The Beehive

The Capitalist State

October 2021

In this session we will address two key issues:

(i) what is the nature of the state and state power in capitalist societies?

(ii) how should socialists understand and engage with the state and state power?

Both are big topics, so we can only cover them in outline. But if we are committed to advancing socialism, it is crucially important that we have a clear understanding of the role of the state.

Try to do as much of the reading as you can in advance of the session, to help with this focus in each piece on the key questions:

1. what is the piece saying about the nature of capitalist states?

2. what does it say about how socialists should engage with the state and state power?

3. what relevance does it have for struggles in your daily life?

4. do you agree or disagree with the arguments being made?

Reading (Download the first three as pdf here):

- Rosa Luxemburg, extracts from “Reform or Revolution” (1900)

- Ambalavener Sivanandan, "Race. Class and the State: The Black Experience in Britain” (1976)

- Michael Lebowitz, "The State and the Future of Socialism" (2013)

- Charlie Post, “The Capitalist State and Socialist Strategy" (2020)