Red Army Faction: The Urban Guerilla Concept

by Red Army Faction, André Moncourt (Translator), J. Smith (Translator)

The first major ideological text from West Germany's most famous urban guerillas. This document merits attention from anyone who wants to understand the motivation and ideology behind the beginning of a long and violent confrontation between the Red army Faction and the German state. Apart from setting out the justification for armed struggle this text touches the strength of the capitalist system in West Germany; the weaknesses of the revolutionary Left; the significance of the German student movement; the meaning and importance of internationalism; the necessity for taking a revolutionary initiative; the importance of class analysis and political praxis; the failure of parliamentary democracy and how this had the inevitable consequence of political violence; the factionalism of the German Left; and the organization and logistics of setting up an illegal armed struggle. Trnaslated and introduced by Anthony Murphy

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Politics, Germany

30 pages, Pamphlet

First published March 4, 2005

About the author

West-German communist "urban guerrilla" political organisation.

The RAF was formally founded in 1970 by Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Horst Mahler, Ulrike Meinhof, Irmgard Möller.

The Red Army Faction operated from the late 1960s to 1998 leading to 34 deadly casualities.

The RAF was officially disbanded on 20 April 1998.

Reviews

[Nocheevo · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the first ideological text produced by the Red Army Faction (or as referred to in the "system's" media the Baader- Meinhof gang). Its essentially a split between manifesto and excuse letter, having been released after the operation to free Baader, and it does provide an interesting insight into German/ cold war politics of the time.

Like many writings of this nature there is lots of broad labels and quote heavy rhetoric but little practical substance. The Urban Guerilla Concept is a misleading title in that it fails to provide any detail in the purpose of the guerilla and mechanism about which the revolution could be achieved.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

"By the time the conditions are right for armed struggle, it will be too late to prepare for it."

[Shulamith Farhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

In April of 1971, some kids in Berlin took a leap of faith. A lot of what they talk about is specific to their context, but the lesson is general. The establishment institutions assumed that the State was still under their control; they were wrong. They are ruthless in their criticism of student politics, which they convincingly argue was too concerned with making sure its footnotes were immaculate and forgot the primacy of practice. They reject all attempts at pacification that lead to deradicalization. It will no longer be enough to understand reality aesthetically; it must be approached politically. At the end of the day, D. Fox's verdict on the RAF remains correct - militant dysphoria makes mistakes in its struggle to break free of a world that limits it, but no one can deny its lucidity. The pamphlet ends with a quotation from Harry Cleaver, that I will reproduce in full: "Either you are part of the problem or you are part of the solution. There is nothing in between. The whole shit has been researched and examined from all sides already. I'm of the opinion that the majority of things in this country are not in need of any more analysis or study." Well said, Harry.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been into the RAF since I first heard about them when I was 15... good read if you're moderately versed in left political theory... I was mildly taken aback at how dead in line this communique was with my own political beliefs back when I was an active anarcho-communist

[Kersplebedeb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is available from the Kersplebedeb Literature Rack. You can

[Patrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much about the concept of urban guerilla itself. More of a justification "Mao said this, Lenin said that. Rightwingers and petty leftists are such jerks.

[Grump · Rating 2 out of 5]

Commie shit from the 70s. Be ready to do more than talk comrades! The RAF seems to be stating here that they're ready to take up arms against the shitty coalition government in West Germany and fight American imperialism in general. Also they really don't like the Springer publishing group and its flagship magazine Bild. Not much to be learned here.

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good-ass praxis

[M. Serdar Karaman · Rating 5 out of 5]

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