The Bundist movement, both in its historical and contemporary forms, has always been rooted in solidarity. To fight effectively for Jewish liberation, we must recognize that our struggle is deeply interconnected with other struggles for justice. Today, the Jewish Bundist movement must find new and creative ways to collaborate with a wide variety of movements that share our anti-capitalist, anti-imperialist, and anti-Zionist principles. The strength of the Bund comes not only from its focus on Jewish liberation but from its capacity to build alliances with other oppressed peoples and movements.

Intersectionality: Understanding Oppression as a Whole

At the heart of our struggle lies an intersectional understanding of oppression. We must recognize that antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, sexism, queerphobia, and class oppression are not isolated phenomena—they are all integral components of the same patriarchal, colonial, and capitalist system. Our political program must reflect this understanding, fighting against all these forms of domination and exploitation simultaneously.

The Bund must act as a unifying force, bringing together diverse groups that are all fighting against different facets of the same system. This means recognizing the different intersecting struggles and seeing Jewish liberation as one piece of the larger struggle for universal emancipation. It also means resisting any narrow, sectarian focus on purely Jewish issues, while embracing a broader, more inclusive vision of justice and liberation for all.

Contradictions: Friends and Enemies in the Struggle

In building alliances, it is critical to distinguish between the contradictions we face in our struggle. As Mao Zedong famously wrote, we must differentiate between “contradictions between us and our enemies”—that is, the contradictions between the working class and the imperialist bourgeoisie—and “contradictions among the people”, which exist between various movements and comrades.

This framework helps us understand the difference between enemies who perpetuate oppression and comrades who may not fully agree with us on every issue but share the same ultimate goals of liberation and justice. We must build alliances with socialist, anti-Zionist, and anti-imperialist movements, recognizing comrades who move in the same direction as us, even when tactical or theoretical differences arise. At the same time, we must distance ourselves from reactionary forces, whether they exist within Jewish communities or elsewhere, who uphold Zionism, imperialism, and capitalism.

Building an Interfaith Intersocialist Movement

Another crucial area of solidarity is with radical progressive forces within the broader Judeo-Islamic and interfaith socialist movements. In today’s world, one of the most powerful centers of the anti-imperialist struggle lies in the collaboration between Jews and Muslims, particularly between radical anti-Zionist Jewish movements and Muslim resistance organizations (both Sunni and Shia). These alliances have been particularly evident in the Palestinian struggle, where Palestinian and Jewish anti-Zionist movements work hand-in-hand against the occupation and apartheid regime.

But the potential for collaboration goes beyond this. Radical Sikh, Christian, and other religious socialist movements are also engaged in struggles against various forms of capitalism and imperialism. Building the Bundist movement must be seen as part of building an interfaith socialist movement, one that is rooted in the shared ethical foundations of the world’s prophetic traditions—Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, and others—all of which call for justice, liberation, and the protection of the oppressed.

Forging Ties with the Broader Labor Movement

At the same time, the Bundist movement cannot afford to ignore the broader labor movement. Historically, the Bund was a labor-oriented movement, dedicated to organizing Jewish workers as part of the global working-class struggle. Today, we must renew those ties with the unions, workers’ parties, and labor organizations around the world. However, we must approach this collaboration with a clear-eyed recognition that many labor movements today are reformist or compromised by capitalist interests.

The task of the Bundist movement is to raise the political level of the labor movement to a consequent anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist level. By bringing our anti-imperialist and anti-Zionist politics into the labor movement, we can help steer unions and workers’ parties toward more radical positions, connecting their struggles for economic justice with the broader fight against colonialism and imperialism.

Identifying Major Allies in the Anti-Zionist Resistance

The global struggle against Zionism has helped identify major allies for the Bundist movement. Over the last several years, the anti-Zionist resistance has been led by a surprising coalition of groups. Young Jewish anti-Zionists, often drawing inspiration from Bundism, have taken a leading role. They are joined by Muslim comrades, particularly Palestinians and Lebanese, who have been at the forefront of the struggle against Zionist occupation and oppression.

The involvement of radical queer activists has also been a key feature of this alliance. These activists, often marginalized within traditional leftist movements, have found a place in the intersectional anti-Zionist front, connecting their struggles for gender and sexual liberation with the broader fight against colonialism and apartheid.

The Bundist movement must actively support and strengthen this front, recognizing that its success is not only essential for the liberation of Palestinians but for the global struggle against imperialism. In doing so, we also lean on the support of these non-Jewish parts of the resistance, forging bonds of solidarity that will strengthen all of our movements.

Conclusion

The Jewish Bundist movement must become a force for building bridges between different struggles for liberation. By working in solidarity with other anti-Zionist, anti-imperialist, and anti-capitalist movements, we can create a broad, intersectional front that unites oppressed peoples in the fight for justice. This front must include religious socialists from the Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, and Christian traditions, labor unions, and the rising generation of Jewish, Muslim, and queer activists. Together, we can create the foundations for a global socialist movement that is capable of taking on capitalism, imperialism, and all forms of oppression.