The Comintern Publishing Project

John Riddell, general editor (emeritus)
Mike Taber, managing editor

The Comintern Publishing Project was begun in 1983 under the general editorship of John Riddell, with the goal of letting the Communist International under Lenin speak for itself. Through accurate translations, and with annotation to enable modern-day readers to understand the historical references and know the individuals involved, the series has sought to make its volumes accessible to working people, youth, and political activists, as well as to scholars and specialists. Its early volumes were published by Pathfinder Press. Overwhelmingly, the material in its volumes are published for the first time in English. Subsequent titles have been published by the Historical Materialism Book Series, with hardback editions produced by Brill and paperback editions by Haymarket Books.

Lenin’s Struggle for a Revolutionary International:
Documents 1907–1916, The Preparatory Years

Edited by John Riddell

In the years leading up to World War I, V.I. Lenin sought to organize a left wing within the Second International, based around a consistent revolutionary line. Then, after the outbreak of the war, Lenin called for a decisive break with the Second International and the creation of a new, Third International. This volume includes key documents of that struggle: debates at Second International congresses; competing reactions to the war; proceedings of the Zimmerwald Conference of 1915; controversies within the Zimmerwald Left; and much more. Issues debated included the nature of imperialism, the right of nations to self-determination, the struggle against war, and how to build international working-class unity.

Published 1984 by Pathfinder Press. Available through Amazon.com or pathfinderpress.com

The German Revolution and the Debate on Soviet Power:
Documents 1918–1919, Preparing the Founding Congress

Edited by John Riddell

The documents in this volume record the first months of the November 1918 German Revolution, which forced an abrupt end to World War I and opened the door to a major advance for the world revolution. Recorded here are the contending positions of German Communist and Social Democratic leaders such as Rosa Luxemburg, Karl Liebknecht, Karl Kautsky, and Friedrich Ebert, and debates within the German Communist Party. Included are comments on the German events by Bolshevik leaders including V.I. Lenin, Leon Trotsky, and Karl Radek; the debate between Kautsky and Lenin on Soviet power in Russia; and preparations for the March 1919 founding congress of the Comintern.

Published 1986 by Pathfinder Press. Available through Amazon.com or pathfinderpress.com

Founding the Communist International:
Proceedings and Documents of the First Congress, March 1919

Edited by John Riddell

In March 1919 delegates from 20 countries discussed the revolutionary upsurge that swept Central Europe and Asia following World War I, and decided to launch the Third, Communist International. This volume contains the proceedings of this historic congress, including all the congress debates, oral and written reports, and the resolutions adopted. It provides a compelling picture of the young world Communist movement at a time of worldwide revolutionary advance.

Published 1987 by Pathfinder Press. Available through Amazon.com or pathfinderpress.com

Workers of the World and Oppressed Peoples, Unite!
Proceedings and Documents of the Second Congress, 1920

Edited by John Riddell

The Comintern’s Second Congress of 1920 was the scene of numerous debates, with contending positions from both left and right on key questions of working-class strategy and program: the fight for national liberation, the revolutionary transformation of trade unions, the worker-peasant alliance, participation in bourgeois parliaments and elections, and the structure and tasks of Communist Parties. The decisions taken by the Second Congress laid the foundation for the early Comintern.

Two volumes. Published 1991 by Pathfinder Press. Available through Amazon.com or pathfinderpress.com

To See the Dawn:
Baku, 1920 – First Congress of the Peoples of the East

Edited by John Riddell

The Baku Congress of 1920 was convened by the Communist International, at a time when revolutionary struggles in Central Asia and much of Europe were giving hope for a new dawn for the world’s toilers. This book contains the complete record of that historic event. Attended by 2,000 delegates, predominantly from Central Asia, the Baku Congress discussed questions such as: How can peasants and workers in the colonial world throw off imperialist exploitation? How can they overcome national and religious divisions incited by their own ruling classes and fight for their common class interests?

Published 1993 by Pathfinder Press. Available through Amazon.com or pathfinderpress.com

Toward the United Front:
Proceedings of the Fourth Congress of the Communist International, 1922

Edited by John Riddell

The last Comintern congress in which Lenin participated discussed numerous questions that remain subjects of interest and debate today: building united fronts; the workers’ and peasants’ government; the anti-imperialist united front; transitional demands; international organization; and more. With a rich spectrum of viewpoints among delegates, debates also occurred over the birth of fascism, the decay of the Versailles Treaty system, the rise of colonial revolution, and women’s emancipation.

