This small, yellow flyer announces memorial meetings commemorating Mao Tsetung, featuring a prominent quote about the perpetual need for revolution. Produced by the Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP) in Chicago, it portrays Mao as a figure whose ideas transcend time, insisting that oppression always demands a revolutionary response—even centuries into the future. By promoting gatherings under Mao’s name, the RCP highlighted its alignment with Chinese Communist principles, aiming to attract those disillusioned with entrenched power structures in the United States.
Historical Context
Mao Zedong (often rendered in the era as “Mao Tsetung”) was the founding father of the People’s Republic of China and played a central role in the global spread of Marxist-Leninist ideas—particularly through what became known as Maoism. By the 1960s and 1970s, radical leftist groups around the world admired Mao’s revolutionary ideology for its emphasis on continuous class struggle and “people’s war.”
The Revolutionary Communist Party in the U.S. emerged from a confluence of radical student and New Left movements in the late 1960s. Influenced by Maoist thought, the RCP advocated for an ongoing, grassroots revolution against capitalism and imperialism at home. In organizing memorial events after Mao’s death in 1976, the Party invoked his legacy to bolster its critique of oppressive “big-shots” and stoke commitment to continual social upheaval.
Strategy, Imagery, and Language
- Mao’s Profile
The flyer shows a stylized portrait of Mao, a familiar image to many left-wing activists at the time—visually reinforcing the international scope of their revolutionary cause. - Elevated Rhetoric
“Will there be need for revolution a thousand years from now?” The rhetorical question underscores the perpetual nature of class struggle in Maoist ideology. It suggests that the fight against oppression is never fully complete. - Call to Action
By listing a Chicago P.O. box for “information or contributions,” the RCP not only publicizes a memorial but also issues a subtle recruitment and fundraising appeal. - Accessible Format
Straightforward text and a large, bold headline make the leaflet easy to scan. Its portable postcard size indicates it could be readily shared at demonstrations, community events, or radical bookshops.
Efficacy and Reception
To those who identified with the RCP’s brand of left-wing militancy, the flyer affirmed a shared ideology that revered Maoist doctrine. It served as a timely rallying point—especially among those disenchanted with mainstream political solutions in the post–Vietnam War era.
Critics, however, rejected Mao’s influence, pointing to the Cultural Revolution’s human toll in China as evidence of a flawed or even catastrophic ideology. They viewed such flyers as romanticizing a figure responsible for widespread repression. Nevertheless, within certain U.S. radical circles, such direct appeals to Mao’s legacy helped maintain ideological cohesion and reinvigorate debates around the viability of Marxist revolutions on American soil.
Longer-Term Impact and Relevance
Though Maoism never became a mainstream force in American politics, it left a visible imprint on activist circles, shaping some of the rhetorical and organizing tactics employed by later movements. The RCP’s emphasis on constant vigilance against new forms of oppression resonates today in debates over whether social progress must continually push against entrenched systems of power.
This flyer stands as a historical artifact of how global revolutionary ideas migrated—and were adapted—in late 20th-century America. It also reflects the era’s broader clash between communism and capitalism, visible in everything from street-level organizing to international relations.
Special thanks to the USC Digital Imaging Lab for their support in digitizing this item.
