This article was excerpted from a PLP magazine article titled Lessons of the People’s War in Spain 1936-1939 Progressive Labor, Vol. 9, No. 5 (Oct.-Nov. 1974), 106-116. This July marks 88 years since the start of the  Spanish Civil War. The lessons from the Spanish People’s War continue to be invaluable to the working class, sharpening our  understanding of how we can defeat capitalism, fascism. Above all, learning the history of the Spanish Civil war can help us learn from the mistakes made by fighters in that period, so that we don’t risk repeating them on the march to communist revolution.

The Spanish Civil War in 1936-1939 was a heroic example of working-class internationalism, led by the communist movement to fight fascism. At the same time it continues to hinder today’s communist movement. We must learn the mistakes from history in order to successfully smash the capitalist ruling class once and for all.

The war was a ferocious fight between the Spanish Republicans and the fascist forces. The Spanish Republic was a weak liberal democracy, defended by an anti-fascist coalition made up of communists, anarchist organizations and other fake left groups, along with small bosses who were being ousted by the move to a fascist government. The fascist forces were backed by the main wing of the Spanish ruling class and the ruling classes of Europe and the U.S.

The Spanish Communist Party (PCE) and the Comintern (the Russian leadership of the international communist movement at the time) provided the only effective leadership--political and military--in the struggle against fascism in Spain. The PCE, unlike the numerous groups of fake leftists, was able to organize hundreds of thousands of workers into a powerful military force, despite the enormous material difficulties and their own weaknesses.

The PCE established the Spanish Republic  in 1931. From the outset, the Republican government struggled to hold onto power. The growing fascist forces, backed by a large section of the Spanish ruling class, made several attempts to overthrow the Republic and move to fascism.
In 1936, the leftist parties formed a so-called “Popular Front” slate, the rationale being that in order to confront the dangers of fascism and imperialist war, communists should form an alliance with Social-Democrats and some bourgeois elements to preserve the liberal democracy, which ultimately means preserving peace for the ruling class.

Capitalists unite in support of fascists

In 1936 the fascists launched an attack with help from the European ruling class. Hitler sent the first substantial military aid of 20 transport planes to bring the Fascist Army of Africa to Spain. At its peak, German aid to the Fascists stood at about 6,000 troops plus a large amount of material. The maximum size of the Italian forces was about 100,000 troops, with enormous quantities of material. The European democracies refused to sell arms to the Republic and set up a naval blockade in conjunction with Germany and Italy to prevent weapons and volunteer anti-fascist fighters from getting to Spain.

U.S. companies also sold arms  to Nazi Germany, then shipped them to Spain.  In April 1938, President Roosevelt publicly admitted that the bombs falling on Spanish cities were American-made. “It is all perfectly legal,” he said. 

While the rest of the Soviet Union sent aid to the Republic, the total number of Soviet personnel in Spain at any one time likely never totaled 700. Soviet arms shipments were limited after the closing of the French border by the necessity to run the blockade and also by the desire to avoid a world war, a desire unrealized.

Communist organize the working class to fight

The communist movement, through the PCE, organized the defense of Madrid. Their famous Fifth Regiment recruited over 60,000 militiamen (half PCE members), which soon became the backbone of the People’s Army. 

Partly because of the seriousness and effectiveness with which the communists organized the militias, membership in the PCE, and their affiliated groups soared: from 30,000 at the beginning of the war to 200,000 at the end of 1936 to 1,000,000 by June, 1937.
Remote volunteers recruited largely by communist parties were organized into communist-led International Brigades. About 40,000 served in the brigades to fight back against the fascists

Famous for their discipline and courage, the International Brigade were some of the few troops in the early days  with any sort of training , and they fought well throughout. Their recruitment was an act of internationalism enormously appreciated by the workers. 
In another costly error by the communist movement, foreigners were withdrawn in 1938 in a vain effort to secure League of Nations (the precursor to the U.N.) action against German and Italian intervention. 

As fascist troops approached Madrid, communists assumed the functions of the departed civil servants; radio, leaflets and banners urged the workers of Madrid to dig trenches and build barricades. Communists organized  block by block; Fifth Regiment leaflets gave advice on battling tanks and house-to-house fighting.

On November 7th, 1936, fascist troops, expecting an easy victory, assaulted Madrid from the west, southwest, and northwest, but were repulsed by the hard-pressed militias, particularly the communist organized Fifth Regiment, in hand-to-hand fighting. 
At the same time fake left groups undercut the anti-fascist fight. For example, the leaders of the 3,000-man anarchist column from the Aragon Front, demanded an independent section of the front “so that their achievements could not then be claimed by other units.” 
The anarchists were given a sector in the University City, with artillery and air support, but refused to attack. When the Fascists attacked the anarchists broke and ran, abandoning a key bridge and positions in the University. 

