Union Review article: 'Ford Closes St. Paul, Minn. Plant; Communists Demand Public Ownership' is Now on this Blog!

Brothers and Sisters,

Otto Kuusinen once said that: "Communists insist on nationalization being carried out in a way that really curtails the power of monopoly capitalists and improves the lot of the working people." (Otto Kuusinen, Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, Foreign Languages Publishing House, Moscow)

I proudly point out that I posted a 2007 Union Review article, entitled "Ford Closes St. Paul, Minn. Plant; Communists Demand Public Ownership," as an older post on this blog. The Union Review's article features coverage of our activities while we, the Gus Hall Action Club, were members of the Minneapolis club of the Communist Party USA.

Here is a link to the Union Review article entitled "Ford Closes St. Paul, Minn. Plant; Communists Demand Public Ownership".

Communist Clubs 'ARE the Communist Party'

"The clubs are not the most important feature of the Communist Party. They ARE the Party." (Gus Hall, Labor Up-Front, 1979, International Publishers)

Brothers and Sisters,

I warmly point out that the question of the role of Marxist-Leninist clubs is important. V.I. Lenin wrote that: "Not a single class in history achieved power without putting forward its political leaders and spokesmen, capable of organizing the movement and leading it." (Lenin, "The Urgent Tasks of Our Movement," Dec. 1901) Communist clubs are absolutely essential to train proletarian Marxist-Leninist leaders. Lenin wrote that: "If the proletariat wishes to defeat the bourgeoisie, it must train from among its ranks its own proletarian 'class politicians' who should not be inferior to the bourgeois politicians." (Lenin, 'Left-Wing' Communism--An Infantile Disorder, 1920)

Lenin also wrote that a Marxist-Leninist party is the vanguard of the proletariat. He said: "By educating the workers' party, Marxism educates the vanguard of the proletariat which is capable of assuming power and of leading the whole people to socialism, of directing and organizing the new order, of being the teacher, the guide, the leader of all the toilers and exploited in the task of building up their social life without the bourgeoisie and against the bourgeoisie." (Lenin, State and Revolution, 1917) A Communist club is a vanguard fighting working-class organization at the groundfloor of class and mass struggle.


(’We see in the independent, uncompromisingly Marxist party of the revolutionary proletariat the sole pledge of socialism’s victory and the road to victory that is most free from vacillations.’--Lenin, A Militant Agreement for the Uprising, 1905)

Gus Hall, the great former leader of the Communist Party USA, wrote that Communist clubs should "work...to influence, initiate and guide movements and struggles." Hall said that a Communist club must "raise the class and socialist consciousness of our shopmates and neighbors." He stresses the value of Marxist-Leninist literature and leaflets. Gus Hall points out that Communists must "participate in mass work," "project advanced ideas...class and socialist consciousness" and never "forget they are Communists."

"When a club is engaged in mass work," Hall said in Labor Up-Front, "the overall work of the Party takes on a different meaning. Then the Party's propaganda, agitation and educational work will deal with and blend in the issues that emerge from the mass struggles. Then the advocacy of socialism takes on an immediacy of being approached as a solution, an alternative to the existing problems. Then the study of Marxism-Leninism becomes a science--not in the realm of abstract theory, but as an approach, as a guide to struggle." (Gus Hall, Labor Up-Front, 1979, International Publishers)

Hall said that "People have to see us, to hear us, to talk to us and to struggle with us--as Communists, a a Communist club." (Hall, For Peace, Jobs, Equality, 1983, New Outlook Publishers)

I assume that Hall might also add that a Marxist-Leninist Communist club must take into account the level and experience of the class consciousness of the masses. But Gus Hall would agree with Otto Kuusinen that: "taking the level of class-consciousness of the masses into account has nothing in common with adaptation to that level, with adopting the level of their backwardness. Such an understanding of connection with the masses is characteristic of opportunism. Revolutionary Marxists understand it differently. They do not drift with the tide." (Otto Kuusinen, et. al., Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, Foreign Languages Publishing House, Moscow)

