Reconstructing the Role of the Working Class in Communist and Postcommunist Romania

Abstract

This article examines the position of the industrial working class in Romania before 1989, its role in the overthrow of the communist regime during the December 1989 revolution, and its status during the postcommunist transition to democracy after 1989. The subordination of labor interests by both communist and postcommunist regimes to ideologies that underestimated the issue of class differentiation is emphasized throughout the paper. This analysis is undertaken at two levels, namely, the rewriting of the history of communism after 1989 and the obstacles encountered during the process of democratic transition. The later aspect refers to the problematic relationship between the intellectuals and the working class and labor's lack of involvement in shaping the post-1989 economic and political reforms. The argument that I pursue is that many of the setbacks experienced during the democratization process are partly rooted in the status of labor as an important absentee from the discourse and agenda of both incumbent governments and intellectual elites. It has been a significant factor in pushing the working class towards an illiberal right-wing politics and ideologies of a populist, xenophobic, and anti-intellectual nature.