WHY THE WEBSITE?
The authors of this site are activists committed in different ways to the struggle against exploitation and oppression. This means that we act under the wing of left parties, trade union organisations and action campaigns against social inequality.
Our aims are twofold:
1] to contribute to the rebuilding of class-consciousness among the workers, severely damaged by the collapse of the "Socialist" States and the miserable record of governments of the "Left".
2] within the working class and progressive movement to help collect together the most resolute sections: that layer which can show the way forward and take the leadership in struggles.
What unites us at this time is a common understanding of what is required for the appearance and development of mass campaigns and the openings they may lead to.
With this statement we wish to point out the fact that ending poverty and injustice can only be achieved by breaking with capitalism, complete workers' self management, the end of the wages system and the disappearance of class society.
At the same time we mean to say that the struggle is inconceivable without relying on the enormous body of practical experiences and theoretical lessons accumulated in the course of decades of struggle and suffering.
Among the Left there are indeed a great number of groups each claiming to act in the spirit of liberators, and to be following revolutionary ideas. Militant supporters can be distinguished from these on four fundamental points, dialectically linked to one another:
1. We believe that priority should clearly be given to militancy within the world of work, particularly in those sectors which are the most important numerically but which are veritable political and trade union deserts: i.e. the private sector in general and small enterprises in particular.
2. We believe that one must go to the most exploited part - the young and active among the working class, youth at risk and immigrant workers. This group is outside existing organisations, but nevertheless it is this group and this group alone which could constitute the solid longterm social basis to a force for change. Our investment in the Popular mutual aid association is one of the clearest signals of this policy.
3. We reject Messianic propaganda. On the contrary, we look to rely on the real-life experience of people engaged in practical work, the unemployedetc. to create an action programme where the workers play the most decisive role. It's not a question of giving directives or of acting on someone else's behalf but of united action.
Thus, we advocate rank-and-file militancy using a number of original methods, on the basis of defining political objectives, arousing the consciousness of the greatest number and giving systematic expression to popular aspirations.
4. While it is necessary to endeavour to organise the unorganised this in no way means that one must ignore the mass political and trade union organisations which are part of our inheritance. So it is out of the question to phrase demands upon them in the manner of ultimatums.
Far from advocating the building of a "new party" modeled according to our conceptions and treating our ideas as points of honour, we wish to bring the ideas to life in the heart of the struggles and also in the heart of the trade unions and the organisations and parties of the left.
Seeing as the international character of capitalism is no longer something to be proved as globalisation reaches to the four corners of the earth we wish to help promote international unity of the working class and at the same time build a spirit of active independence in the heart of the movement of resistance against liberal globalisation.
Samir BENKHELDOUN
Dominique CORNET
Raymond DEBORD
Fran¨ois FERRETTE
Salima JAMILI
Franck MARSAL
Antoine THIVEL
Ouarda YAHI
Contact us : militant@le-militant.org
Translation
by Julian Silverman (Movements
for socialism)
See also :