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Manifesto of the Fourth International on Imperialist
War and the Imperialist War
Imperialist War And TheProletarian World Revolution
Adopted by the Emergency Conference of the Fourth InternationalMay 19-26, 19!
The Emergency Conference of the Fourth International, the World Party of the Socialist
Revolution, convenes at the turning point of the second imperialist war The stage of
pro!ing for openings, of ma"ing preparations, and of relative military inactivity has !een
left far !ehind #ermany has unloosed all the furies of hell in a ma$or offensive to which
the %llies are replying in "ind with all their forces of destruction From now on the life of
Europe and all of man"ind will !e determined for a long time !y the course of the
imperialist war and !y its economic and political conse&uences
The Fourth International considers that now is the time to say openly and clearly how it
views this war and its participants, how it evaluates the war policies of various la!ororgani'ations, and most important, what is the way out to peace, freedom, and plenty
The Fourth International turns not to the governments who have dragooned the peoples
into the slaughter, nor to the !ourgeois politicians who !ear the responsi!ility for these
governments, nor to the la!or !ureaucracy which supports the warring !ourgeoisie The
Fourth International turns to the wor"ing men and women, the soldiers and sailors, the
ruined peasants and the enslaved colonial peoples The Fourth International has no ties
whatsoever with the oppressors, the e(ploiters, the imperialists It is the world party of the
toilers, the oppressed, and the e(ploitedThis manifesto is addressed to them. The general causes of the
present war
Technology is infinitely more powerful now than at the end of the war of )*)+ )*),
whereas man"ind is much more poverty stric"en The standard of living has declined in
one country after another -n the threshold of the present war, agriculture was in worse
condition than at the out!rea" of the last war The agricultural countries are ruined In the
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industrial countries the middle classes are !eing ravaged economically, and a permanent
su! class of unemployed.modern pariahs.has !een formed The domestic mar"et has
narrowed The e(port of capital has !een reduced Imperialism has actually shattered the
world mar"et, !rea"ing it up into spheres dominated !y powerful individual countries
With the considera!le increase in the population of the earth, the world trade of )/* states
on our planet dropped almost one fourth in the single decade prior to the present war The
turnover in foreign trade of some countries has !een cut to one half, one third, and one
fourth
The colonial countries are suffering from their own internal crises, and from the crises of
the metropolitan centers 0ac"ward nations which yesterday were still semi free are today
plunged into slavery 1%!yssinia, %l!ania, China 2 Every imperialist country must have
its own sources of raw materials, a!ove all for war, that is, for a new struggle for raw
materials In order to enrich themselves further, the capitalists are destroying and laying
waste to everything created !y the la!or of centuries
The world of decaying capitalism is overcrowded The &uestion of admitting a hundred
e(tra refugees !ecomes a ma$or pro!lem for such a world power as the 3nited States In
an era of aviation, telegraph, telephone, radio, and television, travel from country to
country is paraly'ed !y passports and visas The period of the wasting away of foreign
trade and the decline of domestic trade is at the same time the period of the monstrous
intensification of chauvinism and especially of anti Semitism In the epoch of its rise,
capitalism too" the 4ewish people out of the ghetto and utili'ed them as an instrument in
its commercial e(pansion Today decaying capitalist society is striving to s&uee'e the4ewish people from all its pores5 seventeen million individuals out of the two !illion
populating the glo!e, that is, less than ) percent, can no longer find a place on our planet6
%mid the vast e(panses of land and the marvels of technology, which has also con&uered
the s"ies for man as well as the earth, the !ourgeoisie has managed to convert our planet
into a foul prison
Lenin and imperialism
-n 7ovem!er ), )*)+, at the !eginning of the last imperialist war, 8enin wrote9
:Imperialism has placed the fate of European culture at sta"e %lter this war, if a series ofsuccessful revolutions do not occur, more wars will follow the fairy tale of a ;war to end
all wars; is a hollow and pernicious fairy tale < Wor"ers, call this prediction to mind6
The present war the second imperialist war is not an accident5 it does not result from the
will of this or that dictator It was predicted long ago It derived its origin ine(ora!ly from
the contradictions of international capitalist interests Contrary to the official fa!les
designed to drug the people, the chief cause of war as of all other social evils
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unemployment, the high cost of living, fascism, colonial oppression is the private
ownership of the means of production together with the !ourgeois state which rests on this
foundation
With the present level of technology and s"ill of the wor"ers, it is &uite possi!le to create
ade&uate conditions for the material and spiritual development of all man"ind It would !e
necessary only to organi'e the economic life within each country and over our entire
planet correctly, scientifically, and rationally, according to a general plan So long,
however, as the main productive forces of society are held !y trusts, ie, isolated capitalist
cli&ues, and so long as the national state remains a pliant tool in the hands of these cli&ues,
the struggle for mar"ets, for sources of raw materials, for domination of the world, must
inevita!ly assume a more and more destructive character State power and domination of
the economy can !e torn from the hands of these rapacious imperialist cli&ues only !y the
revolutionary wor"ing class That is the meaning of 8enin;s warning that without :a series
of successful revolutions< a new imperialist war would inevita!ly follow The differentpredictions and promises which were made have !een su!mitted to the test of events The
fairy tale of the :war to end all wars< has !een proved a lie 8enin;s prediction has
!ecome tragic truth
The immediate causes of the war
The immediate cause of the present war is the rivalry !etween the old wealthy colonial
empires, #reat 0ritain and France, and the !elated imperialist plunderers, #ermany and
Italy
The nineteenth century was the era of the incontesta!le hegemony of the oldest capitalist
power, #reat 0ritain From ))= to )*)+ true enough, not without isolated military
e(plosions.:0ritish peace< reigned The 0ritish fleet, mightiest in the world, played the
role of policeman of the seas This era, however, has receded into the past %s early as the
end of the last century, #ermany, armed with modern technology, !egan to move toward
first place in Europe -n the other side of the ocean an even more powerful country arose,
a former 0ritish colony The most important economic contradiction which led to the war
of )*)+ )*) was the rivalry !etween #reat 0ritain and #ermany %s for the 3nited
States, its participation in the war was of a preventive character.#ermany could not !epermitted to su!$ugate the European continent
The defeat hurled #ermany !ac" into complete impotence >ismem!ered, encircled !y
enemies, !an"rupted !y indemnities, wea"ened !y the convulsions of civil war, she
appeared to !e out of the running for a long time to come, if not forever -n the European
continent, first violin turned up temporarily in the hands of France For victorious
England, the !alance sheet of the war left in the last analysis lia!ilities9 increasing
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independence of the dominions5 colonial movements for independence5 loss of naval
hegemony5 lessening of the importance of her navy through the development of aviation
Through inertia England still attempted to play the leading role on the world arena in the
first few years after victory ?er conflicts with the 3nited States !egan to assume an
o!viously threatening character It seemed as though the ne(t war would flare up !etween
the two %nglo Sa(on aspirants to world domination England, however, soon had to
