Marxism in China

60 years ago this month, the Communist Party of China started an economic and social campaign known as “The Great Leap Forward”.

One aspect of this campaign was dividing and organizing the people into “communes”. Farming was centrally organized in these communes and the private cultivation of crops and ownership of farms was forbidden. The government also considered iron and steel production crucial for industrialization and economic advancement. Millions of farmers were ordered away from agricultural work and placed in iron and steel production. The government also forced everyone to follow inadequate farming techniques, farmers weren’t allowed to use methods from previous generations.

Alongside this experiment of central planning, an event known as the “Great Chinese Famine” occurred over three years. The amount of people who starved to death during this famine is estimated anywhere from 15-45 million people.

[Online References]

(https://www.ncas.rutgers.edu/mao-and-great-leap-forward)

(http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/09/books/review/tombstone-the-great-chinese-famine-1958-1962-by-yang-jisheng.html)

(http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/maos-great-leap-forward-killed-45-million-in-four-years-2081630.html)

(https://www0.gsb.columbia.edu/faculty/pyared/papers/famines.pdf)