Hey all,
I’m currently developing a Marxist-Leninist analysis of settler colonialism, especially in light of the situation in Palestine, and am going to read Settlers: The Mythology of the White Proletariat by J. Sakai for the first time. Before I do I was just curious what other comrades think of the book and its analysis? It seems a pretty controversial text among many online Marxist groups, to whatever extent that matters, but as an Indigenous communist I feel having a clear and principled stance on the settler question is important for all serious communists. I’m not sure if I’ll agree with Sakai specifically, but since I generally agree with the opinions of y’all, I was curious as to your thoughts on the book.
I have distant Ioway and Charokee, but since I’m white passing and have no connection to tribal heritage I’d count myself as a settler.
It’s a distressing book, because it basically tells every settler “you aren’t the main character.” We can only support actual revolutionaries.
I mean, if I might be so bold, I’d think some settlers need to hear that message lmao. Joking aside, it’s that kind of thing that I don’t know a single Black comrade that actually organizes with settler orgs and parties and doesn’t have a story about getting absolutely talked over, sidelined, and otherwise made to feel ‘other’ within those very organizations; and I think if we got enough white leftists to internalize that message of Settlers at least once, we’d actually start making some headway in equality in this shithole of a nation.
And mind-- I’m not saying that settlers can’t lead their own left organizations; but on matters of liberation, especially Black and Indigenous liberation respectively, they unequivocally should not expect to be at the head of the table on the when, where, how, and why. They should consider themselves lucky to even have a seat at that table if they do; which they likely will bc good luck extricating a settler when someone already fucked around and gave them an invite to the kickback, but it should be understood that it ain’t the settler’s place to talk any kind of sideways about these matters like they’re leading and presiding over them.