convince herself that her specific economic weight was inade&uate for com!at with the
colossus across the ocean ?er agreement with the 3nited States on naval e&uality
signified formal renunciation of naval hegemony, already lost in actuality ?er
replacement of free trade !y tariff walls signified open admission of the defeat of 0ritish
industry on the world mar"et ?er renunciation of the policy of :splendid isolation< drew
in its wa"e the introduction of compulsory military service Thus all the sacred traditions
were dusted away
% similar lac" of correspondence !etween her economic weight and her world position is
characteristic of France too, !ut on a smaller scale ?er hegemony in Europe rested on a
temporary con$uncture of circumstances created !y the annihilation of #ermany and the
artificial com!inations of the @ersailles Treaty The si'e of her population and the
economic foundation supporting this hegemony were far too inade&uate When the
hypnosis of victory wore off, the real relationship of forces surged to the surface France
proved to !e much wea"er than she had appeared, not only to her friends !ut to her
enemies See"ing cover, she !ecame in essence #reat 0ritain;s latest dominion
#ermany;s regeneration on the !asis of her first rate technology and organi'ational
a!ilities was inevita!le It came sooner than was thought possi!le, in large measure than"s
to England;s support of #ermany against the 3SSR, against the e(cessive pretensions of
France, and more remotely against the 3nited States Such international com!inations
proved successful for capitalist England more than once in the past so long as she
remained the strongest power In her senility she proved incapa!le of dealing with those
spirits she had herself evo"ed
%rmed with a technology more modern, of greater fle(i!ility, and of higher productive
capacity, #ermany once again !egan to s&uee'e England out of very important mar"ets,particularly southeastern Europe and 8atin %merica In contrast to the nineteenth century,
when the competition !etween capitalist countries developed on an e(panding world
mar"et, the economic arena of struggle today is narrowing down so that nothing remains
open to the imperialists e(cept tearing pieces of the world mar"et away from each other
The initiative for the new redivision of the world this time as in )*)+ !elonged naturally
to #erman imperialism Caught off guard, the 0ritish government first attempted to !uy
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its way out of war !y concessions at the e(pense of others 1%ustria, C'echoslova"ia2 0ut
this policy was short lived :Friendship< with #reat 0ritain was only a !rief tactical phase
for ?itler 8ondon had already conceded ?itler more than he had calculated on getting
The Aunich agreement through which Cham!erlain hoped to seal a long time friendship
with #ermany led, on the contrary, to a hastening of the !rea" ?itler could e(pect
nothing more from 8ondon.further e(pansion of #ermany would stri"e at the life lines
of #reat 0ritain herself Thus the :new era of peace< proclaimed !y Cham!erlain in
-cto!er )*B led within a few months to the most terri!le of all wars
The United States
While #reat 0ritain has e(erted every effort since the first months of the war to sei'e
!loc"aded #ermany;s vacated positions in the world mar"et, the 3nited States has almost
automatically !een driving #reat 0ritain out Two thirds of the world;s gold is
concentrated in the %merican vaults The remaining third is flowing to the same place
England;s role as !an"er for the world is a thing of the past 7or are matters in other
spheres much !etter While #reat 0ritain;s navy and merchant marine are suffering great
losses, the %merican shipyards are !uilding ships on a colossal scale, which will secure
the predominance of the %merican fleet over the 0ritish and the 4apanese The 3nited
States is o!viously preparing to adopt the two power standard 1a navy stronger than the
com!ined fleets of the ne(t two strongest powers2 The new program for the air fleet
envisages securing the superiority of the 3nited States over all the rest of the world
?owever, the industrial, financial, and military strength of the 3nited States, the foremost
capitalist power in the world, does not at all insure the !lossoming of %merican economic
life, !ut on the contrary, invests the crisis of her social system with an especially
malignant and convulsive character #old in the !illions cannot !e made use of, nor can
the millions of unemployed6 In the theses of the Fourth International, War and the Fourth
International pu!lished si( years ago, it was predicted9
3 S capitalism is up against the same pro!lems that pushed #ermany in )*)+ on the path
of war The world is divided It must !e redivided For #ermany it was a &uestion of
:organi'ing Europe< The 3nited States must :organi'e< the world ?istory is !ringing
humanity face to face with the volcanic eruption of %merican imperialism
The :7ew >eal< and the :#ood 7eigh!or< policies)D; were the final attempts to postpone
the clima( !y ameliorating the social crisis through concessions and agreements %fter the
!an"ruptcy of this policy, which swallowed up tens of !illions, nothing else remained for
%merican imperialism !ut to resort to the method of the mailed fist 3nder one or another
prete(t and slogan the 3nited States will intervene in the tremendous clash in order to
maintain its world dominion The order and the time of the struggle !etween %merican
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capitalism and its enemies is not yet "nown perhaps even !y Washington War with 4apan
would !e a struggle for :living room< in the Pacific -cean War in the %tlantic, even if
directed immediately against #ermany, would !e a struggle for the heritage of #reat
0ritain
The potential victory of #ermany over the %llies hangs li"e a nightmare over Washington
With the European continent, and the resources of its colonies as her !ase, with all the
European munition factories and shipyards at her disposal, #ermany.especially in
com!ination with 4apan in the -rient would constitute a mortal danger for %merican
imperialism The present titanic !attles on the fields of Europe are in this sense
preparatory episodes in the struggle !etween #ermany and %merica France and England
are only fortified positions of %merican capitalism, e(tended !eyond the %tlantic If the
frontiers of England are located on the Rhine, as one of the 0ritish premiers put it, then
the %merican imperialists might well say that the frontiers of the 3nited States are on the
Thames In its feverish preparation of pu!lic opinion for the coming war, Washingtondoes not spare no!le indignation over the fate of Finland, >enmar", 7orway, ?olland,
0elgium With the occupation of >enmar", the &uestion of #reenland arose
une(pectedly as !eing :geologically< a part of the Western ?emisphere and containing !y
happy chance deposits of cryolite, indispensa!le in the production of aluminum 7or does
Washington overloo" enslaved China, the helpless Philippines, the orphaned >utch Indies,
and open sea routes Thus philanthropic sympathies for oppressed nations and even
considerations of geology are driving the 3nited States into war
The %merican armed forces, however, could intervene successfully only so long as Franceand the 0ritish Isles remain solid !ases of support Should France !e occupied and
#erman troops appear on the Thames, the relationship of forces would shift drastically to
the disadvantage of the 3nited States Washington is forced !y these considerations to
speed up all the tempos !ut li"ewise to ponder the &uestion9 has the opportune moment
not !een missed
%gainst the official position of the White ?ouse are launched the noisy protests of
%merican isolationism, which is itself only another variety of the very same imperialism
The section of the capitalists whose interests are !ound up primarily with the %mericancontinent, %ustralia, and the Far East calculate that in the event of the defeat of the %llies,
the 3nited States would automatically gain a monopoly for its own !enefit not only of
8atin %merica !ut also of Canada, %ustralia, and 7ew ealand %s for China, the >utch
Indies, and the -rient in general, it is the conviction of the entire ruling class of the 3nited
States that war with 4apan is in any case inevita!le in the near future 3nder the guise of
isolationism and pacifism, an influential section of the !ourgeoisie is wor"ing out a
