Rally with the Communist Party!

Young Communist of Canada · 18th January 2006, 23:26

This Saturday marks the end of campaigning for the federal election in Canada.

And Miguel Figueroa, leader of the Communist Party of Canada makes his last stop on the campaign trail - Toronto, ON.

Please join us for a rally with Miguel Figueroa and the GTA candidates on Sat., Jan. 21st at 7:00pm at the Greek-Canadian Democratic Association, located at 290 Danforth Ave.

There will be Live music, bar and food!

For more information, call the central party office at 416 469 2446 or visit our election site at http://pcc-cpc-2006.communist-party.ca

**Vladislav** · 19th January 2006, 08:50

I would go but unfortunately I don't live there.>.<

Guest · 20th January 2006, 18:52

That's too bad. Where do you live?

**Vladislav** · 21st January 2006, 05:05

Australia

**Charles** · 23rd January 2006, 02:46

hey im from australia to what state do you live in? are you a member of the CPA?

**Nathe** · 23rd January 2006, 09:56

me too... im in vic...

im not a member of the cpa yet... but im not sure weather i should join, is it any good?

**Vladislav** · 23rd January 2006, 10:14

I live in Syd,NSW.
Nah I'm not a member. I'm organizing some shit in my school and spreading propaganda at the moment.

**Iroquois Xavier** · 23rd January 2006, 15:34

I live in England, Imperial Shithole Capital. spreading propaganda as well but the council is tearing it down for some reason...

**Severian** · 26th January 2006, 08:44

From the linked page (the "vote communist" statement at the bottom):

"Canadian sovereignty is being sold out by Ottawa at the insistence of Big Business." There's a lot of other Canadian nationalist stuff in the statement.

Maybe some people think this is progressive because it's directed against the U.S. But Canada is also an imperialist country, and a junior partner of U.S. imperialism in interventions from Afghanistan to Haiti.

Canadian nationalism, just as much as U.S. nationalism, requires workers to unite with "our" bosses who also belong to the same nation.

In 2004, voters denied a majority to the big business parties. With the NDP and Bloc Québécois holding the balance of power, working people were in a better position to resist corporate tax give-aways and the U.S. “Missile Defense” scheme. Under a minority government, there was some progress towards a Canada-wide childcare plan and some other progressive policies, although this was limited by Liberal foot-dragging.

One, the Bloc Quebecois is also a big-business party. A party of nationalist Quebecois bosses. Workers in Quebec need their own party just as much as workers anywhere else.

Two, whether workers make gains or not does not depend primarily on which party is in parliament. In some cases NDP provincial governments have slashed social services, not to mention the record of similar parties in other countries, like the British Labour Party.

Whether we make gains or not depends on the fight that is put up in the streets and workplaces. Building illusions in parliament does not help build that fight.

The main purpose of a communist election campaign should be to spread communist ideas and solidarize with workers' struggles, not primarily to elect "progressive" candidates and certainly not to pretend that electing those candidates will by itself make any difference.

**Charles** · 26th January 2006, 09:03

Originally posted by Nathe@Jan 23 2006, 10:15 AM
me too... im in vic...

im not a member of the cpa yet... but im not sure weather i should join, is it any good?

i dont know much about them but ther web site is www.cpa.org.au you should check it out

im sorry if this counts as advertising

**RevolucioN NoW** · 26th January 2006, 09:05

im not a member of the cpa yet... but im not sure weather i should join, is it any good?

This is the third (i think) person to express interest in joining the CPA over the past week or so...this would probably be their largest single jump in membership since the early 90's (ive heard their average member age is around 55).

Seriously comrades, join the CPA if you consider the Soviet Union and China to be models of a future Socialist society, if not, look elsewhere (there are a plethora of communist groups in Australia).

Guest · 26th January 2006, 17:58

We say "Canadian sovereignty is being sold out by Ottawa at the insistence of Big Business."

It's true. You yourself say that Canada is a partner of U.S. imperialism, and that's what this sentence is refering to. Of course we don't believe that only a detachment from the U.S. would make Canada a great nation, and if you read more of our statements, you would realise that.

One, the Bloc Quebecois is also a big-business party. A party of nationalist Quebecois bosses. Workers in Quebec need their own party just as much as workers anywhere else.

Two, whether workers make gains or not does not depend primarily on which party is in parliament. In some cases NDP provincial governments have slashed social services, not to mention the record of similar parties in other countries, like the British Labour Party.

Of course we know these are big-business parties!! Unlike your party, the Communist League, who gives their support to the NDP except in 3 ridings. In the latest issue of our paper, we say:

PV: What about the campaign of Jack Layton and the New Democrats?

Figueroa (Party Leader): To describe the NDP's campaign as disappointing would be extremely charitable... they have made a number of policy retreats on key issues such as the proliferation of private health clinics. On tax policy, they have been completely silent about increasing corporate tax rates. They have come out in support of the chauvinist Clarity Act, the main aim of which is to deny Quebec's right to self-determination. And most recently, they have pandered to the right populist press to "get tough" on gun violence and youth crime. They even toyed briefly with the idea of NDP cooperation with a Conservative minority government, although they thought better about it later and dropped any reference to that. Much like they did in the pivotal 1988 election, they have concluded, from a narrow partisan point of view, that the Liberals are their main enemy, and that a Harper victory would be an acceptable, even welcome, outcome so long as it also resulted in some additional NDP seats."

