[Marxism] Re: imperialism and racism

[Ben Courtice <benj2006@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Calvin Broadbent wrote:
"Perhaps I have underestimated the significance of Australian protests
for reconciliation. I suspect many taking part in such protests could be
 characterised as middle class, however. In any case, such protests are
not directed aganst imperialist racism as such (which would strike at
the very core of the Australian state), but concentrate more on
reconciliation with aboriginal peoples."

Well, the protests had little political focus (Liberal government
ministers joined at least one) but represented a vague but genuine
desire to see justice for Australia's aborigines. The ideology was very
(small-L) liberal. The significance, however, like with the slowly
turning tide of opinion against Howard's policies on refugees, is that
the Australian working class (who make up 80-90% of the population) have
very mixed consciousness and there is more hope than Calvin says.

As to saying that most of the protesters were probably "middle class",
I'm not sure a) what this has to do with the argument, and b) what is
"middle class" anyway -- it's a populist term, not a Marxist one.

And I don't see how "reconciliation" (I would prefer to fight for
liberation...) is not anti-imperialist. Australia is undoubtedly an
imperialist state. The movement for aboriginal land rights, although
sometimes painted by the right as some threat to working-class
Australians, is really a threat to big mining and pastoral interests --
Australia's big mining multinationals like BHP and CRA/RTZ, and its "old
money" and rural agribusiness. And therefore the Australian imperialist
state. Even the liberals mainly focus (from what I've seen) on land
rights as a threat to the economy, not working class people (although
the anti-aborigine racism in many country areas is reminiscent of the
segregationist US south, it's that bad).

Calvin calls for organising the most oppressed, exploited sections of
the working class -- black and white. Certainly our organising must
orientate to the material struggles of these sections of the population.
But in terms of what Marxists should do, we intervene into the political
movements of the day and if these are skilled trades unions, "middle
class" reconciliation rallies, we intervene into those just as we
intervene when the aboriginal housing estate of Redfern and the poor
(mainly white) suburb of Macquarie Fields erupted in riots and protests
at the deaths of teenagers fleeing police recently. What would Calvin do
if the protests against the pogrom at Cronulla turn out to be mainly
"middle class" (whatever that is)?

Dealing with the stratification of the working class in imperialist
countries is not plain black and white, good vs bad, wokring class vs
middle class, or however you want to paint it. And Marxists need to use
flexible tactics.

Ben

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