racism, eurocentrism (fwd)

[xxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

>No. Western Marxism has been full of Euro-centrism. Two of the greatest
>champions and fighters for socialist internationalism and against
>imperialism and racism--Lenin and Trotsky-- were Euro-centrists.

In so far as Lenin goes, he was a true internationalist and universalist
socialist. i would not, however, terribly charecterize him banal
eurocentric simply because Lenin made us believe that Russia could make a
revolution by challenging the eurocentric orthodoxy and classical theory
of stages: if you don't have the necessary economic pre-conditions and
bourgeois democracy, you can not have socialism. Lenin analyisis of
imperialism, agrarian question in Russia, oppresion of peasentry, 1896 St
Petersburg strikes, showed that Russia was ready for a revolution, and
hence would provide a role mother for international revolutions world
wide. the fact that it did not happen that way everywhere does not falsify
the original idea. on the contrary, it shows socialists can learn from
their past not the repeat the same mistakes in the present. On top of all,
changing nature of capitalism and growing anti-imperialist rivalary
reiterates Lenin's point: You need to settle accounts with your
own bourgeoisie _as well as_ the international bourgeoisie. otherwise,
working classes are constantly pit against each other..


In my view both Marx and Lenin are exteremely useful to understand the
development of world history. Proving their eurocentricism does not seem
to me a terribly fair interpretation of them. Marx was concencrened with
horrible conditions of the working class in Britian (Remeber the "bloody
legislation against the expropriated" chapter in Capital) _as well as_ the
conditions of the working classes in India..he was a critic of capitalism
regardless of nationality..that is why he said "settle account with your
own bourgeoisie" in the Manifesto. he did not say "ally with them", he
meant "trash them"

but i agree with the rest of your post..


Mine