Failure to fight racism deadly mistake

Throughout the war, the fascists relied on troops recruited and conscripted in Spanish Morocco. Around 100,000 Moors fought for the Fascists. The Fascists encouraged every sort of atrocity on the part of the Moors, playing on the racism of the Republicans with great success. 
Republican propaganda repeated and embroidered this racist trash. The PCE never made a public fight over this crucial issue, which should not only have been a matter of principle, but  could have produced a powerful and proven ally in the struggle against the fascist bosses. The biggest error by the communists was not understanding that the key to victory in the civil war was the fight for the dictatorship of the proletariat, not as a vague objective for the far-off future, but right then. There can be no doubt that the opportunity for taking power existed: the PCE was the real organizer of the war against fascism, and could have united the working class even more completely around workers’ dictatorship 

Key to winning: Rely on the working class

The bosses can be relied on for racism, murder and exploitation, but not for help. The only alternative is to rely on the workers, and that means fighting for workers’ power. Spain shows clearly what relying on the bosses means. The fascists won the war in 1939. In the aftermath 400,000 people--apart from those dead in the fighting—were slaughtered after the Republic fell. The clear lesson of Spain and the larger conflict which was to follow is that workers have absolutely nothing to gain from alliances with bosses. We must rely on our own strength, fight racism and settle for nothing short of workers’ power and communism.

A new book, Anti-Racism as Communism, written by Paul Gomberg, is thought-provoking and insightful in its argument that only communism can abolish racism. He takes us through the history of racism in the U.S., and the central role it plays in capitalism’s development. He posits a definition of racism that focuses on social inequality, not just prejudice or bigotry, and emphasizes the uniqueness and viciousness of anti-Black racism.

The book carefully develops a summary of the historical events and the relationship to profit that led to the invention of racism. In the early 1600’s and beyond, class solidarity was embedded in Black/poor white relations. In this period, indentured servants from Europe and enslaved people from Africa were friends, lovers, partners, and companions. As the 1700s brought new racist laws required to be read in church twice a year, and punishments meted out for disobeying those laws, racism began to develop.

Examples of Black and white worker unity against racism

Racism was integral to the founding of the U.S.—all of the “founding fathers” were racists. Most were enslavers who got rich off racism, including the leading racist theoretician, Thomas Jefferson. Class solidarity was also a factor of black/poor white relations in this time. “The capitalist system drove down the enslaved and the poor white farmers, but differently.” (p. 43)

Of course, racism did not end after the Civil War. The purpose of Jim Crow was to separate Black and white and prevent anti-racist class unity.

“The tragedy was the failure of white labor to understand that the racist oppression of black labor was their own oppression, that the working class as a whole needed to fight racist oppression. Instead, many white workers participated in the oppression of their black fellow workers, undermining them all.” (p. 57)

There were, of course, exceptions. In the 1880s and 90s there were integrated fights of coal miners. In some places, white miners realized that if Black workers were paid less, white miners were more likely to lose their jobs. Rendville, Ohio, for example, with a majority white population, had racially integrated schools and elected a Black mayor in 1887. Still, because the bosses hold state power, gains for some workers mean losses for others. “Only the seizure of power makes a truly human society for workers possible.” (p. 74)

Paul details the many anti-racist fights organized by the Communist Party, particularly in the 1930s - 1950s. The fact that these struggles brought Black and white together was a powerful blow to Jim Crow. Black-white worker unity was prominent in struggles of Memphis maritime workers, Ford Rouge workers, Waterloo meatpackers, the Chicago Packinghouse Workers, and Louisville farm equipment workers, to name some examples. The Communist Party was instrumental in helping to develop racial unity in these struggles.   

When Nazis came to power in Germany, the Soviets and communists elsewhere allied with liberals against fascism instead of organizing for communist revolution to smash fascism. Later, in 1947, the Taft-Hartley Act was passed by Congress in an effort—which ended up being successful— to destroy communist-led unions. Party members were caught off guard because they did not fully understand how incompatible capitalism is with workers’ needs. We must learn from both the successes and mistakes of the Communist Party, as we continue to fight for an egalitarian world.

The Civil Rights movement ended many forms of discrimination, but Black workers were still relegated to lower-paid jobs, their children went to segregated schools and they lived in segregated neighborhoods. “The civil rights movement… did not place racism in the context of exploitation of workers and benefits to capital of a divided working class.” (p. 126) Furthermore, Black workers are still prominent in low-wage work, are often “last hired, first fired”, and have considerably less inherited wealth mostly due to past and present racist policies and practices regarding home ownership.

