“Marksizm Şimdi!” means “Marxism Now!”
We are saying “Hello” to our publication amidst an extremely complex global conjuncture. Amidst the dust and smoke of imperialist rivalry between China and the USA, the world is being dragged towards a great darkness. We claim to offer an organized response to this darkness from the front of the working class. We call on our readers not only to understand the world, but also to change it together. We hope that this humble endeavor will be a beacon in the darkness for the indomitable revolutionaries of this land.
The New World Order in the Context of China-US Rivalry
The world order that emerged after the Second World War was based on the cooperation between dominant US imperialism and the Stalinist bureaucracy. This alliance led to countless defeats for the world proletariat. However, the restoration of capitalism in workers’ states fundamentally changed this order. In the new era, with the integration of the Chinese and Russian bourgeoisies into the global division of labor, American imperialism has become the sole decisive force. This order is now in a deep crisis.
At the Third Congress of the Third International, Trotsky addressed the world situation from three perspectives. First, he stated that the capitalist economy had entered a downward spiral from 1914 onwards. Second, he argued that the rivalry between the US and Great Britain was central to this new era. Third, he pointed out that in developed countries, the bourgeoisie, despite the support of social democracy, had failed to re-establish political balance. As a result of these three factors, Trotsky predicted increasing global imbalance.
Looking at the present day with a similar analysis, firstly, the economic downturn that began with the 2007-2009 recession indicates that capitalism has entered a new evolutionary phase. Secondly, the rivalry between the declining US imperialism, despite being the dominant power, and the rising Chinese imperialism is deepening. Thirdly, imperialism and the bourgeoisie are intensifying their attacks on the living conditions of the working class. To these, we must add the destruction of the environment and the planet, along with climate catastrophes.
The 2007–2009 global recession disrupted the balance of the imperialist order, creating a capitalist curve that grew in short cycles and was shaken by crises. The new recession in 2020, deepened by the COVID-19 pandemic, dealt a major blow to the living conditions of workers. The bourgeoisie used the pandemic to lower wages, spread precarious forms of work such as subcontracting, courier work, and Uber driving, and increase unemployment.
Large technology monopolies, especially US-based Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla, increased their power after the pandemic. However, the development of lower-cost and open-source artificial intelligence technologies by Chinese companies represents a serious challenge to US hegemony in this field. China is rapidly advancing, particularly in the electric vehicle sector. This high-tech production model, backed by dictatorial repression, makes China a power capable of offering cheaper products than other imperialist powers. Despite all obstacles, China maintains a high growth rate (4.7%). The US-China “trade war” remains unresolved. On the contrary, China has grown stronger in the process. Today, the determining factor is economic productivity, and the main struggle is in artificial intelligence technology.
As a result, global capital is increasingly concentrated around the US and China, while European and Japanese imperialisms are in decline. Under these conditions, it is unlikely that imperialism will achieve a new upward trend in the short term. As long as the US-China conflict remains unresolved, a new global division of labor cannot be established. The average rate of profit remains low, and the political stability that the bourgeoisie needs for investment cannot be achieved.
The internal contradictions of US imperialism are also deepening. Trump’s presidency has the potential to create even more instability and chaos at the global level. Inter-imperialist competition, combined with the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, has qualitatively escalated the arms race. The EU, in its role as a helper to the US, is legitimizing rearmament under the guise of “good imperialism.”
In the context of the US-China conflict, we are not on the side of any imperialist bloc. We reject reformist approaches that justify Chinese imperialism under the guise of defending the “Global South.”
Either the Barbarism Created by Environmental Disasters or Socialism
Climate change will continue to threaten humanity and all life on Earth in the coming decades. What is at risk is not only the world, but humanity, especially the working class, the poor, and the oppressed peoples. The future of humanity points either to collapse or to a socialist transformation of society. The way out is an international socialist revolution that eliminates private ownership of the means of production. Either humanity transcends this mode of production, or it rapidly descends into barbarism. The dilemma of “Socialism or Barbarism” has gained renewed meaning today, acquiring an ecological dimension. The working class and oppressed peoples must embrace the environmental debate and make it a part of their struggle programs.
