Juan Posadas
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Homero Rómulo Cristalli Frasnelli (January 20, 1912 – May 14, 1981), better known under the
pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...
J. Posadas or sometimes Juan Posadas (), was an
Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...
Trotskyist Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...
whose personal vision is usually described as Posadism. Originally a collective
pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...
of the leadership of the Grupo Cuarta Internacional (GCI) in Argentina in the 1940s, it was also used by Dante Minazzoli initially.Broder, David (April 5, 2020)
"J. Posadas, the Trotskyist Who Believed in Intergalactic Communism: An Interview with A.M. Gittlitz."
'
Jacobin The Society of the Friends of the Constitution (), renamed the Society of the Jacobins, Friends of Freedom and Equality () after 1792 and commonly known as the Jacobin Club () or simply the Jacobins (; ), was the most influential political cl ...
''. Archived fro
the original.
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Early life

Born in Argentina to
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
immigrants from the Southern town of
Matera Matera (, ; Neapolitan language, Materano: ) is a city and the capital of the Province of Matera in the regions of Italy, region of Basilicata, in Southern Italy. With a history of continuous occupation dating back to the Palaeolithic (10th mi ...
, Cristalli grew up in intense poverty in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
with at least nine siblings. After the death of his mother, he and his brothers and sisters had to beg from neighbours and do odd jobs for pennies in order to survive. Malnourishment left him with permanent health problems but also influenced his views of capitalism. He gained fame playing
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
for in his youth. In the 1930s, he worked as a shoemaker and organised a shoemakers’ and leather workers’ union in Córdoba, Argentina. During this period he stood as a candidate for election in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
province for the . He then joined the Partido de la Revolución Socialista, which affiliated to the
Fourth International The Fourth International (FI) was a political international established in France in 1938 by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, having been expelled from the Soviet Union and the Communist International (also known as Comintern or the Third Inte ...
in 1941 but the party quickly declined. In 1947, Cristalli and Dante Minazzoli founded the Grupo Cuarta Internacional (GCI) as a small circle of working class militants committed to Trotskyism.


In the Trotskyist movement

Posadas did initially organize the Latin America Bureau of the Fourth International for the International Secretariat faction of the Fourth International in the 1950s. Under his guidance, the movement gained some influence in the region, particularly among
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
n railway workers,
Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
n tin miners and agricultural workers in
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. When the Fourth International split in 1953, Posadas and his followers sided with
Michel Pablo Michel Pablo (; ; 24 August 1911, Alexandria, Khedivate of Egypt, Egypt – 17 February 1996, Athens) was the pseudonym of Michalis N. Raptis (), a Trotskyist leader of Greek origin. Education Pablo studied at the National Technical Univers ...
and the International Secretariat of the Fourth International. By 1959, however, he and his followers were quarrelling with the leadership of the ISFI accusing them of lacking confidence in the possibility of revolution. They also differed over the issue of
nuclear war Nuclear warfare, also known as atomic warfare, is a War, military conflict or prepared Policy, political strategy that deploys nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons are Weapon of mass destruction, weapons of mass destruction; in contrast to conven ...
with Posadas taking the view that "War–Revolution" would "settle the hash of
Stalinism Stalinism (, ) is the Totalitarianism, totalitarian means of governing and Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from History of the Soviet Union (1927–1953), 1927 to 1953 by dictator Jose ...
and Capitalism" and that nuclear war was inevitable as a socialist society would rise from the ashes. With Luis Naguill, Posadas directed the "subversive apparatus" founded according to instructions from the Tri-Continental – the Peasant Workers Alliance in 1966. Conflicts between Posadas and the ISFI started to get worse. The man Homero, who is known as Posadas today, received his new name as it was used as the penname for the letters written to the ISFI. In those letters, Posadas and his followers made bold criticisms such as Trotskyist movements worldwide were largely influenced by the ''Bureau of Latin America'' (BLA) of the
Fourth International The Fourth International (FI) was a political international established in France in 1938 by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, having been expelled from the Soviet Union and the Communist International (also known as Comintern or the Third Inte ...
at that time, and that the Europeans had become a passive force. Despite the alleged efforts of both the BLA and ISFI to reconcile, in the April of 1962, Posadas made a daring move as he called for a congress and completely reorganized the executive committee of the ISFI, now led by BLA leaders. The ISFI responded to this action in June by suspending BLA from the Fourth International. Posadas and his international followers, who were concentrated in
Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
, decided to split from the ISFI in 1962 (prior to its reunification with the
International Committee of the Fourth International The International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) is a public faction of the Fourth International founded in 1953. Today, two Trotskyist List of Trotskyist internationals, internationals claim to be the continuations of the ICFI; o ...
which formed the
United Secretariat of the Fourth International The Fourth International (FI), founded in 1938, is a Trotskyist international. Following a ten-year schism, in 1963 the majorities of the two public factions of the Fourth International, the International Secretariat of the Fourth Internationa ...
) and founded a new group.