And "we must anchor our approach, our attitude, our sense of priorities in the basics of the class struggle." (Hall, For Peace, Jobs, Equality, 1983, New Outlook Publishers)

In an extract from Gus Hall's 1979 essay, The Struggle Ahead, Hall provides some practical ideas for Communist clubs:

"...(A) club purpose must come from working to influence, initiate and guide movements and struggles. The purpose of a club must include concrete ways to bring understanding and clarity to people we work with. It must include specific ways to raise the class and socialist consciousness of our shopmates and neighbors. It must include the building of the press and the creative use of leaflets and pamphlets. Club life must include...regular reading and study...A club purpose must be related to some form of struggle or movement, whether in the shop or neighborhood. A meaningful and serious club purpose must include a periodic review of experiences to see where it has been effective and what are the shortcomings. This should be followed by a discussion of how to improve the work. The work of a club must have continuity.

"The life of a club, the form and content of club meetings, the work of each member, should be related to and geared towards mass activities--activities against high taxes, inflation, soaring electric and gas bills; activities in the electoral arena, forms of political Independence,; activities in the shops and trade unions; activities in the struggle against racism and for working-class unity; activities based on planned educational and propaganda efforts to raise class and socialist consciousness. And as one of the results of mass work, we should be consciously trying to convince people to join the Party. In all our activities we should be creatively using our press...and mass literature. Club activities should include increasing the circulation of our press as well as using it in our particular struggles and movements.

"On the club level, the Party's general policies and assessments must become specific tasks, involving not masses, but particular people, by name; specific local organizations, by name. To have meaning, tactics must emerge in the writing and distribution of leaflets, mailing out pamphlets; convincing people, one-to-one; making telephone calls; visiting people for subscription renewal and a hundred other seemingly small tasks.

"The responsibility of Communist leadership must include a concern for the spirit of a club meeting, giving encouragement to members, attention to their personal problems, and never being too tired to take part in the nitty-gritty work of the club.

"When the economic and military avenues become restricted, monopoly capital increases its activities in the field of ideology. The deepening of the crisis of capitalism, the sharpening of the contradictions and the process of radicalization are all reflected in a sharpening of the contradictions in the arena of ideology and ideas. Because of this, agitation and propaganda have become frontline necessities for the Party. We must bring them up to date, both in form and content. We must increase both our written and our oral word. The circulation of...(Communist literature)...must become a daily task for every member of the Party.

"In our propaganda work we must master the art of exposing, explaining and then answering the question: what can the people do? In our propaganda we must not be satisfied with talking to ourselves. It is not enough to be right for the record. We must be able to be correct AND convincing. The Party must fight for a public presence. We must fight to break through the blockade of the mass media against the Party...Each member of the Party should become involved in this struggle...

"There should not be a club that does not have a plan for the circulation of the press--neighborhood routes, shop gate distributions. There should not be a club that does not issue at least three leaflets a year. When Party pamphlets come out...each club should work out a specific plan for its circulation and distribution, which includes sales, mailings and other forms of mass distribution. The sale of Marxist books is a task for every member of the Party...

"Mass activities means working with, speaking to and organizing people who are not in the Party. The Party does have instruments of agitation and propaganda. The challenge is to get them into the hands of millions. We have...Marxist-Leninist books and pamphlets...

"When put on paper all this sounds overwhelming. It is obvious there is not one club that is going to be able to carry on all these activities and tasks at the same time. The club leadership should take two or three of the key concepts and work them into a very concrete, realistic club-size plan. A sense of priorities is important. After this is done each club should be devoted mainly to a discussion about these selected tasks. What are the experiences? What should be changed or modified? What are some of the new tasks that have emerged and should be added to the plan?

"The club should always be focused on one or two key tasks, key tasks that influence and move all other areas. A Party club that is not related to mass work is a club that has no clear purpose. A member of the Party who is not active in some form of mass activity becomes isolated. The other side of this coin is that Communists who do participate in mass work, but do not project advanced ideas, do not advance class or socialist consciousness, who forget they are Communists, become isolated politically and ideologically.

