We Are Completely Assured of Thoroughly
Overthrowing Chiang Kaishek’s Reactionary
Clique1
(November 6, 1947)
The Chinese people at present are carrying out a great revolutionary war, the
aim of which is to overthrow American imperialism and rule by their running
dog, Chiang Kaishek, in China. This war has already achieved great victories
and will continue to bring victory until all the enemies are overthrown and a
completely new China is established. As we celebrate the thirtieth anniversary
of Russia’s October Revolution, the Chinese people should believe that we can
make it through these times of suffering and overcome all hardship, and that we
are completely assured of thoroughly overthrowing the American imperialist–
backed reactionary clique of Chiang Kaishek. We are not isolated; all the countries and people in the world who oppose imperialism are our friends. However,
we emphasize self-reliance, and we can depend on the strength that we ourselves
have amassed to topple our enemies. The Chinese nation is a nation capable of
fighting, and just as the Russians have made great achievements in overcoming
the imperialists and the domestic reactionaries since the October Revolution, so
too can we Chinese make such achievements. The coming few years will surely
prove this point.
“A single spark can light a prairie fire.” It is time to set the prairie ablaze.
Our source for this text is Mao Zedong wenji, Vol. 4, pp. 316–17, where it is reproduced
from Mao’s handwritten manuscript.
1.  This paragraph was added by Mao Zedong when he was revising a Xinhua News
Agency editorial entitled “A Single Spark Can Light a Prairie Fire,” published in Renmin
ribao on November 9, 1947.
DOI:  10.4324/9781315719436-51