From 28 February to 1 March, the Wales & West region of the Revolutionary Communist Party hosted the third annual Lenin School in Bristol, with well over one hundred communists in attendance.
The theme for the weekend was the rise and fall of British capitalism, exploring the true revolutionary history of the British working class that has been so horribly falsified by bourgeois historians and liberal commentators.
The British working class has never lacked a willingness to fight; from its very birth it has posed a mortal threat to the reign of capital. The only reason British capitalism still exists is because a revolutionary leadership hadn’t been built in time for those pivotal moments in history.
The 2026 Lenin School was organised to train the class fighters who will be just that.
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Communist bootcamp
Day one began with teams of comrades arriving on Saturday morning and quickly transforming the venue into a communist bootcamp, brimming with energy and anticipation of the opening talk.
True to expectations, RCP political secretary Rob Sewell delivered a barnstorming account of the Chartist movement – the world’s first independent proletarian movement. Attendees were glued to his every word as he took us step by step through their heroic struggles.
The energy of the talk carried through to the discussion’s final contribution and beyond. The room stayed full during the subsequent lunch break, where comrades enthusiastically discussed the lessons for today.
Ben Campbell, a leading RCP member in Bristol, then provided a talk about British imperialism’s role in Ireland. Ben walked us through the long history of subjugation, colonisation, and the fearless perseverance of the Irish masses
The vast period of history spanned by the talk was brought to life in vivid detail as comrades delivered contributions on topics from the legacy of the great Marxist revolutionary James Connoly, to the awe-inspiring story of the Limerick Soviet.
The day closed with a talk from RCP general secretary Ben Gliniecki on his new book, A Communist History of the British General Strike.
The 1926 General Strike shook the very foundations of British society. It’s an event that the bourgeoisie would rather we forgot, since it’s so tightly packed with lessons for our struggle today.
In the discussion, comrades were focussed on these lessons – drawing out many parallels to the period we are currently living through, and how to make sure our struggle is victorious. The feeling in the room was reflected by the sale of all fifty copies of the book we had in stock.
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Labour betrayals
After a social that carried the enthusiastic discussions well into the night, comrades filtered into the room for day two. There was a real buzz in the air again as comrades prepared for the first talk of the day, and enjoyed a range of refreshments and home-baked goods.
Lewis Griffiths, a leading member in the Cardiff district, delivered a talk on the lessons we can draw from Labour governments old and new. He ran through a comprehensive history of the struggles which produced the Labour Party, its time in power, and how Starmer’s Labour came to be today.
“This talk really changed my outlook on society,” said Mina, a recent recruit to the RCP. “It gave me a proper mental-click moment, and then loads of things made sense.”
There were certainly many others who felt the same across the weekend, as the bastardised, bourgeois version of labour-movement history came crumbling down from talk to talk.
The final talk of the weekend was delivered by Alex Falconer, Wales & West regional organiser, who spoke on the perspectives for the class struggle in Britain. Mass movements in Britain are on the horizon – we can all see them coming – but we need to step up the pace of preparing our forces.
“There isn’t anything more electrifying than a room of one hundred people all building to turn the world on its head,” shared one attendee, Valentine. “Every moment of this session was spent with our eyes on the prize, filled with the need to build the revolutionary party.”
Sinews of war
Comrades were filled with the pride and responsibility of knowing the torch we hold has passed through the hands of so many generations of revolutionary fighters.
Attendees were so inspired to deepen their understanding of the history of the British working class – and the tasks for today – that book stock was in freefall throughout the whole event!
Alongside selling out of The British General Strike, we nearly sold out of copies of Chartist Revolution and Ireland: Republicanism or Revolution. We sold over £1,250 worth of literature across the weekend, plus nearly £750 worth of communist merchandise.
Day two closed with a rousing financial appeal to fund the RCP, which the weekend showed is so urgently needed. The room was electric until the very end, when it was announced that a whopping £2,890 was raised, and monthly subs were increased by £371.75!
When all was said and done, the weekend raised just over £6,500: a testament to the colossal impact this school had on every one of us.
What lies ahead
The world is on fire. Each of us feels the crisis facing British capitalism every day we go to university, to work, or into town.
It couldn’t be clearer what the problem is, and the solution is something many generations of workers have grasped at. This weekend was an important step towards building the party that will one day take them all the way.
The success of this year’s Lenin School was the product of every comrade having a role to play in building for it. It ran like a well-oiled machine thanks to meticulous planning, but also because each comrade felt responsible for making it so on the day.
At least fifty comrades prepared and delivered contributions for discussions across the five talks, which made for a deep yet wide reaching discussion on every subject broached.
With three new recruits made at the event, all comrades were fired up to go back to their branches and districts and to build. The road to 200 comrades of the RCP in Wales & West is clear, and we’re more determined than ever to reach that goal as soon as possible.
Marking International Working Women’s Day in the North East
To kick off March, the North East region of the RCP held a day school to mark International Working Women’s Day.
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Many of the forty members who attended described this as our best day school yet. It has had an electrifying effect on the whole region.
Our first talk – ‘How to fight oppression (and how not to)’ – addressed how identity politics presents a tactical and theoretical dead end in the fight for liberation. After the talk, comrades separated into breakout groups.
We discussed a broad range of fundamental Marxist ideas such as the difference between materialism and idealism, the origins of class society, and the bankruptcy of postmodernism. One member of the public, who had clearly come looking to start an argument, got fed up and left when he discovered we had answers to all of his questions!
Our second talk focused on the role of women in the Russian Revolution. Afterwards no fewer than fifteen people – some of which had not yet joined the party – stood up to contribute in the discussion. Several comrades were sufficiently inspired by the discussion that they came up and spoke passionately, despite being unprepared in advance.
The chair told the room that to keep putting on events like these, and to build a revolutionary organisation, requires strong finances. They passed a hat around the room and it came back overflowing with bank notes. Adding to the 17 books we sold, in total we raised over £550!
The day ended with a rousing chorus of The Internationale. Four who had attended and were not already organised with the RCP agreed to join the party the same day.
We have no doubt that our next day school will be even better. Forward to 100 comrades in the North East!
Ben Davies, Newcastle
Eastern region cadre school: Events will not wait for us!
Thea Chitseko, Norwich
Amidst earth-shaking events, 20 comrades from the Eastern region of the RCP congregated in Sheringham in Norfolk for a high-level educational school.
This was a weekend packed with political discussion and where we shared crucial lessons from our local work. Each day acted like a shot of political theory for all attendees; comrades left brimming with enthusiasm.
Discussions ranged through ‘World perspectives’, ‘Reformism versus revolution’, ‘Dialectics and philosophy’, ‘The first year of the Russian revolution’, ‘The English revolution’, and ‘How to grow the organisation’.
A current running through each session was the urgency to draw out the practical lessons of history in time for the explosive epoch ahead. Schools like this are a crucial part of training up revolutionaries for these times.
This is what separates the Revolutionary Communist International from any other party: we are a cadre organisation, which means we work for the mastery of Marxist ideas.
By these means, we are building the RCI into a fighting force capable of toppling the rotten capitalist system everywhere. To fashion ourselves into these cadres is our most urgent task. Events will not wait for us to be ready.
