The International Online Rally on May 1, 2026 and the Tasks of the International Working Class

The International Online May Day Rally 2026, held on May 1 by the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), World Socialist Web Site, International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE), and International Workers’ Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC), marked a milestone in the development of an international socialist and revolutionary movement against imperialist war and capitalism.

A total of 18 reports were presented by speakers from 14 countries across five continents. The broadcast was subtitled in 11 languages – English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Sinhala, Spanish, Tamil, and Turkish, making it accessible to broad sections of the international working class. The program included five montages integrating CIQI analysis with worker and youth testimonies.

The rally uniquely highlighted the political analysis and orientation put forth. Today, there is no other political trend worldwide that addresses the global crisis as the eruption of historical and insoluble contradictions of the capitalist system, or that identifies the international working class as the revolutionary force capable of solving this crisis. The gathering addressed all decisive issues faced by the international working class in a unified manner.

The WSWS will publish each of the speeches in the coming days, urging readers to study and share them as widely as possible.

The entire political framework of the rally was outlined in the opening report by David North, President of the WSWS International Editorial Board. North emphasized that the May Day celebration should not be limited to international solidarity statements but should also involve an objective analysis of the global situation to formulate the working-class strategy.

The rally provided a comprehensive analysis focused on the American-Israeli war against Iran, its historical significance, and global impact. This war marked the culmination of a distinct historical period of 35 years that began with the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. It was seen as a qualitatively new stage in the unleashing of capitalist barbarism against the working class.

The war against Iran by US imperialism resulted from the worsening global crisis of capitalism and the continuous deterioration of the US economic position within the world system. The successive wars in recent decades – from Iraq and Afghanistan to Libya and Syria, from the NATO war against Russia to the Gaza genocide – reflected efforts to impose imperialist redivision of the world in favor of financial capital.

External war is inseparable from the class war against the workers in every country: dismantling of social reforms, wealth redistribution upward, and elite turn towards authoritarian rule and fascist methods to suppress resistance. The collapse of democratic forms in the US, political thuggery, subordination of social life to oligarchy interests, and a new world division by military violence express the crisis of the entire capitalist order in its most concentrated and explosive form.

The most profound consequence of this crisis is the response of the international working class. The rally identified 2026 as a fundamental turning point in modern history where the resistance of the working class emerges as a global force responding to the oligarchy’s offensive on a scale directly addressing fundamental issues of the era.

The rally emphasized a theory of revolution rooted in the rising struggles of the international working class. With billions of people linked through global production processes, this class is now forced to recognize itself as a single objective social force.

North also addressed revolutionary leadership, noting the gap between the objective situation and the political preparation of the working class due to political inaction caused by bureaucratic stalling by unions and social-democratic and Stalinist worker bureaucracies. Intensification of the capitalist crisis leads to radicalizing the masses, creating conditions for a massive growth of the Trotskyist movement.

The rally highlighted the defense of comrade Bogdan Syrotiuk, leader of the Young Bolshevik-Leninist Guard, imprisoned in Ukraine for two years on charges of high treason – demanding the release of Bogdan and other political prisoners.

Will Lehman, a UAW presidential candidate, called for immediate unity among workers globally, emphasizing building their organizations independently of union officials serving corporate and state interests.

The importance of introducing Socialism AI – a powerful tool offering global access to Marxist heritage – was underscored as a crucial instrument for systematic political education of the international working class.

The analysis presented at the rally was swiftly confirmed, as Iran’s retaliatory strikes on American military assets heightened internal state conflicts over the next steps post-war.

The rally’s significance lies in the emergence of the international working class as an independent social force and the conscious effort to arm this force with a program, strategy, and direction. The urgent task remains bridging the considerable gap between the advanced stage of the global crisis and the political readiness of the working class.

Building a revolutionary leadership is the duty imposed by history. The ICFI is fighting to assume this responsibility – constructing the Fourth International as the World Party of Socialist Revolution. It’s essential to expand the rally’s impact, share the videos and reports, engage in political discussions in workplaces, schools, and communities, and take the necessary political steps towards the next stage.

Join the Socialist Equality Party and International Youth and Students for Social Equality, and reach out to engage in building a revolutionary working-class movement against war, dictatorship, and capitalism.

The rally offers a crucial analysis and program that isn’t matched elsewhere, providing a revolutionary perspective and Marxist evaluation of the ongoing crisis. Understanding and acting on the rally’s conclusions is vital to advance the working class’s politics and prepare for revolutionary movements worldwide.