On the Political Action of the Working Class. Plan for speech

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Author(s) Frederick Engels
Written 20 September 1871


Written on September 20 or 21, 1871
First published, in French, in the magazine Cahiers du Bolchévisme. Revue bimensuelle publiée par le C.C. du Parti communiste français (S.F.I.C.), No. 20, 1934
Printed according to the manuscript
Published in English for the first time in Marx-Engels Collected Works, Volume 22
Collection(s): Cahiers du Bolchévisme
Keywords : Election, First International, Speech
🔍 See also : On the Political Action of the Working Class (September 21, 1871).

The question of the political action of the working class, which was the main issue on the agenda of the London Conference and was comprehensively analysed in the speeches by Marx and Engels, was discussed at the sixth and seventh sessions of the Conference on September 20 and 21. The Bakuninists Bastelica and Robin, as well as Lorenzo, the representative of the Spanish sections, tried to have this question taken off the agenda declaring that the Conference was incompetent to discuss it. By a majority vote, the Conference instructed the General Council to prepare the final text of the resolution taking all motions into account (see this volume, pp. 426-27). In addition to this plan of Engels’ speech on the political action of the working class, written in German, there is his record of this speech in French, which was appended to the minutes of the Conference on September 21 (pp. 417-18). This speech has also survived as a brief record in the minutes.

[PLAN FOR SPEECH AT THE CONFERENCE SESSION ON SEPTEMBER 21, 1871]

1) Lorenzo matter of principle—this decided.

2) Abstention impossible. Newspaper politics is also politics; all abstaining papers attack the government. The only question is how and how far to get involved in politics. This depends on circumstances and cannot be prescribed.

2) Abstention nonsensical; one should abstain because bad people might be elected—so no contributions because the treasurer might abscond. So, no newspaper because the editor is just as likely to sell himself as the deputy.

3) Political freedoms—particularly of association, assembly and press—our means of agitation; is it unimportant whether these are taken from us or not? And should we not resist if they are attacked?

4) Abstention preached, because otherwise one is recognising the status quo. The status quo exists and se fiche pasmal[1] about our recognition. If we use the means offered us by the status quo to protest against the status quo, is that . recognition?[2]

3) Abstention impossible.[3] The Workers’ Party as a political party exists and wants to act politically, and to preach abstention to it is to ruin the International. The mere contemplation of conditions, of political suppression for social ends forces the workers into politics; the preachers of abstention are driving them into the arms of bourgeois politicians. After the Commune, which put the political action of the workers on the agenda, abstention impossible.

4) We want the abolition of classes. Sole means is political power in the hands of the proletariat—and we should not go into politics? All abstentionists call themselves revolutionaries. Revolution is the highest act of politics, and anyone who wants it must also want the means of preparing revolution, educate the workers for it, and see to it that he is not cheated again by Favre and Pyat the following day. It is purely a question of which politics—the exclusively proletarian, not as the tail of the bourgeoisie.

  1. ↑ It could care no less.— Ed
  2. ↑ Clauses 2,3,4, marked by Engels with a brace in the manuscript, were written as an insertion into the text on the right side.— Ed.
  3. ↑ Then follows the phrase "after the Commune" crossed out by Engels.— Ed.
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