Left communism in China

Not to be confused with the Ultra-left or Left communism, which refer to a specific current of Marxist socialism.

In the People's Republic of China since 1967, the terms "ultra-left" and "left communist" (simplified Chinese: 共产主义左翼; traditional Chinese: 共產主義左翼; pinyin: Gòngchǎn zhǔyì zuǒyì) refers to political theory and practice self-defined as further "left" than that of the central Maoist leaders at the height of the Cultural Revolution. The terms are also used retroactively to describe some early 20th century Chinese anarchist orientations. As a slur, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has used the term "ultra-left" more broadly to denounce any socialist orientation it considers further "left" than the party line or "left in form, but right in essence". The accused position does not need to actually represent a left communist tendency to be denounced by the Party as such. According to the latter usage, the CCP Central Committee — disapproving of the turmoil brought about during the Cultural Revolution — posthumously denounced Mao Zedong in 1978 as having been "ultra-left" and deviant from the party line in the period from 1956 until his death in 1976.

This article only concerns:

  1. the self-defined ultra-left of the Cultural Revolution (GPCR)
  2. more recent theoretical trends and tendencies who have drawn inspiration from the ultra-left of the GPCR, China's anarchist legacy, and international left-communist traditions.
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