Against the backdrop of wars, economic turmoil, and mass movements, the World School of Communism will once again throw open its doors… and you are invited! From 2 to 7 August, thousands of communists from across the globe will gather for a week of high-level political discussion on the burning questions of our time. Whether you’re a long-standing communist or you’re new to the ideas of Marxism, this is not an event that you want to miss!
[You can sign up for the World School at schoolofcommunism.com]
The world situation today is defined by sharp and sudden changes. Events that in earlier years would have dominated attention for months are now seemingly a weekly occurrence. Therefore, to open the school, preeminent Marxist theoretician, Alan Woods – author of The History of Philosophy, Bolshevism, and much more – will cut through the chaos, and explain the general trends and processes that are playing out today, allowing us communists to orient ourselves in the class struggle.
For communists, the study of history is not an academic exercise, but a means of learning its rich lessons to arm ourselves in the struggle today. The World School will therefore feature a number of sessions dedicated to revolutionary history.
Wellred Books, the publishing house of the RCI, will be launching a brand new edition of Lenin and Trotsky: what they really stood for, written by Alan Woods and Ted Grant, at the World School. This book reclaims the true history of the 1917 October Revolution, which was led by Lenin and Trotsky, and methodically answers the Stalinist slanders that seek to drive a wedge between the two great revolutionaries, lionising Stalin in the process. Niklas Albin Svensson, a leading comrade of the RCI, will lead a session explaining the true ideas of Lenin and Trotsky, which are the foundations on which we build our International today.
Jorge Martín – co-author of Permanent Revolution in Latin America – will lead a session on Hugo Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution. These inspiring events, led by Chávez, had the potential to go all the way, and abolish capitalism in Venezuela altogether. Unfortunately, the process stopped halfway, eventually leading to the revolution’s defeat. Despite this, the Bolivarian Revolution was a watershed moment, and one that our International was very close to. To read more, get yourself a copy of The Venezuelan Revolution: A Marxist Perspective by Alan Woods, which collects our analysis of the dynamics of the revolution from the time.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. With over 20 sessions throughout the week – covering history, philosophy, economics, culture, and much, much more – this will truly be an event like no other. It will be a major milestone in the development of the RCI, which continues to go from strength to strength, steaming towards 10,000 members worldwide.
You can sign up for the World School by clicking here, and we will be in touch with the details of your nearest watch party. All sessions will be streamed, so you don’t have to worry about missing anything!
We proudly publish the programme of the event below.
[All times are UTC+2]
Sunday 2 August
09:00-19:00
- World perspectives
Monday 3 August
09:00-13:00
- Multipolarity and Marxism: how communists fight imperialism
- Is the world going fascist?
- How Marx became a Marxist
15:00-19:00
- The rise and fall of social democracy
- Britain’s ‘almost-revolution’: the 1926 General Strike
- Progress, decline, and the Marxist view of history
Tuesday 4 August
09:00-13:00
- Lenin and Trotsky: what they really stood for
- In defence of the Enlightenment
- The origins of Marxist economics
15:00-19:00
- Hugo Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution
- Philosophy and science: a new era in cosmology
- 250 years since America’s first revolution
- France 1936: reform or revolution?
Wednesday 5 August
09:00-13:00
- Marxism and art
- Silvia Federici and Social Reproduction Theory
- Mao’s anti-imperialism: lessons for today
Thursday 6 August
09:00-13:00
- The Epstein class exposed: their morals and ours
- The Yugoslav Revolution
- Rojava: why was the revolution defeated?
15:00-19:00
- 1929 and the Great Depression
- Shostakovich: the musical voice of the Russian Revolution
- The Iranian Revolution of 1979
Friday 7 August
09:00-19:00
- Building the RCI: organisational discussion