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program for %merican continental e(pansion and preparing for the struggle with 4apan
War against #ermany for the domination of the world, according to this plan, is only
deferred %s for petty !ourgeois pacifists such as 7orman Thomas and his fraternity, they
are only choir !oys in one of the imperialist clans
-ur struggle against 3nited States intervention into the war has nothing in common with
isolationism and pacifism We tell the wor"ers openly that the imperialist government
cannot fail to drag this country into war The dispute within the ruling class involves only
the &uestion of when to enter the war and against whom to level the fire first To count
upon holding the 3nited States to neutrality !y means of newspaper articles and pacifist
resolutions is li"e trying to hold !ac" the tide with a !room The real struggle against war
means the class struggle against imperialism and a merciless e(posure of petty!ourgeois
pacifism -nly revolution could prevent the %merican !ourgeoisie from intervening in the
second imperialist war or !eginning the third imperialist war %ll other methods are either
charlatanism or stupidity or a com!ination of !oth
The defense of the fatherland
%lmost a hundred years ago when the national state still represented a relatively
progressive factor, the Communist Aanifesto proclaimed that the proletarians have no
fatherland Their only goal is the creation of the toilers; fatherland em!racing the whole
world Toward the end of the nineteenth century, the !ourgeois state with its armies and
tariff walls !ecame the worst !ra"e on the development of productive forces, which
demand a much more e(tensive arena % socialist who comes out today for the defense of
the :fatherland< is playing the same reactionary role as the peasants of the @endee, who
rushed to the defense of the feudal regime, that is, of their own chains
In recent years and even months, the world has o!served with astonishment how easily
states vanish from the map of Europe9 %ustria, C'echoslova"ia, %l!ania, Poland,
>enmar", 7orway, ?olland, 0elgium The political map has !een reshaped with
e&ual speed in no other epoch save that of the 7apoleonic wars %t that time it was a
&uestion of outlived feudal states which had to give way !efore the !ourgeois national
state Today it is a &uestion of outlived !ourgeois states which must give way !efore the
socialist federation of the peoples The chain !rea"s as always at its wea"est lin" Thestruggle of the imperialist !andits leaves as little room for in dependent small states as
does the vicious competition of trusts and cartels for small independent manufacturers and
merchants
0ecause of its strategic position #ermany considers it more profita!le to attac" its main
enemies through the small and neutral countries #reat 0ritain and France on the contrary
deem it more profita!le to cover themselves with the neutrality of the small states and let
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#ermany drive them through her !lows into the camp of the :democratic< %llies The gist
of the matter is not altered !y this difference in strategic methods 0etween the cog wheels
of the great imperialist countries the small satellites are !eing ground to dust The
:defense< of the huge fatherlands re&uires the overthrow of a do'en small and middle
si'ed ones
0ut even with regard to the large states, what is involved for the !ourgeoisie is not at all a
&uestion of defending the fatherland, !ut rather of mar"ets, foreign concessions, sources
of raw materials, and spheres of influence The !ourgeoisie never defends the fatherland
for the sa"e of the fatherland They defend private property, privileges, profits Whenever
these sacred values are threatened, the !ourgeoisie immediately ta"es to the road of
defeatism That was the way of the Russian !ourgeoisie, whose sons after the -cto!er
Revolution fought and are once again ready to fight in every army in the world against
their own former fatherland In order to save their capital, the Spanish !ourgeoisie turned
to Aussolini and ?itler for military aid against their own people The 7orwegian!ourgeoisie aided ?itler;s invasion of 7orway Thus it always was and always will !e
-fficial patriotism is a mas" for the e(ploiting interests Class conscious wor"ers throw
this mas" contemptuously aside They do not defend the !ourgeois fatherland, !ut the
interests of the toilers and the oppressed of their own country and of the entire world The
theses of the Fourth International state9
%gainst the reactionary slogan of :national defense< it is necessary to advance the slogan
of the revolutionary destruction of the national state To the madhouse of capitalist Europe
it is necessary to counterpose the program of the Socialist 3nited States of Europe as a
stage on the road to the Socialist 3nited States of the World
The struggle for democracy
7o less a lie is the slogan of a war for democracy against fascism %s if the wor"ers have
forgotten that the 0ritish gov ernment helped ?itler and his hangman;s crew gain power6
The imperialist democracies are in reality the greatest aristocracies in history England,
France, ?olland, 0elgium rest on the enslavement of colonial peoples The democracy of
the 3nited States rests upon the sei'ure of the vast wealth of an entire continent %ll theefforts of these :democracies< are directed toward the preservation of their privileged
position % considera!le portion of the war !urden is unloaded !y imperialist democracies
onto their colonies The slaves are o!liged to furnish !lood and gold in order to insure the
possi!ility of their masters remaining slaveholders The small capitalist democracies
without colonies are satellites of the great empires and glean a portion of their colonial
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profits The ruling classes of these states are ready to renounce democracy at any moment
in order to preserve their privileges
In the case of tiny 7orway the inner mechanics of decaying democracy have once again
!een revealed !efore the whole world The 7orwegian !ourgeoisie made simultaneous use
of the social democratic government and the fascist policemen, $udges, and officers %t
the first serious impact, the democratic heads were swept away and the fascist
!ureaucracy, which immediately found a common language with ?itler, !ecame master of
the house With different national variations this same e(periment was previously
performed in Italy, #ermany, %ustria, Poland, C'echoslova"ia, and a num!er of other
states In a moment of danger the !ourgeoisie has always !een a!le to free from
democratic trappings the real apparatus of its rule as the direct instrument of finance
capital -nly the hopelessly !lind are capa!le of !elieving that the 0ritish and French
generals and admirals are waging a war against fascism6
The war has not halted the process of the transformation of democracies into reactionary
dictatorships, !ut on the contrary is carrying this process to its conclusion !efore our very
eyes
Within every country as well as on the world arena, the war strengthened immediately the
most reactionary groups and institutions The general staffs, those nests of 0onapartist
conspiracy, the malignant dens of the police, the gangs of hired patriots, the churches of
all creeds, are immediately pushed to the forefront The Papal Court, the focal point of
o!scurantism and hatred among men, is !eing wooed from all sides, especially !y the
Protestant President Roosevelt Aaterial and spiritual decline always !rings in its wa"e
police oppression and an increased demand for the opium of religion
See"ing to gain the advantages of a totalitarian regime, the imperialist democracies launch
their own defense with a redou!led drive against the wor"ing class and the persecution of
revolutionary organi'ations The war danger and now the war itself is utili'ed !y them
first and foremost to crush internal enemies The !ourgeoisie invaria!ly and unswervingly
follows the rule9 :The main enemy is in one;s own countryisillusioned, disunited, and
wea"ened, China was laid open to 4apanese invasion
8i"e every doomed regime, the Stalinist oligarchy is already incapa!le of learning from
the lessons of history %t the !eginning of the Sino 4apanese war, the Gremlin again
placed the Communist Party in !ondage to Chiang Gai she", crushing in the !ud the
revolutionary initiative of the Chinese proletariat This war, now nearing its third
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anniversary, might long since have !een finished !y a real catastrophe for 4apan, if China
