By SUPERNOVA
Editor’s note: The following interview was published in the French online journal Supernova. The translation was provided by Google Translate.
Supernova: The brutality of the Trump administration is a response to the crisis that imperialism is going through today. What do you think is the connection between her security policies, her anti-immigration campaign and the war policies she is pursuing?
Abayomi Azikiwe: There is a close link between these three aspects of the crisis of US imperialism. The shift to a predominantly minority population within two decades is a frightening prospect for many white Americans. The Trump administration has built its political reputation on the perceived need to keep the United States as a “white man country.” The combined population of African-Americans, Latin Americans, Asians and Aboriginal people could pose a serious threat to maintaining the status quo. Moreover, whites from the working class and the middle classes, alienated by the capitalist system, could join their political weight with that of the oppressed minorities at the national level to create a progressive majority and thus pave the way for a transformation towards a socialist society. In order to implement this racist process, mass expulsions of people from the global South who are not yet naturalized or hold permanent resident status reduce the number of people of color in the United States. The abusive criminalization of immigrants and migrants provides a justification for widespread repression through the occupation of municipalities, suburban and rural areas. This has already been done against African-Americans and Latin Americans. These two population groups make up the majority of those currently held in U.S. prisons, detention centres and other penal institutions. Therefore, the internal policies of the United States reflect their foreign policy. The perceived threat posed by the rise of the People’s Republic of China, the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the left-wing trend in some Latin American countries, and the increasingly virulent rhetoric of some African Union (AU) member states pose a direct threat to American hegemony on the international stage.
Supernova: In Europe, we always talk about a huge difference between the Republican Party and the Democrats; however, if we analyze the domestic and foreign policies of previous governments, we see that the domination of the monopoly classes remains the same. What are the main differences between the current government and the previous Democratic Party-led administration?
Abayomi Azikiwe: These parties have different electorates in the sense that the Democrats have the support of the majority of African-American voters. This also applies to many people of Latin American origin, with a few exceptions, such as the anti-communist elements of Cuba and Venezuela who have emigrated to the United States. Interestingly, these people from Cuba and Venezuela were also victims of racial profiling and deportations under Trump. Republicans have in the past retained the support of the majority of whites from the middle class, the upper class, and even some elements of the working class motivated by racism, sexism, and other prejudices. At the national level, Democrats remain controlled by elements of the ruling class, such as banks and large corporations. What is needed is a mass party of the working class and the national oppressed, capable of expressing itself in its own name. This was a major failure in the United States over the past half-century, where workers and oppressed have either been captured by Democrats and Republicans, or have remained on the margins of debates and political struggles that could lead to a new order.
Supernova: What do you think are the real effects of the brutality of immigration law enforcement agencies, and what role do they play in the United States? In Europe, the use of these services serves a more “political” than “practical” objective; it aims to intimidate and sow fear.
Abayomi Azikiwe: This same fear is also a major component of the repressive apparatus of the United States. The deployment of thousands of agents from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and CBP (Customs and Border Patrol), as well as federalized National Guard units, aims to create an atmosphere of total control over some municipalities, many of which have a large population from Latin America and other groups from the global South.
In Los Angeles, the population fought fiercely against the ICE, CBP, the National Guard soldiers and even the Marines. The Marines and National Guard units were withdrawn after numerous mass mobilizations and legal remedies. Nevertheless, ICE and CBP officers continue to harass, detain and deport those they deem undocumented. Many of these detentions and deportations are actually illegal. Some groups have protection status under various U.S. laws. Evictions to third countries violate U.S. law, but they continue, especially to several African countries whose governments collaborate with the United States in exchange for minor concessions on visa fees, trade agreements and tariffs. Minneapolis has set the standard for resistance against ICE and CBP. High-level political figures of the state, such as Governor Walz and the mayors of Minneapolis-St. Paul, strongly opposed the large-scale deployment of the ICE and CBP. The National Guard’s deployment to Minneapolis was carried out under the aegis of the governor after the shooting death of René Good, and then Alex Pretti, both white Americans who opposed the excesses of federal agents deployed in the city by the Trump administration. Throughout the United States, citizen initiatives have emerged to monitor and block the raids of the ICE and CBP by resorting to mass pressure and civil disobedience.
Supernova: The U.S. trade union and social protest movements in recent years are significant, even though they remain largely controlled by the reformist left and liberal factions. In your opinion, what are the most important radical trade union and social movements that have emerged in the United States?
Abayomi Azikiwe: There is the solidarity movement with Palestine on campus, which emerged forcefully in late 2023 and 2024, the day after the “Al-Aqsa Flood” and the escalation of the genocidal repression carried out by the State of Israel, financed by American taxpayers. Students, teachers and staff demanded full transparency and divestment from companies doing business with the Zionist state of apartheid. These efforts were crushed by the administration of former President Joe Biden. The trade union movement carried out high-profile strikes in 2023 in the automotive and entertainment sectors. The municipal strike in Philadelphia in 2025 showed that workers still have the ability to carry out militant actions. Yet these efforts have failed to avoid the emerging economic crisis, which has resulted in the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs due to the downsizing of the federal government as well as the restructuring of the manufacturing sector, which is returning to polluting industries through the reduction of electric vehicle production and the expansion of internal combustion engines for automobiles. The fight against racism continues, as evidenced by boycotts against companies that are reducing the implementation of civil rights legislation.
Supernova: Imperialism is in crisis, and in this context, the development of new anti-imperialist and socialist movements is necessary. What is the state of the communist and anti-imperialist movement in the United States today?
Abayomi Azikiwe: Although the attacks on Venezuela, Cuba, the Alliance of Sahel States (ESA), the Russian Federation, South Africa and China, etc. continue, the so-called left has not been able to form a united front against fascism and imperialism. This is a major subjective weakness in the United States. We must continue to organize around these issues. There can be no progress for the oppressed workers and peoples in the United States without a weakening of the ruling class in its efforts to reconfigure the world imperialist system. The Trump administration is even attacking its closest imperialist allies in Canada, the UK and the European Union. After starting an unprovoked war against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the administration is frustrated that other imperialist centers have not joined the bombings of Iran, Lebanon and Yemen.
The United Kingdom, France and other countries have so far refused to deploy ground troops in an inevitably disastrous attempt to take control of the Strait of Hormuz. These developments offer an opportunity to advance the anti-imperialist struggle in the United States. By highlighting the divisions within the imperialist camp and the irrational approach of the Republican administration MAGA and Congress, the ruling class can be more denounced for its policies that will only impoverish and further exploit the national workers and oppressed.
Fighting Words, journal of the Communist Workers League (USA)
