Marxist Winter School #3: The American Civil War to end slavery

The American Civil War of 1861-1865 is what Marxists consider the Second American Revolution. It finally uprooted slavery and paved the way for the struggle of the working class to unfold on a gigantic scale. As Marx said at the time, “Labor in the white skin can never free itself as long as labor in the black skin is branded.” While this revolution was a tremendous step forward, it never realized its promise to Black people.  In light of today’s mass struggle against racism, it is important to return to one of the most pivotal events in this long fight. In this episode, John Peterson, editor of Socialist Revolution, the paper of the US section of the International Marxist Tendency, discusses the American Civil War to end slavery.