had conducted it as a genuine people;s war !ased on an agrarian revolution and setting the
4apanese soldiery aflame with its !la'e 0ut the Chinese !ourgeoisie fears its own armed
masses more than it does the 4apanese ravishers If Chiang Gai she", the sinister hangman
of the Chinese revolution, is compelled !y circumstances to wage a war, his program is
still !ased, as !efore, on the oppression of his own wor"ers and compromise with the
imperialists
The war in eastern %sia will !ecome more and more interloc"ed with the imperialist
world war The Chinese people will !e a!le to reach independence only under the
leadership of the youthful and self sacrificing proletariat, in whom the indispensa!le self
confidence will !e re"indled !y the re!irth of the world revolution They will indicate a
firm line of march The course of events places on the order of the day the development of
our Chinese section into a powerful revolutionary party
Tas's of the re"olution in (ndia
In the very first wee"s of war the Indian masses e(erted their growing pressure,
compelling the opportunist :national< leaders to spea" in an unaccustomed tongue 0ut
woe to the Indian people if they place trust in high sounding words6 3nder the mas" of the
slogan of national independence, #andhi has already hastened to proclaim his refusal to
create difficulties for #reat 0ritain during the present severe crisis %s if the oppressed
anywhere or at any time have ever !een a!le to free themselves e(cept !y e(ploiting the
difficulties of their oppressors6
#andhi;s :moral< revulsion from violence merely reflects the fear of the Indian
!ourgeoisie !efore their own masses They have very good grounds for their fore!oding
that 0ritish imperialism will drag them down too in the collapse 8ondon for its part warns
that at the first display of diso!edience it will apply :ail necessary measures
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material interests of the !ourgeoisie determine their politics with the force of the laws of
gravitation
So long as the li!erating movement is controlled !y the e(ploiting class it is incapa!le of
getting out of a !lind alley The only thing that can weld India together is the agrarian
revolution under the !anner of national independence % revolution led !y the proletariat
will !e directed not only against 0ritish rule !ut also against the Indian princes, foreign
concessions, the top layer of the national !ourgeoisie, and the leaders of the 7ational
Congress, as well as against the leaders of the Aoslem 8eague It is the pressing tas" of
the Fourth International to create a sta!le and powerful section in India
The treacherous policy of class colla!oration, through which the Gremlin for the last five
years has !een helping the capitalist governments prepare for war, was a!ruptly li&uidated
!y the !ourgeoisie, $ust as soon as they ceased to need a pacifist disguise 0ut in the
colonial and semicolonial countries not only in China and India, !ut in 8atin %merica.
the fraud of the :People;s Fronts< still continues to paraly'e the wor"ing masses,
converting them into cannon fodder for the :progressive< !ourgeoisie and in this way
creating an indigenous political !asis for imperialism
The future of Latin )merica
The monstrous growth of armaments in the 3nited States prepares for a violent solution of
the comple( contradictions in the Western ?emisphere and should soon pose point !lan"
the &uestion of the destiny of the 8atin %merican countries The interlude of the :#ood
7eigh!or< policy is coming to an end Roosevelt or his successor will &uic"ly ta"e the
iron fist out of the velvet glove The theses of the Fourth International state9
South and Central %merica will !e a!le to tear themselves out of !ac"wardness and
enslavement only !y uniting all their states into one powerful federation 0ut it is not the
!elated South %merican !ourgeoisie, a thoroughly venal agency of foreign imperialism,
who will !e called upon to solve this tas", !ut the young South %merican proletariat, the
chosen leader of the oppressed masses The slogan in the struggle against violence and
intrigues of world imperialism and against the !loody wor" of native comprador cli&ues is
therefore9 the Soviet 3nited States of South and Central %merica
Written si( years ago, these lines have now ac&uired a particularly !urning actuality
-nly under its own revolutionary direction is the proletariat of the colonies and the semi
colonies capa!le of achieving in vinci!le colla!oration with the proletariat of the
metropolitan centers, and with the world wor"ing class as a whole -nly this colla!oration
can lead the oppressed peoples to complete and final emancipation, through the overthrow
of imperialism the world over % victory of the international proletariat will deliver the
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colonial countries from the long drawn out travail of capitalist development, !y opening
up the possi!ility of arriving at socialism hand in hand with the proletariat of the advanced
countries
The perspective of the permanent revolution in no case signifies that the !ac"ward
countries must await the signal from the advanced ones, or that the colonial peoples
should patiently wait for the proletariat of the metropolitan centers to free them ?elp
comes to him who helps himself Wor"ers must develop the revolutionary struggle in
every country, colonial or imperialist, where favora!le conditions have !een esta!lished,
and through this set an e(ample for the wor"ers of other countries -nly initiative and
activity, resoluteness and !oldness can really materiali'e the slogan :Wor"ers of the
world, unite6emocracy remains patriotic $ust so long as the political regime assures it
its profits and privileges,< warned our theses si( years ago Russian Aenshevi"s and
7arodnilcs, who were patriots even under the c'ar.when they had their own >uma
fractions, their own newspapers, their own trade union functionaries, and hoped for further
advances along this road.now that they have lost all this, hold a defeatist position in
regard to the 3SSR
Conse&uently the present :unanimity< of the Second International is e(plaina!le !y thefact that all of its sections hope that the %llies will save them their posts and revenues in
the la!or !ureaucracy of the democratic countries and restore these posts and revenues in
the totalitarian countries The Social >emocracy does not go !eyond impotent daydreams
a!out the patronage of the :democratic< !ourgeoisie These political invalids are
completely incapa!le of struggle even where their own interests are involved This was
revealed most clearly in Scandinavia, which appeared to !e the most secure sanctuary of
the Second International and where all three countries were governed for a period of years
!y the so!er, realistic, reformist, and pacifist Social >emocracy Socialism was what these
gentlemen called the conservative royal democracy, plus the state church, plus the
niggardly social reforms made possi!le for a time !y limited military e(penditures
0ac"ed !y the 8eague of 7ations and protected !y the shield of :neutrality,< the
Scandinavian governments calculated on generations of tran&uil and peaceful
development 0ut the imperialist masters paid no attention to their calculations They were
compelled to dodge the !lows of fate 3pon the 3SSR invading Finland, all three
Scandinavian governments proclaimed themselves neutral so far as Finland was
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concerned 3pon #ermany;s invasion of >enmar" and 7orway, Sweden declared herself
neutral so far as !oth victims of aggression were concerned >enmar" contrived to declare
herself neutral even in relation to herself 7orway, under the gun mu''les of her guardian
England, alone made a few sym!olic gestures of self defense These heroes are fully
prepared to live at the e(pense of the democratic fatherland, !ut feel disinclined to die for
it The war which they did not foresee has in passing overthrown their hopes for a
peaceful evolution under Ging and #od The Scandinavian paradise, final refuge of the
Second International;s hopes, has !een transformed into a tiny sector of the general
imperialist hell
The Social >emocratic opportunists "now !ut one policythat of passive adaptation 3nder
the conditions of decaying capitalism nothing remains open to them !ut the surrender of
one position after another, the whittling away of their already misera!le program, the
