If ever there was a need for a radically different world, now is the time! And this is what millions who are being jolted by big global changes have to come to understand and feel. That's what the National Campaign to get the revolutionary voice and leadership of Bob Avakian reaching those millions is aimed at.

Fascism is moving rapidly to consolidate, global climate change is passing the tipping point, we face the heightened danger of nuclear war. And people are constantly having it drummed into them that there is no alternative to this nightmare of a system—that, despite the growing danger, we just have to work within what is. But this is wrong! There is a whole different way society can be organized, a whole different liberating world that is possible, and there is a leader who concentrates this—Bob Avakian (BA). BA is providing real-time revolutionary leadership through his social media, @BobAvakianOfficial, aimed at bringing this world into being—raising people's sights, and breaking people out of the bullshit ways of thinking that this system puts on them. 

What people have come to expect about this system is being shredded—and what they've come to expect has always been a nightmare, but one that they're used to. But now, the whole world is in turmoil and changing rapidly... and radically. The question is whether this will be radically reactionary and murderous change, or radically emancipating, revolutionary change. And we have to fight urgently for the latter. If ever there was a time—with real danger but also real openings—to challenge people to dig into and donate to spreading the revolutionary, scientific and visionary leadership being provided by @BobAvakianOfficial, now is the time. 

And there really is nowhere more important your funds and energy and determination need to go than donating and raising serious funds for an online advertising and on-the-ground grassroots movement to spread @BobAvakianOfficial throughout society.

We want to thank everyone who contributed to the push for Giving Tuesday. We exceeded our fundraising goal of $25,000 and have kicked off the rest of our year-end fundraising. A generous donor is giving $5,000 as a matching challenge. Whatever you give now will be doubled, and we are aiming for a total of $50,000 by December 31.

Summing Up Lessons to Go Forward

To build on what we've done so far, we want to draw some important lessons from the last round. But this is not everything there is to learn!! So please write back with your thoughts and questions.

** The most important resource we have is the content of the leadership that Bob Avakian is providing in the social media messages themselves. The direct engagement with BA is the single most important thing to fight for in raising funds. 

When people engage @BobAvakianOfficial, they are engaging the scientific answers for what is happening, and the scientific vision for a whole different system. When they listen to Bob Avakian's social media messages, they are meeting a rare and unique leader who concentrates a whole different way to think, feel and be—a leader who is not stuck in the swamp of how people calculate under capitalism, but a leader who is heart and soul, and hardcore for revolution. A leader who fearlessly speaks the truth, no matter how unpopular. A leader with a scientific understanding of humanity's potential to end all oppression—potential which is suffocated and distorted under this system, but which could be unleashed as a revolutionary force if connected up with the science and leadership they so urgently need. 

And all this comes through in BA's social media messages—yes, in reading them. But even more, in the online audio and all of what comes through in this revolutionary voice.

As one volunteer, who raised hundreds of dollars from new donors said, "These social media messages can change people’s thinking." She played these on the spot for people—in person, or even on the phone—so they could respond directly to the analysis from Bob Avakian. After listening to Revolution #104, “How can I talk seriously about a revolution when the fascist Trump just got elected?” a student who had a lot of questions about whether revolution is possible donated $20 and said, "I'm very touched by the ethos to make a revolutionary change in the USA. In this situation today, it is very important for people to unite together. I totally agree with Bob Avakian about revolution." 

Another volunteer raising funds played Revolution #102, “‘Two Countries’ Within This Country—And The Whole Damn System’s Got To Go! This is not a time for demoralization and despair—it is a time for righteous anger and revolutionary determination,” on a phone call with someone who's been a life-long Democrat but who is agonized about the Democrats capitulating to fascism. After listening to this together, and discussing what BA is saying about where this fascism has come from and why it can't be fought on the terms of the very system that's given rise to this, the revcom asked: "Imagine the difference it would make of lots of people were listening to this perspective." The person didn't agree with everything being said, but did agree that this was a different discussion and one that needed to spread. They donated $200. 

This underscores the importance of not dismissing anyone at a time when people are in a great deal of flux, the "fixed frozen" prejudices are melting in the increasing heat of the moment, and ears are perking up. And no one has more clarity, more scientific understanding of what we're facing and what is, and is not, needed in this time than Bob Avakian. 

** A significant increase in the individual online donations came from people who'd never contributed before—people who were just getting introduced to Bob Avakian, or who had known of this for some time but had never decided to contribute before. (This number is a lot more if you add up street donations, or things like bake sales.) And in this next round, that number needs to grow exponentially. As a part of meeting the $50,000 goal, we have a particular goal of 200 people giving $5. On top of people who can contribute much more.

