To paraphrase Marx, the ruling ideas in society are the ideas of the ruling class. That’s why they must be challenged and interrogated, and why we take seriously the development of our own theory and the writing of our own history.
On this page, we aim to provide a guide to contemporary and historical Marxist theory and the history of struggles of the working class and the oppressed, particularly that which concerns socialists in Australia. This list is in the process of development and change – please bear with us while we finalise it. If you have suggestions, please send them to us.
Topics
Introductions to Marxism
Aboriginal oppression and history
Africa
Alienation
Anarchism and autonomism
Arab Spring 2011-
Australian imperialism
Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party history – Solidarity series
Australian labour history
Australian racism
Asia
China
Climate change and the environment
Disability
Economic crisis (2008-)
Fascism
Historical materialism
Immigration and refugees
Imperialism and war
Israel and Palestine
The Global South
Latin America
Leninism and revolutionary organisation
LGBT oppression and sexuality
Marxist economics
Marxist philosophy
National liberation
Neo-liberalism
Permanent revolution
Police
Racism
Reformism
Religion
Revolutionaries
Revolutions in history
Revolutionary press
Revolutionary women – Solidarity series
The Russian Revolution
Science and the natural world
Socialist strategy and tactics
Socialism
Stalinism and state capitalism
Students and universities
The state
Trade unions and strikes
Trotskyism
The working class
The United States
Women’s liberation
Violence
How Marxism works Chris Harman
One of the best introductions to Marxism.
Marxism at the millennium Tony Cliff
Covers some basic Marxist principles and developments of Marxist theory in the second half of the 20th century in an easy read.
Socialism: Utopian and Scientific Frederick Engels
A classic polemic that helped define Marxist socialism.
The Three Sources and Component Parts of Marxism Vladimir Lenin
The evolution of Marx’s ideas, explained by Lenin.
The Two Souls of Socialism Hal Draper
A classic polemic against Stalinist and state socialism and for workers’ power.
What is the real Marxist tradition? John Molyneux
A withering critique of traditions often referred to as Marxism, such as Maoism, and a defence of classical Marxism.
Aboriginal oppression and history
From little things, big things grow: the first Gurundji strike Freya Bundey
Hawke, Keating and Aboriginal rights: Labor’s sorry history Jean Parker
Intervention motives more serious than mining Paddy Gibson
Locked up and killed for being black: Racism, black deaths in custody and the NT Intervention Paddy Gibson
Noonkanbah: when Aboriginal people and unionists united for land rights Mark Gillespie
Red and black: a history of the Communist Party’s support for Aboriginal struggles Jean Parker
Tent Embassy 1972: Land rights or else! Clare Fester
The brutal theft of a continent goes on in Australia Paddy Gibson
The NT Intervention and the new politics of assimilation Paddy Gibson
Twenty years since Mabo: why Native Title hasn’t delivered Paddy Gibson
Lessons from the fight against Apartheid in South Africa Paddy Gibson
The Marikana massacre and South Africa since Apartheid Lucy Honan
South Africa after apartheid Alex Callinicos
Zimbabwe: imperialism, democracy and fake nationalism Leo Zeilig
Zimbabwe: the road from liberation to dictatorship Jarvis Ryan
An introduction to Marx’s theory of alienation Judy Cox
Is the media all powerful? Chris Nineham
Marx’s theory of alienation: a world where workers have no control Amy Thomas
Can we change the world without taking power? John Holloway and Alex Callinicos debate
In perspective: John Holloway Paul Blackledge
Tony Negri in perspective Alex Callinicos
Marxism and anarchism Paul Blackledge
Counter-revolution and myths of foreign plots Sameh Naguib
Egypt’s revolution and the Muslim Brotherhood Erima Dall
The Egyptian workers’ movement and the 25 January revolution Anne Alexander
Imperialism, sectarianism and Syria’s revolution Joseph Daher
Lessons from last time: national liberation and the Arab world James Supple
Never going back: Egypt’s continuing revolution Phil Marfleet
Sisi’s Egypt Sameh Naguib
Syria, war and imperialism: why the main enemy is at home Geraldine Fela
Taking sides in Syria Simon Assaf
The spectre of counter-revolution Alex Callinicos
Australia: imperial master of Papua New Guinea Tom Orsag
Australia’s war against Japan: the myth of the ‘good war’ Adrian Skerritt
Robbers and spoilers: Australia and Britain in the 19th century Pacific Tom O’Lincoln
Sheriff Howard on the world stage: a critique of the nationalist response Jean Parker
West Papua: Australian complicity and the fight for freedom Tom Orsag
After 100 years in parliament: Has Labor changed? Phil Griffiths
Four years of Labor: What went wrong? Mark Gillespie
How Peter Garrett lost his way David Glanz
Kevin Rudd, Labor, and the real faceless men Amy Thomas
Labor and the “national interest” Amy Thomas
