Modern Day Imperialism
I. The History of Imperialism
First we must define Imperialism, in the simplest definition Imperialism is the conquest, militaristically, or economically of a nation, a monopoly stage of capitalism. Imperialism can be broken up into multiple sections Proto-Imperialism, Colonialism, New Age Imperialism, and Neo-Imperialism (Otherwise known as Economic Imperialism) In Proto Imperialism, Imperialism was used to conquer and gain resources from other kingdoms, even in the early slave societies used imperialism for their own gain. The Persians used Imperialism in order to gain land therefore gaining slaves as well resources, the Persians as well would use their Imperialism to spread their culture, imperialism of that time was more so for slaves and resources. In the feudalist times is where Imperialism truly was expanded upon the Feudalist epoch lasted 1000 years from France to Russia all european countries used imperialism to get an upperhand on other European nations, and to gain Capital, Feudalism was finally eventually thrown off by the revolutions of France and eventually the Russian Revolution. In Colonialism, colonies were gained in order to gain capital, this often included the exploitation of the workers, such as in the new world, where resources were taken by the imperialist nations in order to gain more capital, the imperialist nations would trade with each other, and would attack each other when the opportunity came to gain more land, which would in the end generate more capital.
New Age Imperialism is the shortest of these three but is the part of where major atrocities were committed, such as in King Leopold II’s Congo, which was not considered the property of the Kingdom of Belgium rather it was considered private property of “his majesty” himself. In the age of imperialism most of Africa was taken by the European powers, some of Asia and so on, in this age millions would die due to the result of Imperialism, 16 million alone in King Leopold’s Congo.
Winston Churchill the Prime Minister would try to keep India to British control due to how much wealth they were obtaining from India, he would not relieve the famine in India, as well he would put down many nationalist independence movements brutally, killing thousands of people. The French would also bomb Damascus killing thousands of people, because the Syrian people wished to be an independent country, while they were originally promised this in before the war. Once again Imperialism showing that it is only for the gaining of capital, splitting the Arab states in the Sykes-Picot agreement, which is the reason for most of the Middle East's modern day problems.
In Neo-Imperialism the Imperialist nations are looking for economic conquest of other nations, which can lead to major problems such as outsourcing jobs from the first to third world, which can be a major problem for both, the first worldist losing his job and the third worldist gaining a job with poor conditions and with little pay. Imperialism is by definition Capitalist and reactionary since it is for capital gain, and resources from foreign nations, Leopold even making Congo the private property of Belgium, it is very Capitalistic since it is for material gains.
“Imperialism emerged as the development and direct continuation of the fundamental characteristics of capitalism in general. But capitalism only became capitalist imperialism at a definite and very high stage of its development, when certain of its fundamental characteristics began to change into their opposites, when the features of the epoch of transition from capitalism to a higher social and economic system had taken shape and revealed themselves in all spheres.” -V.I. Lenin
As stated before while Capitalism is inherently Imperialistic, however Imperialism is not inherently Capitalism, Imperialism is domination from one nation to another for their own material benefit. In the proto-Imperialist and Colonialist societies countries would invade, and dominate nations for resources and slave labor, in order to keep the colonies the native culture would be suppressed and the foreign culture would be put upon the people, Imperialism changed due to the conditions of the time, you could even call it in modern day “Imperialism with a human face”
The nature of Imperialism is no longer integration into your own nation however it is economic imperialism, sucking the place dry and leaving like a vampire. This is why it can be called “Imperialism with a human face” it is a very undercover process, such as how the US forces in multiple countries are overseeing the productivity of stolen capital, be it oil or other resources so much for “our freedoms” instead it is rather for gain of capital.
