For a Workers’ World, For Worker’s Unity

The Socialist Party stands for world socialism and the overthrow of world capitalism. There is only one class capable of achieving a socialist world: the working class. Nationalism preaches to the people of a nation or national group that regardless of class they have more in common with one another than they do with the people of other nations. Nationalism helps bind the working class to the ruling class of its nation. Nationalism delivers working people into the hands of the exploiters of their own nationality. Since the time of Marx, class conscious workers have combated the capitalists’ patriotic appeals with calls for the international solidarity of the working class. They have fought the attempts to enlist the workers in nationalist strivings with appeals to join the class struggle of the workers of all countries against world capitalism.

Socialism unites the working people of the world against the capitalists. The Socialist Party says that working people’s destiny must not be tied to the capitalists. It says that the world’s working class must determine its own destiny. We are aimed at overcoming the nationalist and racist ideas that stand in the way of establishing socialism. We do not fan the flames of nationalism that fosters divisions among the working class. A socialist is an internationalist. It is nationalism that can divide the workers so that the workers of one nationality are struggling against the workers of another nationality for a few illusory crumbs. It is nationalism that pits worker against worker, while their mutual oppressors fill their pockets. Nationalism means exclusivity and isolation. Any nationalism finally implies that some people are better than others because of their place of birth. Nationalism teaches superiority and inferiority.

No matter how much the capitalists compete with one another, it’s always the working class that they attack first when their system of exploitation doesn’t produce the results it is supposed to. With the kind of difficulties that they face these days  around the world, they are getting steadily more aggressive with their austerity policies. Every time one group or sector of working people is attacked – whether it is immigrants or young people – the capitalists will try to weaken them by keeping them isolated. The working class must respond quickly, strongly and join their fight disunity caused by national divisions. The working class will be firmly on the road to revolution, if it starts now to reject all the appeals from the nationalists of various hues and stripes. The working class has one overriding responsibility, and that is to engage in the various struggles against the ruling class on all fronts. This includes adopting fully the internationalism of our class. That means denouncing patriotism.

Scottish nationalism is increasingly being identified for what it really is – the policy that wants to develop Scotland for the benefit of business interests. They give themselves a progressive image, but in fact it still leads to the same dead-end and the progressive rhetoric are quickly revealed. Nationalism’s  method is always the same – radical opportunism. We must treat like the plague those so-called revolutionaries who spend their time emphasising national particularities. Working people must refuse to play along with the independence fraud. Their interests do not lie in choosing “their exploiters”, nor in arbitrating the difference among various factions of the exploiting class. The only legitimate response towards Indyref2 will be to boycott the referendum by abstaining or, better, by spoiling one’s ballot.

The Socialist Party will agitate against every form and manifestation of national and racial prejudice; against every nationalism. We raise the red banner of raise again the historic battle-cry of the international revolutionary movement. “Workers of the world, unite!”

Don't vote for capitalism, Don't vote for nationalism