“A Guide to Action To Bring About Change in the World” - Lenin 100 Years Later With Paul Le Blanc
Jan 21, 2024
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Paul Le Blanc, an activist and historian, discusses Lenin's flexibility, his belief in Marxism as a guide to action, the concept of the United Front, Lenin's analysis of imperialism and authoritarianism, and his insights on bringing about change in today's world.
Lenin saw Marxism as a guide to action, promoting flexibility and understanding of changing realities.
Lenin emphasized the importance of global solidarity, with revolutions needed worldwide for the success of socialism.
Lenin's perspective on authoritarianism evolved, seeking ways to combat bureaucratization within the Communist Party leadership.
Deep dives
Lenin's Flexibility and Understanding of Marxism
Lenin embraced Marxism as a guide to action rather than a dogma, emphasizing the need to understand the changing realities of capitalism and the working class. He recognized the importance of flexibility in applying Marxist principles to different contexts and the necessity of actively working to bring about change and solve problems. Lenin's approach was focused on practicality and the understanding that ordinary people could make a difference in shaping the world.
The Importance of Revolutionary Internationalism
Lenin emphasized the need for socialists and workers across all countries to unite and fight against their ruling classes, recognizing that capitalism is a global system. He believed that revolutions in different parts of the world were necessary for the success of socialism in any particular country. Lenin's focus on revolutionary internationalism highlighted the importance of learning from and cooperating with workers' movements in other countries, as victories and defeats in one area would impact the overall struggle for socialism.
Navigating Authoritarianism and Bureaucratization
Lenin's response to authoritarianism and bureaucratization within the early Soviet government was complex and evolved over time. Initially, he played a role in creating a machine of power to tackle the challenges faced during the Russian Revolution and Civil War. However, Lenin became increasingly critical of the bureaucratic apparatus and its negative impact on the revolutionary aspirations of democracy and socialism. Towards the end of his life, Lenin actively sought ways to combat bureaucratization and wrote a testament highlighting the need for change within the Communist Party leadership.
Lenin's insight into imperialism and resistance to patriotism
Lenin, along with Rosa Luxembourg and other Marxists before World War I, developed an understanding and analysis of imperialism. They recognized that imperialism, driven by capitalists and governments, caused violence against the peoples of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and working classes in advanced capitalist countries. Lenin resisted the pressure to cave in to patriotic sentiments and emphasized the necessity of resistance, foreseeing the catastrophe of World War I rooted in the dynamics of the global capitalist economy.
Lenin's approach to democracy and democratic internal organization
Lenin believed in the importance of democracy both within the larger society and within revolutionary organizations. He emphasized the need for internal democracy and open discussion within revolutionary movements. Lenin's approach involved collective decision-making, majority decision-taking, and the respect for various perspectives. He advocated for democratic participation, involving workers, peasants, intellectuals, and people with different experiences and insights. Lenin recognized the importance of collaborating with grassroots movements and adopting a cooperative approach to develop a revolutionary organization.
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Vladimir Lenin. A couple months ago we had the pleasure of speaking with Paul Le Blanc, the author of a new book entitled Lenin: Responding to Catastrophe, Forging Revolution.
Paul Le Blanc is an activist dating all the way back to Students for a Democratic Society or SDS in the 1960’s. He is also an acclaimed historian who teaches at La Roche University in Pennsylvania. He is the author of too many books to name, but several on Lenin, Trotsky, CLR James, Rosa Luxemburg and other revolutionaries and movements.
We talk to Le Blanc about Lenin’s flexibility, his understanding of Marxism as not a dogma, but a guide to action, his belief that ordinary people could and must change the world, and his childhood. We also get into the concept of the United Front, Lenin’s experiences working with individuals who did not share his ideology, his understanding of dialectics, and his fierce commitment to struggle and to constant learning from struggle. Paul shares some thoughts on Lenin’s analysis of imperialism, his concept of revolutionary defeatism, and the question of authoritarianism, bureaucratization, and democracy through examples in Lenin’s life and leadership as well as what he advocated on these issues at the end of his life.
We close with some thoughts from Le Blanc on today and the type of approach he thinks organizations and parties need to undertake in today’s world in order to change it once again before it’s too late.
We deeply appreciate Paul Le Blanc for taking the time to talk to us about his book which is available now from Pluto Press.
We would like to thank Aidan Elias who did the lion’s share of the production work on this episode.
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