May Day, the day when we declare our determination to achieve the worldwide necessity of our epoch—communist revolution! The imperialist capitalist system, by its very existence, is the greatest crisis facing humanity—a system that has turned the lives of eight billion people on this planet into a horrific ordeal that endangers even the survival of Planet Earth itself.
Decades have passed since the first wave of communist revolutions in the first half of the 20th century—revolutions that, with historic victories in Russia (1917) and China (1949), laid the foundations of the first socialist societies. Being a newborn experience, the socialist systems in these countries were fairly rudimentary, and even though they were defeated in their early stages, nonetheless, they opened a new chapter in human history, brought hope to the oppressed and exploited people of the world, and proved that it is possible to overthrow the vile societies built on capitalist oppression and exploitation. These victories pushed imperialist powers and reactionary governments worldwide on the defensive and became a crucial support for various social movements across the globe.
When socialism was destroyed in those countries and they rejoined the capitalist camp, a terrifying era began. Capitalism, unchained, launched an unrestrained assault on every aspect of people's lives worldwide. Today, with accelerating environmental destruction and the threat of nuclear war, capitalism endangers the very existence of humanity and the planet Earth. By distorting the achievements of communist revolutions and burying their legacy, the bourgeoisie orchestrated the greatest ideological offensive in history—an offensive we have yet to defeat.
Today, we face two paths: either we rise in a new wave of communist revolutions, achieving breakthroughs in key parts of the world to usher in a truly emancipatory era for billions of oppressed and exploited people and for the planet Earth itself—or we surrender and brace for a future of unimaginable horrors even worse than today.
It is difficult to grasp this reality that humanity faces no more than these two paths. But this is a truth that must be firmly grasped—a truth that Bob Avakian has thoroughly analyzed and proven with scientific rigor, sounding the alarm. On May Day, we must embrace Bob Avakian’s verdict on the capitalist system, that:
"This system is utterly, criminally, and viciously insane. It is completely obsolete. That is, it is long past its expiration date—long past the time when it could do anything positive for humanity. On the contrary, it is now a direct obstacle to humanity’s emancipation from all the madness, horrors, and unnecessary suffering. The rise of fascism, in many countries as well as within the U.S. itself, is a glaring sign of this system’s utter obsolescence and its growing threat to all of humanity. We have now reached a point where it is more urgent than ever to rid ourselves of this vicious system and move beyond the current state of affairs—moving beyond where people are forced to struggle merely for individual survival, pitted against one another in competition and conflict, while the future of humanity itself is increasingly endangered. Yet the masses everywhere remain trapped in the chains of oppressive, outmoded relations.
“But now, it is possible to leave all this behind... Contradictions and conflicts, both within the U.S. and globally, will continue to cause major disruptions and upheavals. This will deal serious blows to the system’s stability, and amid the growing turbulence, a growing revolutionary force—conscious, committed, and determined, encompassing thousands—can be forged and tempered on a scientific basis. Such a force can develop the necessary means to confront all difficult challenges, laying the groundwork to lead millions more in an emancipating revolution—a revolution essential to ending this madness and bringing about a far better society."
(Excerpted and translated from Bob Avakian’s interview with Sunsara Taylor, 2025)
In every country, all those who are unwilling to surrender to the existing state of affairs must engage in organizing such a growing revolutionary force—committed and determined, tempered on a scientific foundation—capable of developing the necessary means to confront all the difficult challenges of this path and systematically organize such a revolution.
Regarding revolution in Iran, we revolutionary communists in the Communist Party of Iran (Marxist-Leninist-Maoist) have organized ourselves based on the new synthesis of communism (the New Communism) developed by Bob Avakian, and have consciously undertaken the responsibility of building just such a force on the path of this kind of revolution. Our party in its "Program and Manifesto for Communist Revolution in Iran" has demonstrated the necessity of overthrowing the Islamic Republic of Iran through a revolution and replacing it with a Socialist Republic of a new kind. Also, in the Proposed Draft "Constitution for the New Socialist Republic of Iran," we have concretely outlined the principles, character and workings of that future socialist social order. The vital importance of this document lies in the fact that without developing a clear and viable alternative, not only can we not demonstrate that the current system of oppression and exploitation is outmoded, but efforts to change it will remain fruitless.