"A club purpose should always include a plan based on the specifics. However, it must also be realistic. Fantasy--a purpose developed within the framework of a dream world instead of the real world--will not bring results. Finally, the bottom line, the purpose, of a club must include recruiting, and the plan of work must include special, detailed plans for recruiting. We have to face the truth that with the present size of our Party there are limitations on what we can do or contribute. With our present size we can not fully meet the responsibilities of the present moment. We must face the truth that the Party does not grow spontaneously. As a result of our mass work, the influence of the Party does grow. However, without special efforts this does not result in recruiting. Recruiting is a concrete, year-round task of every member. But without concrete actions, without specific forms and methods--open club meetings, special educationals for the specific purpose of recruiting--without special Party-building drives, without special materials to convince people to join the Party--we are not going to grow fast enough. While raising recruiting to a new level we must also systematize and modernize the education of new members. The system of educating new members and recruiting must go hand-in-hand. " (Gus Hall, The Struggle Ahead, 1979, New Outlook Publishers)

Support ATU 1005 in their Fight for a Good Contract!

Brothers and Sisters,

Statement by the Gus Hall Action Club supporting Support ATU 1005 (the public "bus and train drivers union" in the Twin Cities, Minnesota) in their fight for a good contract:



"The history of all hitherto existing society," Marx and Engels wrote in the Communist Manifesto, "is the history of class struggles." And class struggle runs like a red thread through ATU (the Amalgamated Transit Union) local 1005's fight for a good contract.

State-monopoly capitalism unites the power of capitalist monopolies with that of the state. "The essence of state-monopoly capitalism," Otto Kuusinen said in Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, "is the direct union of the power of capitalist monopolies with the enormous power of the state." And this, in part, explains why Metro Transit is trying to attack union member's wages and healthcare. Metro Transit's "final offer" for a contract was an insult and an attack on the working class. ATU 1005 is now working without a contract as the struggle continues. As ATU 1005's fighting spirit proves, the working class, as Otto Kuusinen pointed out in Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, is "a class of fighters, a class of builders."

ATU 1005's struggle is on behalf of our entire working class. It is in the class interests of all working class people to stand in solidarity with ATU 1005, the "bus and train driver's union," and insist that the union's demands and contract proposals be met in full.

Gus Hall, writing in Working Class USA, had exactly that attitude which all working class folks should have towards ATU 1005's fight for a good contract: "We are for any demand that cuts down on profits, ups wages, cuts down on speedup, shortens hours, protects workers' health."

At the same time as Metro Transit refuses to agree to ATU 1005's efforts for a good contract, they are forcing through bus fare increases. This is another attack on working class people. Don't believe the hype that the union is to blame. Gus Hall said in Basics that "the ideological machinery of capitalism grinds out propaganda against labor in an endless stream, like a sausage machine turns out frankfurters." Bosses and their mouthpieces have always tried to split the ranks of the working class, but, as Otto Kuusinen pointed out in Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, "unity of workers has a firm, objective basis--the community of class interests." Bus riders and drivers have a common interest in ATU 1005's fight for a good contract. An injury to one is an injury to all.

Metro Transit says high fuel costs are to blame for the upcoming bus fare increase. What is a real solution to the high price of fuel? Nationalize the oil, gas and energy industries! Gus Hall wrote in The Energy Rip-Off that "nationalization under democratic people's control can result in real gains for the American people." "Nationalization," Hall says in Working Class USA, is "when an industry is taken over by the government and run for the benefit of the people." Otto Kuusinen points out in Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism that: "Communists insist on nationalization being carried out in a way that really curtails the power of the monopoly capitalists and improves the lot of working people."

It is in the class interests of all working class people to stand in solidarity with ATU 1005, the "bus and train driver's union," and insist that their contract demands and proposals be met in full.

