Alan Woods

Alan Woods was born in Swansea, South Wales in 1944 into a working-class family with a strong Communist tradition. At the age of 16 he joined the Young Socialists and became a Marxist. He studied Russian in Sussex University and later in Sofia (Bulgaria) and the Moscow State University (MGU). He has a wide experience of the international labour movement and has been involved in the Marxist movement in Spain, where he participated in the struggle against the Franco dictatorship, Latin America and Pakistan. He speaks several languages, including Spanish, French, German and Russian.

Alan Woods is the author of many works covering a wide spectrum of issues: Marxism in Our Time (1992), China in Crisis (1994), The Socialist Alternative to the European Union (http://www.marxist.com/Europe/socialisteurope.html) (1997), Revolution in Albania (http://www.marxist.com/Europe/albania.html) (1997), A New Stage in the Capitalist Crisis (http://www.marxist.com/Economy/capitalistcrisis.html) (1998), Indonesia: the Asian Revolution has Begun (http://www.marxist.com/Asia/indonesia.html) (1998), The Kosovo pogrom and the Balkan Powder-keg (http://www.marxist.com/Europe/kosovo.html) (1998), and Crisis in Russia, the free market failure (http://www.marxist.com/Russia/russiacrisis.html), and History of Philosophy (http://www.marxist.com/philosophy/index.asp), and two books co-authored with Ted Grant, Lenin and Trotsky: what they really stood for (http://www.marxist.com/LeninAndTrotsky/) (1969), Reason in Revolt: Marxist philosophy and modern science (http://www.marxist.com/rircontents.asp) (1995), Bolshevism: the Road to Revolution (http://www.marxist.com/bolshevism/) (1999). He is currently the editor of the Marxist journal Socialist Appeal (http://www.socialist.net), published in London and the editor of the popular web site In Defence of Marxism (Marxist.com (http://www.marxist.com)).