Thinking strategically about the need to move and organize blocs of people, think about what can be forged with a movement of people giving $5. To be clear, 200 people is not the cap on what we're aiming for, but a starting point. Almost everyone in this country can afford $5, and when we come together in our dozens, and hundreds and thousands, we become a force—planting a revolutionary pole aimed at reaching millions. And everyone coming together in this way can feel our collective strength and impact.

Over the last several weeks, we reached thousands of people with a request for funds over emails and direct asks, with a basic argument about why this matters, introducing people to @BobAvakianOfficial. But we are still not directly asking enough people. To really increase the scale of fundraising, we have to go out even more widely and to masses of people. 

For those who do make a contribution, we should put the problem to them—how do we reach others? We can't build up the forces for revolution by going one by one, so can they pull together a group of people? Or help this message to reach networks of people? 

Some revcoms reached back to lists of contacts they've had for years. This is good, and important—but we have to go even broader. Again, at a moment when people are witnessing major global turmoil, and the fascist regime in this country barreling ahead, many more people are ready to hear something they would've dismissed previously. 

As part of this whole broad high-impact effort, we should keep experimenting with creative ways to impact whole scenes. In a couple places, revcoms did projections of @BobAvakianOfficial at cultural events, stepping out directly with the need for funds to spread this. Rather than just a series of one-on-one discussions, we were able to reach and impact a whole scene and draw those who were attracted.

Reach out to hospitals at lunch hours or court buildings to reach lawyers. One donor, a caretaker from Belize, said: "As we strive to make this a better place for humanity, I am making a donation of $20 which I know is only a drop in the bucket. I am fearful for what is happening to this country." Again, as people are being shaken, they need to know the source of the problem we're facing in this system of capitalism-imperialism, and they need to know there is a leader with a plan, vision and strategy to actually get free! 

** Another important, but still beginning, advance were the collective efforts to raise funds—with people coming together across the country in creative group projects. In small, but significant ways, revolutionary communities are being built—based on collectively digging into the revolutionary leadership that Bob Avakian is providing. As important as it is to raise funds, a big part of what we're aiming to do is "raise people"! These kinds of efforts are strategic—building up a revolutionary people with a revolutionary culture of coming together to take responsibility for the needs of the revolution, learning from and struggling with each other. And for those who support and fund these efforts, you are building up the embryonic revolutionary networks that are needed as the times intensify.

Again, there were just seeds of these kinds of things—but for these seeds to grow, we need to learn all we can from what we did together, as part of a national movement. 

In New York, a group of revcoms and supporters organized a sweet potato pie sale and bake sale, raising $1,200—this involved people who baked, and all kinds of new people who bought pies and reached out to others to buy pies. Watch Lovette and Carl Dix talk about the significance of this on The RNL—Revolution, Nothing Less!—Show. 

In the Bay Area, they did a hot chocolate sale which raised $200. All the supplies were donated by shop owners and staff. A Spanish-speaking immigrant who donated, said: "I like what Bob Avakian wrote about: 'This is not a time for demoralization and despair—it is a time for righteous anger and revolutionary determination.' I've heard that migrants are very afraid. But fortunately I have more information and I'm organized. And I think that Bob Avakian's revolutionary messages are very important, so I made the donation and I think other people can do the same. I liked the way the REVCOM CORPS defended the day laborers outside of Home Depot in Los Angeles, CA. We need to take the offensive in opposition to this fascism."

In Los Angeles, the REVCOM CORPS For The Emancipation Of Humanity raised almost $500 through a tamale sale. They did a whole outreach effort at supermarkets to get the supplies donated. They involved expert tamale makers with someone who had never cooked anything before in their whole life. 

Through these efforts, everyone commented on the importance of listening to Bob Avakian's social media messages—in a collective setting. This made the whole thing more fun, and deepened people's understanding of what their efforts were going to and why Bob Avakian's voice needs to be reaching millions. 

** Finally, don't take no for an answer. We shouldn't waste our time with people who don't care, or who aren't serious, but for those who do care, we shouldn't accept people just throwing up their hands or putting their head in the sand. 

As one of the volunteer fundraisers said, "We can't take no for an answer. The donation we're asking for is for the emancipation of humanity, not for ourselves. So we can’t be timid. When people say no, I ask why so I can answer them. You've got to talk TO people and get into it. Tell them about the Constitution for the New Socialist Republic that Bob Avakian has written. Tell them that people don’t have to live the way they are living."

And the stronger we fight now, the sharper our argument, the more this is going to sit with people in these sharpening times. 

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We look forward to hearing from you. Write to info@BobAvakianOfficialEverywhere.org