RW ONLINE:Bob Avakian on Imperialist Hypocrisy and the Taliban Oppression of Women\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nImperialist Hypocrisy and
the Taliban Oppression of Women\r\n<\/p>
By Bob Avakian, Chairman of the RCP,USA<\/p>\r\n
Revolutionary Worker #1124, October 28, 2001<\/i>, posted at rwor.org \r\n<\/p>
Has anyone noticed the glaring hypocrisy in the fact that many of the same \r\nassholes--all the way up to the highest levels of government--who have tried to \r\nprevent women from having the right to abortion and reproductive freedom in \r\ngeneral are all of a sudden pretending to be outraged by the oppression of women \r\nunder the Taliban?! <\/p>\r\n
What is done by the Taliban, in the name of Islam, is in essence no different \r\nfrom what would follow from the literal interpretation of the Bible that many \r\n\"Born Again Christians\" like Falwell, Robertson, and a number of Bush's closest \r\nadvisers (not to say Bush himself) insist upon. If you don't believe it, read \r\nthe Bible!<\/p>\r\n
Now the apologists for U.S. (and \"Western\") imperialism are opportunizing on \r\noutrage about the egregious forms of the oppression of women carried out by the \r\nTaliban (and more generally the overt forms of inequality and oppression that \r\nwomen are subjected to in \"the Muslim world\") as part of the justification for \r\ntheir \"campaign\" and even to generally assert (whether noisily and crudely or \r\nmore \"softly\" and subtly) the \"superiority of Western civilization\" over Islamic \r\ncivilization. Given all this, it is important not only in general but \r\nspecifically in relation to this whole crisis and war to continue to do \r\nhard-hitting exposure of the oppression of women, in its many different forms, \r\nin the U.S. and other \"advanced\" and \"modern\" imperialist countries. <\/p>\r\n
In this connection, there is relevance and importance to the point in \r\nPreaching from a Pulpit of Bones<\/i> that there is a fundamental unity \r\nbetween the \"traditional\" (and \"fundamentalist\") forms of the oppression of \r\nwomen touted by the Bible-toting Christian Fascists, on the one hand, and on the \r\nother hand, \"end of the empire\" forms of the oppression of women--the widespread \r\npornography and the widely promoted commodification of women's bodies and \r\nsexuality, the enslavement of millions of women in the \"sex trade\" that \r\n\"services\" men mainly in the imperialist countries, the fact that at least 1 out \r\nof every 4 women in the U.S. will be subjected to some form of sexual assault, \r\nand on and on. <\/p>\r\n
These different forms and manifestations of degrading and subjugating women \r\nare \"mirror opposites\" and are all part of the overall oppression of women in \r\nthe imperialist-dominated world today. <\/p>\r\n<\/i>
Preaching was speaking particularly about the imperialist countries \r\nthemselves, and more particularly the U.S.--and focusing on the Christian \r\nFascist program vis-a-vis that of more \"laissez faire\" bourgeois democracy and \r\ndecadence. But this basic point also applies to the relationship between the \r\n\"traditional\" and \"fundamentalist\" forms of oppression of women in much of the \r\n\"Middle East\" and other \"Islamic countries\" (and much of the Third World more \r\nbroadly--including countries in which Christianity<\/u> is the dominant \r\nreligion--where the bourgeois-democratic transformation of society has not been \r\ncarried out, or carried out only partially and incompletely) vis-a-vis the \r\nbourgeois-democratic imperialist countries themselves. In short, while it may \r\ntake some different forms, brutality against women, inequality and subordination \r\nand degradation in every sphere of society is no less a fundamental and \r\nindispensable feature of \"modern\" bourgeois-imperialist countries than it is in \r\n\"Islamic\" and other societies where there are significant aspects of \r\npre-capitalist forms of oppression and exploitation.<\/p>\r\n<\/b>
*****<\/p>\r\n
Now, we do have to take into account the argument that, after all, even if \r\nthere are many outrages in terms of the oppression of women in a country like \r\nthe U.S., it is still qualitatively better than what it is like under the \r\nTaliban. <\/p>\r\n
This is a difficult and \"tricky\" contradiction to deal with. On the one hand, \r\nthe fact is that the way women are shrouded and shackled under the Taliban--and \r\neverything that this symbolizes and encapsulates about their oppression under \r\nTaliban rule--does represent forms of oppression that are essentially (or \r\nlargely) eliminated with the bourgeois-democratic transformation of society. \r\nAnd, of course, we support even bourgeois-democratic reforms in opposition to \r\nfeudal (and other pre-capitalist) relations of oppression. <\/p>\r\n
