Why do communists see the fight against sexism as such an important question?

April 30, 2016

Race, gender, and class analysis go hand in hand. They are not separate and apart. You cannot deal fully with one without acknowledging the others. The fact is that there can be no true economic justice without an acknowledgment that much of this system, the capitalist system, is built upon racial and gender oppression.

Intersectionality (the idea that racism, sexism, classism, etc. are interconnected and cannot be examined separately from one another), is a concept that many on the left should get familiar with. It can be seen as perhaps a more modernized term, or at the least a term connected to, what Karl Marx described as super exploitation. Super-exploitation describes deals with a layer of the working class (those that have to work for a living) creating additional profits by being paid less under capitalism based on their race, gender, and/or sexuality.

In order to truly combat the destructive nature of capitalism, there must be a constant battle to combat sexism (along with racism). Not only because at least half of the working class identify as women, but also because gender oppression is detrimental to all working people, and causes divisions among us. It hinders our ability to come together to focus on the true exploiter, which is capitalist society.

Chauncey Robinson

Women’s Rights Commission and National Board member, CPUSA



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