John Bachtell (born March 26, 1956) is a

far-left Far-left politics, also known as the radical left or the extreme left, are politics further to the left on the left–right political spectrum than the standard political left. The term does not have a single definition. Some scholars consider ...

politician,

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Marxist Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...

, activist, trade unionist, and community organizer who served as the Chairman of the National Committee of the

Communist Party USA The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revo ...

from its 30th National Convention in 2014 until its 31st National Convention in 2019.

Career

Bachtell worked as an organizer for the Communist Party in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

and was a member of the party's National Committee. He was for a time the leader of the New York party. In an article published in ''

Political Affairs ''Political Affairs Magazine'' was a monthly Marxist publication, originally published in print and later online only. It aimed to provide an analysis of events from a working class point of view. The magazine was a publication of the Communist P ...

'' magazine right after his election, Bachtell laid out his analysis of the contemporary political situation in the United States and how Communists should conduct themselves within it. He emphasized that the Communist Party will seek a peaceful transition to socialism so long as it is possible, saying "Given the development of democratic institutions and traditions in the U.S., involvement in the electoral arena and political action is essential and grows in importance. It entails building broad anti-ultra right, reform and anti-monopoly coalitions that win majorities and thus power in every democratic institution e.g., school boards, planning boards, city council, county boards, state legislature, federal office, in 'red' and 'blue' states."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bachtell, John 1956 births Living people American communists American socialists Antioch College alumni People from Yellow Springs, Ohio People from Chicago Communist Party USA politicians Far-left politicians in the United States Illinois socialists Ohio socialists Far-left politics in the United States