From the Editors: The Meaning of January 6
From the Editors: The Meaning of January 6
The January 6th storming of the Capitol led directly to the 2nd Impeachment of Donald Trump. Government and corporate leaders fought intensely over that, which only masked how united they have become about imposing new forms of fascism on the American people. Fascism today is already taking shape on the basis of the merger of the corporations and the government, where the ruling class directly dominates the economy, politics, and society. They need a social base to consolidate their hold on the State.
The forced entry into the Capitol by just under 1,000 people emerged from a January 6th March to Save America with 30-40,000 participants. Though united by the belief that Joe Biden was elected because their votes were stolen, the more ideological groupings were consciously white supremacist and fascist. But a larger number, more representative of the 74 million who voted for Trump, were there to “Stop the Steal.” They bought the Big Lie.
Later, some spokespeople for the more “conservative” forces called for prosecuting those who broke into the Capitol, seeking to distance themselves and their issues from the ideological fringe. Some so-called conservative Republicans voted for impeachment, but others against impeachment, reflecting differences over inner-Republican politics, but not fundamental differences over the fascist strategy of greater corporate-government integration and control.
Revolutionaries understand that today’s electronic revolution, privately owned and controlled by the capitalist class, is provoking widespread social destruction. The new class of workers being pushed out of any productive place in society inevitably launches a growing struggle for government to ensure their needs are met. The strategy of the ruling class is to defend the system of private property at all costs; tactically, it attacks the new class of workers, first economically, who as a result bear the brunt of the current crisis, and secondly, in the form of the brute force of a developing police state.
We must fight racism wherever it is, and we can do this most completely by understanding the root of the problem, which is capitalism. Reacting to only the most hate-filled racist elements actually helps the State strengthen its repressive apparatus for coming collisions with the new class. That apparatus claims their only target is “white supremacist terrorism,” just as they’ve done with “gang” youth or “border criminals.” It also obscures how so-called “moderate” political leaders have assisted the step-by-step construction of fascist economic and political structures already operating.
When Americans believe that the only fascists are the openly white supremacist kind, they can be pulled into supporting one or another liberal politician who is also serving the ruling class shift towards fascism. The new class can avoid that and keep their struggle independent of the interests of the capitalists by insisting that the government ensure food, housing, and healthcare for all regardless of property ownership or ability to pay. Fighting for that today prepares a future path toward abolishing the private property of the ruling class and creating a new kind of communist economy and a cooperative society. RC
May/June 2021. vol.31. Ed3
This article originated in Rally, Comrades!
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