2024: the best of marxist.com Share Tweet2024 has been a turbulent year for every continent. The war, imperialism, economic crisis and political turmoil of the capitalist system have been mirrored by the mass mobilisations and revolutionary movements of the poor and oppressed. Throughout this, marxist.com has aimed to provide clear, communist analysis of all the major events unfolding internationally.The past 12 months have seen the ruling class’ propaganda machine working in overdrive to confuse and obscure the truth: the capitalist system is rotten to its very core and must be overthrown in its entirety. For this reason, it has never been more important for communists to be bold and uncompromising in exposing the lies of the ruling class and providing a clear and revolutionary perspective.This is one of the central goals of marxist.com, and we believe that this website has established itself as the foremost authority on news, theory and analysis from a Marxist perspective.With hundreds of thousands of visitors to marxist.com this year, we publish below a list of our best-performing articles from 2024, as well as some of our most popular audio and video content.Top 10 articles of 2024Manifesto of the Revolutionary Communist InternationalThe launch of the Revolutionary Communist International (RCI) was a rallying cry for communists around the world to get organised in the fight against capitalism and imperialism. This document, approved unanimously at the RCI’s founding conference in June, is the International’s founding manifesto, providing a bold communist analysis of the turbulent period we are living through. The Manifesto has been read over 33,000 times in English on this website alone, translated into more than 30 languages and reproduced widely online and in print.Read the Manifesto of the RCI hereClass fighters gather across the US to launch the Revolutionary Communists of AmericaIn February, the US section of the RCI gathered to discuss the founding of a new revolutionary party in the belly of the beast of world capitalism. The announcement of the Revolutionary Communists of America was received with immense enthusiasm internationally, attracting the attention of millions of viewers on social media. This article explains why our comrades took the decision to found the RCA and gives reports on a series of rallies and marches held across the US at the time.Read the article hereBooks not bombs! Healthcare not warfare! – RCI statementWe are living through an epoch of war and imperialism on a global scale. The task facing humanity is to overthrow the sick capitalist system that engenders this barbarism. For this reason, earlier this year the RCI published its statement against militarism and imperialism – available in over 20 languages – which puts forward a communist programme for the fight against the imperialist war machine.Read the statement hereIt is time to launch the Revolutionary Communist InternationalAround the world, the deepening crisis of capitalism has birthed a growing layer of workers and youth that recognise the need for a revolution and even for communism. At the beginning of 2024, the International Executive Committee of what was then the International Marxist Tendency agreed on the necessity of decisively turning towards these layers with the clearest possible revolutionary banner. This article analyses the fundamental processes in the world situation that inspired the launch of the RCI and explains why the need for a bold communist international is greater than ever.Read the article hereThe Middle East: a blaze of imperialism’s makingIsrael’s genocidal war on Gaza, as well as its attack on Lebanon, have revealed the callous barbarity of imperialism to the entire world. Ultimately, this is a result of the logic of imperialism, which continues to push for escalation in the region, irrespective of the horrors it has evoked. This article, written by the editorial board of marxist.com, draws out the role of particularly US imperialism in the Middle East, showing clearly the need for communists everywhere to fight the enemy at home: their own warmongering ruling class.Read the article hereTrump victory: a kick in the teeth for the establishmentJust last month, liberals everywhere raised a hue and cry over the results of the US election, which will soon bring Donald Trump back into the White House with a significant majority. As Alan Woods explains in this article, Trump’s victory has nothing to do with any imagined rightward shift in the consciousness of the American masses, and much more to do with the pervasive mood of disgust towards the rotten establishment, which Trump’s demagogy was able to tap into.Read the article hereAaron Bushnell: an act expressing the rage and frustration of millionsIn February, active-duty US Air Force serviceman Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire in front of the Israeli embassy in Washington, in protest against the complicity of US imperialism in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. This single act captured the mood of the masses, who instantly connected with the fury and frustration that Aaron Bushnell expressed. While the capitalist media did everything in their power to downplay his sacrifice, Aaron Bushnell’s message of righteous anger lives on.Read the article hereIran attacks: Netanyahu’s dangerous gambleIn April, in response to Israel’s bombing of the Iranian embassy in Damascus, Iran launched an attack on Israel with over 300 drones and missiles. This attack was an important flashpoint in the ratcheting tensions of the powers in the Middle East. In this article, Alan Woods explains the logic behind the manoeuvres of the imperialist powers, as the situation in the region escalates.Read the article hereBangladesh: Sheikh Hasina overthrown! All power to the workers’ and students’ committees!One of 2024’s most inspiring movements was the immense mobilisation of the Bangladeshi masses against the rotten Hasina dictatorship. This came to a head in August, when 16 years of brutal rule was finally brought to an end and Hasina was forced to flee the country. This article, written at the time, puts forward a revolutionary path to consolidate the power of Bangladesh’s poor and oppressed in the wake of their immense victory.Read the article hereStalin’s responsibility in the creation of Israel and its disastrous consequencesAll genuine revolutionary communists have always opposed the imperialists’ carving up of the Middle East. Why then did Stalin openly support the partition of Palestine in 1947, and play a key role in the birth of the Israeli state? This article details the events prior to the creation of Israel, focussing on the short-sighted logic of the Stalinist bureaucracy in this process.Read the article hereTop 10: from the archivesAlongside our analysis of current events, marxist.com prides itself on publishing timeless theoretical pieces covering the essentials of Marxist ideas. Each year, many of our most popular articles are precisely these, showing the immense thirst