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and other popular movements in Europe in the early 1800s. Politics Some socialists believed that socialists could take state power in democratic elections, so they tried to make socialist parties in their own countries win elections. Others thought that state was created to maintain capitalism and that capitalists would never allow communists to take power, so there needed to be a war or revolution in order to create a new workers state. Many countries have claimed to be workers states, but many communists debate this. Most of these countries did hold elections, but in most cases the only candidates that were allowed belonged to the communist party, so the elections were not free ones (elections where many candidates with differing views are allowed to run for office). Some of these countries' leaders such as Stalin or Mao Zedong had lots of strict laws and a secret police force to keep themselves in power. People could be sent to prison or killed for speaking against the government. Most of these countries had a legislature to make laws. Most of the time, the legislature usually did not have any real power and usually just approved the proposals of the leaders. The Communist Party had all the real political power. Most of the countries that claimed to be workers states either had a violent revolution or were invaded by a country that left behind a government. Some democratic countries today have active communist parties, such as in India, Italy and France.

In some countries, especially those that used to be ruled by communist parties, the communist party is illegal or discouraged from holding power (like in Eastern Europe). History

People who do not support communism usually say that the example of the Soviet Union and other similar countries proves that communism is dangerous and does not work. During the 20th century, many people tried to establish workers states. In the late 1940's, China also had a revolution and created a new government with Mao Zedong as its leader. In the 1950's, the island of Cuba had a revolution and created a new government with Fidel Castro as its leader. At one time, there were many such countries and it seemed as though communism would win. But, communist party governments forgot to use democracy, a very important part of socialism and communism. Because of this, the governments became separate from the people, making communism impossible. This also led to disagreements and splits between countries. By the 1960's, one-third of the world had overthrown capitalism and were trying to build communism. Most of these countries followed the model of the Soviet Union, and some followed the model of China. The other twothirds of the world still lived in capitalism, and this led to a worldwide divide between capitalist countries and countries that called themselves 'socialist.' This was called the "Cold War", a war that was not fought with weapons or armies, but competing ideas. However, this could have turned into a large war, because the USA and the Soviet Union were also competing in having the largest army and having the most dangerous weapons. This was called the "Arms Race". Since 1989, when the Berlin Wall was torn down, most countries that used to

The Hammer and Sickle, the symbol of communism and workers' power. Communism is a political way of thinking and an idea of how society should work and be organized. Communism is a kind of socialism that says that there should not be social classes or states. Communism says that the people of any and every place in the world should all own the tools, factories, and farms that are used to produce goods and food. This social process is known as common ownership. In a communist society, there is no private property.

Karl Marx In 1848, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote The Communist Manifesto, a short book with the basic ideas of communism. Most socialists and communists today still use this book to help them understand politics and economics. Many noncommunists read it too, even if they do not agree with everything in it. Karl Marx said that for society to change into a communist way of living, there would have to be a transitional period. During this transitional period, the workers would rule their country. Marx's ideas were liked by many groups and individuals, and in 1917, Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky led a Russian group called the Bolsheviks in the October Revolution which got rid of the provincial government of Russia, which was formed after the February Revolution against the Tsar (Emperor), and established the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Also called the Soviet Union or USSR).

Philosophy

The Communist Manifesto According to Communist writers and thinkers, the goal of communism is for workers to take control of factories and business and to manage the economy democratically. Communism says that poverty, war and pollution are inevitable under capitalism. After workers established a government in the interests of all they would slowly bring all of the tools of production under their control, until a classless and stateless society was created. This is an old idea, but it became popular after the French Revolution

Friedrich Engels The Soviet Union was the first country claiming to have established a workers state, but in reality the country never became communist in the way that Marx and Engels described. People who support communism say that this is because these countries lacked democracy.

call themselves workers states have returned to capitalism, so that communism has much less influence around the world. In 1991, the Soviet Union broke up. However, around a quarter of the world's people still live in states controlled by a communist party, most of these in the People's Republic of China. The other countries include Cuba, Vietnam, and Laos. There are also communist movements in Latin America and South Asia. Disputes Many people have written their own ideas about communism. Vladimir Lenin of Russia thought that there had to be a group of hard-working revolutionaries (called a vanguard) to lead a socialist revolution worldwide and create a communist society everywhere. Leon Trotsky, also from Russia, argued that socialism had to be international, and it was not important to make it happen first in Russia. He also did not like Joseph Stalin, who became the leader of the USSR after Lenin's death in 1924. Trotsky was made to leave the Soviet Union by Stalin in 1928, and then killed in 1940. This scared many people, and lots of communists argued about whether this was right and whose ideas should be followed. Stalin thought that it was important to make the Soviet Union powerful first, then spread it around the world when it was stronger. Many communists (like Leon Trotsky) said that Stalin was not a real communist, because the original idea of communism needed small groups of workers voting and deciding on things together, and Stalin in no way supported voting or democracy. Yet there are communist schools of thought which agree with Stalin, mainly because of his rapid

industrialization and victory over Germany. Mao Zedong of China thought that other classes would be important to the revolution in China and other third world countries because the working classes in these countries were small. Mao's ideas on communism are usually called Maoism or Mao Zedong Thought. After the death of Stalin in 1953, Mao saw himself as the leader of worldwide communism until he died in 1976. Today the Chinese government is still ruled by the Communist Party, but they actually have what is called a mixed economy, and they have borrowed many things from capitalism. The government in China today does not follow Maoism, but revolutionaries in other countries like India and Nepal like his ideas and are trying to use them in their own countries. Symbols and culture The color red is a symbol of communism around the world. A red five-pointed star sometimes also stands for communism. The hammer and sickle is a well known symbol of communism and was on the flags of many countries that claimed to be building communism (see top of article). Some communists also like to use pictures of famous communists from history, such as Marx, Lenin and Mao Zedong, as symbols of the whole philosophy of communism. A song called The Internationale was the international song of communism. It has the same music everywhere, but the words to the song are translated into very many languages. There is also a special kind of art and architecture found in many communist and former communist countries.

Paintings done in the style of socialist realism are often done for propaganda to show an ideal version of a country's people and political leader. Art done in the socialist realism style, such as plays, movies, novels and paintings show hardworking, happy and well-fed factory workers and farmers. Movies, plays and novels in this style often tell stories about workers or soldiers who sacrifice themselves for the good of the country. Paintings often showed heroic portraits of the leader, or landscapes showing huge fields of wheat. Stalinist architecture was supposed to represent the power and glory of the state and its political leader. Some non-communists also enjoy this kind of art. Other pages