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Communism  v • d • e 

Eurocommunism was a new trend in the 1970s and 1980s within various Western European communist parties to develop a theory and practice of social transformation that was more relevant in a Western European democracy and less aligned to the partyline of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based See also Marxian economics, Marxism Marxist philosophy or Marxist theory are terms which cover work in Philosophy Class struggle is the active expression of Class conflict looked at from any kind of socialist perspective International Socialism redirects here For the journal of the same name see International Socialism (journal Proletarian internationalism is a A Political party described as a communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of Communism through a communist form of Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Leninism refers to various related political and economic theories elaborated by Bolshevik revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Maoism, variably and officially known as Mao Zedong Thought ( is a variant of Marxism derived from the teachings of the late Chinese leader The Juche Idea (주체사상 Juche Sasang) is the official state Ideology of North Korea and the Political system based on it Left communism is the range of communist viewpoints held by the Communist Left, which opposes the political ideas of the Bolsheviks Council communism is a Far-left movement originating in Germany and the Netherlands in the 1920s Religious communism is a form of Communism centered on religious principles National Communism, is an Islamic form of Communism which had a strong Nationalist element The Communist League was the first Marxist international organisation The Second International (1889-1916 was an organization of socialist and labour parties formed in Paris on July 14, 1889. The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow The Fourth International ( FI) is a communist international organisation working in opposition to both Capitalism and Stalinism. Friedrich Engels (28 November 1820 – 5 August 1895 was a German social scientist and philosopher, who Rosa Luxemburg (Róża Luksemburg 5 March 1870 or 1871 15 January 1919 was a Polish-born Jewish German Marxist theorist, socialist Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party Leon Trotsky ( Russian:, Lev Davidovich Trotsky, also transliterated Leo, Lyev, Trotskii, Trotski, Trotskij Mao Zedong ( 26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976) was a Chinese Military and political leader who led Saloth Sar ( May 19, 1925 – April 15, 1998) also known as Pol Pot, was leader of the Communist movement known as Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i Anti-capitalism describes a wide variety of movements ideas and attitudes which oppose Capitalism. Anti-communism refers to opposition to Communism. Historically the word "communism" has been used to refer to several types of communal social organization and Communist state is a term used by many Political scientists to describe a Form of government in which the State operates under a one-party system Communist symbolism consists of a series of Symbols that represent (either literally or figuratively a variety of themes associated with communism Criticisms of Communism can be divided in two broad categories Those concerning themselves with the practical aspects of 20th century Communist state and those concerning Democratic centralism is the name given to the principles of internal organization used by Leninist political parties and the term is sometimes used as a synonym for any Leninist The " dictatorship of the proletariat " or workers' state is a term employed by Marxists that refers to what they see as a temporary state between the This article intentionally focuses only on the history of communism as a self-contained self-aware political movement Luxemburgism (also written Luxembourgism) is a specific revolutionary theory within Communism, based on the writings of Rosa Luxemburg. The New Class is a term to describe the privileged Ruling class of Bureaucrats and Communist party functionaries which typically arises in a Stalinist The New Left were the Left-wing movements in different countries in the 1960s and 1970s that unlike the earlier leftist focus on union activism instead adopted a Post-Communism is a name sometimes given to the period of political and economic Transition in former Communist states located in parts of Europe and Primitive communism is A term usually associated with Karl Marx, but most fully elaborated by Friedrich Engels (in The Origin of the Family 1884 and referring Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929–1953 Socialist economics is a broad and sometimes controversial term Titoism is an adaptation of communist ideology named after Josip Broz Tito, leader of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, primarily used to describe The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based

Contents

Origin of the term

The origin of the term Eurocommunism was subject to great debate in the mid-1970s, being attributed to Zbigniew Brzezinski and Arrigo Levi, among others. Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzezinski (Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzeziński ˈzbigɲev bʐɛˈʑiɲski: (born March 28 1928 Warsaw, Poland) is a Polish-American Jean-François Revel once wrote that "one of the favourite amusements of 'political scientists' is to search for the author of the term Eurocommunism. Jean-François Revel ( Marseille France, January 19, 1924 &ndash April 30, 2006 in Kremlin-Bicêtre) was a French " In April 1977, Deutschland-Archiv decided that the word was first used in the summer of 1975 by Yugoslav journalist Frane Barbieri, former editor of Belgrade's NIN Newsmagazine. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ( Serbo-Croatian, Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian: A journalist (also called a newspaperman) is a person who practices Journalism, the gathering and dissemination of information about current events trends Belgrade (Београд Beograd is the Capital and largest city of Serbia. NIN ( Serbian Cyrillic: НИН is a weekly Newsmagazine published in Belgrade, Serbia.