We're not supporting the bloc or NDP, we're supporting a minority government instead of a tory majority. A few petty reforms were squeezed out from the budget in the last minority government. You can't deny that. That's the whole reason big business called for this scam election.

The main purpose of a communist election campaign should be to spread communist ideas

haha, can you say, "idealist''? (Christian missionaries do that in Bangladesh too :P )

and solidarize with workers' struggles

we do.

not primarily to elect "progressive" candidates and certainly not to pretend that electing those candidates will by itself make any difference.

I just think this is so incredibly ironic coming from someone who seems to support the militant. The militant ran 3 candidates in this election under the name "Communist League". They all support the NDP in the other ridings because 'most workers do'. What do you think about that?

We on the other hand, run in the election to bring debate further left, bring up issues that the NDP won't, and give the thousands of people who vote for us another option. Voting communist is a measure of social discontent. Plus, we've been elected before. Federally, municipally and provincially, so no. We're not just another voice trying to elect the NDP. We have run in elections before they were even around.

**RNK** · 6th February 2006, 01:59

What is the difference between the Communist Party of Canada "CPC" and the Communist Party of Canada(Marxist-Leninist) "CPCML"? Speaking from an honestly curious point of view.

Guest · 13th February 2006, 17:47

RE: Difference between CP and MLPC:

It's very complicated. There was some strife after the sino-soviet split when China and the S.U. broke off its relations. The formation of the ML was kind of a response to that. They lost interest in the Soviet Union. The CP has always supported the Soviet Union.

A communist party candidate was asked the same question and I thought he did an alright job of answering it:

“In this election, the ML is calling on the workers, women and youth to be very active [??] in creating a future for themselves.” They state only the organized working class can stop Fascism and war – “which is coming.” Quote: “We are calling on Canadian workers, women and children to oppose annexation and vest sovereignty in themselves. There is an alternative… and it is very important that we fight for that alternative.”

What exactly is that alternative? Socialism? An anti-imperialist shift away from capitalism and towards socialism, like Venezuela? This is vague.

We present a broad and detailed platform dealing with the real flesh-and-blood issues, from raising corporate taxes and the minimum wage, to child care and violence against women, to Canada getting out of NAFTA and NORAD, nationalizing oil and gas, a 30 hour work week, etc. This comes from our connections to mass-movements and the trade union movement across the country. We also clearly state that building a broad, strong and powerful alliance of progressive forces would be help push Canada away from the current direction and towards a socialist Canada. Socialism is the alternative to capitalism.

Here is the history.

Our party is the "original" Communist Party in Canada basing itself on a Marxist-Leninist perspective. Founded in 1921, we played the leading role building industrial unions in Canada, fighting for the rights of the unemployed during the Depression, opposing fascism internationally; the party whose members were victimized by McCarthyism, etc.

The M-L or CPC(M-L) was not split-off from the CPC, beginning in 1970 as a Maoist organization supporting the Cultural Revolution. After Mao’s death, it shifted allegiance to Albania. During this period, they attacked what they called "Soviet social-imperialism" with an even greater ferocity than it opposed U.S. imperialism, and resorted on numerous occasions to violent confrontations with other left and democratic organizations -- our Party was the main target. This often led to their complete isolation in mass movements.

After the overturn of the Soviet Union, the CPC(M-L) radically transformed their line. They dropped references to "socialism," "revolution" or even the "working class" or class issues like unemployment, etc. They rarely if ever employed any class analysis in discussing the international situation or the political economy of Canada. Instead, they advanced populist slogans criticizing the Canadian State as unrepresentative and anti-democratic, but failing to expose its true class essence. In place of the current political system, they advanced bizarre electoral and structural alternatives, such as proposing that a popular referendum be held to allow Canadians to choose between capitalism and socialism.

More recently, the CPC(M-L) has returned to more open advocacy of socialist ideology, although still retaining some of the ultra-leftist and right-populist baggage. In some specific areas, they now support policies closer to our own.

We do not preclude the possibility for greater dialogue and cooperation between the CPC and the CPC(M-L) in the future, although there are still differences. It is especially important that all communists and socialists across Canada strengthen their unity in action. Such unity can only proceed on the basis of open dialogue, and tolerance for differences--both past and present.

Source: http://www.paved.ca/paved/2006/01/fed_date_4_joha.html

**Wanted Man** · 13th February 2006, 21:24

Interesting criticism on the MLP. I've been wondering about the precise differences between them, apart from the historical rift between Soviet revisionism and the Hoxhaites. Certainly, the two parties can't reconcile until they both develop a correct line to socialism, instead of the "right populism" that the MLP is accused of here.

Guest · 14th February 2006, 01:14

Why would you call it soviet revisionism? I'm not quite sure I understand you there.

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