April 4th Virtual Study Session

Join RSP for a virtual study session of “Malcolm X Didn’t Dish Out Free Bean Pies.” We will hop on Signal to read in turn and discuss the article together. See the last session’s notes to catch up.

• Introductions
  • Head count: 5
• Reading
  • Started at paragraph “Besides pitching things to the intermediate,”
  • Ended at heading “Malcolm X didn’t dish out free bean pies”

• Notes, comments, etc.
  • Calling out businesses in the context of the BPP Program
    • Cancel Culture
    • Shaming of businesses
    • The Popcorn Shoppe closed due to public cancellation due to thier loud anti-trans rhetoric on Facebook and doubling down
  • BPP authoritarian in a way – The People supported the BPP and if you don’t support us, the people don’t support you (businesses)
    • BPP more authoritative
  • During pandemic, churches whined more about not having congregants come to church rather than aiding people
    • Places that are supposed to help people ie churches, get clouded by capitalist goals
  • The working class fighting back
    • Communism in action appropriating assets of capital for the public need – BPP comandeering the free tuberculosis mobile testing to Harlem
    • Exerting authority exerting power, is an essential part of class struggle. Especially the working class fighting back.
  • There’s no such thing as a non authroitarian revolution – not removing rights of impoverished people
    • ‘Mistakes’ in the BPP - Mistakes could be things in hindsight. Criticism and self criticism could be better terms.
    • Mao spent latter part of his life criticising things he did.
    • Scientific socialism as a science, mistakes can be made in the process or better ways of doing something.
  • Science is a lot of experimentation to understand things and solve certain problems
    • Experiments that kill and hurt people, probably not the outcome wanted
  • Putting oneself in the position to be arrested as a way of protest
  • Not having enough resources within the cadre can make it difficult to do survival and political work
  • Dying for the masses - some see as culty
    • Che Guevara - I have seen the graves of those who refused to fight
  • Third world liberation movements inspired American and European sects
  • Alienation inspiring people to Marxism today
  • Persecution is the fad of the day (amongst those who are not marginalized)
    • Noble Savage Trope is often employed with Persecuted People
    • Persecution complex, alienation, checked out of things, dissociation, when not able to deal with the issues of the day
    • Inconvenience confused for persecution
  • White affluent individuals not understanding the differences in persecution of marginalizations (bi erasure vs racism)
  • More socially acceptable to split a movement through sectarianism (vs outright destruction) – Easier to psyop liberals
    • Socialists/Communists who are parents have difficulty getting involved because of childcare and time
  • Capitalism isolating each other from community
    • Collectivising our labor
    • Agitate the local government for FREE CHILDCARE!!