lowering of their demands, the renunciation of demands altogether, continuous retreat
further and further !ac" until there is no place left to retreat e(cept a rat hole 0ut eventhere the pitiless hand of imperialism drags them out !y the tail Such is a !rief history of
the Second International It is !eing "illed !y the present war for the second time and, one
must thin", this time forever
The Third (nternational
The policy of the degenerated Third International.a mi(tire of crude opportunism and
un!ridled adventurism.e(ercises an influence upon the wor"ing class which is, if
possi!le, even more demorali'ing than the policy of its elder !rother, the Second
International The revolutionary party !uilds its entire policy upon the class consciousness
of the wor"ers5 the Comintern is preoccupied with nothing !ut contaminating and
poisoning this class consciousness
The official propagandists of each of the !elligerent camps e(pose, sometimes &uite
correctly, the crimes of the opposing camp #oe!!els tells a good deal of truth a!out
0ritish violence in India The French and English press say a great many penetrating
things a!out the foreign policy of ?itler and of Stalin 7evertheless this one sided
propaganda !y itself represents the worst chauvinist poison ?alf truths are the most
dangerous "ind of lies
The entire present propaganda of the Comintern !elongs to this category %fter five years
of the crudest fawning upon the democracies, when the whole of :communism< was
reduced to the monotonous indictment of fascist aggressors, the Comintern suddenly
discovered in the autumn of )*B* the criminal imperialism of the Western democracies
8eft a!out face6 From then on not a single word of condemnation a!out the destruction of
C'echoslova"ia and Poland, the sei'ure of >enmar" and 7orway, and the shoc"ing
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!estialities inflicted !y ?itler;s gangs on the Polish and 4ewish people6 ?itler was made
out to !e a peace loving vegetarian continually !eing provo"ed !y the Western
imperialists The %nglo French alliance was referred to in the Comintern press as the
:imperialist !loc against the #erman people< #oe!!els himself could have coo"ed up
nothing !etter6 The NmigrN #erman Communist Party !urned with the flame of love for
the fatherland %nd since the #erman fatherland had not ceased to !e fascist it turned out
that the #erman Communist Party held a social fascist position The time had finally come
when Stalin;s theory of social fascism too" on flesh and !lood
%t first sight the conduct of the French and English sections of the Communist
International appeared to !e diametrically opposite In contradistinction to the #ermans,
they were compelled to attac" their own government 0ut this sudden defeatism was not
internationalism, !ut a distorted variety of patriotism .these gentlemen consider their
fatherland to !e the Gremlin, on which their welfare depends Aany of the French
Stalinists !ehaved with un&uestiona!le courage under persecution 0ut the politicalcontent of this courage was !esmirched !y their em!ellishment of the rapacious policy of
the enemy camp What must the French wor"ers thin" of it
Revolutionary internationalists have always !een portrayed !y reaction as agents of a
foreign enemy The Comintern created a situation for its French and English sections that
made them provide the very grounds for such an accusation, and there!y forci!ly drove
the wor"ers into the patriotic camp or condemned them to confusion and passivity
The policy of the Gremlin is simple9 it sold ?itler the Comintern along with oil and
manganese 0ut the dogli"e servility with which these people allowed themselves to !e
sold irrefuta!ly testifies to the internal corruption of the Comintern 7either principles,
nor honor, nor conscience have !een left to the Gremlin;s agents.only a supple spine
0ut people with supple spines have never yet led a revolution
Stalin;s friendship with ?itler will not endure forever, nor even for any length of time
0efore our manifesto reaches the masses the foreign policy of the Gremlin may undergo a
new turn In that case the character of the Comintern;s propaganda would also change If
the Gremlin draws close to the democracies, the Comintern will once again dig out of its
warehouses the 0rown 0oo" of 7ational Socialist crimes 0ut this does not mean that itspropaganda will assume a revolutionary character In changing la!els it will remain as
servile as !efore Revolutionary policy demands that a!ove all the masses !e told the
truth 0ut the Comintern lies systematically We turn to the toilers of the world and say9
>o not !elieve the liars6
The Social Democrats and the Stalinists in the colonies
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Parties fled up with the e(ploiters and interested in privileges are organically incapa!le of
carrying on an honest policy with respect to the most e(ploited layers of the toilers and the
oppressed peoples The physiognomy of the Second and Third Internationals, therefore, is
revealed with special clarity in their attitude towards the colonies
%cting as an attorney for the slaveholders and a shareholder in the profits of slavery, the
Second International has no sections of its own in the colonies, if we ignore casual groups
of colonial functionaries, predominantly French freemasons, and :left< careerists in
general who sit on the !ac"s of the native population ?aving renounced opportunely the
unpatriotic notion of rousing the colonial population against the :democratic fatherland,imitrov will accept no less %ra!s and 7egroes have found theft !estfriend in Stalin once again, not counting, of course, Aussolini and ?itler The #erman
section of the Comintern, with that !ra'enness characteristic of this gang of parasites,
defends Poland and C'echoslova"ia against the plots of 0ritish imperialism These people
are capa!le of and ready for anything6 With a new change in the Gremlin;s orientation
towards the Western democracies they will again respectfully solicit 8ondon and Paris to
grant li!eral reforms to theft colonies
In contrast to the Second International, the Comintern, than"s to its great tradition,
e(ercises un&uestiona!le influence in the colonies 0ut its social !ase has altered inaccordance with its political evolution %t the present time, in countries of a colonial
nature, the Comintern rests on the stratum which is the traditional !ase of the Second
International in the metropolitan centers The crum!s that drop from its super profits have
ena!led imperialism to create the sem!lance of a native la!or aristocracy in the colonial
and semicolonial countries Insignificant in comparison with its prototype in the
metropolitan centers, it stands out, however, against the !ac"ground of general poverty
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and maintains a tenacious grip on its privileges The la!or !ureaucracy and aristocracy of
the colonial and semicolonial countries, together with the state functionaries, provide
especially servile recruits for the :friends< of the Gremlin In 8atin %merica one of the
most repulsive representatives of this type is the Ae(ican lawyer, 8om!ardo Toledano,
whose intimate services the Gremlin has rewarded !y elevating him to the decorative post
of chairman of the 8atin %merican Trade 3nion Federation
0y posing the &uestions of the class struggle point !lan", the war creates for these $ugglers
and weathervanes an increasingly difficult position, which genuine 0olshevi"s must
utili'e in order to sweep the Comintern out of the colonial countries forever
&entrism and anarchism
0y testing everything that e(ists and discarding everything rotten, war represents a mortal
danger to the outlived Internationals % considera!le section of the Comintern
!ureaucracy, especially in case of reversals for the Soviet 3nion, will unfailingly turn totheir own imperialist fatherland The wor"ers, on the contrary, will move more and more
to the left 3nder such conditions splits and crac" ups are inevita!le % num!er of
symptoms also indicate the possi!ility that the :left< wing of the Second International
Will !rea" away Centrist groupings of different origin will merge, !rea" up, create new
:fronts,< :camps,< etc -ur epoch will disclose, however, that it finds centrism intolera!le
The pathetic and tragic role played in the Spanish revolution !y the P-3A, the most
serious and honest of the centrist organi'ations, will always remain in the memory of the
advanced proletariat as a terri!le warning
