Bankrupt Ideology

On October 9th, the Marxist Collective at Syracuse University sent the following letter to The Syracuse New Times in response to the New Times’s headlining, in its “Citizen’s Alert” column, of the MCSU’s cancellation of a planned course in revolutionary marxism and a planned video screening and discussion series on sexual freedom and sexual marginality as “bankrupt ideology.” The New Times has refused to print this letter.

While it may seem cute to headline a notice about our cancellation of a planned course of introduction to marxist philosophy and a planned video screening and discussion series on sexual marginality and sexual freedom as “bankrupt ideology” (“Citizens’ Alert,” October 7-14), it is also a disappointingly anachronistic instance of reactionary “red-baiting.” The editors of the “Citizens’ Alert” section of The Syracuse New Times may not know that many marxists — and many marxisms — have long been in the forefront — and have even long led — the struggle against stalinist regimes in the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, China, and elsewhere, but many intelligent people do know this. There is no reason to suspect that a marxist organization is necessarily organized either to justify or to hearken back to stalinism, unless you want to associate yourself with the same truly bankrupt ideology as that — still ! — advocated by the John Birch Society and other rabid far right organizations that have long perceived this country as under fierce attack from a sinister “red menace” directed and financed by the Kremlin. Most western marxists — including revolutionary marxists such as ourselves — have no regrets about the death of stalinism and in fact have as much to do and say about what is going on today in capitalist society — always the principal object of these marxists’ concern — as ever before. The Marxist Collective at Syracuse University cancelled its planned public events for this fall because the time and energy required to carry out these activities, in addition to all of our other many activities, was more than we could manage at this time. It has nothing to do with any doubts about or problems with marxism as we understand and practice marxism. It also has nothing to do with any sudden shortage of monetary resources. We in the MCSU, most of us all relatively impoverished graduate students, have always spent our own money and also invested tremendous amounts of time and energy in carrying out our work as revolutionary marxists in addition to working both full-time as students and full-time to make a living to support ourselves. All of the public events we have conducted over the past seven years — courses, video screening and discussion series, study groups, seminars, colloquia, workshops, and teach-ins — have responded to demonstrated community interest (and need). Making fun of the very difficult decision to cancel two planned public activities — activities which the Marxist Collective at Syracuse University had planned and prepared to offer in response to this demonstrated community interest and need — is insulting to and trivializing of not just the work we strive to do — to fight to advance the causes of human emancipation, social justice, collective equality, and ecological harmony — but also insulting to and trivializing of all the men and women in the Greater Syracuse area who have worked together with us over the years to advance these ends, and who have sought to study and learn with us about the difference a marxist perspective can bring to bear in making sense of and making changes in the problems of contemporary capitalist society.

Jennifer Cotter, Rob Cymbala, Bronwen Heap, Adam Katz, Alex Lindgren, Bob Nowlan, and Mark Wood

The Marxist Collective at Syracuse University

Footnote: Although the New Times has refused to print this letter, it has started listing the discussion series again in “Citizen’s Alert”. Since that series is still cancelled, we are unsure of their reasons.