Presidential Elections in France: Neither Le Pen nor Macron!

Neither right wing racism, nor Millionaire EU imperialism! For a mass movement of the workers and oppressed to build a real alternative!

Statement of the Revolutionary Communist International Tendency (RCIT), 05.05.2017, www.thecommunists.net

The Revolutionary Communist International Tendency (RCIT) calls upon the workers, migrants and youth of France to reject giving support to either Le Pen or Macron in the second round of the presidential election that will be held on the 7 May.

If the only alternative is to choose between two factions of the same capitalist class that exploits us day by day, then there is no lesser evil. No matter who will win this coming Sunday – whether Le Pen or Macron – the next French president will be an enemy of the country’s working people, as well as of migrants in France and the oppressed peoples overseas who suffer from French imperialism!

It is certainly true that Le Pen represents the more nationally-centered and chauvinistic elements of the French capitalists, and her – unlikely – victory would be a declaration of war against the oppressed, especially the migrants in France of Muslim belief.

However, Macron is no lesser evil. Rather, he is the candidate favored by big French capital as well as German imperialism! While a victory for Le Pen could provoke the dissolution of the EU and an aggressive war against migrants at home, Macron’s victory would be a major step forward in the formative process of EU imperialism. The significance of such a development would be profound, as EU imperialism still does not exist as a major, independent entity, but instead represents an alliance of German imperialism with France, as junior partner, and the subordinated integration of the weaker imperialist EU states. A strengthened EU, which would follow Macron’s ascension to the French presidency, would enable the union to build up its military power and increasingly undertake dirty wars of occupation abroad. Therefore, a Macron victory in no way constitutes a “pragmatic” or ”strategic“ advantage for our class.

Regardless of Le Pen’s disgustingly racist ideology and policies, we the working class must take an independent revolutionary position in this election, and oppose both of the capitalist visages vying for power.

Instead, we must build a third alternative – one based on a consistent struggle against capitalism, racism and imperialist wars! We need to fight for a Europe in which the workers and oppressed hold power, not the European Central Bank, Merkel, Le Pen or Macron! This means that we need to build mass movements for our class that will be able to challenge the rich and their presidents! Furthermore, this involves founding a new working class party, one based on a militant program of struggle against imperialism, racism and capitalist exploitation, and for the revolutionary toppling of the ruling class!

The stakes in this game are extremely high. Nowhere is it ordained that the future will offer a better life for us, our children and our grandchildren. Only if we conduct a united, revolutionary struggle will we even have the chance to create a better tomorrow! Without such a struggle, the forecast is indeed very bleak. This is why we in the RCIT call upon the workers and oppressed of France, regardless of who wins the vote on Sunday, to take to the streets, to strike and demonstrate against the newly elected head of the French bourgeois state. We have no intention of paying for their crisis!