JUST AS Leninism possesses detinite characteristics and constitutes a definite stage in the development and enrichment of Marxism, so Trotskyism appears today with its own specific traits as a broadening of the teachings of Marx, Engels, and Lenin. Trotskyism is the Marxism of our epoch.
THE CHIEF merit of Trotsky from the point of view of the history of ideas consists in this: Marxism in the midst of a general recession of the workers' movement, and of a complete degeneration of the tradional parties and ideologies.
Without yielding an inch, tactical plane, against the enveloping movements of the epigones of Lenin and Stalin's hacks. With the feeble yet incessant attacks of reformism and centrism.
One trembles at the thought of what would have happened had Trotsky died in 1923. Of course Marxism, the expression of its internal dynamics would have been preserved by others.
Tens, later hundreds, of young theoretician and tacticians of five continents would have striven to arrive by common effort at a Marxist conception of actual events. But the balance of these efforts, in proportion to the positive results attained, would have witnessed a striking effort.
Within his own person, Trotsky filled the gap created in the history of the working class movement by the disappearance Photo: La Gauche Ernest (left) and brother Michel of a whole generation, which was corrupied and prysically broken by Stalinism. of defeats, and annihilated by the mounting waves of reaction Trotsky's work from this period continue to be studied by thousands of voung workers and intellectuals throughout the alone represent the Marxist tradition in this dark period in the history of humanity.
Like any method of investigation and systemisation of the facts of experience. Marxism can be maintained only on condition that it is continually enriched. Any attempt to fall back defensively on "tradition". without any effort to encompass the new developments which are continuaily taking place through the sieve of the materialist dialectic, is certain to bring about a fatal ossification of the theory and to end in its certain death. Trotsky's represents the only serious effort to interpret in the light of Marxism, those disconcerting phenomena of the last three decades. namely: the development of fascism. the usuration of power in the USSR by the bureaucracy. the zig-zag evolution of the Soviet Union's economy, the monstrousy accelerated decay of the capitalist world. and the general crisis in the revolutionary leadership of the proletariat.
On Trotsky has fallen the heavy task of enriching the heritage of Marx and Lenin in the epoch of reaction and triumphing counter-revolution. Speaking during an education school in 1950 He has thus continued the tradition with the same Implacable clarity, the same Photo: L a Gauche possessed by those who preceded him.
Fourth International, July 1947
£5,000 Ernest Mandel Memorial Fund is launched Global effort aims to establish Ernest Mandel Study Centre with every fibre of his being. When dedicating one of his books to comrades who had died, the highest praise he could bestow on them was that they were internationalists.
Some of the intellectuals, some of them erstwhile members of the Fl, who rushed into print with obituaries after Mandel's death, were scornful of his revoludonary opamism.
Typical of this was Tariq All's piece in the Independent (July 21). These people, overcome by the current situation, the temporary success of capitalism in pushing back the frontiers of socialism and curbing the milicancy of the working class, have retreated into retormist pollacs or to their ivory towers. They cake the doomsday scenario which they resaru as portions oratoest torte oreseeable future Tariq accuses him of hiding the truth, of "masking the fact with heady rhetoric". This shows how little he knows Mandel, who he probably confuses with the nasty sexist caricature. Ezra Einstein, in his tasteless fictional satire Redemption.
"One would have to be blind and deaf", Mandel wrote, "not to see that the world situation is still very bad for the wage-earning class, that capital is still clearly on the offensive the world over". (World Socialism Today Bl. DOM No. 125, May-June 1995).
In contrast to those intellectuals. SOCIALIST OUTLOOK is launching a 65,000 Ernest Mandel Memorial Fund.
As part of an international campaign by supporters of the Fourth international, the money will to to wards strengthening International Viewpoint and the Fourth International's International Institute for Research and Education in Amsterdam. socialist analysis and strategy. Each issue examines a subject of importance to socialists in greater depth and at greater length than is possible in Socialist Outlook.
Back issues available
6 Revolution & Counter- Revolution In Nicaragua.
7 Asian War on the Horizon? 8 A World in Crisis 9 A fighting programme for socialists 10 Fighting back for Socialism Send 50p each copy to Socialist Outlook, PO Box 1109, London, N4 2UU.
Half-price bundles
Many Socialist Outlook readers will be interested in carrying forward the discussions reflected in theory+practice by taking copies to sell. Bundles in multiples of 10 carry a 50 per cent discount. who were drawn into the Fl in the heady days of 1968 and the Vietnam campaign, and who now believe that the working class no longer has a role to play on the political stage, Mandel, the dialectical materialist, took the long view of history.
