Lessons of Chile 1973

The election of Salvador Allende and the Unidad Popular coalition in 1970 brought great hope and expectations for the working class around the world.  For many workers and poor around the globe, it appeared that a genuine socialism (in contrast to the bureaucratic Stalinist deformations coming out of Moscow and Beijing) was at hand.

Three years later, the Chilean revolution was drowned in blood in one of the most brutal coups of the 20th century. The fundamental lesson from Chile, and one that is particularly apt today, is that one cannot make half a revolution.  The failure to complete the revolution and the failure to expropriate the bourgeoisie is inviting disaster.  Learning the lessons of the first Chilean revolution will hopefully mean that the next wave of revolutionary struggle will lead to a much more successful fate than 11 Sep. 1973.