Debate in the Fourth International Part III: Capitalism’s World Economic, Political and Social Crises and the Coming Fightback

By JEFF MACKLER, for Socialist Action/USA This is the third and final text presented by Socialist Action as a minority viewpoint to the February 19-23, 2022 meeting of the Fourth International (FI), an international socialist current of some 56 parties across the globe. Some 150 representatives of these parties gathered this year via Zoom due to the COVID 19 crisis to discuss and debate the Fourth International’s politics and program. The politics in the report below were adopted by the National Committee of Socialist Action/USA, a fraternal party of the FI barred by reactionary U.S. legislation from being a formal member of any international socialist organization. The text below was rejected by the February FI meeting by the vast majority of delegates. The central thesis of the majority text asserts that the building of revolutionary socialist parties on the Leninist model anywhere in the world today is not on the agenda. The text below, slighted updated to cover developments since the February FI meeting, challenges this view in all its fundamentals.

Grassroots environment struggles in China

By RENA LAU Just in the last month there have been two cases of environmental protests occurring in China. Around one thousand people protested on the streets of Yangjiang city, in Guangdong province, against the construction of an incinerator. And ten thousand people protested against a chemical factory in Shangrao city, Jianxi province. The protesters … Continue reading Grassroots environment struggles in China

China’s slide exposes world capitalist crisis

By GARY BILLS and JEFF MACKLER Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen announced in mid-September that interest rates charged to U.S. banks would once again remain unchanged—close to zero. She also expressed concerns about the still “weak U.S. recovery” since the disastrous collapse beginning in 2008 that shook financial markets and caused unprecedented harm to working … Continue reading China’s slide exposes world capitalist crisis

Hong Kong protests demand democracy

By MICHAEL SCHREIBER Hong Kong is witnessing the most massive street protests in its history. Many thousands of people have stood up to police repression while maintaining an Occupy-style presence in the streets. The protests have become known as the “Umbrella Revolution” for the umbrellas that demonstrators have employed to help shield their faces from … Continue reading Hong Kong protests demand democracy

Capitalism damns the environment

By JEFF MACKLER Capitalism, the system—Chinese, American, or European style—has struck yet another devastating blow against all humanity. One of the world’s largest solar-panel manufacturing plants, employing 10,000 Chinese workers at the city of Wuxi on China’s east coast, has declared bankruptcy—a victim of its own “success” and capitalism’s inherent drive to destruction. The Wuxi … Continue reading Capitalism damns the environment

The socialist answer to capitalist crisis

We present below the first of a series of resolutions on key issues in U.S. and world politics that were approved by the elected delegates to the 15th National Convention of Socialist Action, held in Minneapolis last Aug. 16-19. Socialist Action is the fraternal U.S. section of the Fourth International, founded by Leon Trotsky and … Continue reading The socialist answer to capitalist crisis