The word "communist" did enormous work during the Cold War. It attached to Mosaddegh, who was a liberal nationalist.
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The word "communist" did enormous work during the Cold War.
It attached to Mosaddegh, who was a liberal nationalist.
It attached to Árbenz, who was a democratic reformer.
It attached to Allende, who won a democratic election.
It attached to Lumumba, who wanted the Congo's minerals for Congolese people.
It attached to Sankara, who planted trees and vaccinated children.
It attached to the ANC in South Africa.
It attached to the PLO.
It attached to striking labor unions.
It attached to land reform movements.
It attached to anyone who questioned whether foreign corporations should control a country's natural resources.
The word did not describe an ideology in these cases.
The word was a termination signal.
Once attached, it authorized removal.
It deactivated the normal rules.
It suspended the democracy promotion, the human rights concern, the multilateral consultation.
It bypassed every stated principle and went directly to the operational response.
Once you were "communist," you were outside the framework of people whose political rights the West was defending.
The label was applied to whoever needed to be outside that framework.
It was the most powerful administrative tool of the twentieth century.
It required no evidence.
It required only attachment.
And the people who attached it are still considered statesmen.
posted by Satish Sharma at
02:37
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