By itself, revolutionary consciousness cannot create wealth and material well-being for most of the population except in the mind of hyper voluntarists such as Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong and Ernesto (Che) Guevara.
Author: Samuel Farber
SAMUEL FARBER was born and raised in Cuba. He is a long-time socialist and the author of numerous works on Cuba including Cuba Since the Revolution of 1959: A Critical Assessment (Haymarket Books, 2011).
The Cuban Government’s Persecution of a Left-wing Dissident
Alina Bárbara López Hernández
In the closing address to the tenth congress of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR -the street level vigilance committees) that took place on September 28 of this year, the president of the Cuban . . .
The Future of Cuba—Part One
What can we learn from the experience of other countries that can help us think about possible futures for Cuba?
Revisiting Their Morals and Ours
A critical examination of Trotsky’s evolving views on revolutionary morality and democracy in revolutionary movements.
“Cancel Culture” and Its Perils
There is no question that “cancel culture” is a legitimate tool of a vibrant democratic culture, especially as it allows the powerless to redress the abuses and the offensive behavior directed at them by powerful public figures.
The Transformations of the Cuban Revolution
From Below or From Above?
Although the Cuban Revolution of 1959 had enormous popular support, especially in its early years, that support did not express itself in any autonomous initiative and control from below.
For a Cuba with Democracy and Solidarity
Sam Farber provides a critical perspective on the economic policies of the Cuban government and of some of its critics, and offers an alternative to both.
Reply to Eric Blanc’s “Can Leninists Explain the Russian Revolution?: A Reply to Sam Farber”
If the main strategic task for the American Left is to change the existing relation of forces in society, Congress cannot be the main arena of struggle.
Was there a Revolutionary Social Democracy?
Samuel Farber reviews Eric Blanc’s Revolutionary Social Democracy. Working Class Politics Across the Russian Empire (1882-1917), a book that is likely to become the focus of important debate on the left.
Socialists and Free Speech Revisited
How should socialists who support democratic rights approach current controversies regarding the practical application of the right to free speech? This review essay explores this question discussing David Renton’s recent book.
Lies and Professional Politicians
Professional politicians are a relatively recent historical phenomenon and their lies are to a great extent a response to social structural imperatives that did not exist in precapitalist societies.
One Hundred Years of the Russian NEP – Lessons for Cuba
The lesson of the Russian NEP is that economic liberalization does not necessarily signify the democratization of a country, and that it may be accompanied by the elimination of democracy.
U.S. Politics and the Financing of Political Groups in Cuba
Sam Farber contributes to the ongoing debates among Cuban critics, dissidents and oppositionists about U.S. financing of Cuban political groups.
Cuba’s New Economic Turn
A series of recent developments in Cuba have struck the already faltering economy of the island leading the government to adopt a series of economic policies that point towards a greater opening to capital while maintaining the political controls of the one-party state.
Cuban Doctors Abroad – Appearances and Realities
It is important to bring out lesser known aspects of the Cuban doctors abroad program that expose the Cuban state’s undemocratic character and the impact that this has on the Cuban people.
A Zionist State at Any Cost
The foundation of Israel is tied up with David Ben-Gurion, its first prime minister. Through examining his life, we see how Israel’s creation was from its beginnings doomed to create an apartheid-like state maintained by an oppressor nation.
Fidel Castro: His Political Origin, Rule, and Legacy
Cuba has not been at the center of world attention for a long time, particularly after the collapse of the Soviet bloc considerably diminished the island’s importance to US imperialism. For the international left, political developments in other Latin American . . .
One Hundred Years of the Russian Revolution: A Retrospective View
At a distance of one hundred years, the Russian Revolution, which truly shook the world, deserves to be remembered once more in terms of its emancipatory significance and its downfall and betrayal. This revolution would not have happened had it not been for the crucial role played by the Bolshevik party. It is true that the profound crisis affecting the Russian society, worsened by the country’s disastrous participation in World War I, could have sooner or later led to a massive upheaval. But it is questionable that a socialist revolution would have taken place without the organizational skills of the Bolshevik party and the political, strategic, and tactical genius of V.I. Lenin.
On the Death of Fidel Castro – View of a Socialist Cuban Living Abroad
A refreshing, unconventional view, with none of the usual leftist idolizing of Castro. We talk about Fidel's popularity in Cuba among the older generation, his success in standing for Cubans against U.S. designs, the dictatorial power he seized and some of the huge moves he made in Africa, some good, some awful (Eritrea, Syria, Ortega's Nicaragua today).
