Marcin Adam (Poland) – The monster of anticommunism and its invisible enemies
The communist and workers movement continues the struggle for the future all over the world. It is obviously at a different stage and level in each country and region. In the countries where communist parties almost don’t exist, as well as in the countries where working class is achieving significant successes, where communist and workers’ parties are ruling the state -the struggle for
social consciousness is basically everywhere.
In this contribution I would like to focus on those countries where communist parties are substantially weak, discriminated, oppressed and threatened.
However, some conclusions you may also find useful in the countries where our parties are relatively strong and present in the public life because they are also subjected to the pressure of a very special kind.
If we take take an example of Parties who are in the relatively better situation, that have some human and material means, even some parliamentary representation and state donation, their means
are nothing in comparison with the means (especially material, financial means) that are used and spent every year, every month for huge anticommunist campaigns in those countries.
Whereas communist parties in the countries like Poland have been excluded form a public discussion for twenty years, they are lacking basic means for their existence, anticommunism turned into an industry, disposing a whole range of instruments. These are state’s and privately owned institutions, that were created almost directly to fight with Communism, like Polish Institute of National Memory, or indirectly, but fully engaged, like schools, mass-media. They employ the army of historians, journalists, experts of public relations, movie creators and others.
Somebody could say “it is just the anger of people who experienced Communism”. But as we see it is not the case. It’s rather a money-hungry, artificial monster, created and directed by a relatively small group of people disposing of huge amounts of material means. It realizes a well-considered, carefully planned strategy, targeted at public opinion, to convince people that Communism is not only just “bad”, but that it’s the worst evil ever experienced by the human kind.
To convince those who are not yet convinced. To incite the young generation against the old one. At last to transform those attitudes into a real hatred and use it as an excuse to criminalize Communism with no right to a public advocate.
What seems to be the most intriguing in this situation, are on the one hand anticommunist propaganda claims that there are almost no opponents to its basic allegations, because they are so obvious, but on the other hand it absorbs such a large scale of means and acts as if it had to fight against a real, strong and powerful enemy!
Is it just a typical nonsense? If it was a nonsense, would it be escalated every year and in almost all capitalist countries?
The architects of the capitalist systems and its ideology must have recognized real and serious social factors and found them challenging for their power and their system. They must have also identified those factors – not accidentally – with Communism.
Communism became clearly their obsession and nightmare.
Obviously, the situation is nothing new to us and has not started just recently. It was known already at the time when the Communist Manifesto was written, noticed and pointed out by its authors.
The first question for us is: can we really avoid a direct confrontation with the anticommunist machinery? Can we just ignore its attacks and pretend they don’t concern us? Can we ever get rid of them without the a direct confrontation?
No, we cannot. We can have good, progressive programmes, create progressive alliance, establish a front of trade unions, but all our efforts will come to nothing if we do not stand against anticommunism directly and firmly resist it.
How can we manage this as we have almost nothing, in comparison to our powerful enemies?
The key point is that since we have no power, we can use the power of our enemies as much as possible.
Whenever an anticommunist campaign is launched it unintentionally draws the attention of the public also on its opposite side. It is obvious for any observer that the battle must have the other party. People are looking for this party: where is this enemy? Even if they don’t see them on the scene, they try to to find it behind or at least to imagine one.
Anyway they expect us to exist. These expectations have been so obvious and strong that anticommunists had to develop artificial enemies in the form of so-called “postcommunists”. In fact these were very carefully selected convenient opponents that admit all anticommunist arguments and only excuse “shameful past” in a very unclear way.
In this way the situation very bad and hard for us may achieve the turning point. At this point we will stand in the center of attention.
We need to stand there and openly say: “yes, there is the other party of this battle. This is the Communist Party!”
In this way we will not only be able to speak out but also we will be heard at last. This way we will also point out and disprove the first lie of an anticommunism, showing that there are people who are ready to advocate Communism and that Communism is worth of being advocated.
What is the picture of Communism created by the anticommunist campaigns if we sum up commonly used arguments together?
“Communism was something totally unusual in the history of mankind. Just a development of crazy minds. It came from nowhere and by a strange accident. It had no social base, no historical reasons.
It was totally wrong about everything. It brought mass enslavement, murders and hunger, crimes against humanity. Only god can know how could it happen that the essence of evil had spread all over the world, affected three main continents where it worked for several decades and is still present. Only the Devil himself could support this phenomenon”.
Does it make sense for whole generations, that grown up in socialist countries? Who benefited of social improvement, got accommodation, education, jobs? Finally got much better social relations, basing on the equality, sincerity and safety? No, usually it doesn’t make sense. It simply doesn’t add up!
The history has shown that even such historical victory as was achieved in Russia in October 1917 isn’t given forever. A lot of achievements seem to be lost after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
However, what we need to remember is that the victory of the Great October’s Revolution started the process of transforming the world. This process has been slowed down and even partially reversed, but never actually stopped.
The collapse affected the material base of socialism in several countries, including the one that started the revolutionary process. However, the base for socialism is still being prepared in some countries in the world. Communist Parties are still ruling China, North Korea, Cuba and Vietnam.
Communist Party gained power in Nepal. Progressive forces, including communists, are making social changes in Venezuela and Bolivia.
