Sectarianism is a recurring problem in our movements. Sometimes it comes from prioritizing efficiency and constant progress, but it’s also the result of militants who are dogmatic about their organization’s program. They can’t see the situation in front of them and are quick to look suspiciously at anyone else working on a different political program.
For example, some political organizations defend an ideological (dogmatic) definition of friends and enemies. For them, it’s a constant distinction made between social classes, not necessarily between political actors, social movements, or mass organizations on the ground, in real life. These kinds of orgs don’t use an analysis of the conjuncture to determine who they can work with at a given moment, so they’re less flexible organizationally to move between different fronts of struggle where the distinction between friend and enemy might be made using different methods or based on different experiences.
We have to consider more than just what people believe; we have to consider what they do.
On top of that, only ever talking about the new society at the end of the road of struggle isn’t a good basis for gaining comrades today. It’s likely to result in seeing everyone as an irredeemable enemy. If we’re too idealistic, if we prioritize our utopian visions over the reality of today, we’ll incorrectly conclude that anyone who doesn’t share our final objectives for an ideal society is ignorant, unenlightened, or a class traitor. We’ll also make this mistake if we prioritize constant progress toward revolution at a rapid and steady pace. These shortcuts will not lead our movements down the most strategic path and will risk making enemies out of potential comrades.
The capture of revolutionary militants by reformist movements and “big tent” political organizations often leads people inside and outside of these movements to see each other as enemies. Being too reactive about a political project happening right now can easily devolve into a sectarian dead-end. This only distracts from the political organizing and social work that especifismo militants are trying to realize over the long term.
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