06.11.1997

The distribution of Russian socialism

From ‘The Call’, paper of the British Socialist Party, November 1 1917

There is a remarkable shift to the left observable at present in Russia, which finds its expression in the overwhelming victory of the Bolsheviks (Maximalists - that is, followers of Lenin) in the elections to the Councils of Workmen’s and Soldiers’ Delegates and the municipalities, and the rout of the Revolutionary Socialists and the Mensheviks (opportunist social democrats).

Even before this latest transformation the situation was very remarkable, as shown in an article in Maxim Gorky’s social democratic paper, the Novaya Zhizn. In the issue of September 22 it published an article showing the ‘geographical’ distribution of the socialist forces in the republic ...

Disregarding the members of the special military organisations of the parties, who number 29,000 Bolsheviks and 4,000 Menshe-viks, but who are scattered all over the country, there are, according to the representation at the recent respective party congresses, 292,000 members of the Bolshevik, and 189,000 members of the Menshevik social democratic party.

The Bolsheviks are predominant in the Petrograd region (41,000 Bolsheviks and 13,000 Mensheviks), in the Moscow region (58,000 B and 3,000 M), the Baltic region (14,000 B and 3,000 M), the Volga region (12,000 B and 8,000 M), the Ural region (25,000 B and 11,000 M), and Asiatic Russia (10,000 B and 4,000 M) ...

As against this, the Mensheviks prevail in Western Provinces (18,000 M, with no Bs), in the Donetsk district (20,000 M and 16,000 B), Novozossia - that is, southern Russia (11,000 M and 9,000 B), and in the Caucasus (45,000 M and 9,000 B). In these regions also works the Jewish ‘Bund’, which is entirely Menshevik ...

It is however remarkable that, though preponderantly Men-shevik, the social democrats of the Donetsk district, as well as the large industrial cities like Petrograd, Moscow, Tula, etc, belong to the internationalist wing of the Menshevik party! It is certain that fully two thirds of the social democratic proletariat of Russia is internationalist.

Since the above was written, the Maximalists and the internationalists, as said, have gained immense ground, and what were formerly Menshevik organisations have now become Bolshevik.