Theoretical foundations

The main theoretical foundation of Eurocommunism was Antonio Gramsci's writing about Marxist theory which questioned the sectarianism of the Left and encouraged communist parties to develop social alliances to win hegemonic support for social reforms. Antonio Gramsci ('ɡramʃi ( January 23, 1891 &ndash April 27, 1937) was an Italian Philosopher, Writer, Cultural hegemony is a Concept coined by Marxist Philosopher Antonio Gramsci. Eurocommunist parties expressed their fidelity to democratic institutions more clearly than before and attempted to widen their appeal by embracing public sector middle-class workers, new social movements such as feminism and gay liberation and more publicly questioning the Soviet Union. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system The public sector is the part of economic and administrative life that deals with the delivery of goods and services by and for the Government, whether national Regional The middle class, in colloquial usage consists of those who have some economic independence but not a great deal of social Influence or power. The term new social movements (NSMs is a theory of Social movements that attempts to explain the plethora of new movements that have come up in various western societies Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate Gay Liberation is the name used to describe the radical Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender movement of the late 1960s and early to mid 1970s The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Early inspirations can also be found in the Austromarxism and its seeking of a "Third" democratic way to socialism. Austromarxism was a Marxist theoretical current led by Victor Adler, Otto Bauer, Karl Renner and Max Adler, members of the Social

Western European Communist Parties

Some Communist parties with strong popular support, notably the Italian Communist Party (PCI) and the Spanish Communist Party (PCE) adopted Eurocommunism most enthusiastically. A Political party described as a communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of Communism through a communist form of The Italian Communist Party (Italian Partito Comunista Italiano, or PCI emerged as the Communist Party of Italy ( Partito Comunista d'Italia) The Communist Party of Spain ( Partido Comunista de España or PCE) is the third largest national Political party of Spain. On the contrary, at least one mass party, the French Communist Party (PCF) and many smaller parties strongly opposed to it and stayed aligned to the positions of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union until the end of USSR. The French Communist Party ( French: Parti communiste français or PCF) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of

The PCE and its Catalan referent, the United Socialist Party of Catalonia, had already been committed to the liberal possibilist politics of the Popular Front during the Spanish Civil War. Catalonia (Cataluña Catalunya Aranese: Catalonha) is an Autonomous Community in the northeast part of Spain. The PSUC ( Partit Socialista Unificat de Catalunya, Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia) was formed on July 23 1936 through the unification A popular front is a broad Coalition of different political groupings often made up of leftists and centrists who are united by opposition to another group The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of The leader of the PCE, Santiago Carrillo, wrote Eurocommunism's defining book Eurocomunismo y estado (Eurocommunism and the State) and participated in the development of the liberal democratic constitution as Spain emerged from the dictatorship of Franco. Santiago Carrillo Solares (born January 18, 1915) Spanish politician was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Spain (PCE Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde (born December 4, 1892 in Ferrol, died November 20, 1975 in Madrid The Communist parties of Great Britain, the Netherlands and Austria also turned Eurocommunist. The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB was the largest Communist party in the United Kingdom, though it never became a mass party like the Communist parties of

Western European communists came to Eurocommunism via a variety of routes. For some it was their direct experience of feminist and similar action. Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate For others its was a reaction to the political events of the Soviet Union, at the apogee of what Mikhail Gorbachev later called the Era of Stagnation. Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician Period of stagnation (застой transliterated zastoy) also known as Brezhnevian Stagnation, the Stagnation Period, or the Era This process was accelerated after the events of 1968, particularly the crushing of the Prague Spring. Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Prague Spring ( Czech: Pražské jaro, Slovak: Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during

The politics of détente also played a part. Détente is a French term meaning a relaxing or easing the term has been used in international politics since the early 1970s With war less likely, Western communists were under less pressure to follow Soviet orthodoxy yet also wanted to engage with a rise in western proletarian militancy such as Italy's Hot Autumn and Britain's shop steward's movement. The Hot Autumn of 1969–1970 was a massive series of strikes in the factories and industrial centers of northern Italy, during which workers demanded better pay and better conditions Union Steward (aka Shop Steward) is the title of an Official position within the organizational hierarchy of a labor union.

