Joel A Lewis Youth Against Fascism.pdf

THE LENINIST GENERATION
such relations were no longer desirable during this new era of revolutionary advances.
The YCI condemned all socialist youth, stating that any sort of unity or amalgamation
"between the YCLs and the Young Socialist organizations is impossible" since socialist
youth were affiliated to "essentially bourgeois parties." 101
Communist youth were receptive to the Class Against Class line due to their long traditions
of anti-militarism. After the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, the
Comintern asserted the only way for capitalist nations to pull themselves out of the
"present economic crisis" was "in making war." 102 In his report to the Twelfth Plenum of
the Executive Committee of the Comintern, Susumu Okano insisted:
A new imperialist war, a new intervention against the USSR, will bring to the workers
and toilers of the whole world such suffering, deprivation and bloody sacrifice, as were
not experienced even during the first world imperialist slaughter… the main task of all
Communist Parties is… for the defence of the toilers of capitalist countries against a new
imperialist war. 103
In articles leading up to the Fifth World Congress of the YCI, young communists openly
stated that "the biggest problem that faces the Congress is the war danger" and "how to
carry on anti-militarist work." 104 Other articles emphasised the need for revolutionary
youth actions against war, asserting that during this era marked by "the scramble of the
imperialist powers for new markets" that war was quickly becoming "the only forcible
solution to the crisis" for capitalism. 105
Young communists denounced "capitalist initiatives" for peace like the Geneva Disarmament
Commission of 1930. Despite the peace proposals made by Ambassador
Litvinoff for the Soviet Union, the YCI stated the Commission was destined to failure for
not addressing the root causes of war in capitalism and imperialism. Countering this
"fake" meeting for peace, young communists stated, "For a real struggle for peace it is
necessary first to overthrow the class that breeds war, that needs war, the boss class and
throw overboard their whole system." 106 YCI educational materials insisted youth could
not "compel the imperialists to give up war," but that anti-militarist activities should be
designed to "push these masses into the struggle against imperialism, since only the
destruction of imperialism will remove the causes of war and war itself." 107 Other YCI
articles blatantly stated "when war is declared… [encourage other soldiers to] turn their
guns against their only enemy, the boss class." 108 Class Against Class did not initiate new
directions for youth, but simply encouraged a greater left militancy in the tone of youth
rhetoric and activities. The YCI posited, "Today the youth must be prepared and must be
steeled in order to disrupt imperialist war and destroy capitalism." 109
The Leninist Generation consistently opposed "imperialist wars," but failed to target
fascism's unique role in facilitating war, blurring the youth's understanding of other
movements with their "social-fascist" critique. The Comintern enabled communist youth
to play a distinct role within the International, but their external oppositional culture often
proved counter-productive in advancing the youth struggle against war, especially during
the Third Period. In many ways, the "science" of Marxism-Leninism was transformed
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