Hey comrades, I’ve noticed a troubling trend. I’ve been banned from multiple socialist subreddits simply for criticizing Russia—whether it’s their imperialism, repression, ultra-capitalist ideology, or other issues that should be obvious to any leftist. It seems like some spaces have an unspoken (or very spoken) rule that any critique of Russia is off-limits, even when it’s entirely in line with socialist principles.
Why is this happening? Has anyone else faced similar bans for calling out Russia or other authoritarian states that don’t align with socialist ideals? It’s frustrating to see some leftist spaces falling into this trap when socialism should be about international solidarity, not uncritical defense of any state. Would love to hear other experiences.
It’s incredibly common tankie propaganda to depict Russia as somehow returning to, and defending, a modern form of socialism. Which many tankies eat up eagerly since the modern Russian state descends from the Soviet one, and Russia was (up until 2 months ago) the largest enemy of western capitalist/liberal democracies.