Labor’s useless policies gave Abbott his chance (2013) Amy Thomas
Saving capitalism: Rudd, Labor and social democracy (2009) Ian Rintoul
“Socialism in our time”: Communists and the NSW Labor Party during the Great Depression Terry Symonds
The tangled roots of Labor Erima Dall
What’s the real Labor tradition? Phil Griffiths
Why Labor got it so wrong (2013) David Glanz
Australian Labor Party history – Solidarity series (in order)
World War 1 and conscription: how the unions fought to expel a Labor Prime Minister Tom Orsag
Socialism in our time: The story of Jack Lang and NSW Labor in the Great Depression Jean Parker
Wage cuts and bailouts: Labor and The Great Depression Jean Parker
The 1950s great Labor split: a battle for control that nearly tore Labor apart James Supple
Whitlam: Labor’s golden age? Jean Parker
Labor’s Accord: How Hawke and Keating began a neo-liberal revolution Jean Parker
Labor’s love affair with the market: the Keating years Jean Parker
1949 coal strike: How Chifley lost Labor’s supporters David Glanz
1973 Ford Broadmeadows strike: how migrant workers rose up Tom Orsag
Defying the law: the 1982 Queensland general strike Amy Thomas
How the penal powers were defeated Amy Thomas
Labor and the depression: the Great coal lockout of 1949 Carl Taylor
MUA here to stay!: ten years on from the Maritime dispute Mark Gillespie
Strike Fraser Out! Phil Griffiths
Understanding Australian history Phil Griffiths
Unions versus Labor: the 1948 rail strike Mark Gillespie
Australian racism (see also Aboriginal oppression and history, Immigration and refugees)
Australian racism: whose ideology? Terry Symonds
Footsoldiers of capital: the influence of RSL racism Sarah Gregson
Probing Australia’s racist roots Mark Goudkamp
Racism and class in Australian history (collection of articles) Phil Griffiths
Racism in Australia: the working class is not to blame James Supple
Racism, White Australia and the union movement Jasmine Ali
Racism: whitewashing the class divide Phil Griffiths
The making of White Australia (thesis) Phil Griffiths
Indonesia: from ‘reformasi’ to reaction Tom O’Lincoln
One of the 20th centuries greatest crimes: inside Indonesia’s anti-Communist purge Lachlan Marshall
Over the hills and far away: left politics in the Phillipines David Glanz
The unchallenged rise of anti-Tamil racism in Sri Lanka Mark Gillespie
1927: When China’s workers struggled for power Feiyi Zhang
Capitalism and class conflict in the new China by Adrian Skerritt
Is China headed for world domination? Feiyi Zhang
Contagious strikes: How China’s workers are fighting back
Leon Trotsky’s collected writings on China
Climate change and the environment
Are first world workers to blame for climate change? Jasmine Ali
Building a movement against climate change Solidarity
Climate change and class conflict Chris Harman
Climate politics after Copenhagen Jonathon Neale
Climate change: why population is not to blame Amy Thomas
Corporations and climate change whmcs Amy Thomas
Fighting Abbott’s climate denial: why we shouldn’t defend the carbon tax Chris Breen
The 1970s anti-uranium campaign James Supple
Marx’s ecology Jasmine Ali
Unions and the fight for the environment Emma Torzillo
Why challenging climate change means challenging capitalism Amy Thomas
Why world leaders love nuclear power Amy Thomas
Marxism and disability Roddy Slorach
From the credit crunch to the spectre of global crisis Chris Harman
Marxist accounts of the current crisis Joseph Choonara
Revolution and civil war in Spain Freya Bundey
Revolution and counter-revolution in Spain Felix Morrow
Trotsky on the rise of fascism (collection)
Trotsky, fascism and the united front Carl Taylor
Plumbing the depths: Marxism and the Holocaust Alex Callinicos
A People’s History of the World Chris Harman
Base and superstructure Chris Harman
Preface of A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy Karl Marx
The German Ideology Karl Marx
Detention, racism and refugees: A Solidarity pamphlet
How the refugee movement changed public opinion last time Ian Rintoul
Immigration is not to blame for cuts to jobs and wages James Supple
Malcolm Fraser’s refugee policy: no model for today Hal Hewson
No need for any refugee detention at all Ian Rintoul
Open letter to the left: welcome 457 visa workers Solidarity
Racism, immigration and border controls James Supple
Refugees and capitalism Jarvis Ryan and Tad Tietze
Refugees and resistance in detention Ian Rintoul
The history of mandatory detention James Supple
Why refugee activists should support open borders James Supple
Analysing imperialism Chris Harman
Imperialism and the world economy Bukharin
Imperialism: the highest stage of capitalism Lenin
The United Nations and the politics of imperialism Duncan Blackie
Was the Second World War a war for democracy? Chris Bambery
Israel: The Hijack State by John Rose
Powerless in Gaza: the Palestinian Authority and the myth of the peace process by Anne Alexander
Aid, governance and exploitation Charlie Kimber
Globalisation and the Third World Phil Marfleet