Posadista Fourth International

The "Posadists" founded their own
Fourth International The Fourth International (FI) was a political international established in France in 1938 by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, having been expelled from the Soviet Union and the Communist International (also known as Comintern or the Third Inte ...
in 1962 after having called an Emergency Conference. The first regular international meeting of the Posadists should only happen in March 1964. It was announced as the "Seventh Congress of the Fourth International". Said Congress was - according to a post conference communique - held "in Europe" without giving further elaboration, and the communique claimed that "delegates representing thirteen countries of Africa, Europe, and Latin America" were in attendance. The new International only started using the name Fourth International (Posadist) at a later time (in the early 1970s). The Posadist Fourth international developed a concept of its organizational nature, with changes that were introduced in 1966 which varied substantially from the rest of the Trotskyist movement. Posadas commented on their "Tenth World Congress" in 1975:


Atomic war

At their 1964 "Seventh World Congress" the following resolution was adopted: “We are preparing ourselves for a stage in which before the atomic war, we shall struggle for power, during the atomic war we shall struggle for power and we shall be in power, and immediately after the atomic war we shall be in power. There is no beginning, there is an end to atomic war, because atomic war is simultaneous. Simultaneity doesn't mean the same day and the same hour. Great historic events should not be measured by hours or days, but by periods. The working class alone will maintain itself, will immediately have to seek its cohesion and centralization". This stance was made more specific at a 1966 meeting of the International Secretariat, where a manifesto written by Posadas was adopted: One of the best-known positions of J. Posadas was his enthusiasm for
nuclear war Nuclear warfare, also known as atomic warfare, is a War, military conflict or prepared Policy, political strategy that deploys nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons are Weapon of mass destruction, weapons of mass destruction; in contrast to conven ...
. More precisely, at the height of the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
, Posadas thought that nuclear war was inevitable. His idea was that rather than wait for the forces of capitalism, the nuclear-armed
socialist state A socialist state, socialist republic, or socialist country is a sovereign state constitutionally dedicated to the establishment of socialism. This article is about states that refer to themselves as socialist states, and not specifically ...
s should launch a preemptive attack that would destroy the nuclear capabilities of capitalist countries. Additionally, he believed that this sort of catastrophe could spark the
world revolution World revolution is the Marxist concept of overthrowing capitalism in all countries through the conscious revolutionary action of the organized working class. For theorists, these revolutions will not necessarily occur simultaneously, but whe ...
. Posadas vocally opposed the
Partial Test Ban Treaty The Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT), formally known as the 1963 Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Water, prohibited all nuclear weapons testing, test detonations of nuclear weapons except for those co ...
signed in 1963 by the United States, the Soviet Union, and the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, believing that a nuclear war between the US and the Soviet Union was inevitable and desirable, and would create the conditions for socialism, with the "workers' states" winning and resetting society.


Outlook towards the Soviet-Bloc regimes

The Posadists held to mainstream Trotskyist notions of describing the Soviet Republics that were established with the end of World War 2 as "deformed workers' states" based on the existence of generally nationalized means of production, but unlike the rest of the Trotskyist movement, Posadas went further, declaring other Regimes (such as "Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Mali, Guinea, Congo Brazzaville etc.") – sometimes with, sometimes without clarifying adjectives – to be "workers' states". The justifications for these classifications as well as the explanations for the supposed progressive role of these regimes were compiled into Posadas' 1969 book ''The Revolutionary State''.