What can you do? Call Metro Transit Council at 651-602-1000 and tell them that you support ATU 1005 and their demands for a good contract. Post a blog or write a letter to the editor of a newspaper supporting ATU 1005 in the contract fight. And make sure that you show the drivers that you support them the next time you get on a bus.

Communist Books

Classics of Marxism-Leninism:

Karl Marx and Frederick Engels: Communist Manifesto. Marx: Capital, Critique of Political Economy, preface; Critique of the Gotha Programme;The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte;Value, Price and Profit; Wage-Labor and Capital. Engels: Anti-Duhring;Ludwig Feuerbach;Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State; Speech at the Graveside of Karl Marx; Socialism, Utopian and Scientific; The Housing Question. V.I. Lenin: Imperialism: the Highest Stage of Capitalism;'Left-Wing' Communism: An Infantile Disorder; Marx-Engels-Marxism; Materialism and Empirio-Criticism; State and Revolution; The Teachings of Karl Marx; Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky; What Is To Be Done?

International Publishers

Other Great Marxist-Leninist Books:
Emile Burns: What is Marxism? (also named Introduction to Marxism). Maurice Cornforth: Historical Materialism; Materialism and the Dialectical Method;Theory of Knowledge. William Z. Foster: American Trade Unionism; History of the Communist Party of the U.S.; Twilight of World Capitalism. Gus Hall: Working Class USA; Fighting Racism. Georgi Dimitrov: Against Fascism and War (Report to the 7th Congress of the Communist International, 1935). Otto Kuusinen, main author, Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism. Roger Keeran and Thomas Kenny: Socialism Betrayed: Behind the Collapse of the Soviet Union. Beatrice Lumpkin: Always Bring a Crowd: The Story of Frank Lumpkin, Steelworker. Stalin: Foundations of Leninism. Victor Perlo: Economics of Racism, Vol. I and II; Superprofits and Crises. Howard Selsam: Dynamics of Social Change; Philosophy of Marxism; What Is Philosophy?. Henry Winston: Class, Race and Black Liberation.

What is Revisionism? A Falsification of Marxism-Leninism

Comrades, Brothers and Sisters,

"Revisionism is by no means novel to the history of the world working class movement. Marxism-Leninism has had to deal with numerous versions of revisionism and opportunism since the end of the 1890s." (Right-Wing Revisionism Today, 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow)

What is revisionism?

Revisionism is not the old-style bourgeois anti-communism that slanders socialism. Nor are bourgeois and petty-bourgeois ideologists who distort the principles of scientific socialism from outside of the Communist movement adequately defined as revisionists. No, REVISIONISTS CALL THEMSELVES MARXISTS, SOCIALISTS AND EVEN COMMUNISTS. "By revisionism, Lenin understood an opportunist trend alien to Marxism and socialism that existed within the revolutionary party of the working class and which, under the guise of Marxism, actually carried out a revision of the fundamental tenets of Marxist theory, replacing the basic principles of that theory by bourgeois and petty-bourgeois ideas." (Right-Wing Revisionism Today, 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow)

V.I. Lenin said that revisionism is "one of the chief, if not the chief, manifestation of bourgeois influence on the proletariat and bourgeois corruption of the workers." (Lenin, Works, Vol. 20) And, while revisionism changes it's forms and accents, "it continues to be a revision of Marxist theory all along the line--i.e., it revises all the component parts of Marxism (philosophy, political economy and scientific communism)." (Right-Wing Revisionism Today, 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow)


(Lenin noted that revisionism swims with the tide of bourgeois ideology)
"Revisionism is an opportunist trend in the worker's movement which is hostile to Marxism-Leninism, and the intent of which is to revise and reconsider the Marxist-Leninist theory. Revisionists reject the scientifically founded tenets on the inevitability of the class struggle in antagonistic society and question the significance of the socialist revolution and the role of the dictatorship of the proletariat as a form of rule by the working class in the transition period from capitalism to socialism." (What Are Classes and the Class Struggle, Progress Publishers, 1986)

