Red Guards (United States)

Red Guards
Founded2015 (2015)
Dissolved2019 (as Red Guards) (2019 (as Red Guards))
2022 (complete dissolution) (2022 (complete dissolution))
Succeeded byCommittee to Reconstitute the Communist Party USA (CR-CPUSA) (2019–2022)
NewspaperIncendiary News (2018–2020)
Tribune of the People (2020–2022)
Membership200 (estimated max)[citation needed]
IdeologyCommunism
Marxism–Leninism–Maoism
Anti-revisionism
Revolutionary socialism
Political positionFar-left
Party flag

The Red Guards were American "Marxist–Leninist–Maoist collectives of community organizers and mass workers"[1] originating in Los Angeles and Austin with other branches operating in Kansas City, Pittsburgh, and Charlotte, as well as St. Louis and San Marcos, under the distinct titles of Red Path Saint Louis and San Marcos Revolutionary Front respectively.[2]

The group was named after the Red Guards that operated under Mao Zedong in the People's Republic of China during the Cultural Revolution that were composed of militant students who campaigned against the "reactionary and bourgeois" culture of China. The Red Guards opposed left-wing organizations they deemed revisionist, such as the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), and the Communist Party of the United States (CPUSA).

Since 2019, all Red Guards chapters have either been abandoned or have announced their dissolution. According to a report in The Daily Beast, several organizations speculated to be connected to former Red Guards, such as the Committee to Reconstitute the CPUSA, United Neighborhood Defense Movement, and the dormant Mike Ramos Brigade, continued activity through 2022 before shutting down [3]

  1. ^ Caterine, Joseph. "Red Guards and the Modern Face of Protest". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Weill, Kelly (October 22, 2023). "Ex-Members of This Maoist Clique Say It Was a 'Cult'". The Daily Beast. Retrieved October 23, 2023.