Revolutionary Marxist activist Rosa Luxemburg (1871-1919) has long been a major inspiration for activists on the left. But what can we learn from looking closely at her life today? Jon Nixon answers that question here, offering a clear, concise account of Luxemburg's biography and thought and setting it in relation to contemporary economic, political, and social debates. Nixon presents Luxemburg as not only an activist, but also as a major political theorist, showing how her thinking about global capitalism, state militarism, and other subjects can still be applied today, with powerful effects. By establishing a rich and distinctive account of Luxemburg, Nixon makes a compelling argument for the continuing relevance of her struggle for democratic renewal.

An examination of the enduring legacy of Rosa Luxemburg and her importance for activists and intellectuals alike.

Provocative writings on the question of national self-determination and its relationship with socialism.

Among the major Marxist thinkers of the Russian Revolution era, Rosa Luxemburg stands out as one who speaks to our own time. Her legacy grows in relevance as the global character of the capitalist market becomes more apparent and the critique of bureaucratic power is more widely accepted within the movement for human liberation. The Rosa Luxemburg Reader is the definitive one-volume collection of Luxemburg's writings in English translation. Unlike previous publications of her work from the early 1970s, this volume includes substantial extracts from her major economic writings—above all, The Accumulation of Capital (1913)—and from her political writings, including Reform or Revolution (1898), the Junius Pamphlet (1916), and The Russian Revolution (1918). The Reader also includes a number of important texts that have never before been published in English translation, including substantial extracts from her Introduction to Political Economy (1916), and a recently-discovered piece on slavery. With a substantial introduction assessing Luxemburg's work in the light of recent research, The Rosa Luxemburg Reader is an indispensable resource for scholarship and an inspiration for a new generation of activists.

The Mass Strike, the Political Party and the Trade Unions was written in 1906 by Polish-born revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg. It brilliantly captures the fundamental lessons from the experience of mass workers' strikes and their role in the 1905 Russian Revolution. Luxemburg lived in a world in crisis - one characterised by the fast approach of the First World War - and in an era when revolutionary struggles and ideas broke out internationally. Now, over a century later, capitalism is lunging deeper into a crisis of mammoth economic, political, social and ecological proportions. The need for mass strikes that can spill over into revolution is now existential. In this short book, Luxemburg shows how strikes call into question the relationship between the working class and the employing class, how political and economic demands fuse in the course of such strikes, and how they can start to challenge the conservative approach of the trade union leaders. Her book is as relevant as ever in hel