The Red Anti-Imperialist Collective held its National Congress in Melbourne from July 11th to 13th, with members flying in from its Perth and Sydney branches. The congress had two objectives. First, to develop and cohere Red Ant’s analysis of the current conjuncture in Australia. Second, to discuss and agree on a set of concrete strategies for Red Ant in the medium term.

The first two days of the Congress were dedicated to the first goal; the last day was devoted to the second. The first two days featured panels on a wide range of topics to do with Australia’s political and economic situation, and on the role that Red Ant can play in developing a socialist and anti-imperialist perspective throughout the working class. The research presented was the result of collective study and social investigation that took place over the course of 2025, and demonstrated Red Ant’s commitment to historical materialism, not only in theory, but in practice.

Day one saw panels on the Palestine solidarity movement in the suburbs, campuses, and within unions. The challenges to organising, and particularly the constraints of state and institutional repression, were a key point of discussion along with reflections on the broader aims and strategies of the Palestine movement.

We also heard research presentations on the political economy of Australia and its particular development. This then led into discussions of Australia as a junior partner in the world imperialist alliance—one that relies on U.S. imperialism, and the imperialist world order more broadly, to project regional power  and secure a share of the surplus extracted from the Global South.

Panelists outlined Australia’s historic position as an eager vassal of U.S. imperialism in the Asia-Pacific—a geopolitical role that culminated in the AUKUS treaty and the deepening incorporation of Australian military and industry into the U.S. war machine, which is currently gearing up for a war on China. A key topic was the contradiction between, on the one hand, Australian capital’s economic ties with China and, on the other, its security ties with the U.S., and on what divisions this may cleave within the ruling class itself.

The second day of the Congress began with a fascinating presentation from a long term activist associated with the Belgian Workers Party. The speaker explained how the party had grown from its doctrinaire beginnings in the student movement of the late 1960s to a party with over twenty-five thousands members with representation in the Belgian parliament. Reflections were also shared on other socialist parties within Australia and what practices are worth emulating and which practices are worth avoiding!

A powerful presentation was made from two Perth comrades which emphasised the importance of embedding Marxist Feminist theory within our collective, and how our practices need to be consciously shaped to ensure we are not replicating the patriarchal values that dominate many leftist spaces. Gender-based oppression, it was argued, is an essential element of the reproduction of capital and capitalist relations of production. Any supposed opposition between the class struggle and the struggle for women’s liberation is therefore wholly false.

A panel examined the first hand experiences many migrants in Australia have with imperialist oppression. This led into a discussion on the necessity and possibilities of organising for socialism within Australia’s migrant working class.

Another panel considered the character of the Australian capitalist class. In particular, an examination of the class basis of the Labor Party was forwarded and discussed.

The day finished with an examination of the union movement in Australia and how it has been weakened over the last forty years through the class collaborationist policies of the Australian Council of Trade Unions. The theory of the labor aristocracy was explained to deepen our Marxist understanding of this process. Lastly, there was a discussion on the communist approach to union organising, which highlighted the opportunities (and risks) of rank and file socialist organising within unions.

On our third day, we thrashed out our key organisational priorities and strategies for the year ahead. The fact that Red Ant is not dominated by a leadership clique but is instead nurturing a comradely space for collective decision making was on full display here.

We began the day by consolidating our long and medium-term objectives as an organisation. We reaffirmed that the ultimate objective of any serious socialist organisation is to bring the working class to power, and that, to do this, a strong party is necessary—a party composed of cadre who are the best organisers and the best advocates for socialism among the working class. Our principal task in the medium term—as a small organisation in a relatively stable imperialist country—is therefore to build a party of this kind, with the proviso that this can only be done if, from the very beginning, we maintain the closest contact with the class and participate in mass organising of all kinds.

We decided to change our name! Moving forward the Red Ant Collective will be called the “Red Anti-imperialist Collective”. We believe this better explains our key goal of building an anti-imperialist socialist movement among the Australian working class. We are keeping the shorthand “Red Ant”, as well as the Red Ant logo!

The collective voted to ensure that all members must be educated to become Marxist Feminists, recognising that women’s liberation from patriarchy is inseparable from the broader struggle to overthrow capitalism. Instilling this perspective in the socialist movement is not something that can be achieved by a single vote, but only through ongoing, consistent education and discussion.

The collective also recognised the need for us to deepen our understanding of the Chinese Revolution and China’s subsequent development. As part of this process we voted to start the planning for a study group to visit China.

A strategy around how to most effectively be involved in social movements was also adopted. Organisational changes will also be made to streamline our online presence.

As a relatively small and young organisation, many of our decisions were focussed on how we build a confident and theoretically grounded cadre through education. However, as Marx’s famous maxim decrees “Philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point, however, is to change it”. The Red Anti-Imperialist Collective is determined to apply our learning to build a revolutionary movement in Australia. We believe that this Congress was a small step in this process. Contact us if you want to be involved!