[Marxism] White workers make history, proletarian internationalist formula

[Waistline2 at aol.com]

Comment 
 
The explanatory power of Marxism is its insistent on class and property as  
the foundation and pivot of social life; trying to unravel any social process 
on  the basis of the history one that being examined, the environment in which  
social relations (production relations) are played out, the contending and  
intersection of class with their invisible connections and so forth.   
President Obama like all presidents represent a class and through the capitalist  
class, represents all classes as understood and governed by the capitalist  class. 
Individuals and even classes tend to see themselves and their  aspirations, 
to one degree or another, in the leader. When leaders or the  supreme leader 
speaks of the concerns of the lower classes and then promise to  help them in 
their economic and political struggles, the masses listen. 

I listened and followed the Obama campaign and did not believe he  could win 
Iowa, but he did to my amazement. I did not believe that a black man,  no 
matter what his politics could win even a Senate seat, much less President,  
unless they were the kind of person that kicked boots or something like a male  
Condelezza Rice. Talk about being wrong . . . .again. 

I did  not believe that Obama could win the Democratic Party nomination for a 
complex  of reasons of which white supremacy ideology was an important 
factor, but only  one of many factors. For instance, his appeal to broad sections of 
voting  America - (not the real proletariat or the lowest wage workers), on 
the matter  of a "National Health Care" package seemed out of alignment, with 
voting  America. Voting America and even big and smaller employers want the 
economic  burden of health care to be shifted on to the back of government for 
sound  economic reasons; profits. 
 
Then Obama's public talk about killing an individual in the war against  
terrorism seemed to violate the protocols of even bourgeois politics. Then  I felt 
that the Clinton machine and the undeserved adulation voting black  American 
felt towards the Clinton machine was to strong for them to break.  

Although Clinton did what no Republican President could -  (changing welfare 
as we know it, economically hurting blacks and all poor, while  lowering the 
bottom rung of the economic ladder by which the working class could  be 
pushed), blacks struck with Clinton through thick and thin. I understand why.  
President Clinton was by no stretch of imagination a white supremacists in any  
aspect of his life and personality. Yet, he did to the workers - NAFTA, what no  
Republican President could do. 

Then I also felt that voting  America was not ready for a women President and 
most certainly not more of the  Clinton machine. A huge section of white 
voting America had enough of the  Clinton's. 
 
Wrong, wrong wrong!

In May of last I went to Detroit to take  part in my brothers retirement 
Party - 40 years employed by Chrysler and an  International representative of the 
UAW. All the big muckity mucks were present  from the company and union as 
well as the top layer union reps from a dozen or  so Chrysler facilities. 
Momentarily I buried by deep distrust and dislike for  many of these folks, 
especially from the Chrysler section of the union. Much of  this dislike is from 
experiencing their ignorance and contempt for reading books  and staying abreast of 
issues. Sadly, many of the top leaders cannot read and  comprehend the union 
contract, which is a legal and complex document. Still one  should educate 
themselves when given the opportunity. Yet, virtually all of  these folks have an 
acute understanding of the feelings of the members and  intimately understand 
how the workers think things out. 

I asked  "what the story with Obama?" 

Several of them - mostly black, and  in the case of the white reps all of 
them, repeatedly stated that Obama was  going to win everything because a clear 
majority of white workers in the plants,  concentrated amongst the skilled 
workers in particular, were openly siding with  Obama. The skilled workers 
generally carried the unskilled in their wake due to  their superior organization and 
compactness. 

Still  . . . I  did not believe Obama,a black guy with an Arabic/African name 
could win.  I  privately pondered what a vote for Hillary Clinton would mean 
to  myself and not the working class as a whole, that happens not to vote at  
all. 

