Solidarity with Youth and Student Militants in Brazil and India! MER-RSM Canada

September 4, 2018Posted by 

Around the world militants and organizers face harsh repression. This past week it was made clear by the arrest of 8 prominent revolutionary supporters in India. Students and youth are calling for strikes across India to rally to the defense of the imprisoned organizers. This is just a month after an assassination attempt by Hindu-fascist agents against Umar Khalid – a member of Bhagat Singh Ambedkar Students’ Organisation (BASO) in India. On the other side of the globe – Igor Mendes and 23 other student organizers were convicted in Brazil for being defenders of the oppressed masses.
In these cases what are the reasons behind the attacks, be they from the state or the fascists? Umar was simply attending a presentation on the lynching of Dalits which took place after the Hindu nationalist BJP Modi government took power. Igor and his comrades had been organizing with the residents of the impoverished neighbourhoods around the large cities to fighting displacement resulting from the FIFA and Olympic events. In short, these militants were targeted for daring to defend and fight alongside the oppressed masses in their respective countries. Umar Khalid says it best: “the question is what does “freedom” even mean if the citizens of this country have to be ready to die for their “crime” of just being vocal against injustice?”
The events this summer have shown two things: First, as the revolutionary movement grows the ruling class becomes so terrified of revolution and liberation that it goes to greater and greater extremes to stop the next generation of organizers from raising our heads high. Second, in the face of repression the only response can be to continue the fight against the state and recognize the trio of enemies of the people: Capitalism, Imperialism, and Colonialism.
As the Revolutionary Student Movement our tasks are to unite proletarian youth and students to fight for their interests as well as training the next generation of organizers. While it would be arrogant to compare our experiences to what the militants mentioned above are facing, we have also seen growing repression of our comrades and supporters being arrested and harassed by police and fascists. We know that as our efforts reach the scope of organizing of our comrades abroad, we too will see attacks on us escalate. We are never glad to face repression, it wastes time we can better spend organizing, but when the choice is to cower or resist there is only one clear choice.
Solidarity with Umar Khalid in the face of fascist attacks!
Solidarity with Igor Mendes and the Brazilian 23 facing arrests for democratic protest!
Solidarity with the August 29^th 8 in India unjustly imprisoned by the hindu-fascist state!

Solidarity with all revolutionary youth and students across the globe facing the intensifying counterrevolutionary trend of repression!

In struggle,

Revolutionary Student Movement – 2018 Ontario Regional Conference
Revolutionary Student Movement – Pan-Canadian Coordinating Committee