The model of a "New Socialist Republic" developed by Bob Avakian enables revolution to make a thoroughgoing break with the outmoded capitalist system. But it also represents a crucial rupture from the model of the socialist system that was first established by the first wave of communist revolutions in the early 20th-century—first in Russia and later in a more advanced form in China. As Bob Avakian has demonstrated in The New Communism, without breaking from the weaknesses and mistakes of that earlier model, we will not be able to place future socialist societies on the path toward the establishment of communism worldwide and finally emancipate humanity from the shackles of class society.
We are committed to this path. However, it is clear that this complex and challenging path cannot be built without our small force growing into thousands of committed and conscious fighters. To build this emancipatory road, the people must become thoroughly familiar with its goal and its urgency; and they must come up with a general plan for achieving it. All over the world, the masses of people constantly rise up against their conditions of oppression and exploitation; they fight against various aspects of the existing system—yet spontaneously, they do not and cannot know what revolution really is, why it is possible, or how it can be and must be achieved. Therefore, some fall into despair, while others follow the schemes and reactionary forces of the status quo. Mass ignorance is a danger that must never be underestimated and must be addressed. Workers, teachers, students—especially women and youth—must acquire revolutionary consciousness and engage in spreading it. They themselves must understand and explain to others what is happening in the world, why things are the way they are, and what the real solution is.
The capitalist system dominating the world routinely inflicts suffering, terror, and environmental destruction upon people. But today, this system is mired in a global crisis, from which a fascism has emerged that will intensify and unmask all the horrors of the system.
Iran has become one of the epicenters of this global crisis. This crisis manifests itself in the imperialist rivalry (between the U.S., Russia, and China) for dominance over Iran. All negotiations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the U.S. are, in reality, part of these big power rivalries. The Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) is trapped in the whirlpool of these global imperialist rivalries and has entrapped the people of Iran in it too. This situation demonstrates that the IRI is completely dependent on the global capitalist system. We must break out of this madness and chart a decisively different path for ourselves and the whole of humanity.
The IRI not only lacks legitimacy among the people of Iran but has also lost the loyalty amongst much of its social base. The negotiation process with the U.S. has severely undermined its ideological foundations, fueling despair and widening rifts among its factions. The political situation in society is rapidly changing. In these conditions, we must spread awareness among the people that any change imposed by imperialist powers—whether through rivalry or collusion among them—will leave the fundamental system of oppression and exploitation in Iran untouched, even if it leads to regime change.
If we wage the struggle against the Islamic Republic based on a flawed analysis of the root causes of the problem and align with the U.S. imperialists and its proxies seeking liberation from the IRI and its imperialist backers (Russia and China)—the result will only be an even more horrifying situation. There is only one path that serves the interests of the majority of the people in Iran and that is the path of overthrowing the Islamic Republic of Iran and replacing it with a socialist system (based on the draft "Constitution of the New Socialist Republic of Iran").
Today the global capitalist system is gripped with one of the most severe crises in its history. This crisis presents us with an exceptional opportunity—through conscious, organized and strategic effort—to actively build the road of revolution and hasten its forward momentum in order to launch it towards a final victory.
Wherever revolutionary communist forces based on the New Communism do not yet exist, we must work collectively to help build them; where they already exist (as in Iran and in the United States), we must urgently strengthen them by any means possible. Even a small but organized group of revolutionary communists, if armed with the correct political and ideological line, can transform the political equation through tireless efforts. Such a force can unite the scattered struggles of the people around the axis of revolution and leverage every social development to hasten revolutionary conditions and ultimately achieve victorious revolution.
On this May Day 2025, let us commit ourselves to not allowing the imperialist capitalist system to overcome its crises, prolong its existence, and continue its crimes against humanity.