Likening the act of the voting section of the working  class to the 
revolutionary memory of John Brown, who with arms in hand attack  outpost of slavery, 
under the concept of "anti-racism" is to liken Obama to the  election of 
Lincoln and then the emancipatory actions of Lincoln. Lincoln spoke  of ending 
slavery during his campaign and was driven by social forces unleashed  when the 
South or rather most of the South left the union and established the  Confederate 
States of America. This act -  dissolving the Union, caused a  profound 
realignment of social forces in America and created the conditions for  the 
internal class struggle within the CSA to ignite. Studying American history  had 
informed me that huge segments of the white population hated the Slave  Oligarchy 
and one should not lump all white people  together. 

There is something unsettling about likening the  election of Obama to John 
Brown. . 

Yet, Obama election is a profound step in the voting section of the  working 
class proving to all segments of American society that the color factor  in 
our history is being further annihilated. This annihilation happens to  coincide 
with the general shift in official American ideology. This ideology for  all 
of our lives was an aggression anti-communism wedded to white chauvinism.  
With the collapse of Soviet Power an ideological shift began under Bush 1 and  
was completed by Clinton and then remastered - like a recording, by Bush W. as  
an expanded version of Clinton's war against terrorism. White chauvinism as  
official ideology given a series of death blows with the overthrow of Jim  
Crow. Jim Crow is not the meaning of white chauvinism. White chauvinism was the  
modern rationale for Jim Crow. 

Actually, the voting white workers  did in fact close a chapter in our 
history with the cross of the color line,  which Dubois predicted would remain the 
paramount question in 20th century  America. 

This crossing of the color line means different things to  different people 
and different classes. For the black bourgeoisie, the real  black bourgeoisie, 
it means the sky is the limit. For a generation of black  leaders carrying the 
burden of a long and tortured history, Obama means their  role as leaders of 
black people has ended. Yea, there will be leaders of  different genders and 
colors, but that peculiar phenomenon of the black leader,  a product of Jim 
Crow has come to an abrupt end. 
 
Here is a story that I believe all communists and Marxists in America  should 
know. White supremacy still exists and there is much of it still  poisoning 
the political landscape. What has been wiped from history is Jim Crow.  The 
material step taken by the voting section of the working class, crossing the  
color line, is one of the landmarks in American history that will live forever,  
but hardly a sign of proletarian internationalism. Proletarian 
internationalism  today means the unity of the fighting section of capital in the working 
class  battle for final emancipation. Obama promised no one emancipation.  

I am glad to be a part of the voting section of the workers  crossing this 
line. Crossing this line in the current political environment of  America, does 
mean the opening a of opportunity for communists to openly  champion our 
views. 
 
This also means an increase in danger in the form of the fascist movement. 
 
If anything I liken the crossing of the color line, at this moment in  time, 
to the historically specific alignment - intersection, of class  forces that 
existed during the original Populist Movement in America. An  intersection of 
class forces, with the middle class in the lead, ushered Obama  into office. 
 
All such non-class movements possess the danger of being co-opted by the  
fascist movement. Moving into the 1890's, at a higher level is the historical  
likening I see. 

This time the fascist movement has no need for the  ideology of white 
supremacy.  

WL.











In  a message dated 2/2/2009 6:45:31 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, 
_cdb1003 at prodigy.net_ (mailto:cdb1003 at prodigy.net)  writes:
The history  made in O's election was not made by
Obama, and it was not made by  Black people. 
It was made by the masses ( although minority) 
of  White working people who voted for  Obama.  
The majority of white  people did not vote for Obama, 
but the minority who voted for him was  critical
to victory. More White people voted for Obama 
than Black  people. There were appeals to
racism made by the Republicans and  
rightwingers in the election. The sufficiently 
large White vote for  Obama amounts to a 
historic repudiation of this racism , and the 
larger  racist legacy of American history.
If Obama had lost, I would have been  attributing 
it to racism. Since he won, 
I have got to say "it" was  anti-racism. 
The division of the US working class by racism
is the  main division of it. The history in the 
election of Obama is especially that  masses
of White working class people voted for a Black 
candidate  for President. Glory to the White
American anti-racist spirit and  sentiment.
John Brown's soul is marching on  !

Charles  


ml
 
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