Hi Jerry,
I try to follow the OPE-L discussions even though I don't have the
time to participate. I'm always a bit behind because I rely on the
archives. I see that a discussion has opened up about Marta Harnecker's
Ideas for Struggle, and I thought I could add a points for information
of list-members. So, I hope you can pass this on.
Almost everything contained in those ideas [which were originally
sent out in Spanish as 'Bullets'] is a distillation of a concrete
analysis of the experience of Latin American Left parties from the
70s-90s. Much comes from her observation and involvement [eg., in
Allende's Chile] and her extended interviews with party people over the
years--- plus her studies of the new, emerging experiences such as
participatory budgeting in Brazil, the wide front in Uruguay, , the MST
in Brazil, the Causa R in the 90s in Venezula, etc. Ie., it was a very
strong critique of Leninist parties, communist parties, etc and a
search for new approaches that could link up and learn from social
movements rather than treat them as transmission belts or be parasitic
on them. The experiences are written up in detail in her 'Left on the
Threshold of the 21st Century' and then 'The Left after Seattle'. All
her books [80 or so-- including books on Lenin] can be found on-line at
her author's page at www.rebelion.org. (These include recent works on
communal councils, local planning, the emerging communes in
Venezuela.) Almost all, unfortunately, are only in Spanish and there
are very few of her books which are available in English. This includes
her classic, 'Elementary Concepts of Historical Materialism', which has
sold over 1.5 million copies since its publication 40 years ago (which
was the excuse for an international celebration of all her work this
last week in Caracas). However, many of the points in the 'Ideas' are
explored in 'Rebuilding the Left' (Zed Books), which I think came out
in 2007 and you can find the extensive references that academics want
there.
One additional point that shouldn't surprise anyone in the light of
the above: in Venezuela, her continuing focus has been upon the
importance of popular power and she has been
very critical of tendencies of political parties [ie., the PSUV] to
substitute for popular movements and structures; in turn, her enemies
[and, indeed, that of all of us at Centro Internacional Miranda] comes
from those most wed to the very practices criticised in her "Ideas for
Struggle'.
I hope this is useful background.
in solidarity,
michael
ps. yes, she was a student of Althusser [and was in the circle with
Balibar, et al], and Althusser did a preface for 'Elementary
Concepts...'. However, for many years, her work has stressed not the
structure but revolutionary subjects.
--
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
8888 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Director, Programme in 'Transformative Practice and Human Development'
Centro Internacional Miranda, P.H.
Residencias Anauco Suites, Parque Central, final Av. Bolivar
Caracas, Venezuela
fax: 0212 5768274/0212 5777231
www.centrointernacionalmiranda.gob.ve
mlebowit@sfu.ca