Gus Hall, yesteryear's leader of the Communist Party U.S.A., taught that "the struggle for the purity of Marxism-Leninism" against opportunism is crucial. He wrote that: "a classical feature of revisionism is its rejection of the concept of the dictatorship of the proletariat. The line runs as follows: 'We accept such fundamental Marxist-Leninist concepts as the class struggle, but we believe the idea of the proletarian dictatorship must be discarded as being no longer valid.'" (Gus Hall, 'World Workingclass Unity, ' 1969; reprinted in Gus Hall's book Working Class USA, 1987, International Publishers)

And the book, Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, authored primarily by Otto Kuusinen, shares these words: "Modern revisionism seeks to smear the great teaching of Marxism-Leninism, declared that it is 'outmoded' and alleges that it has lost its significance for social progress. The revisionists try to kill the revolutionary spirit of Marxism, to undermine faith in socialism among the working class and the working people in general. They deny the historical necessity for a proletarian revolution and the dictatorship of the proletariat during the period from capitalism to socialism, deny the leading role of the Marxist-Leninist Party, reject the principles of proletarian internationalism and call for rejection of Leninist principles of Party organization and, above all, democratic centralism, for transforming the Communist Party from a militant revolutionary organization into some kind of debating society." ("Declaration, Meeting of Representatives of the Communist and Workers' Parties of the Socialist Countries held in Moscow," Nov. 14, 1957, Moscow, Foreign Languages Publishing House)


(Gus Hall: "revisionism tries to sidestep the basic class issues and proletarian approach.")

Revisionism swims with the tide of bourgeois ideology. "In scientific communism and socio-political ideas, revisionism rejects the theory of the class struggle, the opposing nature of liberalism and socialism, and the dictatorship of the proletariat." The text Right-Wing Revisionism Today points out that "the revisionism of scientific communism lies in the renunciation of the leading role of the working class and its party in the fight for socialism, of the Leninist theory of socialist revolution, of the historical necessity of proletarian dictatorship, of the basic principles of socialist democracy and the Leninist theory of the working-class party." (Right-Wing Revisionism Today, 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow)

Marxism-Leninism holds that a Communist Party must be the vanguard of the working class, i.e., its advanced, class-conscious part, capable of leading the masses in the struggle for the overthrow of capitalism and the building of socialism. V. I. Lenin put it squarely: "By educating the workers' party, Marxism educates the vanguard of the proletariat which is capable of assuming power and of leading the whole people to socialism, of directing and organizing the new order, of being the teacher, the guide, the leader of all the toilers and exploited in the task of building up their social life without the bourgeoisie and against the bourgeoisie." (Lenin, State and Revolution, 1917)

But right revisionism attacks the concept of the Marxist-Leninist vanguard party. Otto Kuusinen, a co-worker of Lenin's, wrote in a text entitled Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism that revisionism aims to liquidate the Party or transform it into a reformist organization.

"The ideologists of revisionism endeavor to 'revise,' or, more exactly, to distort all the fundamental theses of Marxist-Leninist theory...But they have invariable chosen Lenin's teaching on the Party as one of their chief targets. The theoretical and practical efforts of the revisionists are in the final analysis always subordinated to their attempt to liquidate the Party or to transform it into a reformist organization. Under some historical conditions this intention is not even concealed, under others it is disguised." (Otto Kuusinen, et. al., Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, Foreign Languages Publishing House, Moscow)

The revisionist falsification of Marxism-Leninism runs all along the line. "The focal point of revisionism of the economic theory of Marxism is the economic basis of socialism, including its major laws; socialization of the principle means of production (and) economic planning." And revisionists also distort Marxist-Leninist philosophy. (Right-Wing Revisionism Today, 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow)

Read the selected pieces by Lenin in Against Revisionism, in Defence of Marxism.

Revisionism Swims with the Tide of Bourgeois Ideology

Comrades, Brothers and Sisters,

We warmly recommend that folks also read our other posts and definitions against revisionism 'cuz "revisionism strikes when the working people drop their guard and relax their fight against it." ("Right-Wing Revisionism Today, " 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow) I warmly invite us to study more about revisionism.

