The most disastrous phenomenon of the current situation is the

Clara Zetkin, a fiery spirit of revolution and an unyielding defender of the working class, once declared: “The most disastrous phenomenon of the current situation is the factor that imperialism is employing for its own ends all the powers of the proletariat, all of its institutions and weapons, which its fighting vanguard has created for its war of liberation.” In this thunderous cry, she revealed the tragic irony of her age: that the very proletariat, the class meant to forge freedom, was being bent and used as a tool for its own enslavement.

The origin of this declaration lies in the early twentieth century, in the years after the First World War. Zetkin, a Marxist revolutionary, saw with sorrow how the structures built by workers—their unions, their parties, their collective strength—were being diverted by imperialism. Instead of wielding their weapons to break chains, the working masses were often tricked or coerced into serving wars of conquest, enriching the few while sacrificing the many. What should have been the march toward liberation became a march into the jaws of death.

The meaning of her words is piercing: power without vigilance is easily stolen. The institutions of the people, born to defend them, can be hijacked to oppress them. Factories, instead of producing bread, produce weapons. Unions, instead of uniting workers across borders, are manipulated to support nationalist wars. The courage of the vanguard is transformed into fuel for the engines of empire. Zetkin warns that this is not only a betrayal but the most disastrous phenomenon, for it turns the very strength of the oppressed into chains that bind them tighter.

History provides grim examples. During the First World War, millions of workers across Europe were mobilized, not for their own liberation, but for imperial powers. German and French laborers, who shared common struggles in the factories, were sent to slaughter one another in the trenches. Their unions, often pressured by governments and propaganda, supported the war effort. Instead of uniting against their true oppressors, the working class was divided, deceived, and drained of its lifeblood. Here, Zetkin’s words are fulfilled: imperialism used the weapons of the proletariat—their numbers, their labor, their courage—for its own ends.

And yet, her warning is not merely of tragedy, but of awakening. She calls upon the workers of every land to see through the illusion, to recognize how their strength is bent against them, and to reclaim their institutions for true liberation. For the vanguard, though misled, is not powerless. The same courage that fights in wars of empire can fight in wars of justice. The same factories that forge guns can forge tools of life. The same unions that divide across borders can unite across them. The people’s power is constant—it is only its direction that determines whether it enslaves or liberates.

The lesson for us, children of tomorrow, is this: guard your strength, lest it be stolen. Be vigilant with your institutions, lest they serve not your freedom but the ambitions of the few. Question the voices that call you to sacrifice, and ask always: who profits from my struggle? Is it my neighbor, my family, my people—or is it an empire that feasts upon our blood? Zetkin reminds us that the gravest danger is not weakness, but misused strength.

Practical wisdom demands this: examine the causes you support. If you belong to a union, a movement, a community—ensure its fire burns for justice, not for oppression. Refuse to let your labor be twisted into the service of greed. Educate yourself and others about the hidden hands that seek to exploit collective power. And when you fight, fight with eyes open, knowing that true liberation lies not in serving imperial ends, but in breaking them.

Thus, let Clara Zetkin’s cry endure: imperialism thrives when it seizes the weapons of the people and turns them against their makers. Learn from her warning, guard your strength, and wield your power for liberation, not for conquest. For the destiny of the oppressed is not to be fuel for the empires of others, but to be the architects of their own freedom.