for revolutionary ideas among our readership.Here is a list of the 10 most popular articles on marxist.com this year, that were published before 2024. These articles offer invaluable insights into the fundamental pillars of Marxism.What is dialectical materialism?Dialectical materialism is the philosophical foundation of Marxism. While many who are new to communism may be intimidated by the need for a serious study of philosophy, Rob Sewell’s engaging introduction to dialectical materialism proves that conquering the fundamentals of these ideas is not as hard as it may initially seem!Read the article hereMarxism vs Identity PoliticsThis document, approved unanimously at the World Congress of our International in 2018, aims to clarify the differences between the genuine method and ideas of Marxism and the confused mixture of petty-bourgeois ideologies known as Identity Politics. This document is a call to arms for serious communists to defend truly revolutionary ideas from the deceptive postmodernist trends that seek to blur the lines of the class struggle.Read the article hereWhat is money?The ruling class and their ‘enlightened’ economists present money as a mystified force operating on levels beyond the comprehension of the working class. In reality, however, this could not be further from the truth. In this introductory article, Adam Booth traces the real development of money through history and provides a clear analysis of its role under capitalism today.Read the article hereMarxism vs Queer TheoryTheories are often given a ‘progressive’ colouring, especially by academia, in order to hide their reactionary core. One key example of this is Queer Theory, which purports to fight for liberation, but offers no means of doing so outside of the idealist straightjacket of Identity Politics. This article takes up the arguments and claims of Queer Theory, and counterposes them to the real struggle to end all kinds of oppression.Read the article hereWhat is historical materialism?The materialist study of history is one of the central elements of the Marxist method. Once we have a firm grasp of the laws and processes that lie under the surface of seemingly random historical events, we are better placed to play a part in the struggle to advance humanity. Alan Woods’ marvellous introduction to these ideas is a must-read for those who wish to take a serious attitude to the fight for communism today.Read the article hereMarxism versus postmodernismDespite its origins in the fringes of a few universities, the amorphous philosophical trend of postmodernism has gained a substantial grip on the minds of many in academia today. For this reason, Marxists must make a serious effort to combat the idealism, pessimism and obscurantism that the postmodernists preach.Read the article hereThe Ukrainian war: an internationalist class position – RCI StatementThe inter-imperialist war in Ukraine has now been raging for almost three years. In that time, there have been many developments, but the central imperialist logic of the conflict has stayed the same. This statement explains the communist attitude to the war, and reiterates the need for revolutionaries to cut through the fog of lies and deceptions spread by the warmongers of all countries.Read the statement hereThe history of Israel-Palestine to 1993It is impossible to have a full understanding of the reasons for the current conflicts in the Middle East without studying the history of imperialist meddling that has characterised the region. This article by Francesco Merli gives a thorough and engaging history of the imperialist maneuvers and betrayals that created the state of Israel as it exists today.Read the article hereIn defence of theory – or ignorance never yet helped anybodyFirst published in 2009, this article by Alan Woods defends the importance of a thorough, all-round study of Marxist ideas. As Marx explained, the task of communists is to understand the world in order to change it. For this reason, a serious and uncompromising approach to theory is vital for the revolutionary struggle today.Read the article hereDown with hypocrisy! Defend Gaza! – RCI statementIsrael’s genocidal war on Gaza has rightly evoked the rage and disgust of the masses everywhere. In this statement, published shortly after Israel’s invasion began, the RCI declares its absolute solidarity with the Palestinian people, condemns the vile hypocrisy of the imperialist warmongers, and explains the need for a revolutionary response to capitalist barbarism.Read the statement hereTop five podcasts of 20242024 has also been a groundbreaking year for our audio and video content. This year, we launched two new seasons of Spectre of Communism, as well as a brand new, live current affairs podcast: Against the Stream. Below are the five most popular podcasts from the last year.Interview with Fiona Lali: Suella is a symptom, capitalism is the diseaseIn May, the Revolutionary Communist Party in Britain went viral after Fiona Lali, the national campaigns coordinator, annihilated Tory minister Suella Bravermen in a televised interview. Shortly after this, Fiona joined the Spectre of Communism podcast to discuss the western-backed genocide in Gaza, the solidarity movement against it, and precisely why her interview had struck such a nerve.Communist answers the web's most searched questions!What about human nature? Aren’t communists against religion? Where has communism ever worked?These are just some of the classic questions that revolutionary communists can expect to face when putting forward their ideas. In order to arm comrades with the ideas they need to respond to these, Fred Weston joined Spectre of Communism to run through the web's most searched questions.Trump's victory: What does it mean?The victory of Trump in the US election was a political earthquake. In its wake, a slew of despairing and confusing articles have been released by the liberal press, branding Trump a fascist, shaming the American working class as reactionary, and predicting an imminent apocalypse. To cut through this hysterical fog, Alan Woods joined the Against the Stream podcast to discuss, from a Marxist perspective, why Trump won, and what that means for America and the world.Manifesto of the Revolutionary Communist InternationalThe Manifesto of the RCI was not only the most read article on marxist.com this year, it was also the topic of one of our best performing podcasts! In this episode, Alan Woods – who was instrumental in drafting the manifesto – introduces the text and explains the need to unite communist workers and youth in all countries under a clean banner in the tradition of Lenin and Trotsky.Why we need a Communist InternationalWhile the RCI may only recently have been founded, we trace our traditions back to the great revolutionaries of the past. In this episode of Spectre of Communism, Fred Weston explains the historic importance of the Third (Communist) International, founded by Lenin and Trotsky after the Russian Revolution in order to spread the revolution internationally.
