Qiao Collective Joins the Progressive International
The following reflects the views of Qiao Collective and its members alone.
Qiao Collective is pleased to announce that we are joining Progressive International as a member and as a contributing publication of their media arm, the Wire.
We share Progressive International’s call to “unite, organise, and mobilise progressive forces behind a shared vision of a world transformed,” and are inspired by the work of Progressive International member groups which have consistently condemned and organized against imperialist intervention and aggression in Cuba, Bolivia, Ecuador, and beyond.
We are pleased to work alongside trusted comrades, intellectuals, and political leaders who serve on Progressive International’s council such as Vijay Prashad, Nick Estes, Álvaro García-Linera, and Wang Hui.
We continue to affirm Qiao Collective’s political commitments to Marxism-Leninism, anti-imperialism, internationalism, and Chinese socialism. We are conscientious of the fact that our political program, particularly our support for the Communist Party of China in the face of escalating imperialist aggression, differs—sometimes radically—from other members of Progressive International’s coalition. We take seriously the important criticisms of strains of anti-Communism and ‘progressive imperialism' within Progressive International.
We join Progressive International out of a belief that in a moment of crystallizing Western aggression against the project of Chinese socialism, we must seek broad platforms to disseminate our message of Chinese socialism, internationalism, and anti-imperialism. A new wave of McCarthyism and anti-Chinese racism makes it critical for us to reinsert critical support of China and the CPC into the broader spectrum of left politics.
Our membership has no bearing on Qiao Collective’s autonomy, political line, and editorial control over our work.
We look forward to building bridges to the principles of Chinese socialism as a member of Progressive International.
August 21, 2020 Update: The announcement of Qiao Collective joining as a member of the Progressive International sparked criticisms and condemnations both from “third camp” social democrats as well as from Marxist-Leninists. To clarify certain questions and concerns, we would like to offer a few clarifications.
First, there is absolutely no fiscal relationship between Qiao Collective and the Progressive International. We receive no payment or compensation for the articles that are cross-published on the Wire.
Second, our participation as a member of the Progressive International is limited to media publications on the Wire. At present, we have no role in the Progressive International’s leadership structure or decision-making apparatuses. We evaluate partnerships with Progressive International members on a case-by-case basis based on our evaluation of an organization’s political platform and not by nature of shared Progressive International membership alone.
Third, we are well aware of the political contradictions and conflicts that exist between Qiao Collective and other members of the Progressive International. Our membership is in no way an endorsement of member stances that are antithetical to our principles, particularly our defense of China’s sovereignty. We enter into the Progressive International out of careful consideration for accessing a strategic platform. For too long, critical support for Chinese socialism has been ostracized, slandered, disregarded, and marginalized amongst the left establishment in the U.S. and much of the West. We believe it is strategic to insert Qiao Collective’s analysis into a larger conversation on the left.
We trust that our ongoing work, political stances, and analysis will speak for itself.
Read more like this:
