It should be decided that Hongqi will be a bi-monthly publication, published on schedule,
with you writing one commentary per issue. This article will be signed by you, first published
in Hongqi, then reprinted by various newspapers and broadcast on Radio [2]. Please read it
aloud at the meeting to solicit opinions.
Mao Zedong
8 p.m. on the 22nd of August
Don't say ‘unprecedented’ in the future. The greatest cultural revolutions in history were the
invention of fire, the invention of the steam engine, and the establishment of Marxism-
Leninism, not our revolution. [3]
That's pretty much it.
Except for the two paragraphs I have written myself, the rest does not need to be edited. [4]
Send as is.
A great upsurge of struggle, criticism, transformation is about to unfold. The recent
instructions issued by Chairman Mao signal the arrival of this upsurge, as the vast army of
industrial workers, under leadership and in an orderly manner, advances into schools and
other units where struggle, criticism, and reform have not yet been properly carried out.
This upsurge emerges after a series of tasks, including the establishment of revolutionary
committees in provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, large-scale criticism, the
rectification of class, and other tasks. It will bring about profound changes in all fields,
fiercely challenge all superstructures that are incompatible with the socialist economic base,
educate the masses, crush the reactionary forces in the dark corners, and lead to the
complete victory of the great proletarian cultural revolution, greatly promoting the
development of social productive forces.



Since the mid-19th century, when Marxism began to take shape, the slogan of replacing
bourgeois dictatorship with proletarian dictatorship has been put forward. Today, it has been
120 years since then. Only imperialism, the landlord class, the bourgeoisie, and their
agents—both old and new revisionists—oppose this thoroughly revolutionary slogan. The
Chinese Communist Party has adopted this slogan as its basic programme. To realise this
slogan, it is necessary to unite the broad masses outside the working class, primarily the
peasant masses, the urban petty bourgeoisie, and the intellectuals who can be transformed,
and to lead them forward.
The entire process of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution was carried out solely under
the leadership of the working class. Our Party is the vanguard of the proletariat.
This ‘independent kingdom’ [5] has been completely destroyed by the storm of revolution.
The historical lessons of its class struggle should be remembered by all revolutionaries.
Citizens of all the large and small independent kingdoms across the country that are
controlled by bourgeois elements should also study this lesson.
The entry of the Workers' Propaganda Team into the educational arena is a momentous
event. Since ancient times, schools have been monopolised by the exploiting classes and
their children. After liberation, the situation improved somewhat, but schools were still
largely monopolised by bourgeois intellectuals. Some of the students who graduated from
these schools, some students, for various reasons (these reasons are likely: either the
individual is more well-rounded, or the teachers are more competent, or they are influenced
by family, relatives, or friends, but primarily by societal influences), can integrate with the
workers, peasants, and soldiers and serve them, while others cannot. Within the dictatorship
of the proletariat, there exists a serious phenomenon of the bourgeoisie and the proletariat
competing for leadership. During the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, the Red Guards
rose up to oppose a small group of capitalists within the Party, and the reactionary forces of
the bourgeoisie in schools were temporarily dealt a heavy blow. However, soon afterwards,
some people began to engage in secret activities, inciting the masses against the masses,
undermining the Cultural Revolution, disrupting the struggle, criticism, and reform
campaigns, sabotaging the great unity and revolutionary three-in-one alliance, and
obstructing the work of purging the class ranks and rectifying the Party. This situation
aroused widespread dissatisfaction among the masses. The current reality tells us: under
such circumstances, relying solely on students and intellectuals cannot accomplish the tasks
of struggle, criticism, and transformation on the educational front, nor can it carry out the



series of tasks required. It is essential to have the participation of workers and the People's
Liberation Army, and it is imperative to have the strong leadership of the working class.
Chairman Mao recently pointed out: "To achieve the proletarian educational revolution, it is
essential to have the leadership of the working class, the participation of the working
masses, and the cooperation of People's Liberation Army soldiers. This should be combined
with the revolutionary tripartite alliance of active members among students, teachers, and
workers in schools who are determined to carry the proletarian educational revolution
through to the end. Worker propaganda teams must remain in schools on a long-term basis,
participate in all struggle, criticism, and transformation tasks within schools, and
permanently lead the schools. In rural areas, schools should be managed by the most
reliable allies of the working class—the poor and lower-middle peasants."
Chairman Mao's instructions pointed out the direction and path of the educational
revolution in schools and were a sharp weapon for completely destroying the bourgeois
educational system. The broad masses of young students should warmly welcome the
working class's occupation of the school front, participate in struggle, criticism,
transformation, and forever lead the schools.
All genuine proletarian revolutionaries, rather than those who merely pay lip service to the
cause, regard the working class as ‘their own people,’ as the most advanced and most
conscious segment of the masses. The ‘three-in-one’ combination of workers, peasants, and
revolutionary activists in schools is the most reliable guarantee of the masses' self-liberation.
Those who regard workers as an alien force outside of ‘themselves’ are either deluded or are
themselves class enemies of the working class, and the working class has every reason to
overthrow their rule. Some intellectuals who proclaim themselves to be ‘proletarian
revolutionaries’ oppose the working class whenever it threatens their petty ‘independent
kingdom.’ There are still quite a few of these hypocrites in China. These are the people who
despise the workers and peasants, love to show off, and think highly of themselves, but in
reality, they are nothing more than a modern version of hypocrites. Wherever intellectuals
gather in large numbers, whether in schools or other institutions, workers and the People's
Liberation Army should be sent in to break the intellectuals' monopoly, to occupy those large
and small ‘independent kingdoms,’ and to occupy the places where those who advocate the
‘many centres mean no centre’ theory have taken root. In this way, the unhealthy
atmosphere, style, and ideas among the bloated intellectuals can be changed, and they may
also be transformed and liberated.



