We’re not benefiting from what the Chinese are mining. It feels like all the jobless people in China come here to work while our own people suffer... In fact, we’re being underdeveloped by what they’re taking, said a Congolese worker in the documentary Blood Cobalt, which we screened during our Spring Project.

Leading up to our spring break project, the Party held a national call discussing the inter-imperialist rivalry between China and the U.S. in Congo. The panel-style discussion included Congolese workers we’ve been organizing with. The main takeaway: to Congolese workers, there’s no such thing as a “good” imperialist—a title often handed to China for its “development” projects in Africa.

Capitalism, driven by profit, will never solve Congo’s problems. The working class must organize to overthrow the system—building a communist society based on solidarity, collective ownership, and stewardship of the planet.

The Progressive Labor Party’s (PLP) goal is to unite workers, soldiers, and students to fight for a communist world—and Congo is no exception. Armed with communist ideas and leadership, Congolese workers have the power to disrupt global supply chains and bring imperialist warmakers to their knees. The only real path forward for Congolese workers is to join the PLP and unite with the international working class.

Film Discussion Destroys the “China Is Better” Myth

During our Spring Break Project, we screened the Australian documentary Blood Cobalt with a multiracial, multigenerational group of 25–30 PL’ers and friends. The film does a powerful job exposing Chinese imperialism and its devastating impact on Congolese workers. Of the 19 cobalt mines in the DRC, 15 are run or financed by China. These mines offer no safety for workers, many of whom dig as deep as 25 meters underground. The film shows how mining causes cancer, black lung disease, and frequent fatal tunnel collapses—deaths often hidden and ignored by bosses.

One of the most heartbreaking stories follows Mama Nicole, whose village borders the Chinese-operated Congo Dongfang International Mining (CDM) mine. With no barriers or fences, her 13-year-old son, Neomba, entered to collect cobalt from waste heaps. He and a friend died when the embankment collapsed.

The film left us deeply saddened and enraged. Many of us were struck by the impossible choices workers face—like a mother having to choose between sending her kids to religious school or risking their lives in the mines to avoid starvation. While the film effectively shatters the myth of a more benevolent Chinese imperialism compared to the U.S., some attendees, including a PL’er and a friend, rightly criticized its failure to address the U.S.’s long-standing role in Congo’s destabilization. 

Climate Crisis Is a Capitalist Crisis

We also discussed how climate catastrophe is a direct result of capitalism. The DRC and the Central African Republic are seeing the worst forest destruction tied to mining. Deforestation for large-scale mining infrastructure causes direct harm (biodiversity loss) and indirect damage (pollution of aquatic ecosystems). Even more alarming: if deforestation continues, 27% of the Congo Basin’s undisturbed rainforest could vanish by 2050 (Forest News, 11/16/22) As the world’s second-largest rainforest, its destruction will only accelerate the climate crisis for the global working class. During the film discussion, another PL’er argued that capitalism’s solutions can never resolve the climate crisis. They pointed out that the idea of "ethical consumption" is a myth, emphasizing that choosing not to buy an electric car to spare the children of Congo ultimately means bombs will fall on the children of Gaza instead because imperialist laws of competition and profit require the brutal exploitation of our class around the world.

Internationalism: Workers struggles are the same

During our study group on internationalism, a Congolese friend emphasized that no matter which imperialist power controls the mines, conditions for workers remain the same: super-exploitation, entrenched poverty, and a lack of access to education—while billions are extracted from the minerals beneath their feet.One clear takeaway emerged from these two learning packed days: while capitalism may wear different masks across the globe, workers face the same core struggles. From the mines of Appalachia—where bosses profit from coal while towns are devastated by unemployment and opioid addiction—to the mining towns of Congo, which remain underdeveloped, and to Ecuador, where gold miners are killed by cancer or cartels and their children trapped in poverty, the pattern repeats. 

Inter-Imperialist rivalry fuels proxy wars

In March, the M23 militia—backed by Rwanda, and supported by the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Israel—took control of Goma and Bukavu in Eastern Congo. This is not a regional conflict. It’s a proxy war waged by imperialist powers to secure resource flows, displacing millions and deepening the humanitarian crisis. The Congolese government is complicit—paying Romanian mercenaries $5,000 a month while Congolese soldiers earn $100. This betrayal exposes how local bosses serve imperialist interests and multinational corporations. While the bosses profit, the working class is misled into fighting nationalist wars that serve imperialist agendas. 

The dark night of capitalism has a communist horizon

Yet even amid these horrors, there’s hope. Workers in the Congo are fighting back (see our upcoming article from workers in the Congo). We’re also planning a teach-in and fundraiser with our base members and allied organizations.

In the Party, we say Black workers are key—because we understand that the leadership of Black workers is essential to smashing this racist, sexist, genocidal system.

We must win over our Congolese siblings to communist ideas. As Lenin wrote, imperialist competition inevitably leads to war. Our task is to turn that rivalry into a revolutionary struggle for communism. It’s time to build the Party, raise class consciousness, and fight for a future where Congo’s wealth benefits all humanity—not the imperialist bosses.

The choice is clear: either we unite and fight for communism, or continue to suffer under capitalism and imperialism. The future of the international working class depends on the path we choose. Let us choose revolution.