Young People's Socialist League
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| Young People's Socialist League | |
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| Founded | 1907 |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
| Mother party | Socialist Party USA |
| Website | Official Website |
The Young People's Socialist League (YPSL) is a democratic socialist youth group originally affiliated with the Socialist Party of America. It is currently the autonomous youth affiliate of the Socialist Party USA, with which it shares a substantial portion of its membership.
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[edit] History
[edit] Foundation and early years
YPSL was founded in 1907 as a youth circle in Chicago, Illinois. In 1913 it was established as the Socialist Party's national youth affiliate. As World War I was beginning, YPSL had over 100 branches and almost 10,000 members. In 1919, the Socialist Party's communist faction broke off and formed what would eventually become the Communist Party USA. Those YPSL members sympathetic to that faction decided to follow it out of the Socialist Party and created the Young Communist League (YCL).
By the 1936 the membership had grown up to 2-6 thousand members,[1] when comparing to the YCL who had around 11 thousand members.[2] With the party gaining minimal growth, while the YCL gained 22 thousand members by 1939, becoming the leading left youth organization in the country.[3] During the 1930s the youth party emphasized on the working class and non-college youth, despite the fact that the leadership group were mostly college graduate".[1] Their paper, the Young Socialist Review deemphasized college work, and instead emphized work on High School organizing. While, YPSL was active in campus affair "from time to time", is was mostly through members who were connected with other left youth organizations at the time. A fight between factions happened in the Socialist Party in 1936 between left-wing "Militants" and the right-wing "Old Guard", the "Old Guard" members would go on to establish the Social Democratic Federation. For short period of time, some trotskyist were able to take power over the organization, and successfully changed the organizations ideological direction, before being expelled. Many "Militant" members were lost to the trotskyists.[4] During this period YPSL was a major recruitment source for the Socialist Party. Yipsels (as YPSL members were called) were expected to become active in the main party, and also served as mentors and leaders for the Red Falcons, the SP's children's organization.[5]
In 1936, the party turned its attention towards campus, creating the National Student Committee. The organization was never drew many members, many speculating because of its ties with the Socialist Party of America or because of YPSL's factionalism. The only strength YPSL had with the campus movement, was through more sophisticated members who had earned high ranks within other student organizations, such as the American Youth Congress (AYC) and the American Student Union (ASU).[4] With the ever growing YCL, YPSL help founding the Youth Commitee Against War (YCAW), which became an organization in which YPSL members voiced their politics about the peace movement. While ultimatley did not lead to much more support, which would been seen as one socialism biggest failures in the United States, to not be able to gain popular support from young workers and college students, loosing many left-leaning supporters to the Communists.[6]
When Nazi Germany started World War II, the SPA firmely said that they did not want the United States to participate in the war. The relationships between YPSL and YCL was hurt by this, being that YCL wanted to join the war. The YCL drew strength from both liberals and socialist alike, many supporters were convinced that Europe needed help to defeat the facist state of Nazi Germany.[7] Despite socialist opposition, both AYC and ASU both supported YCL in its foreign policies regarding the facist regime of Nazi Germany.[8] By the end of the 1939, YCL used much its time attacking YPSL.[3]
[edit] Decline and Vietnam era
By 1952, the Socialist Party's YPSL had 134 members, 62 of which had been recruited that year. The Independent Socialist League (ISL) affiliated Socialist Youth League (SYL) had been making overtures to YPSL. The mother party, Socialist Party of America, told YPSL it could not have contact with the "totalitarian" organizations of SYL or ISL, although YPSL ignored this, and the relationship between YPSL and its mother party worsened. In 1953, the Socialist Party cut off money to YPSL, and then suspended YPSL's New York branch, which was the one with the most contact with SYL (and the ISL). In August, the party including the "suspended" members voted to disaffiliate with its mother party. In February 1954, the Young People's Socialist League merged with SYL to form the Young Socialist League.
YPSL was reconstituted and was instrumental in forming the Student Peace Union (1959-1964). Both the Realignment and the Labor Caucuses opposed membership by members of the Trotskyist Socialist Workers Party. YPSL helped organize a nuclear test ban march in Washington DC in 1962, and they were the first left organization to oppose U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. YPSL subsequently split into two factions, a left-wing one which wanted to create a mass labor party, and a right-wing one which wanted realignment with the Democratic Party. In 1964, the left-wing faction took over YPSL, after which the left-wing faction itself broke into factions. YPSL was dissolved shortly afterward. Two years later it was reconstituted, but remained small throughout the 1960s compared to groups like SDS.
Nevertheless, the YPSL had about a thousand members by the early 1970s. It had fairly large branches at major universities such as Harvard, Yale, NYU, Cornell and Columbia.
Steve Kelman of the Harvard YPSL chapter published a well known book at the time entitled When Push Comes to Shove.
The YPSL chapter at Cornell University achieved a certain notoriety when it publicly campaigned for the closing of racially segregated housing on and off campus. Civil rights leaders including Bayard Rustin and Roy Wilkins of the NAACP backed the YPSL campaign, even though it included a demand to close down a dormitory that included only Black students, known as Ujamaa. The Cornell chapter eventually grew to become the second largest YPSL chapter (the largest was in New York City) by the mid-1970s. From 1972-5, it published a weekly newsletter known as The Ithaca Call.
But the organization was deeply divided over the Vietnam War, with some members supporting an immediate and unconditional US withdrawal while others (the majority) supporting a negotiated settlement that would prevent a Communist takeover of South Vietnam. The dissidents backing a US withdrawal called themselves the "Coalition Caucus" and was identified with a similar tendency in the parent Socialist Party.