Cuba

The Posadist group in Cuba, the Revolutionary Workers' Party (Trotskyist) or POR(T), gained importance due to the
Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution () was the military and political movement that overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, who had ruled Cuba from 1952 to 1959. The revolution began after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état, in which Batista overthrew ...
, in which it had a minor role. Posadist guerrillas fought alongside
Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President of Cuba, president ...
and
Che Guevara Ernesto "Che" Guevara (14th May 1928 – 9 October 1967) was an Argentines, Argentine Communist revolution, Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and Military theory, military theorist. A majo ...
in 1959. When the Posadists split from the Fourth International in 1962, they took the Cuban section with them, leaving no other Trotskyist group represented in Cuba in the 1960s. In 1961 the POR(T) argued that the Cuban government should forcibly expel the American military base at Guantanamo Bay. According to state media, the Posadists organised workers in the town of Guantanamo to march on the nearby military base. The POR(T) denied the allegation, but it was repeated by the Trotskyist Socialist Workers Party in the US, which was pro-Castro and denounced the Posadists as ultra-left. Cuban officials affiliated with the Popular Socialist Party, then raided the headquarters of the Posadist group and smashed its printing press, which was in the process of printing an edition of
Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky,; ; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky'' was a Russian revolutionary, Soviet politician, and political theorist. He was a key figure ...
's '' The Permanent Revolution'' (1930). Guevara, when asked in an interview about this event, commented: The Cuban Posadist section became increasingly militant and was banned by the government; Castro denounced them as "pestilential" at the
Tricontinental Conference The Tricontinental Conference was a gathering of countries that focused on anti-colonial and anti-imperial issues during the Cold War era, specifically those related to Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The conference was held from 3rd to 16 Janu ...
held in January 1966. Cuban Posadists went on to claim that Castro had Guevara killed when, it turned out, he was actually in Bolivia fighting with the guerrilla movement there. Conversely, after Guevara was executed by Bolivian authorities, Posadas claimed in 1967 that it was unclear how Che Guevara was killed.


Extraterrestrial life

Beginning in 1968, Posadas also became known for his theories concerning
UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO) is an object or phenomenon seen in the sky but not yet identified or explained. The term was coined when United States Air Force (USAF) investigations into flying saucers found too broad a range of shapes ...
s and
extraterrestrial life Extraterrestrial life, or alien life (colloquially, aliens), is life that originates from another world rather than on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been scientifically conclusively detected. Such life might range from simple forms ...
. If anything like UFOs existed, they could demonstrate the existence of agents able to master a very sophisticated technology, something that would be compatible with what in this planet was advocated by
socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
. If UFOs existed, they could be allied in addressing some of the major problems in the earth. One of his most well-known works is a 1968 pamphlet called ''Les Soucoupes Volantes, le processus de la matiere et de l'energie, la science et le socialisme'' (''Flying Saucers, the process of matter and energy, science and socialism''). Here, he connects the existence of extraterrestrial life and UFOs to
communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...
. He argues that the UFOs being spotted at that time indicates the advancements of life in other planets and that can be only possible due to communist ideologies. Accessed February 16th, 2025. He also writes that capitalism tends to make people self-centered and focus on profits, rather than work on the scientific and civilizational progress of mankind. Since extraterrestrial beings have developed technology advanced enough to visit other planets, this indicates that they have surpassed the bane of a capitalistic society. Along with that, they have also surpassed their impulsion – the need to kill or control to assert dominance. Posadas shows enthusiasm to collaborate with extraterrestrial beings. He writes, "We must appeal to the beings on other planets, when they come here, to intervene and collaborate with Earth's inhabitants in suppressing poverty." With his argument, Posadas defines communism as a civilizational progress rather than an alternative political system. Although this is a single work of Posadas on extraterrestrial life, this idea has gained much popularity among his followers and later
Trotskyists Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as a ...
. Posadas remarks that aliens "have no aggressive impulse, they have no need to kill in order to live: they come only to observe. We can foresee the existence of such beings, even taking into account the fantasies that exist among the reports, stories, observations, and statements".


''Long live Posadas!''

Posadist newspapers such as ''Red Flag'', published by the Revolutionary Workers Party (Trotskyist) in
Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
, ran headlines praising Soviet
cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...
s and the launching of Chinese rockets as well as articles on local industrial disputes. Posadas was thought to have a large ego as indicated by his habit of ending his articles by exclaiming "Long live Posadas!" This actually stemmed from the way he "wrote" his documents. They were usually the transcript of speeches delivered at party events, whether with a small group of closest collaborators, or larger activities. In the early years, after Posadas ended his speeches with "''¡Viva la Revolución Mundial!''" and "''¡Viva la Cuarta Internacional!''" ("Long live world revolution! Long live the Fourth International!"), someone else would traditionally yell "''¡Viva el camarada Posadas!''" ("Long live comrade Posadas!") – all this would be duly reported in print.


