By Nick Ayala and Carlos Cruz Mosquera
In recent weeks there have been numerous debates on social media about the legitimacy of Third Worldist communism as a political ideology. ANTICONQUISTA has been at the centre of this debate partly thanks to a recent article and because many of our new supporters were unaware of our political line.
As we have always stated, we are not dogmatists, and we do not treat our political views as a religion. We welcome debate and criticism, so long as these are respectful and in a spirit of advancing our shared goals as anti-imperialists. As scientific socialists, what concerns us the most is the concrete examination of our region’s reality and how this intersects with our reality as a diaspora. In this sense, it does not matter what labels we use to identify ourselves with in terms of our political alliances, as long as these further the central objective of defeating imperialism and bringing about a socialist society in our homeland – which we see ourselves as being an extension of.
In this spirit, and listening to the suggestion of our comrades, we can announce that we have now published a study guide to understand our political line.
Contrary to what has been said online, our co-founders and editors identify as Third Worldists. We understand that the global capitalist economy has developed unequally, the consequence being that some regions benefit from others’ exploitation. Specifically, there is enough data to show that the United States and Europe have economically weakened Latin America. This weakened position in the global economy means that our region and its population are violently exploited to maintain global North countries’ living standards, not just of its elites but also of society as a whole.
When we have a thorough knowledge of this dynamic, it encourages us to reevaluate our priorities when organising and building in the West. Joining leftist/communist groups or parties who refuse to engage with the dynamics of global imperialism – often very simplistically viewed as being limited to military invasions and illegal sanctions that benefit only the ruling class – means settling for the narrow terms set by a movement that worries more about securing the living standards of those in oppressor nations even if this means a continued unequal dynamic in the global economy.
Furthermore, Third Worldism, at least how we view and practice it, has the advantage of dynamism in analysing class struggle. We embrace what the Western communists may look down on as ‘revisionism’. Class struggle for Latin American and Caribbean people must be studied in relation to its intersection with colonialism, white supremacy, male chauvinism, border violence, etc. Beyond the universalist approach of bourgeoisie vs worker, it must necessarily include the historical and contemporary particularities of our oppression as a colonised people.
We welcome all to engage critically with this study guide which includes our articles over the years, writings by other comrades in the field, contemporary academic literature, and classic literature that complements the study and understanding of our political line.
