If you think the campaign between Al Gore and George Bush will be heated this fall, imagine a debate between the capitalists -- and the communists.
American Communist Party Chair Sam Webb discussed his party's ideology and urged students to "consider joining this movement for economic and social justice" Tuesday night at the Tabard coeducational fraternity.
Over 100 students filled the room as Webb -- father of Julia Webb '00 -- sat by the fireplace and expressed his ideas "about possibilities in our country for positive political change," and what he sees as the beginnings of a new social movement in the country.Webb listed the various reasons he feels people are turning against capitalism -- including environmental concerns, religious convictions, or anti-consumerism -- but said all of them share "a sense of moral outrage."
In recent years there has been a growing inequality between the poor -- the working class -- and the capitalists -- the controlling classes, he said.
"It's outrageous to compare what a worker on the shop floor makes compared with a capitalist," Webb said.
Webb blamed the ravaging of regions of the world on capitalistic policies and global institutions that create poverty and other social ills.
Although Webb said charity is one way to help others, communism is a more effective tool for social change.
"If people really want to make a change, you need to change the structures of power," he said.
Webb touted the Communist Party's history of helping with the day-to-day concerns of working people, and said it has always been concerned with "multiracial, multinational, multi-cultural," societies, placing great emphasis on unity and struggles for equality.
The objective of the party is to fight for first socialism, a superior system to capitalism, and then communism, Webb said.
Under a socialist system, there is public ownership of the country within a democratic political structure. "Working people are involved in the running of the country," whereas "in this country, we have a ruling class," Webb said.
Communism, Webb explained, is a more advanced form of socialism, in which class divisions and distinctions between manual and mental labor fade away.
However, if the United States were to become a communist nation, it would be a matter of a slow, gradual change in the power structure, Webb said.
"It's not about adopting a different model," Webb explained. He said the political system still "must reflect the history and habits and traditions of the country."
To be successful, an American communist government "must have a democratic essence and come about because of embracing by millions of Americans," Webb said.
When millions arrive at the conclusion that capitalism doesn't provide equality soon enough, then they can work together to change the power structure, he said.
"Maybe sometime in the perceivable future people will arrive at that conclusion," Webb said, but until then he said the party will focus on helping with the day-to-day struggles of the working-class.
