I was alerted to the Marxism 2024 four day event by my two sons who both attended the 2023 event (without telling me until afterwards). I like politics, discussions and am left-wing so it was an easy decision to sign up for this year's event.
It was held at UCL in Bloomsbury which is not far from one of my former work places so I know the area well and also various good ways of getting there. This was useful with the relatively early starts; now that I am retired a 9:30am start counts as unusually early!
The event was a collection of sessions of 75 minutes with up to nine sessions running in parallel so there were plenty to choose from. The 75 minutes were organises as 30 minutes presentation, 30 minutes discussion and 15 minutes speaker's response to the points raised. That worked reasonably well and the contributors from the floor often brought in their own specific experiences which helped to explain the topic. I attended 17 sessions over the four days.
There was a half hour gap between sessions giving time to move between them and to grab the occasional coffee. You had to arrive promptly at each session as several got full and had to turn people away; I missed one on a Workers' Revolution in c21 because of this. The days were hectic but not frantic.
There were pub sessions in the evenings and I had a couple of long days and a few interesting meals at interesting times.
Overall it was a lot of fun, if tiring at times, and I am tempted to go again next year.
I took a few notes throughout and this is them, unedited and unfiltered. These notes are a mix of what was said by the speakers and the contributors from the floor and also my thoughts at the time. They're bit of a mess but give a reasonable idea of what the sessions were about.
Return of fascism?
Germany and Italy fascism arose from failed mass movements
Suggest we fight fascism and the causes of fascism. Not sure that works, it failed before and fighting fascism gives focus to those issues, e.g. racism, rather then, e.g. the failures of capitalism. Also marks us as mindless militants.
Easier to agree an anti-fascist message across groups than specific progressive policies.
30s fascists had lots of street thugs, they don’t have that now. Not yet. But they do have the police.
Fascists are not just racist, they are directly anti working class.
Lots of talk about Tommy Robinson but he’s just a lone grifter.
ACAB
8 to abolition
To get completely rid of the Police we need to remove the need for them
An interim state is to remove suppressive legislation, e.g. anti demonstration laws
We outsource things like dealing with antisocial behaviour to the Police
Post Marxism
Do we know really how society works and changes?
Post Marxists wrong, Marx right. Apparently.
Marxists oppose all oppression, e.g. BLM, feminism, LGTBQ+, not just of working class
Need to understand the ideas behind other theories to argue against them but also to use their perspectives and terminology to produce a Marxist version where applicable
The case for revolutionary socialism
Capitalism has always been indefensible
Climate change is the best example of why capitalism itself is the problem, not the way it’s implemented
Is reform possible? Can we get socialism without revolution?
Socialism is not just the state running things
If capitalism can crush a conservative PM in 44 days, what chance does a truly socialist government have?
The SWP’s role is to lead the working class despite not being in it?!
When workers strike for more pay and they get it then they are happy with the system again
If Labour make things slightly better, e.g. stronger trade union rights and/or wealth taxes, then the demand for bigger change will reduce
Need to understand where power really lies and be positioned to take it, e.g. ex-communists in East Europe
Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracies can be singular JFK or enduring Illuminati
Conspiracies give human agency to the capitalist system
Are religions conspiracy theories?
CTs have no logic behind them so you cannot offer disproving facts
If the antidote is Marxism then won’t that be seen as a CT led by mysterious groups like SWP
Is Gender a social construct
When does gender matter, and why?
With equalities acts etc why do we need to ask people what their gender is?
When do we need to treat genders differently, e.g. prisons, sport, toilets?!
When it matters, how do we measure it?
If we don’t count genders how do we ensure they are treated equally?
The world has changed for the better, still things to do, some of which are easy, e.g. stop using gendered pronouns, gender neutral toilets, gender neutral changing rooms
Greens
Better than Labour but not by much
Imperialism
Heavy theory, e.g. Lenin v Luxembourg
Some liberation movements, e.g. Ukraine, are better sees as inter imperialist conflicts (USA v Russia)
But how do we categorise soft imperial wars, e.g. USA support for Taliban against Russia?