Chile 1973: the other 11th of September Ian Birchall
Cuba: no model for socialism in the 21st century Mark Gillespie
Cuba, socialism and Castro’s legacy David Glanz
Evo Morales’ wrong turn in Bolivia Mike Gonzales
Haiti: repression and resistance Mike Gonzales
Leninism and revolutionary organisation
Lenin Volume 1: Building the Party Tony Cliff
Lenin: a study in the unity of his thought Georg Lukacs
Party and Class Chris Harman
Marxism and the party John Molyneux
Why do we need a revolutionary party? Tony Cliff
Equal love, equal rights: rediscovering the red in the rainbow Amy Thomas
The roots of gay oppression Norah Carlin
Can identity politics liberate the oppressed? Sharon Smith
Class divisions in the gay community Peter Morgan
A Permanent Arms Economy Mike Kidron
Capital Volume 1 Capital Volume 2 Capital Volume 3 Karl Marx
Crisis in Australian history Phil Griffiths
Economics of the madhouse Chris Harman
Keynes or Marx? Feiyi Zhang
The crisis of bourgeoise economics Chris Harman
The rate of profit and the world today Chris Harman
Unravelling Capitalism Site Joseph Choonara
What is exploitation? Amy Leather
Anti-Duhring Frederick Engels
History and Class Conciousness Georg Lukacs
Is Marxism deterministic? John Molyneux
Theses on Fueurbach Karl Marx
The return of the national question Chris Harman
The right of nations to self-determination Lenin
Marxism and the national question Alex Callinicos
Theorising neoliberalism Chris Harman
Unravelling the neo-liberal paradox with Marx Jean Parker
Deflected permanent revolution Tony Cliff
The permanent revolution Leon Trotsky
Trotsky’s theory of permanent revolution and its relevance to the Third World today Alex Callinicos
The police: armed guards for the rich and powerful James Supple
Racist cops are the real criminals Amy Thomas
Defending multiculturalism Jasmine Ali
Norway massacre: the ugly face of Islamophobia Amy Thomas
The Hijab, Racism and the State Antoine Boulangé
The changing face of racism James Supple
Reform or Revolution Rosa Luxemburg
Marxism and Religion John Molyneux
The Prophet and the Proletariat Chris Harman
The revolutionary ideas of Antonio Gramsci Penny Howard
The Civil War in France Karl Marx
1905 Leon Trotsky
France 1968 Tony Cliff and Ian Birchall
Collected writings on the Spanish revolution Leon Trotsky
The last wave of Arab revolt: Iraq 1958 by Mark Gillespie
Portugal at the crossroads Tony Cliff
The revolutionary press by Chris Harman
What is to be done? Vladimir Lenin
Revolutionary women – Solidarity series
Louise Michel and the Paris Commune Jasmine Ali
Clara Zetkin: women’s suffrage and socialism Lucy Honan
Alexandra Kollontai: revolution and women’s liberation Freya Bundey
Elizabeth Gurley Flynn: rebel women and radical unionism Erima Dall
Sylvia Pankhurst: socialism, suffrage and the sisterhood? Lucy Honan
The Russian Civil War: a Marxist analysis Megan Trudell
The History of the Russian Revolution Leon Trotsky
The Lessons of October Leon Trotsky
The Revolution Betrayed by Leon Trotsky
Engels and natural science Paul McGarr
Engels and the origins of human society Chris Harman
The part played by labour in the transition from ape to man Frederick Engels
Socialist strategy and tactics
The United Front Leon Trotsky
Left-wing communism: an infantile disorder Vladimir Lenin
Whither the Propaganda Perspective Ian Rintoul
Is human nature a barrier to socialism? John Molyneux
Revolution in the 21st century Chris Harman
The Communist Manifesto Karl Marx and Fredreich Engels
The future socialist society John Molyneux
Stalinism and state capitalism
Socialism yes, occupation no!: Czechhoslovakia 1968 by James Robertson
A short autumn of utopia: The East German revolution of 1989 by Gareth Dale
State Capitalism by Peter Binns
Russia: how the revolution was lost by Chris Harman
China: whose revolution? by Charlie Hore
Student power? Chris Harman
Universities in a neoliberal world Alex Callinicos
The state and capitalism today Chris Harman
The State and Revolution by Vladimir Lenin
Marxism and the trade union struggle Tony Cliff and Donny Gluckstein
The general strike Chris Harman
The Mass Strike Rosa Luxemburg
Tony Cliff: a revolutionary thinker by Amy Thomas
Deflected permanent revolution by Tony Cliff
Trotskyism by Alex Callinicos
Trotskyism after Trotsky by Tony Cliff
The new middle class and socialists Alex Callinicos
The workers of the world Chris Harman
Why the working class Hal Draper
1934: The year of the fightback John Newsinger
1937: The year of the sitdown John Newsinger
The hidden history of US radicalism Megan Trudell
Marxism and feminism today by Judith Orr
Theories of patriarchy by Lindsey German
Engels and the Origins of Human Society by Chris Harman
Class struggle and women’s liberation by Tony Cliff
Social Basis of the Woman Question by Alexandra Kollantai
Women’s Liberation and Revolutionary Socialism by Chris Harman
Women and the Communist Party by Phil Griffiths
Army’s rotten sexism: a product of training killers Jasmine Ali
Ghandi’s ‘Salt March’ and the myth of non-violence Lucy Honan
Their Morals and Ours by Leon Trotsky