The supporters of the majority faction were also enthusiastic supporters of Israel and opponents of the "New Politics" wing of the Democratic Party represented by Senator George McGovern. A number of them became enthusiastic supporters of the Presidential campaign of Senator Henry Jackson.
By the time of the annual YPSL convention, held outside San Francisco in 1971, where the last major public speech was given by Max Shachtman, the organization was on the brink of splitting.
[edit] Party split and current history
In 1973, the mother party, Socialist Party of America split up in three factions, two of them leaving the party to create a new party supporting their beliefs. The remnants of what was the Socialist Party of America, created the Social Democrats USA, the YPSL joined them and changed its name to Young Social Democrats (YSD). For a time, it published a magazine called The Social Democrat.
The largest of group to emerge from the party, was the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee. Its youth section became known as the DSOC Youth Section, which held its first meeting in 1975 in Boston. In 1980, DSOC merged with the New American Movement to become the Democratic Socialists of America, its youth section was subsequently named the Young Democratic Socialists. The third group, known within the party as the "Debs Caucus", renamed itself as the Socialist Party USA. The party experienced substantial growth in the 1980s and early 1990s, growing from a membership of 600 too 1.700 thousand members. n 1989, the party re-constituted YPSL as an autonomous youth affiliate to the party.
A number of the YPSL leaders from the late 1960s and early 1970s went on to become notable figures on the American Right, including the founding director of the National Endowment for Democracy, Carl Gershman as well as such neoconservative writers as Josh Muravchik of the American Enterprise Institute and Max Green, the author of a violently anti-union polemic -- Epitaph for American Labor: Radicalism in the Union Movement (1996). Gershman, Muravchik and Green were the Vice Chairman, National Chairman and National Secretary of the organization in 1971.
[edit] Control structure and organization
[edit] First national convention
According to YPSL first national convention from May 1-4, 1919, the Committee was suppose to consist of all State Secretaries of the YPSL organized state parties. Other members could only by elected into the Committee by a referendum vote. All unorganized state organization included in the YPSL was entitled to a National Committeeman, if the state organization consisted a membership of over 100 members. The election of a committeeman was to be supervised of a National Secretary of the organization. Members who sought a position in the National Committee or any subcommittees needed a one year's consecutive membership.[9]
A National Secretary of the the youth party, which also ment serving as the Director of the Young People's Department of the Socialist Party, was nominated by the various state Leagues. Each League needed to submit its nominations, with evidence of qualifications of their nominee and statements of acceptance. These votes were than submitted to a referendum vote of the membership by the National Secretary of the League. A National Secretary had a term of two years, taking office in July. The National Secretary can not stand for re-election after having served two-consecutive terms. The National Secretary would be in charge of the youth party in two years, taking control of organizing and act as a custodian of all YPSL's finances. The National Committee had full control of the National Secretary's direction.[9]
The formation of all state organization, or the re-organization of them, was under the direct control of the National Secretary according to the rules of the National Committee. It would reguire three leagues or more, which needed to be situated in as many towns or cities as possible, each with a membership no less than 100, to form a state federation. In states where there is only on "central" organization in contact or affiliated with YPSL, should have sole jurisdiction of the members residing in local area of the "central" organization. This included matters relating propaganda, such as organization and financial affairs, this kind of propaganda "was in harmony with the declared principals" of YPSL. All actions of state organizations affiliated with YPSL was to follow the principles of YPSL, if not followed, the organizations charter would be a subject revocation by the National Committee.[9]
[edit] Current organization structure
YPSL's traditional symbol is the 'Three Arrows', which can mean many things. The arrows are meant to symbolize the three ways in which humanity works for a better society. They are:
- Education - YPSL publishes pamphlets and magazines and holds educational forum meetings
- Direct Action - YPSL engages in protests, non-violent demonstrations and engages in strike support
- Elections - Through its parent organization, the Socialist Party USA, YPSL supports candidates for public office
During earlier, left-wing periods, the Three Arrows stood for
- Education
- Agitation
- Solidarity
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b G. Altbach 1997, pp. 74.
- ^ G. Altbach 1997, pp. 77.
- ^ a b G. Altbach 1997, pp. 83.
- ^ a b G. Altbach 1997, pp. 75.
- ^ Tatlock, Julie. "Red Falcons: Children and the Socialist Party in Milwaukee". Marquette University. http://www.mu.edu/cgi-bin/cuap/db.cgi?uid=default&ID=4970&view=Search&mh=1. Retrieved November 3, 2009.
- ^ G. Altbach 1997, pp. 76.
- ^ M. Ottanelli 1991, pp. 169.
- ^ M. Ottanelli 1991, pp. 170.
- ^ a b c "Constitution of the Young People’s Socialist League". The Young Socialists' Magazine. June, 1919. Retrieved on November 3, 2009.
[edit] Bibliography
- M. Ottanelli, Fraser (1991). The Communist Party of the United States: From the Depression to World War II. London, UK: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0813516137. http://books.google.com/books?id=9oMMEchZKHMC&dq=The+Communist+party+of+the+United+States:+from+the+depression+to+world+war+II&hl=no&source=gbs_navlinks_s.
- G. Altbach, Philip (1997). Student Politics in America: A Historical Analysis. New Jersey, US: Transaction Publishers. ISBN 1560009446. http://books.google.no/books?id=Ecc4o_dMz68C&dq=Student+politics+in+America:+a+historical+analysis&source=gbs_navlinks_s.
- Isserman, Maurice (2001). The Other American: The Life of Michael Harrington. New York, US: PublicAffairs. ISBN 1-58648-036-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=O4h5AAAAIAAJ&q=The+Other+American+:+The+Life+of+Michael+Harrington&dq=The+Other+American+:+The+Life+of+Michael+Harrington&hl=no.
[edit] External links
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