First Published: The Call, Vol. 9, No. 7, February 18, 1980.
Transcription, Editing and Markup: Paul Saba
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Few can deny the great progress that China is making economically or the growth in its influence internationally since the defeat of the gang of four three years ago. But many in the U.S. left are still confused or troubled by certain developments, including criticisms of the Cultural Revolution; reevaluations of some of Mao Zedong’s concepts and policies; and China’s closer relationship with the United States.
I would like to share some observations on these points drawn from the recent visit to China by a delegation from our Party’s Central Committee, of which I was a part.
Perhaps no event in history was more misunderstood than the Cultural Revolution. For many of us young activists here in the West, it was a historic movement that captured our imagination at a time when the hope for socialism seemed dim; when the Soviet revisionists had seized control of most of the communist movement and turned more than a hundred parties towards betrayal of the working class, the oppressed nationalities and the revolutionary goals of Marxism.
In recent years we have learned that great problems were caused by the Cultural Revolution and its ultra-“left” manipulation by the gang of four. Among the worst of these problems was widespread economic retardation. This resulted from the erroneous line of negating economics for politics, a line which wrongly associated economic growth, and higher standards of living with the “capitalist road.”
In particular, the gang’s view that “bourgeois right,” or inequality in the distribution of goods, inevitably gives rise to a new class of capitalists has shown itself in practice to be wrong and unscientific. Inequality of this type is inherent for a long period under socialism, a system which is based on the principle that each of society’s members shall be compensated on the basis of his work.
As we know, this is completely opposite to capitalism, where society’s wealth is grabbed by a class of people who do little if any work themselves. This is also quite different from the system of communism or a classless society, which is based on the principle “to each according to his need.”
Yes, there are bourgeois elements under socialism, both new and old. Therefore China still must wage class struggle. But these elements spring up mainly not from bourgeois right, but from the remnants of the old society, the strength of petty production and old ideas, as well as some other factors.
For more than a decade, the Chinese economy was shackled by the ideas of the gang, who attacked as capitalists all those who received higher wages or who aspired to a higher standard of living. The results affected not only those who live under socialism, but us here in the U.S. as well.
Socialism in the world is no longer an ideal. It is a real, live society existing side by side with capitalism for all to see and judge. Unfortunately, there are not a great many countries to point to at the present time to show the U.S. workers what a society can be when it is run by and in the interests of the people.
As can be expected, these working people as well as the Chinese people don’t evaluate socialism primarily on the basis of ideals, but rather on what such a society has to offer in the way of a better life for its members. For the Chinese people to go through nearly two decades without much improvement in their living standards cannot speak well in the world for the cause of socialism.
Economic stagnation was not the only problem during the Cultural Revolution. There was also a lack of democracy, the widespread use of suppression against differing ideas, and ironically, the curtailment of culture. This went against Mao’s notion of “letting a hundred flowers blossom.”
Today there is a new growth in the democratic spirit and structure of China, a new legal code by which everyone must abide. Arbitrary arrests or removal of people from their posts, which characterized much of the Cultural Revolution, have been ended and there is an exciting revival in areas of culture and sports, to name but a few.
Of course, there are still some problems, economically, politically and in all areas of development. This is only natural.
There is also the danger of flip-flops in certain areas. For example, while the opening up of trade with the West is a positive thing, we saw that some people, especially among the youth, were influenced by Western culture or by the higher standard of living in the U.S. Because of their limited knowledge of this country, they don’t see the real picture of things, like 40% of Black youth who are unemployed, or the millions of youth strung out on drugs.
There are problems of bureaucratic leadership and some left over factionalism from the Cultural Revolution which must be gradually overcome. Because of the upheavals in the past, resulting from one political movement after another, some have become cynical. They suspect that the present positive situation may again shift, that the promises of modernization and democratization may be dropped.
Then there is the question of Mao Zedong himself. I saw little in the way of negative attitudes towards Mao, as some Western observers have claimed. I wouldn’t call the changes taking place in China “de-Maoification.” But, there was and still is a problem, played on by the gang of four, of looking at Mao as a god and at his ideas as dogmas, rather than contributions to the living development of Marxism-Leninism in China.
Now the Communist Party has realized what some had maintained all along. Mao Zedong was the great leader of the Chinese revolution, but he also was a human being. Those who advocate taking his quotes out of context or blowing them up as religious values that are always true, regardless of time or place, denigrate the heart of his teachings. After all it was Mao who paved the way in the fight against “book worship” and the “lazy bones” approach to study.
But some of the problems China faces are being at least partially laid at the feet of Chairman Mao himself, who made errors of judgement at certain times. Both in the period around 1957-58 and during the Cultural Revolution itself, for example^ there were errors of magnifying the class struggle, which unnecessarily caused some great disruptions. But this in no way can belittle Mao’s greatness as a communist leader.
While we were in China, the USSR invaded Afghanistan, bringing home to us and to people throughout the world the real dangers that exist in the world today. Can China close its eyes to this menace? Obviously not.
China needs peace to develop its country. It is working hard to lend its voice to the cause of world peace and nuclear disarmament. But the growing war threat, the trampling of rights of smaller nations–this is the reality.
As for China’s new relationship with the U.S., it has been brought about by necessity. China is not in a position to take on both superpowers equally at the same time, nor is anyone else, in my opinion. While U.S. imperialism is still a hegemonic superpower with designs on the whole world, the Soviet Union is clearly the main danger in the world at the present time.
China’s very effective approach to this problem has been to call for an anti-hegemonic united front of all those peoples and countries that oppose war and aggression and domination by the superpowers. Since the Soviet Union is on the march–conquering Afghanistan, using its proxies to carry out genocidal policies against Kampuchea, and moving rapidly towards the oil-rich Persian Gulf–naturally it is the target of the main blow of this front.
Increased unity of interests between China and the U.S. is based on world realities. It in no way conflicts with the U.S. people’s class struggle or the fight for our rights and living standards.
There should be no doubt that China is a base area for the world revolution. It has never wavered in its support for the national liberation struggles of the peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America. It has been a solid friend and supporter of the working class in every country as well as the world communist movement. This is something we U.S. communists know from our direct experience.