Some of the biggest wars in history were caused by Imperialism, World War I for example was caused by the Austrian-Hungarians want to control the Yugoslavian territories, have been oppressed by the Austro-Hungarians for so long the Serbs and the Russians trying to save their interests in the Balkans and assert more Slavic influence in the region, starting one of the largest wars of human history, World War One was not the fault of any side, both were the “bad guys” it was a war of Imperialism. Years later World War II would start due to Nazi imperialism, the nazis wanted to kill the Slavs of the east and repopulate with Germanic settlers, which is both imperialistic, and colonialist in nature. In modern day the greatest example of the cycle of Imperialism is the United States intervention in the Afghanistan Soviet war, where they armed the Mujahideen which would later go on to form many of the terror organizations we see today. The reason however to support the Mujahideen was to drive a Soviet-friendly government out of Afghanistan, and to install a US friendly government, which as we know did not happen, rather it degenerated into a much worse scenario which would cause most of modern terror cells. In the Russian Revolution in order to try and put the Tsar back in power many countries interfered with the USSR, the USSR was even at it’s conception under constant siege by the Capitalist nations of the world, both outnumbered and outgunned the Soviet workers overcame the Imperial interventionists.
For reference:
Czechoslovakia 50,000 troops
France 600 troops
Greece 23,000 troops
United States 11,000 troops
Estonia 11,300 troops
Japan 70,000 troops
Italy 2,500 troops
Serbia 2,000 troops
Republic of China 2,300 troops
Australia 150 troops
United Kingdom Unknown
Once again showing truly how the Capitalist nations only cared for their interests not the interests of the people of the world, trying to save the degenerating Russian Empire for economic production, for more capital, and more trade, while the people of the nation supported the Soviets, for a better say in the government, and a better life in general. Imperialism is a counterproductive force opposed to the people’s interests. As long as there is a Capitalist nation on earth the Socialist nations will be besieged by said nation, we see this with modern Cuba, and the DPRK, constantly besieged by sanctions and military action around them. Without the economic force of the USSR these nations have to fend off for themselves, against the Imperialistic nations of the world, this is especially hard for North Korea since they are a mountainous nation. The goal of modern day Imperialism is usually to put US friendly puppets inside of nations, which usually ends up (As we have seen) as a extreme Capitalist dictatorship, such as Pinochet’s Chile which ended up horribly for Chile 45% of the people in poverty, increasing the unemployment rate, while most of South Africa was lessening its’ unemployment rate, and why did this happen? Because Chile, Democratically elected a Left Winged government, once again which would have taken away trade and means to more Capital, or it ends up as a failure and destabilizes the area such as in Iraq in modern day, how without Saddam and the Ba’athist party the Iraq area fell into decay (This also ties into the United States intervention in Afghanistan) these are just a few examples. Modern day Imperialism is for gaining more capital, when a Socialistic, or non-US friendly leader is in power (of a usually less powerful nation) they are thrown out of power due to their views of the US, and unwillingness of trade with the US, usually due to the past actions of the US, do you think if the US could overthrow Iran and the DPRK right now they wouldn’t, because they would (according to history) do exactly that and most likely install a US friendly bourgeois Democracy
II. Left Wing Nationalism vs Imperialism
There are many forms of Nationalism, some are Reactionary and against our cause however some are useful and usually fight against Imperialism. Left Wing Nationalism, and Anti-Colonial Nationalism can be used to fight against the forces of the Imperialistic world. In Anti-Colonial Nationalism the struggle of the people is put first, in modern day we can see this in modern day Israel with Israel trying to colonize Palestinian land by sending in Israeli settlers, taking away the Palestinian land, Palestinian Communist movements actively call for Israel to stop, and fighting has occurred, people will fight for their homes this is a natural reaction. Proletariat Nationalism can be used in revolutions to fight against Imperialist forces, such as in modern day with the Rojava revolution, which has Socialist Patriotism/Proletariat Nationalism, they promote the idea of a homeland for the people, not just one class, or group of people, but of all the people, this also helps them in the fight against ISIS imperialism. We also see Proletariat Nationalism used by the Soviet Union, which was a workers state, instead of calling for the USSR to belong to one group of people the USSR was for the people, the USSR was one of the most ethnically diverse countries in all of history. Proletariat Nationalism differs itself from petty Bourgeois nationalism as it does not have the idea of “Racial superiority” in mind, rather it has the idea of one world where the proletariat rule. Nationalism against an Imperialist force, or to establish socialism are the only two true, and non-bourgeois types of Nationalism. These types of Nationalism can be seen in places like Rojava. Rojava is currently (as we know) fighting for their current existence, against the Turks, ISIS, and so on and so forth, they started as a small piece of Syria, and have pushed ISIS far from their original territory, and now control most of the north, they also have to deal with Turkey, a force who oppressed the Kurdish people for so long, the Kurdish people now more than ever have the legitimate case for their independence, all leftists should support anti-imperialism and anti-capitalist movements against the status quo of the Imperialist nations of the modern world. Anti-Imperialism in itself is a large part of Marxist thought, we as leftists must fight against any imperial force. While the South African Apartheid state tried to invade Angola.