0ut history is fond of repetitions The possi!ility is not e(cluded of new attempts to !uild
an international organi'ation on the pattern of the Two and a half International, or, this
time, the Three and a &uarter International Such !eginnings merit attention only as a
reflection of far more profound processes ta"ing place in the wor"ing masses 0ut it can
!e stated with certainty in advance that the centrist :fronts,< :camps,< and
:Internationals,< lac"ing any theoretical foundation, revolutionary tradition, or finished
program, will have only an ephemeral character We shall assist them !y mercilessly
critici'ing theft indecisiveness and halfheartedness
This s"etch of the !an"ruptcy of the old wor"ing class organi'ations would !e incomplete
if we failed to mention anarchism Its decline constitutes the most incontesta!le
phenomenon of our epoch Even !efore the first imperialist war the French anarcho
syndicalists succeeded in !ecoming the worst opportunists and the direct servants of the
!ourgeoisie In the last war most of the international anarchist leaders came out as
patriots In the heat of the civil war in Spain, the anarchists too" posts as ministers of the
!ourgeoisie The anarchist phrasemongers deny the state so long as it does not need them
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In the hour of danger they, li"e the Social >emocrats, !ecome agents of the capitalist
class
The anarchists entered the present war without a program, without a single idea, and with
a !anner dirtied !y their !etrayal of the Spanish proletariat Today they are incapa!le of
introducing anything into the ran"s of the wor"ers save patriotic demorali'ation flavored
with humanitarian lamentations In see"ing a rapprochement with the anarchist wor"ers
who are really prepared to fight for the interests of their class, we will at the same time
demand that they ma"e a complete !rea" with those leaders who in war as well as in
revolution serve as the messenger !oys of the !ourgeoisie
The trade unions and the war
While the magnates of monopoly capitalism stand a!ove the official organs of state
power, controlling them from their heights, the opportunist trade union leaders scurry
around the footstool of state power, creating support for it among the wor"ing masses It isimpossi!le to perform this filthy chore so long as wor"ers; democracy within the trade
unions is maintained The regime in the unions, following the pattern of the regime of the
!ourgeois states, is !ecoming more and more authoritarian In wartime the trade union
!ureaucracy definitively !ecomes the military police of the army;s #eneral Staff in the
wor"ing class
0ut no 'eal will save it War !rings death and destruction to the present reformist trade
unions Those trade unionists who are in theft prime are mo!ili'ed for the slaughter They
are replaced !y !oys, women, and old men, that is, those least capa!le of resistance %ll
countries will come out of the war so ruined that the standard of living for the wor"ers
will !e thrown !ac" a hundred years Reformist unions are possi!le only under the regime
of !ourgeois democracy 0ut the first to !e van&uished in the war will !e the thoroughly
rotten democracy In its definitive downfall it will drag with it all the wor"ers;
organi'ations which served as its support There will !e no room for reformist unions
Capitalist reaction will destroy them ruthlessly It is necessary to warn the wor"ers of this
at once and loud enough for everyone to hear
% new epoch demands new methods 7ew methods demand new leaders It is possi!le to
save the trade unions in only one way9 !y transforming them into fighting organi'ations
which will set as their goal victory over capitalist anarchy and imperialist !anditry The
trade unions will play a paramount role in !uilding socialist economy, !ut the preliminary
condition for this is the overthrow of the capitalist class and the nationali'ation of the
means of production The trade unions can escape !urial !eneath the ruins of war only if
they ta"e the road of socialist revolution
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The !ourth (nternational
The proletarian vanguard is the irreconcila!le enemy of imperialist war 0ut it has no fear
of this war It accepts !attle on the arena chosen !y the class enemy It enters this arena
with its !anners flying
The Fourth International is the only organi'ation that correctly predicted the generalcourse of world events, that anticipated the inevita!ility of a new imperialist catastrophe,
that e(posed the pacifist frauds of the !ourgeois democrats and the petty !ourgeois
adventurers of the Stalinist school, that fought against the policy of class colla!oration
!earing the name of the :People;s Fronts,< that pilloried the treacherous role of the
Comintern and the anarchists in Spain, that irreconcila!ly critici'ed the centrist illusions
of the P-3A, that continued to steel its cadres unceasingly in the spirit of the
revolutionary class struggle -ur policy in war is only a concentrated continuation of our
policy in peace
The Fourth International !uilds its program upon the granite theoretical foundations of
Aar(ism It re$ects the contempti!le eclecticism which now dominates the ran"s of the
official la!or !ureaucracy of the different camps, and which most fre&uently serves as a
cloa" for capitulation to !ourgeois democracy -ur program is formulated in a series of
documents accessi!le to everyone The gist of it can !e summed up in two words9
proletarian dictatorship
+ur program founded on $olshe"ism
The Fourth International stands completely and wholeheartedly on the foundation of therevolutionary tradition of 0olshevism and its organi'ational methods 8et the petty
!ourgeois radicals whine against centralism % wor"er who has participated even once in
a stri"e "nows that no struggle is possi!le without discipline and a firm leadership -ur
entire epoch is permeated with the spirit of centralism Aonopoly capitalism has !rought
economic centrali'ation to its ultimate limits State centralism in the guise of fascism
assumed a totalitarian character The democracies more and more attempt to emulate this
pattern The trade union !ureaucracy is ruthlessly defending its powerful machine The
Second and Third Internationals are !ra'enly utili'ing the state apparatus in their struggle
against the revolution 3nder these conditions the elementary guarantee of success is the
counterposing of revolutionary centralism to the centralism of reaction It is indispensa!le
to have an organi'ation of the proletarian vanguard welded together !y iron discipline, a
genuine selection of tempered revolutionists ready for self sacrifice and inspired !y an
uncon&uera!le will to victory To prepare the offensive systematically and painsta"ingly,
and when the decisive hour stri"es to throw the entire strength of the class on to the field
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of !attle without faltering.only a centrali'ed party which does not falter itself is capa!le
of teaching this to the wor"ers
Shallow s"eptics delight in citing the degeneration of 0olshevi" centralism into
!ureaucratism %s though the entire course of history depended on the structure of a party6
%s a matter of fact, it is the fate of the party that depends on the course of the class
struggle 0ut in any case, the 0olshevi" Party was the only party that proved in action its
capacity for accomplishing the proletarian revolution It is precisely such a party that is
needed now !y the international proletariat If the !ourgeois regime comes out of the war
with impunity, every revolutionary party will suffer degeneration If the proletarian
revolution con&uers, those conditions that produce degeneration will disappear
In the conditions of triumphant reaction, mass disillusionment, and mass fatigue, in a
political atmosphere poisoned !y the malignant decomposition of the traditional
organi'ations of the wor"ing class, in the midst of heaped up difficulties and o!stacles, the
development of the Fourth International of necessity proceeded slowly Isolated and at
first sight much !roader and more promising attempts at unifying the left wing have !een
underta"en more than once !y centrists who disdained our efforts %ll these pretentious
attempts, however, crum!led to dust even !efore the masses had a chance to memori'e
their names -nly the Fourth International, with stu!!ornness, persistence, and increasing
success "eeps on swimming against the stream
,e ha"e withstood the test-
