From Revolution Club, NYC:

Showing and Discussion of Bob Avakian’s Filmed Talk on “The Trump/Pence Regime Must Go!”

December 6, 2017 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

Off the call on revcom.us to promote and show Bob Avakian’s Filmed Talk: “The Trump/Pence Regime Must Go!” the Revolution Club organized a film screening at Revolution Books NYC.

15 plus people attended the film screening, diverse but mainly young who were being introduced to BA and Revolution Books for the first time.

We watched the full speech and the Q&A “If successful in driving out, or forcing Trump to resign, who will step in to take the reins? What happens next? And are these replacements prepared to lead this entire diverse country and its military?”

As the call makes the point "Bob Avakian’s speech, THE TRUMP/PENCE REGIME MUST GO! In The Name of Humanity, We REFUSE To Accept a Fascist America, A Better World IS Possible, is the single best work on the situation we face today—the challenges it poses to humanity, where it came from, and how to act against it." And this couldn't be more true: people watched the film intently. Afterwards we got into a very rich discussion where people were eager to dive in. People grappled with the Trump phenomenon, what it has in common with the past and what's different, and what to do. People said they appreciated how BA got them to think more about the history of this country and the film got people thinking about the nature and role of religion. And people wrestled with whether fundamental change is possible.

On BA's analysis on Christian fascism:

A college student from the South Bronx said “What Bob Avakian said about the Christian fascist component of this made me reflect on how Christianity has been used to justify slavery, and now there’s this kind of new Crusades in the Middle East and Christianity is used to justify it...And now the criminal justice system.”

A young Black woman whose friend we met at a Black Lives Matter protest the day before was very livid (in a good way) by watching the film and said: “I agree, what BA is saying about Christian fascists and how this got Trump into office.” As she continued to agree and listen intently to others’ comments.

A young activist who works with environmental researchers and who has recently been engaging BA appreciated that BA made clear that not all Christians are Christian fascists. And he went on to articulate the different interpretations of Christianity. He posed the contradiction of Jesus being a person who was trying to help people and now there are Christians who are attacking social programs and the poor.

Off this back and forth discussion we introduced people to the dialogue On Revolution & Religion...because of the questions provoked on the roots of religion, the differences made between Christian fascism, Christian fundamentalism, and Christianity (etc).

The deep impact of BA's analysis on white supremacy...

An African-American college student majoring in literature said the following: “From where I’m at BA really spoke to me...what he said about how if dogs were shot there would be chaos, but then what the cops are doing to Black people...and how BA talks about people saying to ‘get over slavery.’” She went on to recount a story about a white cop harassing a Black youth and feeling the disappointment of a Black sergeant doing the same thing. She continued by saying: “I’m trying to understand the history of this, people fighting for change...you had the Panthers and others....Yes we have to protest but then there’s the 13th Amendment and where things are today with mass incarceration and the scale is worse. I’m feeling hopeful and hopeless.”

People were provoked to look deeply into the present day reality and seek to understand the roots of oppression:

Someone who knows Revolution Books and is an activist; and who had seen the film previously was substantively working through the qualitative leap in the consolidation of a fascist America with the election of the Trump/Pence Regime. He said: “See it’s not just what Trump is saying but what [the regime] is doing and people see so little of this...and the influence of Bannon who wants to dismantle the ‘administrative state’ and establish the direct fascist rule by those with their hands on the reins on power..." And in response to someone saying, that there's just three years left he also commented that "they are breaking the way things work” and went on to explain that voter suppression can intensify and that the means in which people are clinging to stop Trump through voting can be tampered with by the government or outright eliminated. In addition, he said: “I was at November 4, it was great and we really have to spread it. And as I see it you have to do these protests but also do other things that bring change, like divestment, like supporting Revolution Books and local institutions.”

An older supporter of Revolution Books from the neighborhood who has been attending different programs in the past week or so reflected on the history of oppression: “I'm thinking about whether oppression has always existed...everywhere: in Africa, Europe, America there was oppression, different groups and different races up and down. And religion: Malcolm and MLK used it to overcome oppression; and other people like atheists get rid of moral confines and become free thinkers.”

An older white woman active in RefuseFascism.org who has uprooted her whole life since the election of Trump said: “It’s important how BA links fascism to capitalism.”

Off this round of discussion we recommended everyone get into “How We Can Win...” (we gave everyone a copy) because of the deeper questions provoked on the root of the problem and solution (that of capitalism-imperialism and revolution); and the Constitution for the New Socialist Republic in North America (Draft Proposal) on how a radically better world really is possible.

The history of America:

A woman invited by a friend who had watched the film was deeply appreciative of the history of America BA gives and said “Trump isn’t just the problem...he’s the latest incarnation of a problem that has been brewing a long time.”

Her friend said: “Yeah, it’s what BA says about the Great Tautological Fallacy...people assume America is good, that Obama was good, but look at all that he did; this is really like a cancer metastasizing.” To which she replied: “A whole process got us here.”

Overall this was a very important gathering: it introduced people to BA, the most radical revolutionary on the planet and it really was a mind-opening experience for everyone present. This was but a beginning discussion and we intend to follow up on what's been opened up not just among those present but ever more widely in society. The importance of this film cannot be underestimated: we are planning other showings (formal and informal) and we strategized some with those present on how to get this film out to their networks (and more broadly throughout society).

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