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Politics

1917: A Revolution Whose Echoes Still Resound

One of the most remarkable aspects of the revolution was the commitment of a small group of left-wing organizations that forged strong connections with the working class and peasantry.

1917: A Revolution Whose Echoes Still Resound

Vladimir Lenin. Graphics: The Crossbill

November 7 marks the anniversary of the Russian Revolution of 1917, an event that radically reshaped world history. In February 1917, the workers, peasants, and soldiers of Russia overthrew the Tsarist regime, paving the way for a new order. Then, in October of that year (November by the Western calendar), they completed their revolution under the leadership of the Bolshevik Party, overthrowing the provisional government led by Alexander Kerensky.

Lenin, newly returned from exile, recognized that Kerensky’s government was merely a facade for reactionary forces, including counterrevolutionary elements and foreign imperialists. Overthrowing this government became imperative, and the Petrograd Soviet took up the call.

The 'Soviet Century' was short-lived, enduring just over seven decades before the dissolution of the USSR in 1989. This collapse marked a significant setback for global socialism.

However, one of the most remarkable aspects of the Russian Revolution was the commitment of a small group of left-wing organizations that, during the hardships of World War I, forged strong connections with the working class and peasantry. This dedication set a precedent for future revolutionary movements.

Revolution is a Skilled Craft

In 1914, most established socialist parties supported the war, despite its imperialist nature. But at a 1915 gathering in Zimmerwald, Switzerland, the anti-war Left came together to regroup. This gathering included Russian leaders across the spectrum, from Lenin to Trotsky. Rather than promoting pacifism, they argued for revolutionary action, viewing the call for peace as valid only if it was tied to a broader revolutionary strategy.

Lenin’s 1902 work What Is to Be Done? guided many socialists. He emphasized the importance of a well-prepared organization capable of leading movements effectively, noting that revolutionaries had previously lagged behind spontaneous uprisings. The Bolshevik Party heeded this lesson, establishing networks within the working class and peasantry. By September 1917, as Soviets across the country demanded change, Lenin declared, "insurrection is an art." The October Revolution wasn’t a coup; rather, the Bolsheviks joined a massive uprising, steering it toward its demand for a Soviet Republic.

Building a Socialist Society

The Soviet Union’s achievements from 1917 to 1989 were extraordinary, though hard-won. Lenin famously wrote in 1918 that creating a new kind of state was only a minor part of their task; the real challenge lay in reorganizing production on a socialist basis. Faced with attacks from Western powers, the young Soviet state had to prioritize military defence, which drained resources from social development. Even so, the USSR pushed for rapid industrial growth to support both its defence needs and the well-being of its people.

From the beginning, however, there were worries that rapid development would lead to an overly centralized state. In 1918, Lenin warned that "communists have become bureaucrats," foreshadowing the bureaucratic drift that would later stifle Soviet political life. As the Communist Party grew, absorbing millions of new members, it became a dynamic force for cultural and scientific progress. Yet internal purges and the burden of bureaucratic expansion drained its vitality.

Despite these setbacks, Soviet planning mechanisms gained global admiration, especially after the USSR’s critical role in defeating fascism during World War II. The factories and infrastructure built under socialist planning formed the backbone of Soviet military strength, without which Nazi Germany might have prevailed. This tremendous sacrifice of over twenty million lives in defence of freedom left a lasting impact, though its fruits were ultimately co-opted by Western liberalism, not by global communism.

The Struggle for Democracy

One of the USSR’s major limitations was its failure to fully develop democratic structures. This allowed capitalist countries, with their formal democratic institutions, to claim the mantle of "democracy." Lenin had once argued that every worker, with training, could govern; however, the Soviet system’s lack of broad-based democracy fostered bureaucratization and stagnation.

Attempts to reform the system, including those by Kosygin in the 1960s and 1970s, remained top-down and did not stem from within the Party or the population. In the 1980s, Gorbachev’s reforms (glasnost and perestroika) aimed to open up and restructure the USSR. However, his insistence on multi-party elections and direct challenges to the Communist Party’s role destabilized the state. Ultimately, this led to the USSR’s disintegration, paving the way for a market-driven system dominated by opportunists who became Russia’s first oligarchs. In October 1993, Boris Yeltsin, backed by General Pavel Grachev, led what became known as the "October Counter-Revolution," a coup that cemented the turn away from socialism.

The Path Ahead for Communism

Over three and half decades have passed since the Soviet Union’s dissolution, yet many challenges facing the global Left predate this collapse. Economic shifts, including the rise of global supply chains and the technological revolution, weakened the organized bases of communism. With the fall of the USSR, no alternative bloc remained to counterbalance capitalism. The haunting words of The Communist Manifesto about capitalism’s relentless expansion resonate even more today, as exploitative labour practices continue in places like the maquiladoras of Mexico and factories in Bangladesh.

Nostalgia isn’t the appropriate response to the USSR’s legacy. Instead, we should recognize its achievements, its role as a counterbalance to capitalism, and the lessons from its successes and failures. As the Peruvian Marxist José Carlos Mariátegui wrote, communism "must be a heroic creation," one forged through struggle, with both triumphs and mistakes. The essence of communism lies in the pursuit of a future free from guaranteed suffering and in the continued struggle to fulfil its yet unrealized promises.


The opinions expressed here are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Crossbill.

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