From his own experience as a teacher at the predominantly Black Chicago State University, Gomberg presents the idea that racism can be committed by Black people against other Black people. In one example, a student is unjustly beaten and arrested by a cop, who is supported by administrators and never disciplined for his actions. Everyone in this example is Black.

Racism also is harmful to white and other non-Black working-class people. Racism has divided the working class, weakened unions, and encouraged a culture of individualism. It has driven down conditions for Black and other non-white people, but also, to a lesser extent, white people. The capitalists increase their share of wealth, while poverty creates stress for the working class. The only way to end racism is to end capitalism.

Only communism can end racism

Gomberg argues that an important aspect of ending racism is to “alienate race”. This is not a process that ignores the existence of racism. Rather, it is the process of thinking of yourself and others in terms other than the racial identities that the capitalists have created. He does not posit that this is an easy process or even one that can be completed under capitalism. He does argue that alienating race is an essential part of the elimination of racism. It is a process that can begin when we are still under the yoke of capitalism, even though it can only be fully realized under communism.

Additionally, Paul discusses the importance of what he calls “race-centered Marxism”. In other words, while it is true that there are many groups of people who are discriminated against by the capitalist class, racism is historically and currently their primary weapon to divide the working class. 
The book ends on a hopeful note. It briefly analyzes the strengths and weaknesses within the Chinese Communist Party. We have much to learn from both. While encouraged by their success, we must also learn from their mistakes, which led to their current capitalist state. Combining our practice in militant class struggle with dialectical materialist understandings of history like that in Antiracism as Communism will guide us to construct a new communist society that’s stronger than ever. 

(Note: Antiracism as Communism currently is only sold in hardcover form, for over $100. CHALLENGE suggests that readers ask their local libraries purchase for circulation).

Correction:

In our July 17th issue, we published a speech on page 5 entitled Graduation Speech: Students, you are the fire of the world. We made a regrettable technical error that resulted in us cutting a significant section of the speech, specifically about how a PL’er is building ties with students and parents. We sincerely apologize. The entire speech can be found on www.plp.org

Strikers expose NEA’s racist hypocrisy

The leadership of my union, the National Education Association (NEA), the largest teachers union in the U.S., demonstrates how union bosses are complicit in oppressing workers in every industry under capitalism and throughout the world. The NEA claims to be a ‘social justice union’ but they have played a deadly game by pretending to support a ceasefire in Palestine while interfering with their members’efforts to educate and organize against genocide, all at the behest of U.S. imperialists and Zionists. At the same time, they lie (just like capitalists!) about their contract bargaining with the union of workers they employ, the National Education Association Staff Organization (NEASO), failing to deal honestly with the needs of these workers. They stand exposed siding with war-mongering, profit-stealing capitalists every time. They are only for ‘justice’ when their positions and pockets aren’t threatened! The President and Vice President of NEA each clear about $400,000 and their employees at NEASO are poorly paid union employees. NEASO members are furious that the NEA is outsourcing millions of dollars of employee work to contractors in a union busting move, undercutting their bargaining power. NEASO workers also exposed the corruption of Becky Pringle, union president, for using $8,500 of union funds for three days of hairstyling. Glad you look good, Becky – not!

In Maryland, the local union chair used deceptive means to squash any discussion of the war on Palestinians and Israel’s land grab at the same meeting where she hypocritically recognized our modern-day occupation of stolen indigenous lands in the U.S. Nationally, the union leaders are no better, dodging a serious approach to the Gaza/Palestine issue and lying about the working conditions and pay of their own employees. NEASO workers rightly decided to strike during the teachers annual meeting, forcing it to close. Progressive Labor Party teachers rallied with other teachers for Palestinian rights before the shutdown, exposing the NEA’s failure to oppose genocide. If it wasn’t clear before, it should be clear now that only a multi-racial, communist struggle will get workers what we need. Adelante! 
*****

What’s nationalism?

The Progressive Labor Movement (PLM) and the Progressive Labor Party (PLP) were formed in 1961 and 1965, respectively, when nationalism was in the news media to a much greater degree than it is today in 2024.  As a result,  labeling a person or organization as nationalist (such as the National Liberation Front in Vietnam) conveyed a much clearer image of what it or they supported: a supposed revolutionary outlook hiding an actual capitalist economic-political vision of working-class exploitation by local capitalists instead of foreign ones.

