We must not falter

FOR WORLD SOCIALISM

The biggest question for socialists is whether we can build a permanent organisation that can carry forward the political revolution in the long-term; or whether, like so many other previous attempts it quickly dissipates and disappears. There has rarely been a better opportunity to create and build an effective socialist organisation than now. The historical moment is right, with millions now understanding how rigged the economic and political system has become.  We’re at a historical turning point where it is imperative to halt and reverse climate change. Of course, socialists still have a long way to go. Many of the people now declaring themselves socialists aren’t clear about what they mean by the word and it’s safe to guess that they are merely referring to a welfare state and increased government regulation that Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn speak of. Common ownership of the means of production is not yet on their agenda. But this increased interest in socialism generally does make it clear that discontent with decades of stagnating wages and the pain caused by the 2008 economic crisis are starting to take a political form. For millions, the many problems of capitalism are no longer seen as individual problems or the result of personal mistakes but instead, the remind people that the difficulties they face are not their fault and that they deserve more than they are getting. They are looking for collective (class) solutions to social problems. They are beginning to realise that capitalism is an economic system which sacrifices workers to the logic of the capitalist market.

 The role of a socialist party is to offer a direction for this discontent and anger, to name and shame the forces and individuals that benefit from the way society is run and from how the world’s resources are distributed, the capitalists and their politician lackeys. People are stirring again. The era of "me-ism" is drawing to a close. People are awakening again. The courage, imagination and commitment required to begin the journey to a better, just and peaceful world are returning and growing stronger. Our collective voice of protest is shattering the silence once more. Now is not the time to falter. No one said the socialist revolution would be easy. We must remain engaged and engage with others. The greatest problem we have is that many of our fellow-workers can’t imagine any alternative. And that is the challenge: to invent, create and think as if we were living just after the collapse of capitalism, and how we will organise. The socialist movement must endeavor to deepen our relationships to one another, and to reinvent ways of being that are rooted in horizontal solidarity, sharing, and democracy. We cannot legitimise the power of the state through policies of begging and petitioning for reforms. In our revolution, we cannot substitute intermediaries for class participation. We begin with our needs, and from there we decide what we want. The solution is based firmly on the principle of sharing and it that which holds the key to addressing the whole spectrum of interconnected social, economic and environmental challenges we face in the critical period ahead. 

It is becoming increasingly apparent that our political and economic system is not run by the people, but controlled by the economic elite in their own private interest. The World Socialist Movement aims to build a peaceful, people-powered revolution, creating a society that benefits the many and not the few, where our world is founded on economic security and shared resources. We do not live in a world of scarcity. We do not need continuous economic growth through the conquest of nature because there is enough for everyone to live peacefully and prosperously on the planet. Greed, competition, violence should not be regarded as natural phenomena. This is the time for taking care of each other, relying on one another, for our well-being is interconnected. Socialism brings resiliency and freedom. Climate change crisis and ecological devastation forces upon us the possibilities for reshaping how we live.