Iran and the Western Left: What is our primary task?

Once again, we are assailed by a pointless debate on the left over whether the recent protests in Iran comprise a ‘genuine’ popular uprising or another imperialist-backed ‘color revolution’. Such debates highlight the national chauvinism that is deeply held in the thinking of many western leftists on both sides. Left unsaid is the fact that the Iranian people do not need our approval to manage their own affairs. It is not the task of western leftists to determine the proper course for Iran or any other foreign land. It is our task to fight imperialism, and the best way to do so is to organize the working class in our own countries. Does this mean we should ignore imperialism’s crimes in around the world? It does not. However, rather than attempting the highly complex and ultimately pointless task of determining the precise character of movements and organizations in countries thousands of miles away, we need only apply a simple principle: national self-determination. We ought to oppose any and all interference by our own imperialist governments in the affairs of other nations, and more importantly, we must recognize and respect the ability of other peoples to govern themselves. The development of working class power in the imperialist countries is the only way to decisively defeat imperialism and safeguard the independent development of the repressed nations. We should turn all our energies toward that task rather than second guessing the working class in other countries.