Saturday, February 1, 1919 THE REVOLUTIONARY AGE The Class Struggle During the War By Rosa Luxemburg cally marked by wars. Therefore, according to this HE German Social Democracy handed in its On political resignation on August 4, 1914.
new theory, social development has gone on according Before she could finish this article, Rosa Luxemthe same day the Socialist International col hurg was sent in to prison to serve a sentence for marked by class solidarity and conflicts within the nato the following formula: a period of class struggles.
lapsed. All attempts to deny this fact or to conceal anti militarist agitation. It appeared in The Intertions; then a period of national solidarity and interit merely to serve to perpetuate the conditions which national, a magasine started by Frans Mehring and national conflicts and so on indefinitely. Periodicalbrought it about.
Rosa Luxemburg, and suppressed by the censor upon ly the foundations of social life as they exist during This collapse is without a parallel in history. So the appearance of the first issue.
peace change in time of war. And again, at the mocialism or Imperialism this is the alternative which ment of the signing of a treaty of peace, they are resummed up the political life of the various labor parstored. This is not, evidently, progress by means of ties of the world during the past decade. In Germany our past theories. The delightfully adaptable theory especially it has formed the basis of countless pro is likewise ready and willing to justify the present successive catastrophes. it is rather progress by grams, discussions and publications. One of the chief position of International Socialism in reference to its means of a series of somersaults. Society develops, we are to suppose, like an iceberg floating down a purposes of the Social Democracy has been the cor past. The International treated only the question of warm current; its lower portion is melted away, it rect formulation of thought and sentiment with re the prevention of war. But now, war is a fact, and, gard to this alternative.
as it turns out after the outbreak of war Socialists turns over, and continues this process indefinitely.
Now all the known facts of human history run With the outbreak of the war the word became are to be guided by entirely new principles. After war has actually begun the great question for each straight counter to this new theory. They show that flesh; the alternative changed from historical tendproletariat is: Victory or defeat? Or, as an Austro there is a necessary and dialectic relation between the ency to a political situation. Face to face with this Marxist explains, a nation, like any other organism, class struggle and the war. The class struggle dealternative as a fact the Social Democracy, which must preserve its existence. In plain language this velops into war and war develops into the class strughad beon the first to recognize it and bring it to the means: The proletariat has not one fundamental prin gle; and thus their essential unity is proved. It was consciousness of the working class, struck its sails and ciple as scientific Socialism hertofore maintained, but so in the medieval cities, in the wars of the Reformawithout a struggle conceded the victory to Imperial two, one for peace and another for war. In time of tion, in the Flemish wars of liberation, in the French ism. Never before, since there have been a class peace, we are to suppose, the workers are to take Revolution, in the American Rebellion, in the Paris struggle and political parties, has there existed a party cognizance of the class struggle within the nation and Commune, and in the Russian uprising in 1905. And which, after fifty years of uninterrupted growth after of international solidarity in relation to other coun now in 1917, in Russia, again. the attainment of a pre eminent position of power, tries; in time of war, on the other hand, class solidarity Moreover, theoretically this new idea leaves not has thus by its own act within twenty four hours becomes the dominant feature of international affairs one stone of the Marxian doctrine on another. If, as wiped itself off the map.
and the struggle against the workers of other countries Marx supposes, neither war nor the class struggle falls The apologists for this act, Kautsky among them, dominates the proletarian view of foreign relations. from heaven, but both arise from deep social econommaintain that the whole duty of Socialists in time of To the great historic appeal of the Communist Ma ic causes, then they cannot disappear periodically unwar is to remain silent. Socialism, they say in ef festo is added an important amendment and it reads less their causes also go up in vapor. Now the prolefect, is a power for peace, not against war. But there now, according to this revision. Workers of all lands tarian class struggle is a necessary aspect of the wage is a logic of events none can elude. The moment So unite in peace and cut one another throats in war system. But during war the wage system does not cialists ceased to oppose war they became by the To day, Down with Russians and French! to mortend to disappear. On the contrary, the aspects of it stern logic of events, its supporters. The labor union row, We are brothers all!
