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Portal:Communism

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THE COMMUNISM PORTAL

Introduction

Communism (from Latin communis 'common, universal') is a political and economic ideology whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic classless order centered on common ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange that allocates products in society based on need. A communist society entails the absence of private property and social classes, and ultimately money and the state.

Communists often seek a voluntary state of self-governance but disagree on the means to this end. This reflects a distinction between a libertarian socialist approach of communization, revolutionary spontaneity, and workers' self-management, and an authoritarian socialist, vanguardist, or party-driven approach to establish a socialist state, which is expected to wither away.

There are many variants of communism, such as anarchist communism, Marxist schools of thought (including Leninism and its offshoots), and religious communism. These ideologies share the analysis that the current order of society stems from the capitalist economic system and mode of production; they believe that there are two major social classes under capitalism, that the relationship between them is exploitative, and that it can only be resolved through social revolution. The two classes under capitalism are the proletariat (working class), who make up most of the population and sell their labor power to survive, and the bourgeoisie (owning class), a minority that derives profit from employing the proletariat through private ownership of the means of production. Some variants additionally emphasize feudal classes, such as the peasantry and feudal lords, or other classes. According to this, a communist revolution would put the working class in power, and establish common ownership of property, the primary element in the transformation of society towards a socialist mode of production.

Communism in its modern form grew out of the socialist movement in 19th-century Europe that argued capitalism caused the misery of urban factory workers. In 1848, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels offered a new definition of communism in The Communist Manifesto. In the 20th century, Communist governments espousing Marxism–Leninism came to power, first in the Soviet Union with the 1917 Russian Revolution, then in Eastern Europe, Asia, and other regions after World War II. By the 1920s, communism had become one of the two dominant types of socialism in the world, the other being social democracy. Communist parties have been described as radical left or far-left. (Full article...)

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The Conference of Communist and Workers Parties of Europe was an international meeting of communist parties, held in the city of East Berlin, on 29–30 June 1976. In all, 29 parties from across Europe participated in the conference. Notable participants at the meeting included Brezhnev, Ceaușescu, Gierek, Husák, Honecker, Kádár, Tito, Zhivkov, Carrillo, Berlinguer, Marchais and Cunhal.

The conference highlighted several important changes in the European communist movement. It exhibited the declining influence of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and a widening gap between the independent and orthodox camps amongst European communist parties, with the ascent of a new political trend, Eurocommunism.

Selected biography

Salawati Daud was an Indonesian politician and a member of the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI). Salawati Daud was married to a government official from Maros, a guerrilla stronghold during the Indonesian War of Independence. She travelled to Jakarta, trying to convince the republican government to support the guerrilla struggle.

Salawati Daud became the first female mayor in Indonesia, being elected mayor of Makassar in 1949.> As mayor, she confronted Dutch commander Captain Raymond "Turk" Westerling. In 1955 she was elected to parliament (on a PKI list) and moved to Jakarta. Salawati Daud became a prominent leader of the women's movement Gerwani. She was one of many Gerwani leaders imprisoned after the 1965 military takeover.

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Selected image

A tableau vivant in a Communist part rally in Fort Cochin, Kerala, India.

Photo credit: David Wilmot

26 August 2026 – 2026 Nepal–Tibet floods
Flash floods and mudslides along the Trishuli River impact between Nepal and Tibet, China. At least 160 people are killed, hundreds are injured and 463 others, including over 200 tourists, are reported missing in Nepal, while Chinese Communist Party officials report three deaths and 265 missing in Tibet, severely affecting Gyirong County and its port. (AFP via Jamaica Observer) (AP) (BBC News)

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Selected quote

               Worlds I would destroy for ever,
               Since I can create no world,
               Since my call they notice never,
               Coursing dumb in magic whirl.

               Dead and dumb, they stare away
               At our deeds with scorn up yonder;
               We and all our works decay --
               Heedless on their ways they wander.

               Yet their lot I would share never --
               Swept on by the flooding tide,
               On through nothing rushing ever,
               Fretful in their Pomp and Pride.

               Swiftly fall and are destroyed
               Halls and bastions in their turn;
               As they fly into the Void,
               Yet another Empire's born.

               So it rolls from year to year,
               From the Nothing to the All,
               From the Cradle to the Bier,
               Endless Rise and endless Fall.

               So the spirits go their way
               Till they are consumed outright,
               Till their Lords and Masters they
               Totally annihilate.

Karl Marx (1818-1883)
Feelings , 1836

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General

Variations of Communism

Organizations and ruling parties, past and present

Personalities

Present and former Socialist states (under the direction of Communist parties)

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Structure

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Artists and writers

Influential works

Anti-communism

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Communism in non-English Wikipedias

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