Scholarly discourse on Posadism

Due to the radical nature of the Posadist theories and the egocentric administration of the Fourth International Posadist, there were many backlashes against it soon after its foundation.A. M. Gittlitz, "Flying Saucers, the Process of Matter and Energy, Science, the Revolutionary and Working-Class Struggle, and the Socialist Future of Mankind", ''I Want to Believe: Posadism, UFOs and Apocalypse Communism'', Pluto Press (2020): 105–106. Joan Benevant, an Argentine militant, compared the organization to a church where Posadas acted as "the pope". Several member nations quit, the prominent ones being Brazil and Argentina. With the loss of several members and lack of support from scholars, Posadas continued to practice his principles nonetheless. Many scholars during at that time viewed his work in a satirical way, as seen in Teresa Hayter's autobiography ''Hayter of the bourgeoisie'', where she describes Posadas as "the craziest of all deviators from
Trotskyism Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...
." A work on Posadism was done by A. M. Gittlitz called ''I Want to Believe: Posadism, UFOs and Apocalypse Communism''. The author reviews the history of Posadism and its ultimate collapse, and analyzes the significance of the current rise of interest on this topic. Taking the theme of approaching Posadism as a "crazy subfield" of Trotskyism like earlier scholars, Gittlitz expands on it by exploring the current thoughts on Posadism, how that has changed from its previous cult-like nature in the late 20th century.


Publications

Articles
"The Argentine Elections and the Tasks of the Proletariat."
''
Fourth International The Fourth International (FI) was a political international established in France in 1938 by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, having been expelled from the Soviet Union and the Communist International (also known as Comintern or the Third Inte ...
'' (
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
), no. 2 (March 1958), pp. 17–21
Full issue.


''
Fourth International The Fourth International (FI) was a political international established in France in 1938 by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, having been expelled from the Soviet Union and the Communist International (also known as Comintern or the Third Inte ...
'' (
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
), no. 10 (June 1960), pp. 28–31
Full issue.
Pamphlets * ''Les soucoupes volantes, le processus de la matière et de l’énergie, la science, la lutte de classes et revolutionnaire et le future socialiste de l’humanité''.
'">br>
'(in French). Paris: Éditions Réed (June 26, 1968). ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epP5lCLdMhg Audiobook available.:: Translated into English and transcribed by David Broder.


References


Further reading

* Almeyra, Guillermo, and Anaté Almeyra, Adolfo Gilly
''A Critical Assessment of the Former Latin American Bureau Tendency Within the Fourth International''.
Translated by Nicolas Allen. Introduction and annotations by A.M. Gittlitz. * Salusbury, Matt
"Trots in Space."
''
Fortean Times ''Fortean Times'' is a British monthly magazine devoted to the anomalous phenomena popularised by Charles Fort. Previously published by John Brown Publishing (from 1991 to 2001), I Feel Good Publishing (from 2001 to 2005), Dennis Publishing (from ...
'', no. 183 (April 2, 2004)
Full issue.
* Gittlitz, A.M
''I Want to Believe: Posadism, UFOs and Apocalypse Communism''.
London:
Pluto Press Pluto Press is a British independent book publisher based in London, founded in 1969. Pluto Press states that it publishes "radical, left‐wing non­‐fiction books", and is anti-capitalist and internationalist. It belongs to The Internat ...
(2020). https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvzsmdvh.15 . . .


External links


Ufology

Posadist International

Posadas archive collection
at
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,
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*
Works by J. Posadas
at
Marxists Internet Archive Marxists Internet Archive, also known as MIA or Marxists.org, is a non-profit online encyclopedia that hosts a multilingual library (created in 1990) of the works of communist, anarchist, and socialist writers, such as Karl Marx, Friedrich Enge ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Posadas, J. 1912 births 1981 deaths Argentine conspiracy theorists Argentine people of Italian descent Marxist theorists UFO writers Argentine communists Argentine socialists Argentine Marxists Argentine Trotskyists Fourth International Posadist