Anticapitalistas

Anticapitalistas
Founded	1995 (as Espacio Alternativo) 2009 (as Izquierda Anticapitalista) 2015 (as Anticapitalistas)
Ideology	Socialism Feminism Ecologism Trotskyism Gramscianism Republicanism Participative democracy
Political position	Left-wing
National affiliation	Podemos
European affiliation	European Anti-Capitalist Left
International affiliation	Fourth International (post-reunification)
European Parliament	2 / 54 [1]
Website
www.anticapitalistas.org
Politics of Spain Political parties Elections

Anticapitalistas (Catalan: Anticapitalistes, Euskera: Antikapitalistak, English language: Anticapitalists), until January 2015 Izquierda Anticapitalista (Anti-Capitalist Left, IA) and from 1995 to November 2008 Espacio Alternativo (Alternative Space, EA) is a political organization, that works as a confederation, in Spain. Anticapitalistas is defined as a revolutionary, anti-capitalist, internationalist, feminist and socialist organization, assuming Marxism in an open, plural and critical sense. Its stated objective is the rebuilding of the revolutionary project through the creation of a unitary, anti-capitalist political expression sustained by the Anti-globalization movement, the labor movement and the social movements at large. On February 23, 2009 IA entered in the register of political parties of the Interior Ministry, and presented candidacies to several elections. In January 2015 IA decided to become the Anticapitalistas political association to join the political party Podemos.^[2]

History

Espacio Alternativo

Anticapitalistas was founded in 1995 under the name Espacio Alternativo (Alternative Space) by former militants of the Revolutionary Communist League (LCR), after its failed union with the Communist Movement, in the project Alternative Left, joined United Left (IU). By then, EA also had the support of some ecosocialists. Subsequently, the organization gained members in and out of IU. However, EA progressively lost weight as an internal current of IU, mainly due to the rupture with the ecosocialist sectors that originally participated in its foundation. Some prominent leaders of IU linked to EA abandoned the current in the early 2000s, for example, Julio Setién, Oskar Matute or Concha Denche. EA was, de facto, an external organization towards IU.

EA held the 5th confederal meeting in December 2007, abandoning IU.^[3]

Organization

Anticapitalistas is an organization composed of various territorial organizations, the majority federated and three confederated: Esquerda Anticapitalista in Galiza, Antikapitalistak (in the Southern Basque Country) and Revolta Global-Esquerra Anticapitalista (in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands).

Publications

Its organ of expression is the Corriente Alterna magazine, The youths of Anticapitalistas periodically publish a magazine called Combate Estudiantil. Several members also have a strong presence on the editorial board of the Marxist analysis magazine Viento Sur.

Summer University

Every year Anticapitalistas organizes the Summer University of the Anticapitalist Left, which brings together hundreds of people, including members and sympathizers. The 2013 edition was attended by Juan Carlos Monedero, Pablo Iglesias Turrión, Martiño Noriega, Sabino Cuadra, Esther Vivas and Jaime Pastor. The 2015 edition was attended by the Anticapitalistas European MPs Miguel Urbán and Lola Sánchez Caldentey, Katerina Sergidou, Pedro Santisteve (mayor of Zaragoza), José María González Santos Kichi (mayor of Cádiz), Albano Dante Fachín (leader of Podemos in Catalonia), Jaime Pastor, Beatriz Gimeno, Teresa Rodríguez, Teresa Forcades, Antón Sánchez and Rommy Arce (member of the Municipal Council of Madrid, of Anticapitalistas and Ahora Madrid).^[4]

Relation with other movements

Anticapitalistas prioritizes working in left-wing citizen platforms and in the anti-globalization movement. Its field of political intervention lies in the social movements (such as the feminist movement, environmentalist, student movement, decent housing and the anti-evictions movement), in the trade union movement (in the mareas that defend public and common services and in Comisiones Obreras and other unions) and also works in neighborhood associations and popular assemblies.

International relations

Anticapitalistas is a member of the European Anti-Capitalist Left, a heterogeneous network of socialist political groups of various tendencies that have a marxist inspiration. Anticapitalistas also participates in the United Secretariat of the Fourth International (post-reunification), considered itself the heir of the former LCR and the historic POUM.

References

1. Inside Podemos.
2. «Izquierda Anticapitalista decide dejar de ser un partido político para integrarse en Podemos». eldiario.es. EFE. 16 de enero de 2015.
3. «Dirigentes de IU abandona la coalición para "construir una nueva fuerza anticapitalista"», Europa Press, 22 de octubre de 2008.
4. La sexta edición de la Universidad de Verano Anticapitalista se volverá a celebrar en La Granja (Segovia). Archived July 5, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.