Revisionism Swims with the Tide of Bourgeois Ideology

I warmly point out that the Soviet book, "Right-Wing Revisionism Today, " points out that:

"Throughout his life, Lenin resolutely fought various opportunist trends. This struggle continued, in the new historical setting, the traditions of Marx and Engels who had created and defended their philosophy in sharp clashes with bourgeois and petty-bourgeois ideas...

"By revisionism, Lenin understood an opportunist trend alien to Marxism and socialism that existed within the revolutionary party of the working class and which, under the guise of Marxism, actually carried out a revision of the fundamental tenets of Marxist theory, replacing the basic principles of that theory by bourgeois and petty-bourgeois ideas. He branded opportunism as a betrayal of the liberation of the working class, as a deal with the class enemy of the proletariat and a siding with the bourgeoisie in politics.

"Under cover of Marxist terminology and a claim to be ’creatively’ developing Marxism, revisionists actually replace Marxism by views that are alien and inimical to it. As Lenin said, revisionists allegedly recognize certain principles of Marxism but, in practice, replace them with bourgeois notions. (Lenin, "Collected Works, " Vol. 21)

"Therefore, the class nature of revisionism is a replacement of Marxism by bourgeois ideas, even though the social roots of revisionist ideas are usually associated with the petty bourgeoisie...

"Lenin noted that revisionism swims with the tide of bourgeois ideology." ("Right-Wing Revisionism Today, " 1976, Progress Publishers, Moscow)

A Vanguard Marxist-Leninist Communist Party

Comrades, Brothers and Sisters,

Revisionism denies both the revolutionary character of and the leading (vanguard) role of the Marxist-Leninist Party. I apologize, my friends, for the long piece, but I realize that this Marxist-Leninist information is not widely available. Please try to read the italicized sections if you study nothing else.

The first section will share information from Otto Kuusinen’s book Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism on the revolutionary character of a Marxist-Leninist Party while the second part of this post will focus on the Communist Party as the vanguard of the working class, i.e., its advanced, class-conscious part, capable of leading the masses in the struggle for the overthrow of capitalism and the building of socialism.


"REVOLUTIONARY CHARACTER OF A MARXIST PARTY.

"Of all the organizations created by the working class, only a political party can give proper expression to the basic interests of the working class and lead it to victory. With the aid of trade unions, mutual aid societies and other similar organizations alone the workers will never be able to put an end to capitalism and build a socialist society. For this the workers need an organization of a higher type, an organization that does not confine itself to the struggle for the satisfaction of the current needs of the working people but aims at bringing the working class to power in order to effect a revolutionary transformation of society. Such an organization is the Communist Party. V.I. Lenin wrote that: ’...in order that the bulk of a certain class may learn to understand its interests and its position, in order that it may learn to pursue its own policies, requires precisely that the advanced elements of this class should be organized immediately and at all costs even if these elements at first constitute a negligible part of the class.’ (Lenin, "Works," Vol. 19, 4th Russian Edition)

"As long as the working class wages only an economic struggle, the bourgeoisie does not see any great danger in that for itself; but when the working class organizes politically, i.e. creates a political party which expresses its will as a class, the bourgeoisie begins seriously to fear for its rule. That is why reaction deals its main blows against the political party of the working class. At the same time, trying to undermine the Party from within, capitalist propaganda endeavors to persuade the workers that they can do without their own party...

"...V.I. Lenin wrote: ’Only a political party of the working class, i.e., a Communist party, is capable of uniting, educating and organizing such a vanguard of the proletariat and the whole mass of working people, a vanguard which alone is able to resist the inevitable petty-bourgeois vacillations of this mass, the inevitable traditions and relapses of trade-union narrowness or trade-unionist prejudices amidst the proletariat, i.e., to lead the proletariat politically and through it to lead all the masses of the working people.’ (Lenin, "Works," Vol. 32, 4th Russian Edition)

"However, not every political party claiming the leadership of the working class is capable of accomplishing this task. This is evident from the experience of the Social-Democratic Parties of the Second International. Acting through the opportunist leaders of Social-Democracy, the bourgeoisie was able to a considerable extent to bring these parties under its influence, to ’tame’ them and make them barely indistinguishable from the usual bourgeois parliamentary opposition. As a result, the Social-Democratic Parties, which at first raised high hopes in the working class, lost their ability to organize and lead the working class movement. This was particularly evident when all the social contradictions engendered by the epoch of imperialism became extremely aggravated.

