110. The Paris Commune

The Paris Commune 1871 is rich in lessons for the struggles today. Listen to Peter Taaffe, Socialist Party political secretary, discussing the rich lessons for today. The Committee for a Workers’ International, the world socialist organisation to which the Socialist Party is affiliated, will host an online rally to celebrate the Paris Commune anniversary at 3pm on 28 March 2021. See: https://www.socialistworld.net/2021/03/26/28-march-cwi-rally-broadcast-150th-anniversary-of-the-paris-commune/ The Paris Commune has been described as the working class storming heaven. Why did Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels have such an interest in the events of 1871? What was the relevance of the Commune to the leaders of the Russian Revolution almost fifty years later in a different part of the world? And, what insight can the Commune of 1871 offer those battling the conditions of capitalism in crisis today? This episode of Socialism looks at the 150th anniversary of the Paris Commune, rich in lessons for revolutionaries Further reading New article: When the working class 'stormed heaven' https://www.socialistparty.org.uk/articles/32236/24-03-2021/150th-anniversary-of-the-paris-commune Historical article: Lessons of the Commune by V.I. Lenin https://www.socialistworld.net/2021/03/27/lessons-of-the-commune-by-v-i-lenin/ Article from our sister party in France: The first proletarian revolution – 150 years of the Paris Commune https://www.socialistworld.net/2021/03/26/the-first-proletarian-revolution-150-years-of-the-paris-commune/ Book: The Masses Arise: The Great French Revolution 1789-1815 http://leftbooks.co.uk/epages/950002679.sf/en_GB/?ObjectID=2017204