From that longer-term point of view, "several important factors are operating in our favour. On a world scale, the wage earning class is still growing, and growing in an impres. sive way, although not in all countries and all sectors at the same pace. Internationally, it has long passed the billion mark. From the age of fifteen, he devoted himself towhat he regarded the central task for today- building the Fourth International.
*If you add to this the semi-prole. cariat of landless peasants in imporcane third world countries, you will probably reach the figure of two billion" (ibio).
While the pessimists and back-sliders could see only retreats and defeats, like Marx after the collapse of the First International, Lenin after the betrayal of August 1914, and Trotsky in the dark days after Hider came to The Ernest Mandel Memorial Fund has also organised the rally and Sy. posium advertised elsewhere in this issue.
Ernest Mandel founded the International Institute for Research and Education (IRE) in 1983 as a unique study centre for activists in the labour and liberation movements. Hundreds have participated in its initiatives.
In order to achieve a truly democratic society it is necessary not only to learn the lessons of past struggles but also to develop a analysis of the looks in-depth at key issues of theory+practice 11 • Ernest Mandel memorial issue • page three power, Ernest Mandel, in the best marxist traditions, analysed the current stuzoon ano came to quite a different prognosis.
We believe that we have passed the lowest point of the working class's and mass movemenes' retreats. The fight back is now rising"
(ibid).
He based this optimistic outlook on the growth of those layers of the wage earning class in sectors like tele.
communicadons, banking and the so-called service industries, as well as those in semi-automated industrial plans Strike action in these sectors in these sectors could paralyse the capitalist economy more effectively than the "classical" strikes in mines, steel or auto plants. The incompetence and corruption in the top echelons of chese concerns is already affecting the mental outlook of those who live only on their salaries.
For Ernest, the building of the Fourth International was the primary purpose of his life. Of all the group.
ings which claimed allegiance to Trot.
skyism, the Fl is the only one which has succeeded in establishing itself as a genuinely internationalist, worldwide movement, with sections in 50 countries and sympathetic associations in many more. None of the sects which claim Trotskyist orthodoxy can equal this. presene that will guide future militants.
The Institute aims to develop research and education in socialism and democracy. It organises courses. seminars and study groups on a wide range of subjects, including economics, ecology, political theory, trades unionism, national liberation, women and other emancipation movements.
Mandel centre
The IIRE has recently decided to create an Ernest Mandel Study Centre on the premises of the Amsterdam school to further develop the non-dogmatic, open-minded and revolutionary theory Mandel fought for all his life.
Participants and lecturers come from all over the world to work in close collaboration-to exchange ideas and information and to forge a broad framework for international solidarity and understanding.
Alongside practical education the IIRE has an important publications programme. It is running two series: the Notebooks for Study and Research and a number of Working Popers.
All Notebooks appear in French and English. Some have also been pro. duced in German, Portugese, Dutch.
They are comprehensive studies: in-depth, open-minded and critical contributions made by and for activ. ists.
As he has written many times, it is during non-revolutionary conjunctural phases of the class struggle that revolutionaries conquer the capacity to lead their class when the possibility of revolution begins to appear. It was in the period 1912-1914 that the Bolsheviks gained the capacity to lead the revolution of 1917.
Ernest Mandel, marxist, revolutionary, internationalist, fought all his life to change the world, but to The Working Papers are preliminary discussions, distributed on a small scale and geared towards an interdisciplinary and international debate that will stimulate deeper research into the pressing problems of socialist strategy in modern capitalist sociecy.
All of these projects will directly benefit from the establishment of the study centre.
Press service The other main goal of the Memorial Fund is to raise a substantial sum to help strengthen the work of the Fourth International.
Over the last year the InternaPlease contribute to the Ernest Mandel Memorial Fund Name Address ...Post Code Telephone... • Please send me a receipt. • Please send me details of the Fl Supporters' Association Return to: Ernest Mandel Memorial Fund, PO Box 1109, London N4 2UU. "Bullding of the Fourth International was the primary purpose of his life"
change it with a specific purpose to eliminate all social conditions in which human beings are debased. downtrodden, mutilated in their pos. sibility of developing all their human potential. This is what he fought for when he joined the resistance in Belgium during the war. It was to remain his goal right up to the moment when the fatal heart attack struck tional has taken great efforts to strengthen its international press service. As well as producing English, Spanish, German and French monthlies - the English-language edition is Inter. national Viempoint - the International uses the internet to transmit news and political reports to its sections and sympathising organisations. The developments has extended participation in the press service -allowing the creation of 'virtual editorial boards' on the Internet and allows writing.proof-reading.sub-editing and design work on the same magazine to be carried out by by a team of people spread across five The Fund aims to help establish the Study Centre and to develop the work of the Fourth International. Please make cheques payable to 'Ernest Mandel Memorial Fund'.
theory*practice 11 • Ernest Mandel memorial issue • page four