which give rise to the struggle of the class become ists who have discontinued their struggle for imThis convenient theory introduces an entirely novel especially prominent. Speculation, the founding of proved conditions, the women who have withdrawn revision of the economic interpretation of history.
new companies to carry on war industries, military from Socialist agitation in order to help minimize the Proletarian tactics before the outbreak of war and dictatorship. If, then, the causes of the class strug.
after must be based on exactly opposite principles.
horrors of war, and the Socialist party leaders who This presupposes that social conditions, the bases of gle are multiplied, strengthened, during war how can spend their time in the press and on the platform seour tactics are fundamentally different in war from their inevitable result be supposed to go out of excuring support for the government and suppressing ev what they are in peace. According to the economic istence. Conversely, wars are at the present time a ery effort at criticism all these are not merely main interpretation of history as Marx established it, all result of the competition of various capitalist extaining silence. They are supporting the war as history is the history of the class struggles. Accordheartily as any Conservative or Centrist. When and ing to the new revision, we must add. except in times pansion. Now, these two forces are not operative of war. Now human development has been periodi only while the cannon are booming; they are active where was there ever a war which could exhibit a simin peace as well, and it is precisely in time of peace ilar spectacle?
that they influence our life in such a way as to make Where and when was the disregard of all conthe outbreak of war inevitable. For war is, as Kautstitutional rights accepted with such submissiveness?
sky loves to quote from Clausewitz, the continuaWhere was there ever such glorification by an opposition of politics by other means. And the imperialist tion party of the strictest censorship of the press. phase of capitalist rule, through competition in buildNever before did a political party sacrifice its last ing of armaments, has made peace illusory, for it has drop of blood. The mighty organization of the Social placed us regularly under military dictatorship and has Democracy, its much praised discipline, gave the best thereby made war permanent.
proof of themselves in the fact that four millions of Therefore our revised economic interpretation of human beings allowed themselves to be hitched to inhistory leads to a dilemma. Our new revisionists are the war chariot at the command of a handful of par between the devil and the sea. Either the class strugliamentarians. The half century of preparation on cor. Washington and Dover Sts.
gle persists in war as the chief life condition of the the part of the Socialist party comes to fruition now proletariat and the declaration of class harmony by in this war.
All our education of the masses make Socialist leaders is a crime against the working class; them now the obedient and effective servants of the or carrying on the class struggle in time of peace is a imperialist state. Marx, Engels and Lassalle Liebkat p.
crime against the interests of the nation and the necht, Bebel and Singer trained the German prole security of the fatherland. Either the International tariat in order that Hindenburg might lead it.
Speakers must remain a heap of ruins after the war or its resurOur official theorists are not without an explanation Jim Larkin rection will take place on the basis of the class strugof this phenomenon. They are perfectly willing to exgle from which it took its rise in the first place. It plain the slight disagreement between their actions of Fred Biedenkapp will not reappear by magic at the playing over of the to day and their words of yesterday. Their apology Gen. Sec. Brotherhood of Metal Workers old tunes which hypnotized the world before Auis that although the Social Democracy has concerned Gregory Weinstein gust Only by definitely recognizing and disowning itself much with the question as to what should be our own weaknesses and failures since August 4, by Eadmonn MacAlpine done to prevent the war it has never concerned itself giving up the tactics introduced since that time, can with the problem as to what should be done after All Speakers Will Positively Appear we begin the rebuilding of the International. An the the beginning of hostilities. Ready to do everybody first step in this direction is agitation for the ending ADMISSION FREE bidding, this theory assures us that the present prac Auspices Socialist Party Branches of the war and the securing of peace on the basis of tice of our party is in the most beautiful harmony with the common interests of the international proletariat.
Liebknecht. Luxemburg MEMORIAL MASS MEETING Grand Opera House Sunday, Februry 2, 1919