What characteri'es a genuine revolutionary organi'ation is a!ove all the seriousness with
which it wor"s out and tests its political line at each new turn of events Centralism is
made fruitful !y democracy In the fire of the war our sections passionately discuss all
&uestions of proletarian policy, testing methods, and !rushing off in passing those
unsta!le elements who $oined us only !ecause of their opposition to the Second and Third
Internationals Separation from unrelia!le fellowtravelers is the inevita!le overhead
e(pense in the formation of a genuine revolutionary party
The overwhelming ma$ority of our comrades in different countries have withstood the first
test of the war This fact is of inestima!le significance for the future of the Fourth
International Every ran" and file mem!er of our organi'ation is not only entitled !ut duty
!ound to consider himself henceforth an officer in the revolutionary army that will !e
created in the flame of events The entry of the masses into the revolutionary arena will
reveal at once the insignificance of the opportunist, pacifist, and centrist programs %
single real revolutionist in a factory, a mine, a trade union, a regiment, a warship, is worth
infinitely more than hundreds of petty!ourgeois pseudorevolutionists stewing in their
own $uice
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The politicians of the !ig !ourgeoisie are far !etter at orienting themselves on the role of
the Fourth International than our petty !ourgeois pedants -n the eve of !rea"ing off
diplomatic relations, the French am!assador Coulondre and ?itler, see"ing during theft
final interview to frighten each other !y the conse&uences of the war, were in $oint
agreement that the :only real victor< would !e the Fourth International 3pon the
launching of hostilities against Poland, the ma$or press of France, >enmar", and other
countries carried dispatches saying that in the wor"ers; &uarters in 0erlin placards
appeared on wails, :>own with Stalin, 8ong 8ive Trots"y6< This means9 :>own with the
Third International, 8ong 8ive the Fourth International6< When a demonstration was
organi'ed !y the more resolute wor"ers and students of Prague, on the anniversary of
national independence, the :Protector< 0aron 7eurath issued an official declaration
placing the responsi!ility for this demonstration upon the C'ech :Trots"yites< The
correspondence from Prague that appears in the newspaper edited !y 0enes, the former
president of the C'echoslova" repu!lic, confirms the fact that the C'ech wor"ers are!ecoming :Trots"yites< )) %s yet, all these are only symptoms 0ut they indicate
unmista"a!ly the trend of development The new generation of wor"ers whom the war
will impel onto the road of revolution will ta"e theft place under our !anner
The proletarian re"olution
The !asic conditions for the victory of the proletarian revolution have !een esta!lished !y
historical e(perience and clarified theoretically9 1)2 the !ourgeois impasse and the
resulting confusion of the ruling class5 1K2 the sharp dissatisfaction and the striving
towards decisive changes in the ran"s of the petty !ourgeoisie, without whose support the!ig !ourgeoisie cannot maintain itself5 1B2 the consciousness of the intolera!le situation
and readiness for revolutionary actions in the ran"s of the proletariat5 1+2 a clear program
and a firm leadership of the proletarian vanguard.these are the four conditions for the
victory of the proletarian revolution The main reason for the defeats of many revolutions
is rooted in the fact that these four conditions rarely attain the necessary degree of
maturity at one and the same time In history, war has not infre&uently !een the mother of
revolution precisely !ecause it roc"s superannuated regimes to their foundation, wea"ens
the ruling class, and hastens the growth of revolutionary indignation among the oppressed
classes
%lready the disorientation of the !ourgeoisie, the alarm and dissatisfaction of the popular
masses are intense, not only in the warring !ut also in the neutral countries5 these
phenomena will !ecome intensified with every passing month of the war In the last
twenty years, it is true, the proletariat has suffered one defeat after another, each graver
than the preceding one, !ecame disillusioned with its old parties, and met the war
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undou!tedly in depressed spirits -ne should not, however, overestimate the sta!ility or
dura!ility of such moods Events created them5 events will dispel them
War as well as revolution is made first and foremost !y the younger generation Aillions
of the youth, una!le to find access to industry, !egan theft lives as unemployed and
therefore remained outside of political life Today they are finding their place or they will
find it on the morrow9 the state organi'es them into regiments and for this very reason
opens the possi!ility for theft revolutionary unification Without a dou!t the war will also
sha"e off the apathy of the older generations
The pro*lem of leadership
There remains the &uestion of leadership Will not the revolution !e !etrayed this time
too, inasmuch as there are two Internationals in the service of imperialism while the
genuine revolutionary elements constitute a tiny minority In other words9 shall we
succeed in preparing in time a party capa!le of leading the proletarian revolution In orderto answer this &uestion correctly it is necessary to pose it correctly 7aturally, this or that
uprising may end and surely will end in defeat owing to the immaturity of the
revolutionary leadership 0ut it is not a &uestion of a single uprising It is a &uestion of an
entire revolutionary epoch
The capitalist world has no way out, unless a prolonged death agony is so considered It is
necessary to prepare for long years, if not decades, of war, uprisings, !rief interludes of
truce, new wars, and new uprisings % young revolutionary party must !ase itself on this
perspective ?istory will provide it with enough opportunities and possi!ilities to test
itself, to accumulate e(perience, and to mature The swifter the ran"s of the vanguard are
fused the more the epoch of !loody convulsions will !e shortened, the less destruction will
our planet suffer 0ut the great historical pro!lem will not !e solved in any case until a
revolutionary party stands at the head of the proletariat The &uestion of tempos and time
intervals is of enormous importance5 !ut it alters neither the general historical perspective
nor the direction of our policy The conclusion is a simple one9 it is necessary to carry on
the wor" of educating and organi'ing the proletarian vanguard with tenfold energy
Precisely in this lies the tas" of the Fourth International
The greatest error is committed !y those who, in see"ing to $ustify pessimistic
conclusions, refer simply to the sad conse&uences of the last war In the first place, the last
war gave !irth to the -cto!er Revolution upon whose lessons the la!or movement of the
whole world lives In the second place, the conditions of the present war differ profoundly
from the conditions of )*)+ The economic position of the imperialist states, including the
3nited States, is infinitely worse today, and the destructive power of war is infinitely
greater than was the case a &uarter of a century ago There is therefore sufficient reason to
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e(pect this time a much more rapid and much more decisive reaction on the part of the
wor"ers and of the army
The e(perience of the first war did not pass without deeply affecting the masses The
Second International drew its strength from the still almost untouched democratic and
pacifist illusions of the masses The wor"ers seriously hoped that the war of )*)+ would
!e the last war The soldiers allowed themselves to !e "illed in order to spare their
children a new slaughter -nly than"s to this hope could men have withstood war for
more than four years Today almost nothing remains of the democratic and pacifist
illusions The peoples are suffering the present war without any longer !elieving in it,
without e(pecting anything more from it than new chains This applies also to the
totalitarian states The older generation of the wor"ers who !ore on their !ac"s the !urden
of the first imperialist war and who have not forgotten its lessons are still far from
eliminated from the arena In the ears of the ne(t to the oldest generation, which went to