"Objective reality and the interests of the proletariat made the creation of working-class parties of a new type a matter of imperative necessity.

"The first such party was successfully built in Russia, where the imperialist contradictions were particularly sharp. At the end of the 1890s, V.I. Lenin raised the banner of struggle against opportunism in the ranks of Social-Democracy. This struggle set an example for the revolutionary movement throughout the world...

"...The main thing that characterizes the parties of the new type is their irreconcilability to capitalism. The Communists are waging an active struggle for its abolition, for a revolutionary transformation of capitalist society, for they hold that only the taking of political power by the working class and the establishment of a dictatorship of the proletariat are essential conditions for this transformation. Hence the intolerance displayed by Communists for all forms of opportunism, which in practice signifies adaptation to capitalism.

"The Communist Parties do not act blindly, groping in the dark, but...(must be)...guided by the revolutionary theory of Marxism-Leninism which scientifically expresses the fundamental interests of the working class. The Party is a voluntary union of like-minded persons for the purpose of applying the Marxist world outlook and carrying out the historic mission of the working class." (Otto Kuusinen, et al, Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, Foreign Languages Publishing House, Moscow)

"VANGUARD OF THE WORKING CLASS AND ALL WORKING PEOPLE.

"The Communist Party is the vanguard of the working class, i.e., its advanced, class-conscious part, capable of leading the masses in the struggle for the overthrow of capitalism and the building of socialism. V.I. Lenin wrote: ’By educating the workers’ party, Marxism educates the vanguard of the proletariat which is capable of assuming power and of leading the whole people to socialism, of directing and organizing the new order, of being the teacher, the guide, the leader of all the toilers and exploited in the task of building up their social life without the bourgeoisie and against the bourgeoisie.’ (Lenin, State and Revolution, 1917)

"The party of the proletariat--a Communist Party--while being a class party has at the same time deep roots not only among the workers but also among other sections of the people.

"Communists are in no way peculiar people; they are plain workers, peasants, intellectuals, in a word, ordinary people. But they are distinguished by their greater class-consciousness, ideological steadfastness and, consequently, more intense revolutionary character and readiness to face any ordeal for the sake of the lofty idea which they have united to realize. Their life is bound up with the interests of the people and they are deeply concerned with everything that agitates the peoples minds...

"...History shows us that before becoming real vanguards the revolutionary parties usually pass through a number of stages of political and organizational development. At the outset they are, more often than not, propagandist groups and their work is conducted mainly within their own ranks. This is necessary to ensure ideological unity, educate the membership and improve the organization. Then comes the time when the parties go to the masses and begin to lead strikes and mass actions of the working class. This period is very important for it signifies the merging of the spontaneous working-class movement with the ideas of socialism and its transformation into a class-conscious, organized movement. In the next stage the party becomes a real political force capable of leading not only the majority of the working class but also considerable masses of the people.

"In some capitalist countries the Communist Parties have not yet been able to win the broad masses of the working class and have not yet become mass parties. As the vanguard uniting the most class-conscious section of the working-class in its ranks, they play no small part in the life and struggle of working people. It is clear, however, that they will be able to play a still greater part when they unite the masses around themselves. Then they will become a real political force capable of leading the workers to social emancipation, to the building of a new society.

"The speed with which a party passes from one stage to another depends on objective conditions, as well as on the correctness of its own policies and the ability of its leadership..." (Otto Kuusinen, et al, Fundamentals of Marxism-Leninism, Foreign Languages Publishing House, Moscow)