MIM Notes # 222       Nov 15, 2000

Struggle for the liberation of Aztlan and Latin America 
advances: SLALA accepts MIM leadership, takes its place 
alongside RAIL, USW

On October 1, Studies for the Liberation of Aztlan and Latin 
America (SLALA) officially accepted the leadership of the 
Maoist Internationalist Movement (MIM). Similar to the 
Revolutionary Anti-Imperialist League (RAIL) and United 
Struggle from Within (USW), SLALA is mass organization open to 
all people who support the right of nations to self 
determination, including the necessity of armed struggle 
against imperialism. SLALA differs from RAIL only in its focus 
on organizing among the people of Aztlan and Latin American 
sojourners.

The founders of SLALA express admiration for Marxism-Leninism-
Maoism in general and MIM in particular. This is why they 
approached MIM to from a mass organization explicitly led by 
MIM. Some SLALA members may go on to join the multi-national 
MIM or a future fraternal, single-nationality Maoist party. 
Some SLALA members may never do so. There will always be 
people who are ready to join mass organizations like SLALA and 
RAIL but not a Maoist party -- perhaps because they have not 
made up their minds about Maoism yet, perhaps because they do 
not wish all the rigors of party membership. While MIM hopes 
that these people will go on to join a Maoist party, we honor 
the important role played by non-party organizations like RAIL 
and SLALA.

SLALA aims to be a link between the multi-national MIM and the 
spontaneous mass movement in Aztlan. SLALA should organize 
revolutionary activity amongst the people of Aztlan and Latin 
American sojourners to broaden and strengthen the Maoist-led 
anti-imperialist movement in u.$. borders.

SLALA clearly and unrelentingly identifies the problems of 
Aztlan and Latin America as rooted in imperialist production 
where finance capital is dominant and export of capital reaps 
international superprofits. These superprofits form the 
material basis for reformism, complacency, and support for 
Amerikan imperialism among internal semi-colonies like Aztlan. 
SLALA members are internationalists. SLALA recognizes that 
armed struggle for national liberation as the only viable 
solution to the problems facing the people of Latin America 
and Aztlan.

SLALA plans to provide material assistance to Notas Rojas , 
MIM's Spanish-language newsletter, in the form of writers, 
translators, production help, fundraisers, distributors, etc. 
SLALA also aims to launch its own regular, self-supporting 
newsletter. In this way, SLALA will help develop a forum which 
will expose the masses of Aztlan to Maoist-led anti-
imperialism, which will advance the righteous demands of the 
masses, and which will criticize the shortcomings of reformism 
and liberal politics.

SLALA studies the class structure of internal colonies and the 
appropriate means to organize all of the classes of Aztlan 
that can be rallied in order to create a mass, Maoist-led 
anti-imperialist movement.

SLALA's foundation reflects the correctness of MIM's 
theoretical and organizational line, persistent ideological 
struggle by MIM and SLALA organizers, and the hard work of 
SLALA and MIM.

What is the relationship between MIM and SLALA?

MIM leads SLALA. In practice, this means that SLALA members do 
not hide the fact of MIM leadership and do not uphold the 
leadership of any other party or organization with a worked 
out political line (like Trotskyism, etc.). SLALA accepts open 
criticism from the MIM as a necessary condition to promote the 
strategic tasks of the organization and unity between the MIM 
and SLALA.

Voting members of SLALA represent the leadership of SLALA and 
have a say on what projects are done and how they are 
implemented. Voting members of SLALA do not disagree with the 
three cardinal points (see p. 2). It is Ok if voting members 
do not have a position on these principles, but they must not 
disagree with them. For example, voting members do not 
actively oppose the theory that there is a sizeable labor-
aristocracy even inside internal semi-colonies. 

Voting members take an active role in planning and carrying 
out SLALA activities. This includes providing financial 
support for SLALA.

Non-voting members of SLALA engage in theoretical struggle 
(e.g., argument over the nature of Amerika's militarization of 
its borders, or over whether anarchism or Leninism provides 
the most effective organizing model), agree to abide by the 
guidelines of study (see the document Guidelines for Study) 
and credit MIM and SLALA leadership with what they gather from 
SLALA-led study, events, and literature. Non-voting members 
considering or currently carrying out the tasks of voting 
members are encouraged to become voting members.

For more information on SLALA email pc_aztlan@hotmail.com

For more information on MIM and RAIL email mim@mim.org