The International after 150 Years

The International Workingmen's Association was the prototype of all organizations of the Labour movement and the 150th anniversary of its birth (1864-2014) offers an important opportunity to rediscover its history and learn from its legacy. The International helped workers to grasp that the emancipation of labour could not be won in a single country but was a global objective. It also spread an awareness in their ranks that they had to achieve the goal themselves, through their own capacity for organization, rather than by delegating it to some other force; and that it was essential to overcome the capitalist system itself, since improvements within it, though necessary to pursue, would not eliminate exploitation and social injustice. This book reconsider the main issues broached or advanced by the International - such as labor rights, critiques of capitalism and the search for international solidarity - in light of present-day concerns. With the recent crisis of capitalism, that has sharpened more than before the division between capital and labour, the political legacy of the organization founded in London in 1864 has regained profound relevance, and its lessons are today more timely than ever. This book was published as a special issue of Socialism and Democracy.

George Comninel has written books and articles on French Revolution and Marxism. His next volume, Marx's Conception of Alienation and Emancipation, is forthcoming with Palgrave Macmillan (2015). Marcello Musto teaches Sociological Theory at York University, Toronto. His books, articles and chapters have been published worldwide in sixteen languages. Among his edited and co-authored volumes are: Karl Marx's 'Grundrisse' (Routledge 2008); Marx for Today (Routledge 2012); Workers Unite! The International 150 Years Later (Bloomsbury 2014). www.marcellomusto.org Victor Wallis is the Managing Editor of Socialism and Democracy and the author of several articles on Marxism and Labor movement.

1. Introduction 2. Notes on the History of the International: Documents from the International Workingmen's Association 3. Marx and the Politics of the First International 4. Capitalist Crisis, Cooperative Labor, and the Conquest of Political Power: Marx's 'Inaugural Address' (1864) and its Relevance in the Current Moment 5. A Common Banner: Marxists and Anarchists in the First International 6. Race, Internationalism and Labor: Reflections upon the 150th Anniversary of the First International 7. The International Working Class in 1864 and Today 8. The Strength of Our Collective Voice: Views of Labor Leaders from around the World 9. The German War on American Workers: Deutsche Telekom in the United States 10. Barriers and Openings to a New Socialist Internationalism: South African Histories, Strategies and Narratives 11. Book Review: Marcello Musto, ed., Workers Unite! The International 150 Years Later Reviewed by George Comninel