Outside Western Europe

Eurocommunist ideas won at least partial acceptance outside of Western Europe. Prominent parties influenced by it outside of Europe were the Movement for Socialism (Venezuela), the Japanese Communist Party, the Mexican Communist Party and the Communist Party of Australia. The Movement for Socialism ( Spanish: Movimiento al Socialismo or MAS) is a social-democratic Political party in Venezuela Venezuela (ˌvɛnəˈzweɪlə) officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish República Bolivariana de Venezuela) is a country on the The Japanese Communist Party ( JCP) ( Japanese " 日本共産党 Nihon Kyōsan-tō) is a Political party in Japan. The Mexican Communist Party ( Spanish: Partido Comunista Mexicano, PCM was a Communist party in Mexico. This article is about the historical Communist Party of Australia dissolved in 1991 Mikhail Gorbachev also refers to Eurocommunism as a key influence on the ideas of glasnost and perestroika in his memoirs. (Гла́сность)is literally defined as publicity and sometimes figuratively interpreted as "tipping a vase to let someone see into the vase but not the bottom of the vase" (Перестройка) is the Russian term (now used in English for the economic reforms introduced in June 1987 by the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev

Results

Eurocommunism was in many ways only a staging ground for changes in the political structure of the European left. Some — principally the Italians — became social democrats, while others like the Dutch CPN moved into green politics and the French party during the 1980s reverted to a more pro-Soviet stance. Social democracy is a Political ideology of the left and centre-left The Communist Party of the Netherlands ( Dutch: Communistische Partij Nederland, CPN was a Dutch communist Political party. Green politics is a Political ideology which places a high importance on ecological and environmental goals and on achieving these goals through broad-based

Eurocommunism became a force across Europe in 1977, when Enrico Berlinguer of the Italian Communist Party (PCI), Santiago Carrillo of the Communist Party of Spain (PCE) and Georges Marchais of the French Communist Party (PCF) met in Madrid and laid out the fundamental lines of the "new way". Enrico Berlinguer (berliŋˈgwɛr ( May 25, 1923 - June 11, 1984) was an Italian Politician; he was national secretary The Italian Communist Party (Italian Partito Comunista Italiano, or PCI emerged as the Communist Party of Italy ( Partito Comunista d'Italia) Santiago Carrillo Solares (born January 18, 1915) Spanish politician was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Spain (PCE The Communist Party of Spain ( Partido Comunista de España or PCE) is the third largest national Political party of Spain. Georges René Louis Marchais ( June 7 1920, La Hoguette in Calvados - November 16 1997, Paris) was the head of The French Communist Party ( French: Parti communiste français or PCF) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of The PCI in particular had been developing an independent line from Moscow for many years prior, which had already been exhibited in 1968, when the party refused to support the Soviet invasion of Prague. Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. In 1975 the PCI and the PCE had made a declaration regarding the "march toward socialism" to be done in "peace and freedom". In 1976 in Moscow, Berlinguer, in front of 5,000 Communist delegates, had spoken of a "pluralistic system" (translated by the interpreter as "multiform"), and described PCI's intentions to build "a socialism that we believe necessary and possible only in Italy". Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of The compromesso storico ("historic compromise") with Democrazia Cristiana, stopped by Aldo Moro's murder in 1978, was a consequence of this new policy. The term Historic Compromise ( Italian: "compromesso storico") most commonly refers to the accommodation between the Italian Christian Democrats Aldo Moro ( September 23, 1916 &ndash May 9, 1978) was an Italian Politician and two-time Prime Minister of Italy Year 1978 ( MCMLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar)

Before the end of the Cold War put practically all Leftist parties in Europe on the defensive and made neoliberal reforms the order of the day, many Eurocommunist parties split, with the Right (such as Democratici di Sinistra or Iniciativa per Catalunya) adopting social democracy more whole-heartedly, while the Left strove to preserve some identifiably Communist positions (Partito della Rifondazione Comunista or PSUC viu/Communist Party of Spain). Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Originally coined by its critics and opponents " neoliberalism " is a label referring to the recent reemergence of Economic liberalism or Classical liberalism The Democrats of the Left ( Democratici di Sinistra, DS was a left-wing Italian political party and part of the Olive Tree electoral coalition Initiative for Catalonia Greens ( Iniciativa per Catalunya Verds, ICV is a Political party in Catalonia, Spain. Social democracy is a Political ideology of the left and centre-left The Communist Refoundation Party ( Partito della Rifondazione Comunista, PRC is a communist Italian political party. PSUC viu ( Catalan for 'Living PSUC' is a political party in Catalonia, Spain. The Communist Party of Spain ( Partido Comunista de España or PCE) is the third largest national Political party of Spain.