In a way, this is analogous to the point that--if these are the terms we \r\naccept--bourgeois democracy is \"better\" than fascism. But the more fundamental \r\ntruth--and point to be emphasized--is that these are not<\/b> the terms in \r\nwhich things should be understood and posed: the \"choice\" must not be limited to \r\nbourgeois-democratic society--with its<\/u> forms of exploitative, oppressive, \r\nand repressive relations and rule--vs. feudal (or fascistic) forms of rule, \r\nrepression, and oppression. And we should also never forget that bourgeois \r\nrule--that is, bourgeois dictatorship<\/u>--in its \"democratic\" form, can be \r\ntransformed into open, unvarnished dictatorship--fascism--which is an especially \r\nrelevant and important point with regard to what is unfolding in U.S. society \r\ntoday. <\/p>\r\n
We must not allow things to be cast in--and confined to--the question of \r\nwhich forms of oppression and exploitation, and reactionary dictatorship, are \r\n\"better.\"<\/p>\r\n
More specifically, and more especially in present circumstances, we must not \r\nallow things to be cast in such a way as to fall in line with the notion (or the \r\npretense) that the U.S. (and other) imperialists somehow represent \"progress\" or \r\n\"liberation,\" either in terms of the oppression of women or more generally, with \r\nregard to Afghanistan or in the world as a whole. <\/p>\r\n
To help illustrate this, it can be pointed out that the various governments \r\nthat were installed or at least backed by the Soviet Union in Afghanistan \r\nactually attempted to carry out reforms--not only land reforms but also reforms \r\nextending rights and opportunities for women, in education and many other \r\nfields--that, taken in isolation, are much better than what is represented by \r\nthe Taliban, and by other mujahedeen forces who fought the Soviet- backed \r\nregimes and the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, with massive U.S. backing. But \r\nthe attempt by what was then Soviet social-imperialism<\/u> to impose such \r\nreforms through its own brand of imperialist domination did not in fact \r\nrepresent \"liberation\"--and led to anything but \"liberation\" for Afghan women or \r\nthe Afghan people as a whole. This liberation must be the result of their own \r\nconscious revolutionary struggle and can never come through any imperialist \r\naggression, invasion, occupation, domination.<\/p>\r\n
What we must emphasize is the fact that both<\/u> bourgeois-democratic and \r\nfeudal (and other pre-capitalist) social relations embody horrendous oppression \r\nof women, even if in somewhat different forms (along with many of the same \r\nforms) and<\/u> there is a need for a radical rupture with all<\/b> of \r\nthis--with both pre-capitalist as well as bourgeois (including \r\nbourgeois-democratic) forms of oppression and exploitation (and repression). \r\n<\/p>\r\n
In the world today, this radical rupture is represented by and is being \r\nactively struggled for by MLM and the MLM forces in countries all over the \r\nglobe, including in Afghanistan. We must support and forge unity with masses \r\nrising up against all these various forms of oppression and exploitation, \r\nworldwide, while the most fundamental support must go to the MLM forces who \r\nrepresent the only road for the masses out of all this madness--the only path to \r\noverthrowing, uprooting, and finally, completely abolishing all forms of the \r\noppression of women, and all exploitation and oppression of human beings, \r\neverywhere in the world.<\/p>\r\n
\r\n<\/p>
This article is posted in English and Spanish on Revolutionary Worker \r\nOnline
rwor.org
Write: Box 3486, \r\nMerchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 60654
Phone: 773-227-4066 Fax: \r\n773-227-4497
(The RW Online does not currently communicate via email.) \r\n<\/p>\r\n\n","contact":"","link":"www.rwor.org","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/html","summary":"What is done by the Taliban, in the name of Islam, is in essence no different from what would follow from the literal interpretation of the Bible that many "Born Again Christians" like Falwell, Robertson, and a number of Bush's closest advisers (not to say Bush himself) insist upon. If you don't believe it, read the Bible!","numcomment":0,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/2003\/03\/rw_onlinebob_avakian_on_imperialist_hypocrisy_and_the_taliban_oppression_of_women.htm","filesize":"8.7 kibibytes","article_url":"\/news\/2003\/03\/32936.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[]}