The Part and the Proleteriat

[JustMovement]

Outside of marxist-leninism and trotskyism, what is the role of a communist party? Is it a forum of discussion and education, and a way to combat capitalist cultural hegemony? What role does a communist party have in organising struggle? How do people think that the form and practice of a communist party before the revolution translates into the political form of the revolutionary government after revolution (ie. democratic centralist com. party leads to a democratic centralist and bureaucratic government)?

edit: I meant the thread title to read "the party and the proletariat" if someone could change it that would be great.

[Broletariat]

Speaking from a Left Communist/Marxist/whatever the hell you want to call me point of view, I view the Party as what organically arises in the midst of class struggle.

First you get a bunch of economic struggle going on in the form of strikes, occupations etc. Eventually worker's councils/collectives/etc. get formed, but these guys are fragmented from each other and divided based on what industry they're in. So they must politically unite in the form of the Party to combat Capitalism politically in a united way.

The Party cannot be formed by voluntaristic "elite" communists. It comes about in a time of class struggle when the working class is actively fighting in its own interests.

[Rusty Shackleford]

The Proletarian Class and the Proletarian Party (http://marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/1905/01/01.htm)



read it

[JustMovement]

I read the piece. Basically part of the reason I asked the question is that in the leninist tradition I would argue the role of the party is so well defined, it is the most class conscious section of the proletariat, it directs the struggle, idealogical unity etc etc

So I was wondering what non leninist communists thought the role of the party should be.

Incidentally, from the piece, I prefer Martov s formula of the party as a "banquet" compared to Lenins/Stalins formula of the party as a "fortress".