Work in Progress (WIP) Collection

Title: Work in Progress (WIP) Collection
Alternative Title: WIP Collection
Creator: Southern African Research Service (SARS)
Description: A series of the independent political and social journal Work in Progress, established in 1977 by the Southern African Research Service (SARS). WIP provided a platform for radical analysis of South African political economy, labor struggles, and state repression. It was notable for its rigorous "Labor Bulletins," its coverage of the treason trials, and its role in debating the transition to a post-apartheid democracy. The collection documents the intellectual history of the "Internal Front" of the anti-apartheid struggle.
Date Issued: 1977 – 1994
Language: English
Provenance: The item is held at the Cory Library for Humanities Research, Rhodes University, on behalf of the Labour Research Service
Type: Collection
Genre: Periodicals
Publisher: SARS (1977–1991); WIP/Reconstruct (1991–1994)
Subject: South Africa—Politics and government—1961-1994; Labour movement—South Africa; Political trials—South Africa; Apartheid—Economic aspects; Socialism—South Africa; Social theory; Labour unions--South Africa

Work in Progress, Issue no. 4

A theoretical paper analysing class formation and struggle in peripheral capitalist societies. The text critiqued the direct application of Western Marxist concepts to the Third World, focusing specifically on the "Labour Aristocracy" thesis. It sought to identify objective class interests to determine potential revolutionary alliances between workers, peasants, and the petty bourgeoisie. The paper argues against "unrigorous descriptive methodology" in favour of a rigorous materialist analysis of African social formations.