As a Jewish Bundist movement, we need a political program that expresses the unique blend of Jewish socialism, rooted in our history and traditions, while addressing the contemporary challenges we face. Our program is not meant to be static or rigid—it must adapt to the specific political contexts of different countries and regions. What unites all Bundist movements and individuals across borders are the core principles that have defined Bundism from its inception: doikayt, yiddishkayt, and sotsializm. These concepts form the backbone of our political program, anchoring us in the revolutionary struggle for Jewish liberation and global socialism.
3.a. Doikayt: Here and Now, Everywhere
The concept of doikayt, or “hereness,” is central to Bundist politics. It rejects the Zionist claim that Jewish liberation can only be achieved in a Jewish nation-state, such as Israel. Instead, doikayt calls for organizing the struggle for Jewish liberation in the places where Jewish people currently live. Jewish liberation is not tied to any specific territory but is part of a broader struggle for the liberation of all oppressed peoples, wherever they are.
Doikayt is the antidote to the Zionist “final solution” to the so-called “Jewish problem.” Zionism sought to resolve antisemitism by creating an ethnonationalist Jewish state, rooted in the dispossession of the Palestinian people. Doikayt rejects this colonialist solution and insists that Jewish people, like all other peoples, must fight for their liberation within the countries they inhabit. This liberation is tied to the global socialist movement and must transcend the false binary between local and international struggles.
Why Anti-Zionism?
For the Bund, anti-Zionism is not just a stance on Israel—it is a fundamental part of our anti-imperialist politics. Zionism represents a reactionary response to Jewish oppression, one that aligns itself with imperialist powers and perpetuates new forms of colonialism. Our anti-Zionism is grounded in several key arguments:
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Zionism as an Outpost of Imperialism: Israel is one of the most important outposts of Euro-American imperialism in West Asia. The Zionist state serves as a military and political ally of the U.S. and other Western powers, playing a crucial role in maintaining imperialist control over the region. By struggling for the abolition of the Zionist colony, we directly target a key link in the global imperialist network.
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Palestine as a Symbol of Class Struggle: The Palestinian struggle, much like the Vietnamese struggle decades ago, has become both the symbolic and material focal point of the class struggle today. In the contradictions of this struggle—between settler-colonialism and indigenous resistance, between imperialist power and oppressed peoples—all the contradictions of late-stage capitalism are laid bare.
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Zionism as a Laboratory for Oppression: Israel has become a global laboratory for developing and distributing tools of oppression, from high-tech weapons to surveillance technologies. These tools are “battle-tested” on the Palestinian people and exported to oppressive regimes worldwide. The Zionist state is not just an occupier—it is a supplier of repression.
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Zionism and Antisemitism: The existence of the Zionist colony and the crimes it commits in its ethnic cleansing of Palestine worsen antisemitism globally. By conflating Jewish identity with Zionism, Israel fuels antisemitic rhetoric and violence. For the Bund, the struggle against Zionism is also a struggle against antisemitism. We refuse to allow the Zionist state to hijack Jewish identity.
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Zionism as Antisemitism: Zionist ideology recycles some of the most reactionary antisemitic tropes, such as the idea that Jews cannot live among non-Jews or that Jews are inherently different and require a separate state. This worldview is deeply antisemitic in itself, and we must resist it as part of our broader fight for Jewish liberation.
Doikayt does not mean assimilationism. The Bundist idea of national liberation is one of cultural and political autonomy without the need for a nation-state. Jewish self-determination can and must exist within the broader framework of socialist internationalism.
3.b. Yiddishkayt: Reconnecting to Our Roots
Yiddishkayt, in its broadest sense, refers to the rich cultural traditions of the Jewish diaspora. These traditions, which include Yiddish, Ladino, and the many other languages, customs, and practices of Jewish communities across the world, are essential to our collective identity as Jews. Yiddishkayt is about continuity—about reconnecting to the ancestral cultures that have sustained Jewish communities in exile for centuries.
This continuity is vital in our struggle against Zionism. Zionist ideology deliberately sought to erase and delegitimize these diverse Jewish cultures, promoting a homogenized, nationalist “Hebrew culture” in their place. This erasure was rooted in an antisemitic hatred of the “diaspora Jew,” portraying the diasporic Jewish identity as weak, submissive, and corrupt. The Zionists wanted to replace the “diaspora Jew” with the “new Jew”—a militarized, ethnonationalist identity tied to the settler-colonial project of Israel.
The Bundist struggle for Yiddishkayt is, therefore, a struggle against this deliberate destruction of Jewish diaspora cultures. It is a struggle to reclaim our history and resist the Zionist erasure of Jewish traditions that existed for millennia in exile.
Furthermore, Yiddishkayt is part of the broader fight for the right of minority communities to live according to their own traditions and insights. It is the fight for national and communal self-determination, where cultures can thrive without the need for assimilation or domination by hegemonic states.
Fighting Antisemitism
Central to Yiddishkayt is the ongoing struggle against antisemitism. This struggle requires a clear understanding of antisemitism’s historical roots, which are deeply embedded in Christian Europe. We reject the false Zionist claim that antisemitism is primarily an Arab or Muslim phenomenon. The roots of antisemitism are white-European and Christian, and they have been weaponized by Zionists to justify the oppression of Palestinians. Yiddishkayt must stand in solidarity with all marginalized peoples, recognizing the intersectionality of their struggles.
3.c. Sotsializm: The Only Path to Liberation
Finally, Bundism is rooted in sotsializm—the socialist belief that the liberation of the Jewish people, and all oppressed peoples, is impossible under the conditions of the capitalist imperialist world order. Jewish workers will never be free as long as the means of production are owned by a tiny group of wealthy capitalists, whether Jewish or not. Similarly, no community or nation can be truly free while the global economy is dominated by imperialist powers and multinational corporations.
Colonialism gave rise to the racialization of people and the creation of “racial” hierarchies that continue to shape the world today. Antisemitism is an integral part of this cluster of racisms that lie at the heart of capitalist colonial ideology. Just as Black and Indigenous peoples have been racialized and exploited, so too have Jews been targeted through antisemitism.
But antisemitism is also a tool of divide and rule, separating Jewish workers from their non-Jewish comrades. The Jewish working class and the Jewish bourgeoisie have nothing in common. Their interests are diametrically opposed. Jewish workers must unite with non-Jewish workers in a global front against the bourgeoisie, both Jewish and non-Jewish.
This united front is the only path to real liberation. Sotsializm calls for the abolition of capitalism and imperialism, and the construction of a classless, stateless society. Only through the destruction of these oppressive systems can the Jewish people, and all people, be truly free.
Conclusion
A Bundist political program for our time must be rooted in the principles of doikayt, yiddishkayt, and sotsializm. These concepts provide a roadmap for Jewish liberation that rejects Zionism and imperialism, embraces cultural and communal autonomy, and fights for the overthrow of capitalism. By grounding ourselves in this political program, we can continue the struggle for a world in which all peoples are free to determine their own destinies—together, in solidarity with one another.