“Some imperialists ask themselves why the Cubans are helping the Angolans what our interests are. They are accustomed to thinking that a country does something only in search of oil, diamonds, copper, or other natural resources. No. Our interests are not materialistic and it is only logical that the imperialist can’t understand that”
-Fidel Castro
the reason why the Cubans did this was because of their international duty to fight against imperialism, Socialism is inherently anti-imperialism. Instead of for it’s own gains Cuba wished to help Angola and the Angolan people just to fight off the Apartheid state of South Africa, as well (At the beginning of the conflict) the Imperialist nation of Portugal, which gained this territory in the so called “Age of Imperialism” the general wishes of Cuba was to do two things, for one spread the revolution, and two to fight off the Apartheid nation of South Africa which was a Dominion of Britain, one of the most Imperialist nations to ever exist.
In modern day we see many types of Nationalism, but historically Nationalism has been used as a force to destroy Imperialism, like that of Yugoslavia nationalism, wanting to fight off the Austrian-Hungarian empire to establish a homeland for the Southern Slavs, we can see that Nationalism was a key part of history, however, the path of Nationalism goes in two directions, petty Bourgeois nationalism, or anti-imperialist nationalism, Bourgeois Nationalism is those petty thoughts of racial superiority, or so on, whereas anti-imperialist nationalism simply is nationalism fighting against Imperialism.
To be a Leftist you cannot be a petty bourgeois Nationalist, such as that of Pol Pot, who was a product of Imperialism, receiving aid from the CIA. The Nazis were also Bourgeois Nationalists, for defending a “Pure non-degenerate race” Of which this ideal killed millions of innocent people due to race, disability, or so on, Bourgeois Nationalism is to glorify your own culture and own country over other countries in general. The state at the end of the day is only used to uphold Capitalism, to oppress the proletariat class by Lenin’s definition. Anti-Imperialist Nationalism on the other hand has been seen multiple times as well, we see this in most modern day left wing movements, we also see it in Rojava as mentioned, which is more of Proletarian Nationalism, which are the only two types of non-bourgeois Nationalist views, instead of looking for the benefit of only your race you are looking for the benefit of all people in a nation, or in Proletariat Nationalism’s view the benefit of all men, to establish world socialism, which will in turn make a better life for all men women and children world wide, you could also refer to this as socialist patriotism, or internationalism. Nelson Mandela under African Socialism fought off the Apartheid puppet government of South Africa, he later would praise Castro’s actions against the apartheid government. In this way Nationalism has been used for the proletariat against the bourgeoisie, meanwhile with bourgeois-nationalism we see ethno-nationalism, and other reactionary forces, that usually would align with anti-communist movements. We see Nationalism on the rise due to anti-”degeneracy” denouncing Islam, usually blaming the degeneration of culture on “Cultural Marxism” as well usually denouncing LGBT rights, they wish for the strength of their nation over other nations, and are usually anti-race mixing, instead of noticing the problems are based on class, they focus on race, this is the difference that must be made to have a understanding of left wing nationalism and right wing nationalism. Right wing Nationalism cannot truly be Nationalism because Right Wing Imperialism historically has turned into Imperialism.