In countries where the base of socialism has been destroyed, the elements of socialist superstructure in the social consciousness are still present. The consciousness of socialist society couldn’t be destroyed as fast as the base. It started to weaken in the decade preceding the collapse of the base that weakness was used by the counterrevolution. However it recovered and even strengthened itself during the period of transition. Its elements are still vital. They survived many attempts of total extirpation. They survived also the generation shift in spite of many measures taken against it.
This phenomenon is often described by its opponents as just a kind of nostalgia, sometimes as something funny, sometimes as dangerous. But it is obviously noticed.
The role the Communist Party has to play in such circumstances is to be a kind of a social committee to fight and oppose anticommunism. To denounce its lies and obscurantism. To show its open and hidden methods and aims. To catch all real social factors the whole anticommunist machinery is actually targeted at.
To convince those who are not yet convinced. To incite the young generation against the old one. At last to transform those attitudes into a real hatred and use it as an excuse to criminalize Communism with no right to a public advocate.
What seems to be the most intriguing in this situation, are on the one hand anticommunist propaganda claims that there are almost no opponents to its basic allegations, because they are so obvious, but on the other hand it absorbs such a large scale of means and acts as if it had to fight against a real, strong and powerful enemy!
Is it just a typical nonsense? If it was a nonsense, would it be escalated every year and in almost all capitalist countries?
The architects of the capitalist systems and its ideology must have recognized real and serious social factors and found them challenging for their power and their system. They must have also identified those factors – not accidentally – with Communism.
Communism became clearly their obsession and nightmare.
Obviously, the situation is nothing new to us and has not started just recently. It was known already at the time when the Communist Manifesto was written, noticed and pointed out by its authors.
The first question for us is: can we really avoid a direct confrontation with the anticommunist machinery? Can we just ignore its attacks and pretend they don’t concern us? Can we ever get rid of them without the a direct confrontation?
No, we cannot. We can have good, progressive programmes, create progressive alliance, establish a front of trade unions, but all our efforts will come to nothing if we do not stand against anticommunism directly and firmly resist it.
How can we manage this as we have almost nothing, in comparison to our powerful enemies?
The key point is that since we have no power, we can use the power of our enemies as much as possible.
Whenever an anticommunist campaign is launched it unintentionally draws the attention of the public also on its opposite side. It is obvious for any observer that the battle must have the other party. People are looking for this party: where is this enemy? Even if they don’t see them on the scene, they try to to find it behind or at least to imagine one.
Anyway they expect us to exist. These expectations have been so obvious and strong that anticommunists had to develop artificial enemies in the form of so-called “postcommunists”. In fact these were very carefully selected convenient opponents that admit all anticommunist arguments and only excuse “shameful past” in a very unclear way.
In this way the situation very bad and hard for us may achieve the turning point. At this point we will stand in the center of attention.
We need to stand there and openly say: “yes, there is the other party of this battle. This is the Communist Party!”
In this way we will not only be able to speak out but also we will be heard at last. This way we will also point out and disprove the first lie of an anticommunism, showing that there are people who are ready to advocate Communism and that Communism is worth of being advocated.
What is the picture of Communism created by the anticommunist campaigns if we sum up commonly used arguments together?
“Communism was something totally unusual in the history of mankind. Just a development of crazy minds. It came from nowhere and by a strange accident. It had no social base, no historical reasons.
It was totally wrong about everything. It brought mass enslavement, murders and hunger, crimes against humanity. Only god can know how could it happen that the essence of evil had spread all over the world, affected three main continents where it worked for several decades and is still present. Only the Devil himself could support this phenomenon”.
Does it make sense for whole generations, that grown up in socialist countries? Who benefited of social improvement, got accommodation, education, jobs? Finally got much better social relations, basing on the equality, sincerity and safety? No, usually it doesn’t make sense. It simply doesn’t add up!
The history has shown that even such historical victory as was achieved in Russia in October 1917 isn’t given forever. A lot of achievements seem to be lost after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
However, what we need to remember is that the victory of the Great October’s Revolution started the process of transforming the world. This process has been slowed down and even partially reversed, but never actually stopped.
The collapse affected the material base of socialism in several countries, including the one that started the revolutionary process. However, the base for socialism is still being prepared in some countries in the world. Communist Parties are still ruling China, North Korea, Cuba and Vietnam.
Communist Party gained power in Nepal. Progressive forces, including communists, are making social changes in Venezuela and Bolivia.
In countries where the base of socialism has been destroyed, the elements of socialist superstructure in the social consciousness are still present. The consciousness of socialist society couldn’t be destroyed as fast as the base. It started to weaken in the decade preceding the collapse of the base that weakness was used by the counterrevolution. However it recovered and even strengthened itself during the period of transition. Its elements are still vital. They survived many attempts of total extirpation. They survived also the generation shift in spite of many measures taken against it.
This phenomenon is often described by its opponents as just a kind of nostalgia, sometimes as something funny, sometimes as dangerous. But it is obviously noticed.
The role the Communist Party has to play in such circumstances is to be a kind of a social committee to fight and oppose anticommunism. To denounce its lies and obscurantism. To show its open and hidden methods and aims. To catch all real social factors the whole anticommunist machinery is actually targeted at.