Criticism of Eurocommunism

Two main criticisms have been advanced against Eurocommunism. First, it is alleged by right-wing critics that Eurocommunists showed a lack of courage in definitively breaking off from the Soviet Union (the Italian Communist party, for example, took this step only in 1981, after the repression of Solidarność in Poland). In Politics, right-wing, the political right, and the Right are positions that uphold traditional values and/or authorities Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland This "timidity" has been explained as the fear of losing old members and supporters, many of whom admired the USSR, or with a realpolitik desire to keep the support of a strong and powerful country. Realpolitik ( German: de real “realistic” “practical” or “actual” and de Politik “politics” refers to politics or diplomacy based primarily

Other critics point out the difficulties the Eurocommunist parties had in developing a clear and recognisable strategy. They observe that Eurocommunists have always claimed to be different - not only from Soviet Communism but also from Social Democracy - while, in practice, they were always very similar to at least one of these two tendencies. Thus, critics argue that Eurocommunism does not have a well defined identity and cannot be regarded as a separate movement in its own right.

From a Trotskyist point of view, Ernest Mandel in From Stalinism to Eurocommunism: The Bitter Fruits of 'Socialism in One Country' views Eurocommunism as a subsequent development of the decision taken by the Soviet Union in 1924 to abandon the goal of world revolution and concentrate on social and economic development of the Soviet Union, the so-called "Socialism in One Country". Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Ernest Ezra Mandel, also known by various pseudonyms such as Ernest Germain, Pierre Gousset, Henri Vallin, Walter etc The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. This is about the concept of world revolution in Marxist theory Socialism in One Country was a thesis developed by Nikolai Bukharin in 1925 and adopted as state policy by Joseph Stalin. Thus the Eurocommunists of the Italian and French Communist parties are considered to be nationalist movements, who together with the Soviet Union abandoned internationalism. The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation For the Marxist concept of internationalism see Proletarian internationalism. This is analogous to the Social democratic parties of the Second International during the First World War, when they supported their national governments in prosecution of the war. The Second International (1889-1916 was an organization of socialist and labour parties formed in Paris on July 14, 1889. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All

From an Anti-Revisionist point of view, Enver Hoxha in Eurocommunism is Anti-Communism views Eurocommunism as the result of Nikita Khrushchev's policy of peaceful coexistence. In the Marxist-Leninist movement an anti-revisionist is one who favors the line of theory and practice associated with Marx - Engels - Lenin (ɛnˈvɛɾ ˈhɔdʒa 16 October 1908 11 April 1985 was the leader of the People's Republic of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985 as the Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following Peaceful coexistence was a theory developed during the Cold War among Soviet -influenced Communist states that they could peacefully coexist with capitalist Khrushchev was accused of being a revisionist who encouraged conciliation with the bourgeoisie rather than adequately calling for its overthrow. The term "revisionism" is also used to refer to other concepts The " dictatorship of the proletariat " or workers' state is a term employed by Marxists that refers to what they see as a temporary state between the He also stated that the Soviet Union's refusal to reject Palmiro Togliatti's theory of polycentrism encouraged Communist parties to moderate their views in order to join cabinets, which in turn forced them to abandon Marxism-Leninism as their leading ideology. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Palmiro Togliatti ( March 26 1893 - August 21 1964) was an Italian politician the leader of the Italian Communist Party The word theory has many distinct meanings in different fields of Knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion. Polycentrism is the principle of organisation of a region around several political social or financial centres A cabinet is a body of high-ranking members of Government, typically representing the executive branch. Marxism-Leninism is a Communist ideological stream that emerged as the mainstream tendency amongst the Communist parties in the 1920s as it was adopted

More generally, from the point of view of most revolutionary left-wing movements, Eurocommunism simply meant an abandonment of basic communist principles, such as the call for a proletarian revolution, which eventually led many Eurocommunists to abandon communism or even socialism altogether (by giving up their commitment to overthrow capitalism). A proletarian revolution is a social and/or political Revolution in which the Working class attempts to overthrow the Bourgeoisie. Such critics felt strongly vindicated when several Eurocommunist parties scrapped their communist credentials following the fall of the Soviet Union. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991

More rhythmic criticisms of Euro Communism were presented by the poet John Cooper Clarke, in 'Euro Communist/Gucci Socialist. John Cooper Clarke (born January 25, 1949) is an English Performance poet from Salford, Greater Manchester; he is often '

Further reading

References

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