In this modern day of revolution we are faced with the question of the Syrian Defense Force, and Syria, where will people fall on this topic, when it comes down to it, we could analyze in many ways Chairman Mao’s New Democracy, when the People’s Republic of China formed an alliance with the Nationalist government of China in order to fight the Imperialist Japanese, in the case of Syria this should be taken into account, if the revolution of FSA or the “moderate rebels” is to succeed there will be a new US puppet in the region, however, if the Assad and SDF’s combined might fights off the FSA, ISIS, and “moderate” rebels, there will then be a better condition for a socialist revolution, no longer having to work against the US government but rather a much smaller Capitalist menace. For this question the answer should be the temporary combination of power versus the terrorists, together not only will they break the US puppets, but together, without knowing, the Assad regime would have made a better condition for the socialistic revolution, no doubt if this is to happen the US government, would most likely make a contradiction by supporting the Assad regime versus the Kurdish opposition. We have seen this in the past the People’s Republic of China was the prime example of this. The death of Imperialism is essential to socialism.
III. The Third World
Wallerstein talked about there are three global classes, the core, the western countries, the heart of the Capitalist world, the semi-periphery countries, which are between the “first and third world” as we know them, countries like Russia, China, and so on and so forth, who partake in imperialism but also have their labor exploited, such as sweatshops in China, an example of this is how China exported Machetes to Rwanda to perpetuate the genocide, then the periphery countries, these are those who supply most rare resources and most labour, and get little to nothing in return, they are kept in this position by loans and economic austerity. Let’s say an African country takes out a loan from the world bank, however most periphery countries that wish to industrialize do not stand a chance to those of the semi-periphery nation’s economic production, however if they even do successfully industrialize there is a lack of investment in these area’s and lack of interest in getting products from this region, this results in the country receiving the loans not being able to pay back the loans, which in return will cause the IMF to set austerity policies, which will force them to privatize more industries, which in return causes more exploitation and opens the country up for more exploitation. A lot of time it is rather not economics rather sometimes it is militaristic conquest for example, Iraq a semi-periphery country that was gaining power in the region was destroyed due to their invasion of Kuwait, which was in direct contradiction to the West's economic interests in the region. The third world with this being said is the most class conscious, with most most modern day Socialist movements being in the third world.
IV. Conclusions
Imperialism is apart of the modern day Capitalist society, the past Feudal, and Slave societies, it has accumulated under all of these systems in one way or another, due to Capitalism, Feudalism, the Slave Societies, and Imperialism’s want for more capital, more gains of some sorts, Imperialism is the highest stage of Capitalism, it is a monopoly stage of Capitalism, the rise of imperialism lead to the division of the so called “free land” on earth, which lead to the opening of China the scramble for Africa and so on and so forth, this lead to the point where there is no more land to divide up, however there is still a need to export surplus capital, which lead to the Imperialist powers turning on each other, Imperialists are only friends due to the circumstances which they were and are put into. In the modern day Imperialism has changed to what we call economic Imperialism, with the US instead of taking over a country making it into a puppet state, this all is due to the inevitable greed under the Capitalist system. Some examples of economic Imperialism are the fact that many western corporations directly or indirectly utilize extremely cheap labor and resources from poor nations in order to generate extremely big profits by the time they are sold back home. if western corporations were cut off from a large pool of cheap labor, resources and industry, the very basis for how western capitalism profits and maintains itself would be destroyed, and the result would be the collapse of capitalism and a huge economic crisis in the west. This shows that global capitalism can only exist as long as it exploits the people and resources of other nations and generates extreme profits through this exploitation. Imperialism is a broad topic, Imperialism is not only in the past, it is in the modern day as well. Machiavelli once said “A prince who drives out the natives of a land will be known as the father of the nation” George Washington agreed “The gradual extension of our nation will as certainly cause the savage as the wolf to retire both being beasts of prey even though they differ in shape” Thomas Jefferson said on the topic “We shall drive the savages with the beasts of the forests to the stony mountains and the country will be free of red or black” Every nation was founded on some sort or form of Imperialism, the United States had aims of major expansionism, which caused millions of natives deaths. Imperialism is the highest stage of Capitalism, this being said Capitalism and Imperialism are against Marxism, Marxism is said to be the end of history as all parts of history rely on class struggle. With this being said as Leftists, we should always be against Imperialism and what it has done to the world, it has not bettered the world in anyway rather it has made it worse.
“Imperialism in its’ very essence is what turns men into beasts” -Che Guevara
