When we start seeing the sustained opposition to the genocide being carried out against the Palestinian people on these campuses in the face of the mass arrests, police brutality and more, it is very important to grasp the indoctrination the students are breaking out of, and the potential this reveals. We need to be prepared to wade into this struggle with an understanding of the role it can play in contributing to bringing forward a revolutionary people and the fierce struggle that will be required. 

As BA writes in the preamble to the Constitution for the New Socialist Republic in North America: 

the process of making revolution, and then continuing the revolution in the new socialist state toward the final goal of communism, must involve the active participation of broad ranks of the people, of different strata, and will proceed through many different “channels,” involving many diverse forces among the people in many different spheres of human endeavor, not only those more directly political or relating more directly, at any given time, to the functioning and objectives of the leadership of the revolution and the new socialist state; and the orientation and aim, consciously taken up by growing numbers of the people, must be to work so as to enable all this to contribute, in the final analysis, to the struggle to further transform society in the direction of communism.

While he is writing specifically about the conditions in a new socialist state, his approach also applies today. This May 1st 2024 provides the revcoms with a rare opportunity to bring forward "early initiators" for this revolution. The release of the pamphlet ISRAEL AND PALESTINE, THE MIDDLE EAST AND U.S. IMPERIALISM, THE REVOLUTION HUMANITY NEEDS - A Selection of Writings from Bob Avakian, comes at a critical juncture in this struggle and can play a big role on these campuses and throughout society as a whole in this process. We hope this contribution will help towards achieving that goal.

And the person read it and he asked: what is the message in brief?  I said it’s a social media where Bob Avakian spoke about a central topic—the emancipation of humanity, individually and collectively. So they asked how could they participate without actually being present at a certain place or time.  And I told them: photocopies are needed. There are some books—I received 2 books. And together they, using a rough math formula, made a small donation which they asked me to provide to the revcoms.  That’s how it happened.

Also I put a flyer in the front house, and the topic that started the discussion was the ability to see social injustice for what it is, the larger scheme of things, and not always making it personal. Sometimes people suffer personal injustice, but like the genocide in Gaza is so wrong that nobody has any words left to describe it. And so it was in that theme is where they gave some money… they believe in the cause—the general theme of the cause, for the emancipation of humanity, not for their personal self-interest but for the larger thing, the genocide in Gaza, the suppression of free speech. That was on the flyer….

Q. We also asked what he has been learning from the discussion of the social media dispatches from BA:  

A: I have a pessimistic nature … I’m waiting for something to come along that don’t sit well with me so I could just put it to the side.  [But since I’ve been reading the dispatches,] I haven’t found that yet.  It’s not only clear, it’s fair and it’s transparent.  You could read some of the paragraphs more than once…there’s no hidden thing.  It’s simply a presentation of things that are scientific facts.  And I don’t have to agree with everything but I understand the context.  And that took me a while – reading a history book versus reading something on behalf of everyone else, the emancipation of humanity.  And so I was going to say integrity.  The integrity of the message is there… Bob Avakian, he’s been doing this since the 60s, but I also know other people who are protest leaders, they had a voice of protest, and they seem to have faded... So from my perspective it’s scientific, it’s very clear and transparent.  I like learning. I’m being objective – it’s very clear, it’s scientific, and it’s inclusive.  And I don’t know too many other leaders or too many other spokesmen who it’s inclusive – they seem to be leaving somebody out of the picture.  And BA does not do that.  It’s very clear. It’s inclusive, by people, gender, it doesn’t matter, area, demographics.  That’s what I’m learning – it’s inclusive and that’s why it’s intriguing.

Q. And finally we asked what would be his message to other people about why they should donate to the revcoms and to revolutionary internationalist May Day.

A: By donating to a cause you can support a cause and express your voice for the cause, and you don’t need to be in the front row, so to speak.  People can donate for a cause such as the revcoms have, and support the cause -- because from my experience, the photocopies are simply not free, the posters are not free, it’s just part of how things are.  So supporting a cause that one begins to believe in is important, important individually within the larger picture of everybody, like all those people in the future who will be emancipated – it will be effective, donate for the cause today for the greater picture tomorrow.

"What would you give to never have to see the bodies of children face down in the Rio Grande, or washing up along with seaweed in the Mediteranean or on the shores of European countries?

"What would you give to see women have the right to control their own bodies? For LGBT people and women to be able to walk with their heads held high free from the fear of rape and assault, as equals and respected members of society?

"What would you give to end the threat of nuclear war, to see nuclear weapons destroyed altogether? To end brutal genocides like the U.S.-funded war on the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank, and all imperialist wars of domination and plunder?

"What would you give to be able to listen and learn from the expertise of scientists and work with them to actually tackle the climate emergency for real?

"This is not impossible if millions of people rise in real revolution to sweep this system of capitalism-imperialism aside.

"Bob Avakian has analyzed that this is a time when there is a real chance for revolution, if we bring into being a revolutionary people quickly.

"What wouldn't you give?"