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Our
Political Programme
 Abolish Capitalism: To build a society organized to meet human needs, capitalism
and its patriarchal institutions must be abolished. Poverty, exploitation, sexism,
oppression, and war are rooted in international capitalism (imperialism).
Imperialism has led to barbaric wars, nuclear weapons which can annihilate
the human race and ecological destruction which threatens our future
survival.
For Socialist Democracy: Socialism should extend democracy and self-organization at
all levels. Socialist society is based on collective ownership and
democratic control of the means of production.
Our vision of socialism has nothing in common with Stalinism, a repressive
authoritarian system in which the privileged bureaucrats stole power from
the workers. We believe in a multi-party socialist state which guarantees
and respects democratic rights.
The capitalist class will employ its police, courts, bureaucracy and army
to attack democratic and egalitarian change. Therefore, the capitalist
state must be broken up and replaced by democratically elected institutions
of the working class and its allies.
For International Socialism: Socialism can be created only by ending world scarcity. We
must organize labour and resources and develop production on a world scale,
not within a single country.
But the working class can and must take power within existing state
boundaries. It must extend the revolution by offering political and
material solidarity with workers' struggles abroad. In the advanced
capitalist countries, we must expropriate and disarm our own imperialist
ruling class to establish workers’ power.
We welcome popular, democratic uprisings in Eastern Europe, Russia and Asia
against the remnants of Stalinist bureaucracy and against the emerging
mafia capitalist ruling class. We oppose the restoration of capitalism, and
call for a workers' revolution leading to the re-establishment of social
ownership and the creation of a genuine socialist democracy.
For Women's Liberation: Our vision of
socialism is not rigid. We learn from the lessons of contemporary social
movements, most especially the women’s movement.
Without the participation and leadership of women, there will be no
socialist revolution. Without women's liberation, there will be no
socialism.
We support and participate in the autonomous women's movement, and stand
for socialist and feminist action.
Against Canadian Imperialism & For
Self-Determination for the Quebecois and Aboriginal Peoples: We believe that Canada is an imperialist state, part of the
G-8 club which exploits the people of underdeveloped nations. The Canadian
state was founded on the national oppression of native peoples and the
Quebecois. The Quebecois have been subject to 200 years of economic,
social, cultural and linguistic oppression, and denied the right to
national self-determination, that is, the right to form their own
independent state. We defend the right of the Quebecois and aboriginal
peoples to self-determination. Within Quebec we support independence but we
oppose the bourgeois nationalist Parti Quebecois and Bloc Quebecois. We
support the formation of an independent mass workers' party.
We oppose Canadian imperialism. Our loyalty is not with our ruling class
but with the workers and oppressed peoples around the world.
For Independent Working Class
Political Action, For a Workers' Government: As socialists, we urge our class brothers and sisters to
break with the capitalist parties, to fight for their own independent class
interests and elect governments of workers' parties.
In English Canada, the New Democratic Party is the only mass party based on
organized labour. It is a liberal reformist party committed to a slightly
more humane version of capitalism. We fully support struggles to win
reforms but believe the NDP leadership has a pro-capitalist program that
goes against the genuine interests of the party’s working class membership
and its voters.
A vote for the NDP is a class vote against the bosses' parties. Likewise,
we advocate union affiliation to the NDP, to strengthen the labour
character of the party. Inside the NDP we struggle for socialist policies,
for internal party democracy, and for a Workers' Agenda including a
commitment to mass extra-parliamentary action, which is critical to the
development of a socialist alternative to capitalist rule in this country.
Build Movements, Build a Revolutionary
Party: We support
and participate in the day to day struggles of trade unions, the autonomous
women's movement, the lesbian and gay movements, international solidarity
groups, anti-racist groups, student and community organizations,
environmental groups and all those acting for progressive social change.
Building movements is necessary but it is not enough. These struggles will
not lead to the overthrow of capitalism by themselves. The victory of the
socialist revolution requires a conscious leadership based on a revolutionary
program.
We strive to build a revolutionary mass working class party, one based on
the political gains of 100 years of workers' struggles.
Socialist Action: Socialist Action is a cross-country revolutionary socialist
organization in political solidarity with the Fourth International. Active
in over 50 countries, the worldwide Trotskyist movement has for over 60
years been in the forefront of workers' struggles against capitalist
oppression and Stalinism.
Socialist Action is based on the democratic principle of full membership
debate on programme and strategy, followed by real unity in action.
We are fighting for a world fit for human beings, and for a mass
revolutionary party to lead the struggle to victory. If you agree with what
we stand for, we invite you to join us!
Issues From 1996-2003:
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