Communism, in the broadest definition, is the goal of achieving a stateless and classless society where everybody is equal with no hierarchy of any kind. In this umbrella, you have all sorts of different groups, you might have heard of “Marxists” or “Marxist-Leninists”, but this goal is also shared by non-Marxist socialists and some forms of anarchism too! Indeed, the first Communist International included the anarchists as they shared similar goals, but future “Internationals” did not as their methodology of achieving this utopia differed significantly.
Socialism is another broad term thrown around to describe a lot of things, but in a nutshell, a socialist advocates for reforms that move closer to a communist utopia (though that might not be the goalpost). It is sometimes also used to refer to “social democrats”, who uphold capitalism while pushing for social reforms that results in a more equal and less divided society. This is not to be conflated with “democratic socialists”, who are anti-capitalist and pro-democracy.
Not all communists are socialists, and not all socialists are communists.
As small tidbit, not all communists are Marxists, that term specifically refers to those who believe in the ideas of Karl Marx. They are not necessarily authoritarian, but many of Marx’s ideas can be interpreted as such. Marxist-Leninism / Bolshevism is an extension of Marxism that focuses more on a violent revolution and a strong authoritarian state. There are also other forms that revolve around various different people, like Stalinism, Trotskyism, Maoism, etc., but most of those are pretty cult-like.
Personally, I support democracy and believe that a transparent government that lets the people decide on issues creates a fairer, more equal society. I guess you could also say I’m a socialist, as I like the idea of a more egalitarian society and I support the social reforms that try to achieve that
Small note, I’m not an economist, but I do know that socialism aims to give more economic control to the working class over the owning class (businessmen and that sort). Things like unions, minimum wages, paid maternity leave, etc. stemmed from socialists and generally improved the lives of workers!
Communism, in the broadest definition, is the goal of achieving a stateless and classless society where everybody is equal with no hierarchy of any kind. In this umbrella, you have all sorts of different groups, you might have heard of “Marxists” or “Marxist-Leninists”, but this goal is also shared by non-Marxist socialists and some forms of anarchism too! Indeed, the first Communist International included the anarchists as they shared similar goals, but future “Internationals” did not as their methodology of achieving this utopia differed significantly.
Socialism is another broad term thrown around to describe a lot of things, but in a nutshell, a socialist advocates for reforms that move closer to a communist utopia (though that might not be the goalpost). It is sometimes also used to refer to “social democrats”, who uphold capitalism while pushing for social reforms that results in a more equal and less divided society. This is not to be conflated with “democratic socialists”, who are anti-capitalist and pro-democracy.
Not all communists are socialists, and not all socialists are communists.
As small tidbit, not all communists are Marxists, that term specifically refers to those who believe in the ideas of Karl Marx. They are not necessarily authoritarian, but many of Marx’s ideas can be interpreted as such. Marxist-Leninism / Bolshevism is an extension of Marxism that focuses more on a violent revolution and a strong authoritarian state. There are also other forms that revolve around various different people, like Stalinism, Trotskyism, Maoism, etc., but most of those are pretty cult-like.
Personally, I support democracy and believe that a transparent government that lets the people decide on issues creates a fairer, more equal society. I guess you could also say I’m a socialist, as I like the idea of a more egalitarian society and I support the social reforms that try to achieve that
Small note, I’m not an economist, but I do know that socialism aims to give more economic control to the working class over the owning class (businessmen and that sort). Things like unions, minimum wages, paid maternity leave, etc. stemmed from socialists and generally improved the lives of workers!