[DEBATE] : Re: 'Internationalism' - Historical View, No Bibliog.

[eharvey]

Richard, from the shores of studentist Oxford I ask you to keep it up.
You surely looking in the right direction with so many things, I think.....
particularly your sensitivity towards and consciousness of the issues the
left of colour know of historically. Much more to add to what you say but
that for another time... The Haitian revolution- the first black slave
revolution - was ignored by white Marxist scholars and revolutionaries for
many years, including Marx and others.. but they sang the praises of the
French one.....In fact it took a black revolutionary leader to place the
Haitian revolution in its proper perspective in the annals of revolutionary
history. The author of 'Black Jacobins', CLR James, did so. And don't forget
the Haitian revolution (1791) broke out before the French Revolution and 
in fact many believe partly influenced it. As I said a few weeks back in the
M & G: "The hard truths must be spoken to those who wish to deny their
ventilation". It is not only the ruling class, the ANC and so on who 
are desperate to deny the hard truths. No, many among the left want 
other truths also not to be spoken.....They also sometimes do what the
ruling class and ANC does: marginalise, ostracise and victimise - overtly or
subtly - those who speak certain truths and are seen to threaten their
hegemony in whatever form. But with people like you, Richard, I am not about
to unsubscribe....    

Ebrahim Harvey

-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Pithouse [mailto:Pithouser at ukzn.ac.za] 
Sent: Thursday, June 08, 2006 4:46 AM
To: debate at lists.kabissa.org
Subject: [DEBATE] : Re: 'Internationalism' - Historical View, No Bibliog.

there is such a thing as internationalism but there is also far too much
romance about it. historically very few major left movements in europe and
north america have  made meaningful breaks with colonial and neo-colonial
assumptions. of course once a mode of colonial or neo-colonial mode of
domination is outdated (like apartheid by the 80s, or slavery at one point)
it is easy for the northern left to rail against it but the fundamental
assumptions of european domination are seldom challenged. the historical
record in this regard is pretty bleak beginning, perhaps, with the position
taken on the haitain revolution by the french revolution. of course there
are counter-examples, elements in the british labour party supporting
bambatha etc but they are rare. very rare. when so many american leftists
went into third worldist sects in and after the 60s there was no real break
with colonial thinking. in fact stereotypes were usually inverted rather
abandoned and solidarity was often with leaders rather than people in other
countries. in some ways this continues with the way in which some talk about
marcos or chavez.