First Published: The Call, Vol. 6, No. 20, May 23, 1977.
Transcription, Editing and Markup: Paul Saba
Copyright: This work is in the Public Domain under the Creative Commons Common Deed. You can freely copy, distribute and display this work; as well as make derivative and commercial works. Please credit the Encyclopedia of Anti-Revisionism On-Line as your source, include the url to this work, and note any of the transcribers, editors & proofreaders above.
Comrades:
We support the work of the Organizing Committee for a Marxist-Leninist Party (OC), which is uniting Marxist-Leninists around the country in forming a communist party.
The need for a Marxist-Leninist party arose because of the betrayal of the Communist Party (CPUSA). More than 20 years ago, the modern revisionists of the CPUSA turned the once revolutionary organization into a revisionist, social-imperialist party.
The new Party is among many formed or forming around the world which are opposing modern revisionism. Revisionism is a reactionary trend represented by parties in many countries, holding state power in several countries and having a center in the social-imperialist USSR.
Long quiet in Portland, the CPUSA has recently opened a bookstore and initiated and taken part in many actions. The CPUSA is the main danger to the Marxist-Leninist movement. Their task is to mislead the working class movement against the U.S. bourgeoisie into support for the imperialist Soviet Union. In the course of building a strong Marxist-Leninist party and mass movement, the new Party must defeat the CPUSA, keeping it from taking leadership in the movement and exposing its bankrupt ideas and practice.
At this time, the main task of the new Communist Party is to win over the advanced workers. This will serve as the basis to unite the masses of people under the leadership of the working class. This unity will greatly strengthen the fight-back against the crisis in capitalism and the struggle against the growing threat of war between the two superpowers.
The Party will take up the demands of national minorities against national oppression, including the right of self-determination for Afro-Americans in the Black Belt South, regional autonomy for Chicanos in the Southwest, and full democratic rights for all national minorities. The Party will lead the movement for women’s emancipation and fight against all forms of oppression and discrimination against women.
The crisis in capitalism and the threat of a new world war has led to many spontaneous and scattered struggles by the working class and all oppressed people against the imperialist system. The Party’s leadership will bring continuity to these struggles and turn them into a revolutionary and well-organized mass movement.
Unity around a Marxist-Leninist political line and program is essential to carry these struggles through to socialist revolution.
The Call/El Clarin, as a national Marxist-Leninist newspaper, is playing a major role in building unity among Marxist-Leninists and the working class. Through reading and distributing The Call/El Clarin, we have become active participants in the growing unity trend. It has shown us that the ideological struggles within the movement in Portland are going on all around the country.
For example, the United Front Bookstore in Portland represents the local-circle mentality. There has been a long struggle over the international situation and the need for Marxist-Leninist unity. The bookstore collective has not taken a stand on any major questions. This so-called “lack of stand” has led the store into a definite stand in which the majority of members don’t recognize the danger of revisionism and the USSR and are willing to unite with the revisionists. By not drawing a clear line of demarcation between Marxism-Leninism and revisionism, the bookstore collective’s practice has been to neglect bringing communist ideas to the working class.
In order to be effective, we have learned that we must break with revisionism, economism, sexism, and national chauvinism, which are typical to local-circle activities. The program, planned strategy and discipline of a party will bring the working class a concrete plan of action. As a result, the amateurish local struggles will become part of the national and international united front against imperialism.
We wholeheartedly support the formation of the new Communist Party. We will do everything we can to actively build the Party and participate by uniting with its revolutionary leadership.
BUILD THE PARTY! MARXIST-LENINISTS UNITE!
Red Star Unity Collective, Portland, Oregon