54th Anniversary of the Party Press
August 26, 1970

Indispensable Voice of the Workers,
Women and Youth

August 26 marks the 54th anniversary of the press of the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist). This press is a powerful weapon in the hands of the working class to organize itself in defence of its own interests. This year on September 1, we also mark the decision taken in 1985 that no force could continue to act in the old way and the subsequent establishment of the mass Party press and mass non-Party press, two kinds of journalism indispensable for the building of the working class movement for its own emancipation.

We are proud to celebrate the 39th anniversary of this decision with several important achievements in the strengthening of that press in the conditions of a turning point when old forms are no longer functioning and new mass democratic forms are yet to be brought into being on a large scale. In these conditions, the role of the mass Party press and non-Party press to cut through state-organized disinformation and defeat its aim of dividing the people and disorganizing the Party and the class merits first-rate attention so as to strengthen it in the coming period.

Based on a profound appreciation of the Party’s experience, organizations of the Party are professionalizing the journalism work of the Party and the technical base of the Party press. Emphasis is on educating workers and youth who have joined the work to strengthen the press by discussing together the significance of analyzing unfolding events so as to effectively address the concerns of the people. Attention is also being paid to increasing subscriptions to the Party press and to involve activists in increasing ways to distribute the Party’s views. The Central Committee has organized programs to involve those who have joined this work to draw warranted conclusions about it which guide their work in the coming period.

The work to strengthen the mass Party press and non-Party press at this time and engage people in discussions on the significance of unfolding events are key components of the work CPC(M-L) has undertaken during this period of retreat of revolution in which anarchy has been raised to authority. While the vicious neo-liberal anti-social offensive has introduced anarchy and violence everywhere, slowly but steadily contingents of workers and youth are finding their own place by speaking out against what is unacceptable and laying the claims which they must to open society’s path to progress in a manner that favours the people.

The ruling class is using its positions of power and privilege to escalate the anti-social offensive, going to great lengths to present unacceptable anti-people, anti-worker and anti-national positions as crucial to defend democracy. This includes attacks on workers who uphold the dignity of labour, blaming them for wrecking supply chains and threatening national prosperity and security; as well as support for Israeli genocide in Palestine and neo-Nazi rule in Ukraine. Meanwhile it is becoming increasingly corrupt and paying the rich in the name of greening the economy and other high ideals.

In the past year, the broad opposition to such claims of the rich and the cartel parties which serve them in the Parliament has increased. People are fed up with disinformation campaigns which lower the level of political discourse to personal attacks, lies, slanders and defamation. The only response of the ruling class is to try to silence the voice of the people as their democracy sinks into ever greater disrepute, disgrace, corruption, civil war scenarios at home and imperialist wars abroad.

This makes the independent working class press more important than ever. The working class is positioning itself to engage the rulers in a trial of strength by taking the path of empowering itself. It has the Party and the Party press at its disposal.

The rulers control all forms of media at this time, both print and audio-visual as well as artificial intelligence. Besides being highly monopolized, this state of affairs is retrogressive, harmful to one and all. The remedy is for the working people and youth to get together to inform themselves in a manner that enables them to establish their own vantage point from where they can orient themselves and provide themselves with solutions which serve their interests. As the Party says, The world as is has no takers. The world as it should be has billions of makers. It is the people who make history by setting their own aims and working out the tactics and forms of organization to achieve them and the press is crucial to unifying and strengthening their ranks.

The Party press shows that the working class has its own voice under these conditions and this voice must be expanded in ever more creative ways. The bourgeoisie does not want the working class to have its own voice and it does not want its vanguard, CPC(M-L), to exist as the organized expression of the working class aim to constitute the nation and vest sovereignty in the people. In this respect, CPC(M-L) has overcome many obstacles the bourgeoisie has put in its path in the past, and continues to do so today. It does not permit the voice of the working class to be silenced. It does not permit its reality to be distorted because the rulers only present the backward narrow aims of private interests for whom the workers are disposable. The single-minded pursuit of those whose life and careers are dedicated to defending their positions of power and privilege is to make the workers and youth incapable of organizing themselves to play a decisive role to open society’s path to progress.

CPC(M-L) takes this opportunity to congratulate all those who have contributed to the strengthening and consolidation of the Party press and non-Party press. Let us use this anniversary to implement measures which provide the press with support and expand it at this time when it is crucial to further develop the independent politics of the working class. Let the working class use its voice and organizing power to mobilize the youth and broad masses of the people to answer the historic call for democratic renewal.