In this process [6], the working class itself will undergo profound class struggle training, and
a group of outstanding worker cadres will emerge to fill various positions in state organs and
at all levels of the Revolutionary Committee, not just managing schools.
Chairman Mao recently pointed out: ‘Establishing the three-in-one revolutionary
committees, conducting the Great Criticism Campaign, purging the ranks of the class enemy,
rectifying the Party, streamlining institutions, reforming unreasonable regulations and
systems, delegating departmental personnel, and carrying out the struggle, criticism, and
reform in factories—these are the main stages we have gone through.’
Chairman Mao's remarks summarise the development of the mass movement during the
struggle, criticism, and transformation phase, and clearly outline the path for us to complete
the tasks of struggle, criticism, and reform in factories and enterprises.
The first task is to establish a revolutionary committee combining the three elements,
ensuring that the leadership of factories and enterprises is truly in the hands of the
proletariat. This is often carried out in conjunction with the tasks of large-scale criticism and
the general rectification of the class ranks.
The great criticism and cleansing of the class ranks created the best conditions for the
rectification of the Party. After the rigorous test of class struggle in politics, ideology and
organization, the political consciousness of the majority of Party members has been greatly
improved, the relationship with the masses has been greatly improved, the very few bad
people in the Party have been eliminated, the political and organizational conditions of the
Party members have been basically clarified, and a group of active elements who emerged in
the movement have been absorbed into the Party organization, so that the Party has added
fresh blood and gradually formed a leadership core that firmly implements Chairman Mao’s
proletarian revolutionary line. In this way, we can rectify the Party organization and achieve
the great goal of rectification pointed out by Chairman Mao: "The Party organization should
be composed of advanced elements of the proletariat and should be a vigorous vanguard
organization that can lead the proletariat and the revolutionary masses to fight against class
enemies." [7]
The movement in industrial and mining enterprises is like this, as is the movement in cultural
and educational undertakings, and the movement in party and government agencies is also
largely the same.

[1] This article, Sections 1 and 2, are comments on the draft submitted for review by Yao
Wenyuan, a member of the Central Committee's Cultural Revolution Group, on 22 August
1968. Parts 3 and 4 are comments on Yao Wenyuan's draft submitted for review on 23



August; Part 5 is comments on Yao Wenyuan's draft submitted for review on 24 August; Parts
6 to 15 are revisions to these three drafts submitted for review, with Mao Zedong's additions
and revisions printed in italics.
[2] Yao Wenyuan submitted this article to Mao Zedong for review on 22 August 1968. The
two excerpts from Mao Zedong's speeches compiled in the article were further revised by
Mao Zedong during the review process, specifically the text enclosed in quotation marks in
sections 11 and 14 of this article. When the article was submitted for review, the original
title was "Under the Leadership of the Working Class, Seriously Carry Out Struggle, Criticism,
and Transformation.‘ Mao Zedong changed it to ’The Working Class Must Lead Everything"
during his review and added Yao Wenyuan's byline. The article was published in the second
issue of the Red Flag magazine on 25 August 1968.
[3] In his manuscript submitted for review on 22 August 1968, Yao Wenyuan said, ‘It is under
the leadership of the proletarian headquarters headed by Chairman Mao that we can launch
such an unprecedented proletarian cultural revolution involving hundreds of millions of
revolutionary masses.’ When Mao Zedong reviewed the manuscript, he deleted the word
‘unprecedented’ and wrote this comment.
[4] Yao Wenyuan wrote on the manuscript submitted for review on 23 August 1968: "This is
the manuscript prepared for reading at the meeting. The paragraphs you added are in bold
so that comrades can understand and learn from them. If you think any parts should not be
used directly when published, please indicate so.‘ Mao Zedong drew a line under the
words ’not used directly" and wrote this comment. The two paragraphs referred to in the
comment are the two quotations in sections 11 and 14 of this article.
[5] Refers to the so-called "Pai Li Kingdom" of the "Old Beijing Municipal Committee"
mentioned above.
[6] This refers to the process mentioned above of "workers' propaganda teams going to
primary and secondary schools in a step-by-step and planned manner to promote struggle,
criticism and transformation there."
[7] Text in quotation marks was printed in bold type when published.