Auguste Blanqui 1848

To The Democratic Clubs of Paris


Source: Ecrits sur la Révolution. presenté at annoté par A. Munster. Editions Galilée, Paris, 1977;
Translated: for marxists.org by Mitch Abidor;
CopyLeft: Creative Commons (Attribute & ShareAlike) marxists.org 2005.


The Republic would be a lie if it were to be only the substitution of one form of government for another. It’s not enough to change words: things must be changed.

The Republic means the emancipation of workers, it’s the end of the reign of exploitation, it’s the coming of a new order that will free labor from the tyranny of capital.

Liberté! Égalité! Fraternité! This motto that shone from the front of our buildings should not be a vain opera decoration.

No silly baubles! We are no longer children. There is no freedom where there is no bread. There is no equality when opulence scandalously exists alongside poverty. There is no brotherhood when the worker drags himself to the door of palaces with his starving children.

Work and bread! The existence of the people cannot remain at the mercy of the fears and the rancor of capital.

Those popular societies that share our principles are invited to select three delegates who will meet at the central electoral committee, Sunday March 26 at 11:00 am in the Conference room, rue des Poiriers, near the Sorbonne. Only delegates from clubs will be admitted and should have with them the powers granted them by their respective societies.