school during wartime, the false slogans of patriotism and pacifism are still ringing Theinestima!le political e(perience of these strata who are now crushed !y the weight of the
war machine will reveal itself in full force when the war compels the toiling masses to
come out openly against their governments
ither socialism or sla"ery
-ur theses, War and the Fourth International 1)*B+2, state that9
the e(posure of the thoroughly reactionary, putrified, and ro!!er nature of modern
capitalism, the destruction of democracy, reformism and pacifism, the urgent and !urning
need of the proletariat to find a safe path away from imminent disaster put the
international revolution on the agenda with renewed force
Today it is no longer a &uestion, as was the case in the nineteenth century, of simply
assuring a more rapid and more healthy development of economic life9 today it is a
&uestion of saving man"ind from suicide It is precisely the acuteness of the historical
pro!lem that completely cuts the ground from under the feet of the opportunist parties
The party of the revolution, on the contrary, finds a wellspring of ine(hausti!le power in
the consciousness of the fact that it carries out ine(ora!le historical necessity
Aoreover, it is impermissi!le to put on the same plane the present revolutionary vanguard
with those isolated internationalists who raised their voices at the out!rea" of the last war
-nly the Russian party of the 0olshevi"s represented a revolutionary force at that time
0ut even the latter, in its overwhelming ma$ority, failed, e(cept for a small NmigrN group
around 8enin, to shed its national narrowness and to rise to the perspective of the world
revolution
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The Fourth International in num!ers and especially in preparation possesses infinite
advantages over its predecessors at the !eginning of the last war The Fourth International
is the direct heir of 0olshevism in its flower The Fourth International has a!sor!ed the
tradition of the -cto!er Revolution and has transmuted into theory the e(perience of the
richest historical period !etween the two imperialist wars It has faith in itself and its
future
War, let us once again recall, speeds up enormously the political development Those
great tas"s which only yesterday seemed long years, if not decades away, can loom up
directly !efore us in the ne(t two or three years, and even sooner Programs which are
!ased on ha!itual peacetime conditions will inevita!ly remain dangling in midair -n the
other hand, the Fourth International;s program of transitional demands, which seemed so
:unreal< to nearsighted politicians, will reveal its full significance in the process of the
mo!ili'ation of the masses for the con&uest of state power
%t the !eginning of the new revolution, the opportunists will once again strive, $ust as they
did a &uarter of a century ago, to im!ue the wor"ers with the idea that it is impossi!le to
!uild socialism on ruins and devastation %s if the proletariat is free to choose6 It is
necessary to !uild on those foundations which history provides The Russian Revolution
showed that wor"ers; rule can raise even a very !ac"ward country out of deepest poverty
%ll the greater are the miracles open to the proletariat of the advanced countries War
destroys structures, railways, factories, mines5 !ut it cannot destroy technology, science,
s"ills %lter creating its own state, correctly organi'ing its own ran"s, drawing into the
wor" &ualified forces !e&ueathed !y the !ourgeois regime, and organi'ing productionaccording to a unified plan, the proletariat will not only restore within a few years
everything destroyed !y war, !ut will also create conditions for the greatest !lossoming of
culture on the foundation of solidarity
,/)T T+ D+
This manifesto is adopted !y the Emergency Conference of the Fourth International at a
moment when, after overwhelming ?olland and 0elgium and crushing the initial
resistance of the %iled troops, the #erman armies are roiling li"e a tide of fire towards
Paris and the Channel In 0erlin they are already hastening to cele!rate victory In thecamp of the %llies there is alarm, verging on panic ?ere we have neither the possi!ility
nor the need to engage in strategical speculations concerning the ne(t stages of the war
?itler;s tremendous preponderance is in any case now placing its seal upon the political
physiognomy of the whole world
:0ut isn;t the wor"ing class o!liged in the present conditions to aid the democracies in
their struggle against #erman fascism6< That is how the &uestion is put !y !road petty
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!ourgeois circles for whom the proletariat always remains only an au(iliary tool of this or
that faction of the !ourgeoisie We re$ect this policy with indignation 7aturally there
e(ists a difference !etween the political regimes in !ourgeois society $ust as there is a
difference in comfort !etween various cars in a railway train 0ut when the whole train is
plunging into an a!yss, the distinction !etween decaying democracy and murderous
fascism disappears in the face of the collapse of the entire capitalist system
0y his victories and !estialities, ?itler provo"es naturally the sharp hatred of wor"ers the
world over 0ut !etween this legitimate hatred of wor"ers and the helping of his wea"er
!ut not less reactionary enemies is an un!ridgea!le gulf The victory of the imperialists of
#reat 0ritain and France would !e not less frightful for the ultimate fate of man"ind than
that of ?itler and Aussolini 0ourgeois democracy cannot !e saved 0y helping their
!ourgeoisie against foreign fascism, the wor"ers would only accelerate the victory of
fascism in their own country The tas" posed !y history is not to support one part of the
imperialist system against another !ut to ma"e an end of the system as a whole
,or'ers must learn military arts
The militari'ation of the masses is further intensified every day We re$ect the grotes&ue
pretension of doing away with this militari'ation through empty pacifist protests %ll the
great &uestions will !e decided in the ne(t epoch arms in hand The wor"ers should not
fear arms5 on the contrary they should learn to use them Revolutionists no more separate
themselves from the people during war than in peace % 0olshevi" strives to !ecome not
only the !est trade unionist !ut also the !est soldier
We do not wish to permit the !ourgeoisie to drive untrained or hall trained soldiers at the
last hour onto the !attlefield We demand that the state immediately provide the wor"ers
and the unemployed with the possi!ility of learning how to handle the rifle, the hand
grenade, the machine gun, the cannon, the airplane, the su!marine, and the other tools of
war Special military schools are necessary in close connec tion with the trade unions so
that the wor"ers can !ecome s"illed specialists of the military art, a!le to hold posts as
commanders
This is not our war0
%t the same time we do not forget for a moment that this war is not our war In
contradistinction to the Second and Third Internationals, the Fourth International !uilds its
policy not on the military fortunes of the capitalist states !ut on the transformation of the
imperialist war into a war of the wor"ers against the capitalists, on the overthrow of the
ruling classes of all countries, on the world socialist revolution The shifts in the !attle
lines at the front, the destruction of national capitals, the occupation of territories, the
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downfall of individual states, represent from this standpoint only tragic episodes on the
road to the reconstruction of modern society
Independently of the course of the war, we fulfill our !asic tas"9 we e(plain to the wor"ers
the irreconcila!ility !etween their interests and the interests of !loodthirsty capitalism5 we
mo!ili'e the toilers against imperialism5 we propagate the unity of the wor"ers in all
warring and neutral countries5 we call for the fraterni'ation of wor"ers and soldiers within
each country, and of soldiers with soldiers on the opposite side of the !attle front5 we
mo!ili'e the women and youth against the war5 we carry on constant, persistent, tireless
preparation for the revolution.in the factories, in the mills, in the villages, in the
!arrac"s, at the front, and in the fleet
This is our program Proletarians of the world, there is no other way out e(cept to unite
under the !anner of the Fourth International6
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