I very much enjoyed the letter submitted by Comrade Hall the other day. It has clarified the opportunity that is presented to Revolutionary Marxists in my country in the coming months. What follows is less a criticism, and instead some thoughts which the letter has prompted.
The State of the British Left
To begin, some reflections on the vanguard that is emerging from the rising class struggle that Comrade Hall so rightly hails. This summer I have been on the picket lines with the RMT, I have (briefly) spoken to an organizer of the Amazon wildcat strikes, and I have discussed the prospects of the non-payment campaigns with comrades involved therein. The picture that Comrade Hall paints us is a rosy one. The comrade is correct, there are reasons to be hopeful. There is clear cross-pollination between these many movements and shows of solidarity from other unions have been deeply encouraging. Especially when placed within the context of the last few years and the growing militancy we have seen (BLM 2020, Kill the Bill 2021-2022, Palestine Solidarity marches 2021), the working class in Britain is on the move.
It is important however, that we do not blind ourselves to the structural weaknesses that face Marxists in Britain. The picket lines are often full of sects selling their papers, and rallies are almost always organized with the help of the SWP, the SP(EW) or some other sect, such as Counterfire (likely due to the resources such as sound systems and effective placard printing to which these organizations have access). Aside from the sects, the dominant forces are the remnants of left-Labourisms past. Whilst some of these are more interesting than others (Momentum Organisers springs to mind) they are all ultimately wedded to anti-Toryism over anti-capitalism.1 There are encouraging exceptions of various forms. STRIKE! MCR emerged from Momentum Manchester and is focused on developing radical trade unionists by “merging socialists and the workers movement,” a clear allusion to the politics of Cosmonaut Magazine and the rediscovery of the radical Kautsky. In 2019, Notes from Below, a socialist collective focused on workers’ inquiry and socialism from below, put forward similar ideas to Hal Draper on the need for radical Marxist Centres to draw revolutionaries to them. My own group, Red Fightback, has also argued for the necessity of overcoming the sect form, and have found ourselves on the picket line in this recent strike wave.2
Amongst the wildcat strikers the leading force has been the Angry Workers of the World, who have distributed leaflets on other wildcat strikes at many locations. Whilst I may not agree with the analysis or strategy of this group, they are clearly engaged in real practical struggle that is building workers’ power. However, their analysis is that they are distinct from the left; this and their left communist bent makes them unlikely to participate in a party building project.
The non-payment campaigns, however, are perhaps the weakest part of the current movement. They have tried to draw a million workers to their banner, but are currently stuck at less than a tenth of that. They suffer from organizational disagreements between, on the one hand, a wing that is inspired by XR and others that seeks to hold massive rallies to draw people to their cause, and, on the other, a wing that seeks to engage workers at their workplaces and homes through a door knocking campaign.
The above are simply the observations of one comrade in a sea of thousands. I offer them before the following in order to provide a background and context for my thoughts.
Coming Together, Falling Apart
Whilst I am in full agreement with Comrade Hall on the task that lies ahead and its urgency, for us to be successful we must seriously interrogate the failures of other groups that have sought the formation of a working class party with socialist politics to oppose both the Labour Party and the Conservatives, i.e. Campaign for a Marxist Party, Left Unity, TUSC, etc. My knowledge of these groups is far too limited to really identify the missteps taken. However, engaging with this history is essential, lest we repeat its failures.
It is important here to remark that Marxists in Britain are deeply divided. Within Britain there are roughly 30 organizations with a combined membership of roughly 10,000-15,000 that claim the legacy of Lenin. Almost all of these are dogmatic sects which, whilst containing genuine and committed Marxists, are frequently lead by dogmatists who have no interest in the unity of our class. The organization that has most vociferously polemicized against this tendency, the CPGB (PCC), has thoroughly failed to transform their politics into a mass party, and is increasingly politically frail. An objective look at the situation of the revolutionary Marxists in Britain is incredibly bleak.
Usefully, the founder of our movement faced similar problems and himself wrote about the sects that in his time dominated socialist politics.3 In a letter to Bolte in 1871, Marx remarks that:
The development of the system of Socialist sects and that of the real workers’ movement always stand in inverse ratio to each other. So long as the sects are (historically) justified, the working class is not yet ripe for an independent historic movement. As soon as it has attained this maturity all sects are essentially reactionary.
This is the key problem that a new socialist and workers party must seek to resolve. Clearly we are in a position where the organizations of the working class are developing up to the point where they require real revolutionary political leadership, to demand a workers’ republic and socialism. Drawing this revolutionary leadership out from the sects, the Trade Unions, the Labour Party, and the social movements is a difficult task and one whose steps are far from clear. Comrade Hall’s letter does not reveal much in the way of answers to this question.4
Combatting Opportunism, Maintaining Unity
Let us assume we are able to chart the path through winter and win revolutionaries to a founding congress to discuss the issues of the day. This raises a second but no less important question. How do we maintain freedom of criticism, unity, and a revolutionary anti-imperialist perspective. Essentially, how do we combat opportunism without being so soft as to become another left entryist group into the Labour Party, albeit with more interesting politics, or so hard as to become another sect? I will try to sketch out a possible solution below.5
Medway Baker, in an article for this magazine, has identified constitutional disloyalty as the basis for a program that could unite the revolutionary Marxists. This is an incredibly useful intervention. We should, however, make clear the implications of this position in a British context. Constitutional disloyalty means not taking ministerial positions within government. We should only take those seats as a government of the working class alone. Participation in the Labour Party is perfectly acceptable, and arguably sometimes necessary, participation in a Labour government is not. Simultaneously, to prevent any formation from deteriorating into just another sect, we must allow freedom to openly dissent and form factions. The importance of this freedom has been discussed elsewhere so its justification is not worth repeating.
Through the Bleak Midwinter
With these questions raised, I hope the task ahead is clearer than before. We must now chart a path. We must interrogate the history of failed past attempts to unify the revolutionary Marxists and avoid their pitfalls. We must build an organization with robust internal democracy, whose unity is based on a program, at the centre of which lies constitutional disloyalty. We must spread our ideas far and wide within the workers movement. It is time that our class, growing in strength and power, hear the good news that, through their action, socialism and democracy may be won.
This is not an easy path to follow, and the nights ahead are long and cold. There will be dark days ahead of us. We cannot lose hope and we must stay warm through the winter. We should never forget our humanity or our ultimate aims.
For class unity, for socialism, for a workers republic,
Steven Ribble, Red Fightback
P.S. I am writing in a personal capacity, my views do not reflect those of the organization as a whole.
- Anti-Toryism is defined here as the view that the primary enemy of the working class in Britain is not imperialism, capitalism, or the British State, but the rule of the Tory Party. The practical result of this politics is communists and socialists organizing for a Labour Party victory, regardless of the reactionary nature of their program, because we must “Get The Tories Out.”
- During the writing of this piece some comrades came together to organise a reading group around the Marxist Unity Group’s curriculum but for a British context. This is another promising sign.
- The sects that Marx discusses here are Utopian and Religious socialists that have far more in common with religious groups than the sects we know today. Though I do fundamentally believe that the preponderance of the sects is indicative of an immature, backwards, and weakened workers’ movement.
- To be clear I am not demanding that Comrade Hall have the answers to every question of organization for British Comrades. I am simply pointing out that while the aims that Comrade Hall has are good ones, the path towards them is far from clear. I am raising the question, I myself do not have an answer yet.
- I cannot take credit for this answer as it comes from my engagement with the work of Cosmonaut Magazine and a recent discussion on Twitter with Comrade Hall themselves.