Many people,  including the PLM and the early PLP,  were and still are fooled by the pseudo-revolutionary slogans of nationalists and their groupings.  However,  based on a dialectical-materialist analysis of the actions of various nationalists,  the PLP realized that so-called “revolutionary” nationalism was the opposite of what it claimed to be.  Unfortunately,  despite a full explanation of the counter-revolutionary nature of nationalism in the August, 1969 issue of PL Magazine,  no other organization accepted the PLP’s point of view.  The accuracy of the analysis in 1969 continues to be valid.  For example,  today Vietnam is a country filled with low-wage sweat shops run by both local and foreign capitalists.
Right now,  there are several individuals and organizations who are classic nationalists masquerading as “revolutionaries” behind phony sloganeering and outright anti-worker activities.  The most important of these groups are Hamas,  the Houthis in the Middle East,  and Iran.  ALL of the politicians in every country are also nationalist fakers.  Nationalists are dangerous because their rhetoric sounds pro-working class but when you examine what nationalists actually do,  it is clearly thoroughly in favor of the capitalist ruling class and against the interests of workers.

The PLP opposes all forms of nationalism.  We no longer make a distinction between so-called “revolutionary” nationalism and reactionary nationalism.  Nationalism sells-out the working class to the highest capitalist bidder.  We do support working inside nationalist organizations to expose their nefarious intentions and to win honest workers away from them.
*****

U.N. office denounces Israeli attacks on civilians

Al Jazeera, 7/13–The OHCHR has said it condemns the continued Israeli military use of weapons “with area effects in populated areas of Gaza, including in areas which [the military] has itself designated as humanitarian zones, killing many civilians”... the Israeli military reportedly “fired several Air Dropped Munitions in al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, next to a makeshift camp hosting around several hundreds of people”...Israeli military quadcopters also reportedly targeted emergency rescue workers, killing at least one Civil Defence worker and injuring several others. 
On the same day, the Israeli military struck a makeshift mosque inside Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City. Reports indicate that because it “struck shortly after the noon prayer, many people were still inside or near the mosque, resulting in the death of at least 17 male Palestinians.” The Office said that the use of “weapons with wide area effect in densely populated areas” has led to “disproportionate harm to civilians and damage to civilian infrastructure”, suggesting a “pattern of willful violation of the disregard of International Humanitarian Law principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution”.

Exploitation of migrants is built into U.S. law

Wall Street Journal, 7/13–A growing number of undocumented immigrants are hitting retirement age without savings or the cushion of Social Security or Medicare…Many opt to continue working until they are physically unable, while others rely on help from younger family members…“I laugh when people ask me at what age I’m going to retire,” said Marta Salazar, 66 years old…“I know I have to work until my body gives out.” 
The population of immigrants in the U.S. without legal status stood at about 10.5 million in 2021, according to a Pew Research Center report last year. While many work under the table, some find jobs in the formal sector, often using fake documents or borrowed identities. Those who do generally pay Social Security and Medicare taxes…migrants made a net contribution of about $12 billion to the Social Security system in 2010, the most recent year in which such an analysis was conducted…But they are barred by law from receiving benefits from the program. 

Israeli fascists drive Lebanese toward Hezbollah fascists

Foreign Affairs, 7/12–Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently declared that as his country’s military operations in Gaza wind down, Israel will turn its attention to its foe to the north: the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah. The two parties have a long history of conflict rooted in Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in 1982, its occupation of the southern portion of the country from 1985 to 2000, and a full-scale war the two sides fought in 2006…In recent weeks, concerns have grown that another major war between the two parties could break out.
Within Lebanon… [Hezbollah] operates as a legal political party and as a security force: the group effectively governs much of the country, particularly in the south and east. Hezbollah also provides basic services to those living in the areas it controls…In effect, the group operates as a state within a state. 

Hezbollah does not command widespread support across the country. And yet many Lebanese favor some of Hezbollah’s basic positions. Lebanese overwhelmingly support the rights of Palestinians and condemn Israel for its actions in Gaza…And if Israel invades Lebanon to attack Hezbollah, support for the organization would likely rise further.

Taliban fascists terrorize Afghani women

DW, 7/10–The Taliban government in Afghanistan is carrying out stricter enforcement of religious law in Afghanistan through the deployment of "morality police," according to a UN report published Tuesday. The UN report said the Taliban has created a "climate of fear" since the Islamist militant group regained power in August 2021 and set up the so-called "Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice"...Since taking power, the Taliban have also barred girls and young women from receiving an education, while keeping women out of public jobs. Morality police squads have the power to scold, arrest, and punish citizens who participate in activities considered to be "un-Islamic," including wearing "Western" hairstyles and listening to banned music.