Genocide and Resistance in Palestine
The Zionist genocide in Gaza following the Palestinian Resistance operation on October 7th has once again placed the Palestinian issue at the center of the international class struggle. This has generated the broadest wave of Palestinian solidarity in history, both in Arab countries and Western metropolises, and even among American Jewish youth. Israel’s immense military superiority resulted in the deaths of over 70,000 Palestinians and the destruction of 70% of the buildings in Gaza. However, the Palestinian resistance could not be crushed as Netanyahu intended.
Trump’s plan to “annex Gaza to the US” and expel Palestinians from the region constitutes one of the most comprehensive attacks against the Palestinian people. Today, a fragile ceasefire is in effect in Gaza, but Israel’s aggressive policy could disrupt this balance at any moment. We unconditionally support the Palestinian resistance under all circumstances. We advocate for an end to the genocide and the military and political defeat of Israel. We consider the slogan “A free, democratic and secular Palestine from the river to the sea” together with the perspective of a workers’ government and socialist revolution. As part of the program of Permanent Revolution, we advocate for a Federation of Socialist Republics of the Middle East.
Our Working Class on the Defensive
Today, the working class is severely disorganized and fragmented. Precarious forms of employment such as subcontracting, part-time work, courier services, Uber driving, and remote call centers are spreading.
Neoliberal policies, changes in production processes, the ideological offensive of imperialism, and the rightward shift of reformist leadership have deepened individualism and disorganization.
The extreme exploitation of the proletariat frequently triggers defensive and offensive struggles, social explosions, and uprisings. However, the continuing crisis of revolutionary leadership prevents these movements from acquiring a unified character. In the social explosions of the last twenty years, the industrial proletariat has not been able to directly assume the role of subject. Dual organs of power or mass left-centrist organizations have not emerged.
Women, LGBT+ Individuals, and Migrants Under Threat from the Far Right
Oppression against migrants, women, LGBT+ individuals, and minorities is increasing globally. Privatization and cuts in social services disproportionately affect working women. The devastation caused by femicide, sexual violence, human trafficking, and wars is deepening. While some countries are taking steps towards equality and freedom, reactionary and transphobic laws are becoming increasingly widespread in most.
The far right is shifting the burden of the economic crisis onto migrants, women, and the oppressed; developing policies that threaten the lives of millions of migrants.
We argue that the working class must unite with all oppressed groups and combine the struggle against exploitation with the struggle against oppression. These two struggles feed off each other; the theory of Permanent Revolution clearly reveals this link.
Bonapartist Regimes of Repression and the Rise of the Far Right
The bourgeoisie sometimes uses reformist parties and sometimes authoritarian, Bonapartist regimes to suppress revolutionary processes. Monopolistic economies, impoverished masses, and class polarization are strengthening Bonapartist tendencies. Venezuela, Hungary, Russia, and Turkey are typical examples of these regimes.
The rise of the far right in Europe and America is a product of the collapse of capitalism and the crisis of bourgeois democracy. The far right finds a significant base among some segments of the working class, especially the most vulnerable. Wars, climate disasters, and poverty are forcing millions of people to migrate. Migrants are being deported, and racist policies are on the rise. Today’s far right is not the same as the historical form of fascism, but the possibility of fascist solutions resurfacing in the future with deepening crises cannot be ignored.
The broadest possible coalitions of action must be formed to defend the democratic rights of oppressed peoples against Bonapartist regimes and the far right. All legitimate means, including self-defense, must be used against fascist attacks.
The Tasks of Revolutionaries
The character of the imperialist era is the sudden transformations in class struggles. Our working class is struggling against the attacks of capitalism, but these struggles are not acquiring a unified character. Today, democratic and temporary demands must be linked to the goal of abolishing capitalism. The organization of the working class, independent of capital, class collaborators, and treacherous bureaucrats, must be strengthened. Along with this line of struggle, the need for a workers’ government must be clearly brought to the forefront.
A united front tactic must be implemented with trade unions, political organizations, organizations of the oppressed, environmental activists, and youth organizations. The struggle against trade union bureaucracies must continue, trade unions must be democratized, and organization in new sectors must be encouraged. Preparing the working class for struggle on the basis of class independence, mass action, solidarity, and workers’ democracy is the task of the revolutionary vanguard.
Marxism Şimdi! Editorial Board