Published 2012 by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket). Available here

To the Masses:
Proceedings of the Third Congress of the Communist International, 1921

Edited by John Riddell

The Third Comintern Congress was the scene of an intense political struggle, in which Lenin and Trotsky, initially a minority, were able to win over a majority of the delegates. The main debate pitted the perspective of confrontational initiatives by a resolute minority versus that of winning majority working-class support on the road to the revolutionary conquest of power. The debate concluded with a classic formulation of Communist strategy and tactics. Another important debate took place over Soviet Russia and its just-adopted New Economic Policy (NEP). The congress proceedings are supplemented by thirty-two appendices, most never before published in any language, portraying delegates’ behind-the-scenes exchanges.

Published 2015 by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket). Available here.

The Communist Movement at a Crossroads:
Plenums of the Communist International’s Executive Committee, 1922–1923

Edited by Mike Taber

This volume contains the proceedings and resolutions from three expanded meetings of the Executive Committee of the Communist International held in 1922–1923. At these ‘mini-congresses’, Communist leaders from around the world debated major strategic questions and initiatives, from united front policy to the fight against fascism. The material in this book is an essential source for understanding the world revolutionary movement in Lenin’s time, as well as the subsequent evolution of the Comintern.

Published 2018 by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket). Available here.

The Communist Women’s Movement, 1920–1922:
Proceedings, Resolutions, and Reports.

Edited by Mike Taber and Daria Dyakonova

The Communist Women’s Movement (CWM), virtually unknown today, was the world's first truly international revolutionary organization of women. Formed in 1920, the CWM mapped out a program for women’s emancipation; participated in struggles for women’s rights; and worked to advance women’s participation in the Communist movement. The present volume contains proceedings and resolutions of CWM conferences, along with reports on its work around the world. Most of the contents here are published in English for the first time, with almost half appearing for the first time in any language.

Published 2022 by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket). Available here.

The Founding of the Red Trade Union International:
Proceedings and Resolutions of the First Congress, 1921

Edited by Mike Taber

The founding congress of the Red International of Labor Unions (also known as the Profintern) in 1921 set out to build a world movement of trade unions able to draw millions of working people into the revolutionary struggle, in close association with the Communist International. The congress brought together a wide variety of forces in the world labor movement; among the participants were internationally prominent figures such as Big Bill Haywood and Tom Mann. Lively and at times acrimonious debates with syndicalist and other currents took place on the purpose and tasks of trade unions, the nature of class-struggle unionism, and union strategy and tactics.

To be published 2024 (paperback 2025) by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket).

Revolutionary Youth:
The Communist Youth International, 1919–1923

Edited by Mike Taber and Bob Schwarz

The Communist Youth International (CYI), which grew directly out of the socialist youth movement affiliated to the Second International in the early years of the twentieth century, went on to play an instrumental role in establishing the Comintern. The present volume contains the proceedings and resolutions of its first two congresses in 1919 and 1921, published for the first time in English; also included are documents from other CYI conferences and leadership meetings. Debates at these gatherings took place over militarism, “youth vanguardism,” and CYI-Comintern relations, with constant discussion over the nature and tasks of revolutionary youth organizations.

To be published by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket).

Spinoff volumes by John Riddell and Mike Taber

Under the Socialist Banner:
Resolutions of the Second International 1889–1912.

Edited by Mike Taber

Published in 2021 by Haymarket Books. Available here.

Reform, Revolution, and Opportunism:
Debates in the Second International, 1900–1910

Edited by Mike Taber

Published in 2023 by Haymarket Books. Available here.

Liberate the Colonies!
Communism and Colonial Freedom, 1917–1924

Edited by John Riddell, Vijay Prashad, and Nazeef Mollah

Published in 2019 by Leftword Books. Available here.

Fighting Fascism:
How to Struggle and How to Win

By Clara Zetkin. Edited by Mike Taber and John Riddell

Published in 2017 by Haymarket Books. Available here.

Lenin’s Comintern Revisted

By John Riddell

To be published by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket).

Associated volumes

Alliance of Adversaries:
The Congress of the Toilers of the Far East

Edited by John Sexton

Published in 2018 by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket). Available here.

The Latin American Revolutionary Movement:
Proceedings of the First Latin American Communist Conference, June 1929

Edited by Marc Becker

Published 2023 by the Historical Materialism Book Series (Brill/Haymarket).