experiences. By constantly exposing ourselves to new situations and challenges, we were able to muster on-command the ability to theoretically innovate without abandoning core principles.
As Engels discussed, the party was truly composed of so-called ‘scientific socialists’, consistently applying Marx’s dialectic combined with the broader scientific method to real-world problems of the local and global working and oppressed classes.
Tactics and Strategy: Navigating the Revolutionary Path
It is essential to be clear that my old party, and any ideal party, will always promote armed struggle as opposed to some kind of ‘peaceful transition’. However, it is rare to find a party that simultaneously rejects democratic socialism and manages to properly analyze the balance of forces, identifying primary and secondary contradictions, and adapting its strategy accordingly.
An ideal party will engage in United Front tactics, with an emphasis on the importance of building broad alliances with various social forces while maintaining the party’s independence and revolutionary aims.
In addition, we learned from successes and failures. We regularly engaged in rigorous post-action analysis to refine our strategies and tactics.
Internationalism: The Global Dimension of Praxis
The ideal ML party actively supports anti-imperialist, anti-colonial, and working-class struggles worldwide. They study and incorporate lessons from other revolutionary movements, with as much firsthand experience as is possible. There is a great importance in promoting proletarian internationalism over narrow national or local interests.
Discipline and Accountability
Discipline in our party was not blind obedience, but a conscious adherence to collective decisions based on a shared understanding of revolutionary goals. There were clear regulations that promoted unity and prevented factionalism.
There was constant self-correction to address errors and maintain the party’s revolutionary character; in particular, party members and leadership were held accountable for their actions and adherence to party principles, even removing individuals from membership when it was deemed necessary to do so.
Indeed, the loss of my party was a catastrophic one. It is still true that I have this deeply-held faith: they will eventually succeed. In fact, they’ve succeeded already. Praxis is a dialectic of theory and practice; with both aspects in constant evolution and action, my old collective certainly encompassed a successful ML party, even in the absence of national and global revolution. Our time is coming.
Workers of the world: don’t give up. Recognize that we have entered into a time of immense opportunity. Make no peace with your oppression, but fight it at every turn.
We most certainly have nothing left to lose.