The fallacy that the very liberal Democrats are the base of the Party

[forjusticethunders]

22. The theory isn't "wrong" per se.

Slavery and racism were social constructs, explicitly created, lobbied for, and implemented by the planter capitalists, designed to buttress the raw economic exploitation that slavery entailed. This was by design. They even admit to it in their writings. The wages of whiteness, the psychological wage of Du Bois was invoked time and time again to prevent black and white solidarity. However, at this point in time, racism is self-reinforcing. Racism isn't "real", neither is "race", but that doesn't matter anymore - even if the oppressive social construct is bullshit, the oppression itself is not. And neither is the psychological wage or the little benefits and perks to being white that make up "white privilege" (or rather, the perks and benefits that are denied to blacks). So even if you overthrew the economic structure racism was created to protect, you would still have racism.

Furthermore, how *do* you overcome that structure with a divided working class? The key thing with racism is that it gave even the poorest, most oppressed whites, especially white males, a stake in the system. And solidarity is a REQUIREMENT for successful action. How do you carry out a strike when the bosses bring in black scabs? Not only do they get the factory running again, but you've further divided black workers and white workers. But how do you stop black people from taking the scab jobs when the white workers won't organize with them? How do you gain black support for union negotiations when the union has been okay with letting blacks make a lower wage? How do you get government programs designed to help workers implemented when white voters are so angry and resentful at black prosperity that they would vote down those programs just because they would help black people too? Thus, you have to address the social justice issues at the same time, not just because justice goes beyond pocketbook issues, but because it's bigotry, hatred and resentment that undermine the solidarity needed to accomplish economic justice! And of course, economic justice issues aren't a monolith as well - a black worker may face racism on the job, a woman worker may suffer from lack of childcare, a black woman worker may suffer from both, a trans woman worker may suffer from trans-misogyny, and a black trans woman worker may suffer from all of these at once.

Any successful socialist movement MUST BE INTERSECTIONAL. MUST. MUST. MUST. It must address both purely social issues, and economic issues both in general, and economic issues experienced by disparate marginalized groups. That is how you build solidarity. And solidarity is how you change the system. Furthermore, a socialist movement must at least attempt to bring in those who are not naturally inclined to socialism, even if it means having to moderate somewhat. Even if people may not be socialist, seeing a socialist movement fight for key local and state interest, and support people who are struggling and marginalized may at least make them sympathetic. The CPUSA grew relatively strong in the 30s and 40s not by just pushing class warfare 24/7, but by working with other forces in society for social justice, thus gaining credibility among the marginalized, not least among the black community.