Capitalism is facing a series of interlocking crises, among them the looming environmental crisis and deepening crisis of life for the working class. The capitalist class is the culprit in both cases, but they excel at turning us against one another. They pit the environmental movement against the fight for jobs and collective bargaining rights, and they preach solutions based on personal sacrifice (from the working class) rather than systemic change.

Join our discussion of class struggle, environmentalism, and the Green New Deal. Here’s a question to get you started:

How can we help people see the connection between the struggle of the working class for its life needs, the destruction of the environment, and the fight for socialism?

We want to hear from you!

We welcome both written contributions and links to recorded video/audio. Priority will be given to submissions 1000 words/7 minutes or less. Check out the guidelines below, and send your thoughts to discussion@cpusa.org by November 2.

Guidelines for discussion

Click here to send us your ideas!

Register for our two-part online class on Green Strategy (Oct. 20 & 27, 8 PM Eastern)

Resources for discussion

Here are some pieces to stimulate your thinking and present CPUSA’s understanding of the environmental crisis as a key working class issue.

Capitalism vs. the environment

This excerpt from CPUSA’s program lays out our vision of the looming environmental crisis, its causes, and the main obstacles to progress.

Marxism: more relevant than ever

In his remarks at a conference hosted by the Communist Party of China, former CPUSA chair John Bachtell explains why addressing the climate crisis requires a Marxist orientation.

Green strategy: building the movement to stop climate change (excerpt; book available from International Publishers)

The transition to a green economy and society won’t happen just because it’s necessary. It requires organized, collective action by a mass movement. In this excerpt from his recent book, Marc Brodine explains how the fight for environmental reforms relates to the struggle for socialism.

Contributions

How capitalism cuts us off from nature (Anita Waters)

A Marxist environmental policy focuses on the organic relationship between human society and the natural world. Capitalism disrupts that relationship.

Imperialism drives environmental destruction (Emile Schepers)

Nations struggling against imperialist domination face a double challenge: pursue economic development while mitigating the impact of climate change. The United States is the major imperialist power, so what demands can we make of our government to advance their struggle?

“The best available science” calls for an ethically managed economy (A. Jake Benecke)

“The best available science” is an ethical code in resources management. We need to apply it to our economy and society as a whole, which means getting rid of a system that allows a few billionaires to enrich themselves through environmental destruction.

How to win the Green New Deal? Talk jobs, and put labor in the lead (Lowell B. Denny, III)

If labor takes the lead on the Green New Deal, it could open the door to a new economy where workers and communities are the center, the environment is a beneficiary, and corporate power is pushed to the margins.

Image: Young activists join the climate strike in Westminster, UK. Photo by Roy, used under CC BY-NC 2.0

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