Marxist economics
Economics is not neutral, it’s political
Dead Labour has a fixed cost, cannot make a profit from that
Living Labour is where profit is made
Capitalism is explorative because of this
Capitalists must complete in the market to survive
FX etc generates profit but not value
There is not one market, e.g. city pubs
Where do non profits and cooperatives fit?
Party and Class
Not an easy jump from a single issue campaign, e.g. a strike, to convincing them on revolutionary socialism
Will also find ourselves alongside other groups with very different ideas
Is joining picket lines really the best way to get the message across and build membership?
Housing
Grenfell was a disaster of regulation, not of housing, e.g. it could have been a train crash
Grenfell was not an accident, it’s what capitalism does, I.e. profit before safety, environment, etc.
Landlordism creates natural conflict between owner (profit) and user (quality)
Organised tenants have had some success but limited in scope
Rent controls!!!
Private renting is c20%
Thatcher! At last!
Empty homes, AirB&B, ….
The public sector must be involved in a major public service
University housing is a particular case
Take properties from bad/expensive landlords
Also take empty properties
Revolutionaries and elections
Labour is not offering very much and will struggle to deliver that
The Left already has a significant base to build on
For Reformists, elections are the strategy, for Revolutionaries they are just one of many tools
Reformist Governments have limited ability to reform things as power lies outside of the state
Elections give a measure of public concerns
Elections are also a place for political debate
The struggle from the base implies that we should be fighting in local elections, especially on local issues, e.g. specific peace camps or strikes
Polycrisis
The crises are leading to conflicts between major nations, e.g. rival Covid vaccines
All these crises arise from capitalism
Competitive accumulation of capital
Isn’t the demonstrable crisis of capitalism something that revolutionaries have been waiting for?
How late will it be before the crisis is recognised? Can we stop the full catastrophe and do we want to?
The End of the World will not actually be The End of the World, some people will survive
Revolution is not a solution it’s a process, need to say what the new world might look like
Dialectics
Dialectics deals with changing systems, most philosophy is static seeking universal truths
Dialectics is about seeing the totality of things, e.g. the context
Philosophy, economics , history, etc. are all part of the same thing
As things change we get new oppositions and contradictions
People are shaped by society and change as society changes
Stopping the Far Right
Low-level Islamophobia is rampant, e.g. ripping hijabs off
Racism exists in many places and forms, different tactics needs for each
Are “we” in the places where racist discussions are happening, e.g. Twitter
How do we build prominent anti racist voices to counter Oakenshot Brewer etc.
Planning a demonstration at next Reform conference
Where’s the mass online response to things like Starmer’s comments on Bangladesh
Physical rallies against Farage etc. may help with silencing him but do little to grow support
Farage/Robinson supporters are also victims of capitalism, they’ve just come to the wrong conclusion as to the cause, led there by F/R
We’re not the only group fighting these battles, how/if do SWP work with them
Degrowth
Over production of things like fast fashion but under production of things like housing
Use Credit Guidance to control what banks can invest in, e.g. nor destructive industries
Democratic Economists is possible and can solve most problems , but no political party wants to do this (why?)
Growth is a necessary feature of capitalism
There is good growth, e.g. swimming pools and libraries, which can still happen alongside overall degrowth
It’s not a question of making the pie bigger, we need to make it better
China
Book is a Marxist analysis of modern China
Book is comprehensive because Marxist analysis is comprehensive, need to see totality of China and its place in the world system. Most books focus on just one aspect.
96% of housing is private, very little public housing
Welfare also mostly private
Very high savings rate, reduces household spend needed for growth
Youth unemployment is 22%
Territorial disputes in South China Sea but not all China’s fault, e.g. Philippines sea borders very close to Indonesia
Overall, not particularly convincing
Not a very in context view, e.g. treatment of Muslims and mosques in UK, Palestine, India, …
No mention of international activities or imperialist tendencies
Felt like lots of examples picked to give the right answer, e.g. no mention of dominance in new patents
Or Belt and Road
