Providence, RI, July 1 — Over 30 people participated in Progressive Labor Party’s forums at the Unitarian Universalists (UU) convention. For most, it was their first PL event. A few rejoined us from last year’s convention. Most were high-school students or young adults. The positive response to the forums and to CHALLENGE demonstrates the potential for building PLP among UUs.
Four thousand UUs from congregations all over the United States, Canada, and several other countries attended the denomination’s annual General Assembly (GA) June 25-29. Progressive Labor Party (PLP) invited participants to Party forums at lunchtime on the Thursday, Friday and Saturday of the GA.
We gave out 2,000 copies of a four-page mini-CHALLENGE at the GA. It called on people to come to the forums and analyzed the seven UU principles from a communist perspective, described the anti-fascist origins of the UU symbol, the flaming chalice, and included the “Our Fight” column that appears on page 2 of every issue of this newspaper. We also distributed 400 copies of CHALLENGE. Most people contributed $1 for it; some gave $5 or $10.
The topics of the forums were “Overview of PLP’s goal of worldwide communist revolution,” “Smash racism and nationalism with multiracial unity,” and “Revolution not reform: Building the Party in the ‘dark night’ of capitalist terror.” At each forum, participants vigorously asked questions and contributed to the discussion.
UUs Debate Violent Revolution
Perhaps the best discussion was on the third day, around the question of violent revolution. The Unitarian Universalist Association pushes non-violence, so it was not surprising that many people initially opposed using violence. Yet later in the discussion, one said, “I agree with you that capitalists would never give up power peacefully and that violence is the only way to get rid of capitalism.”  A number of others voiced similar sentiments, including one who said that violently opposing capitalist exploitation and oppression was “essentially self defense.” Even if protests are non-violent the capitalist state will always impose violence to control and intimidate the working class.
Other discussions centered on questions such as whether society is best understood as a collection of individuals or as classes (workers and capitalists) locked in struggle. Additional questions included whether poverty, racism, and war are inherent to capitalism, and whether national liberation struggles are compatible with proletarian internationalism. We also touched on how to carry out communist work in UU congregations. One individual was struggling about the contradiction between reform and revolution while still being involved in reformist movements.
Now that the GA is over, our job is to follow up with the new people we met at the PLP forums and — even more critical — expand and intensify the day-to-day communist organizing we do in our local congregations.
PLP works to transform the reform movement into a “school for communism.” The GA selected “Escalating Inequality” as the congregational study/action issue for the next four years. The issue was described as follows:
Upward mobility — the American Dream — has become a myth. Concentration of wealth and power has skyrocketed. King’s dream of justice and equality has fractured. Half of all Americans are impoverished or struggling, as the middle class shrinks and billionaires take the profits. Where’s our commitment to the Common Good?
Study and class struggle around this issue will give us the opportunity to learn and teach many lessons in the school for communism.