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Party for Socialism and Liberation

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This article is about the US party. For the former Moroccan party, see Party of Liberation and Socialism. For the Brazilian party, see Socialism and Liberty Party.

Party for Socialism and Liberation
AbbreviationPSL
LeaderCentral Committee[1]
FoundedJune 18, 2004; 20 years ago (2004-06-18)[1]
Split fromWorkers World Party
Headquarters
NewspaperLiberation News
Ideology
Political positionFar-left
International affiliationInternational Peoples' Assembly[6]
Colors  Red
Members in elected offices0
Website
www.pslweb.org Edit this at Wikidata
This article is part of a series on
Socialism
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The Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) is a communist political party in the United States. PSL formed in 2004, when its members split from the Workers World Party.

PSL describes itself as a revolutionary socialist party, as the party believes that only a revolution can end capitalism and establish socialism.[7][8] PSL pursues this goal by participating in local protests, running candidates in elections, and conducting political education.

Notable members include Claudia de la Cruz, Eugene Puryear, Gloria La Riva, Jodi Dean, and Michael Prysner.

Organization

[edit]

Membership

[edit]

PSL does not release membership numbers.[9][10] In 2022, PSL claimed an "organized presence in over 100 cities".[11]

PSL is a democratic centralist party,[12][13][14][15] which means that "all members, including those who disagree, are duty bound to publicly defend and carry out" all PSL decisions.[15] PSL's highest body is its Party Congress, held "every two to three years", which selects its Central Committee leadership.[15] The PSL Central Committee can appoint up to "40 percent" of Congress delegates.[15]

Associated groups

[edit]

ANSWER Coalition

[edit]

When ANSWER was founded, many of ANSWER's lead organizers were members of the Workers World Party (WWP) and its International Action Center.[16][17]

After PSL split from the WWP, ANSWER remained tightly tied to PSL. As a result, PSL is a founding member of the ANSWER Coalition.[18] ANSWER's National Coordinator is Brian Becker,[19] a PSL co-founder who said "we do a great deal of work through" ANSWER.[20] The New Republic described ANSWER as a PSL "front group",[21] and the two have significant financial overlap.[22][23]

BreakThrough News

[edit]

PSL leadership are closely involved with BreakThrough News (BTN).[23] BTN anchors include Brian Becker and Eugene Puryear, PSL's 2008 and 2016 vice-presidential candidate.[24] BTN's secretary is Claudia De la Cruz.[24] BTN works closely with Tricontinental Institute for Social Research and has often hosted Tricontinental founder Vijay Prashad.[24]

The People's Forum

[edit]

PSL leadership are closely involved with The People's Forum, an event space in NYC, which hosts the BreakThrough News studio.[23] Claudia De la Cruz sits on the board, and Neville Singham funds the organization.[24][23]

Neville Singham

[edit]

Many of the organizations above are funded in part by Neville Roy Singham, a Shanghai-based American businessman who supports organizations and media outlets that have been noted for echoing pro-Beijing talking points.[24][25][23] Most of this funding comes from the Justice and Education Fund (JEF), to which Neville Singham has donated more than $20 million, and for which Claudia de la Cruz works as a coordinator.[24][23]

History

[edit]
PSL protesters at the 2016 Democratic National Convention

PSL was formed in June 2004[8][1] when the San Francisco branch of the Workers World Party left the organization. The San Francisco branch, alongside other members, announced that "the Workers World Party leadership is no longer capable of fulfilling [the] mission" of building socialism.[3] PSL co-founders included Richard Becker,[3] Brian Becker,[24] Gloria La Riva,[3] and Eugene Puryear.[24]

In 2020, at least five PSL members were arrested during protests against the Aurora police department for the killing of Elijah McClain.[26][10]

On October 8, 2023, after the Hamas-led attack on Israel, PSL Central Committee member Eugene Puryear helped organize a rally in support of Palestine in Times Square,[27][28] in which he stated: "[T]here was some sort of rave or desert party where they were having a great time, until the resistance came in electrified hang gliders and took at least several dozen hipsters, and I'm sure they're doing very fine despite what the New York Post says."[21][29][30][31][32][33]

In 2023 and 2024, PSL organized numerous rallies in favor of Palestinian liberation.[34]

From 2020 to 2024, several former PSL members accused the group of cult-like tendencies and of mishandling sexual abuse allegations. In 2024, PSL presidential candidate Claudia de la Cruz denied these allegations, some of which she described as misinformation from federal agents.[35]

Ideology

[edit]
A PSL supporter protesting against the 2021 killing of Ma'Khia Bryant

PSL is a Marxist-Leninist party.[2][3][4][5] PSL's program and constitution simply identify PSL as Marxist,[15][36] while PSL's other writings identify PSL as a Marxist-Leninist party[37][38][39] in the Leninist party model.[40][12]

PSL describes its primary goal as the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism and the institution of socialism, stating that "humanity today has only two choices: an increasingly destructive capitalism, or socialism".[7] PSL holds that the United States is "a dictatorship of the capitalist class" that cannot change "without a socialist revolution".[41]

Domestic affairs

[edit]

PSL calls for nationalization of the largest 100 domestic corporations,[42][43] guaranteed employment, comprehensive social benefits, a 30-hour workweek, universal public healthcare including childcare.[36] universal public housing capped at 10% of income,[36] abolition of private rental housing,[44] and nationalizing the energy industry to create a national electricity grid based on renewable energy.[42][44]

PSL supports a guaranteed right to abortion,[36] equal pay regardless of gender, protection against gender-based or sexuality-based discrimination and violence,[36][45] and national self-determination and reparations for African Americans and residents of US territories in Puerto Rico, Samoa, Guam, the Virgin Islands and Mariana Islands.[36]

International affairs

[edit]

PSL calls for a 90% cut to the military budget of the United States, the closure of all overseas military bases, and a halt of US aid to Israel.[42][46]

The party supports the Communist Party of China,[8][45] criticizing only its capitalist economic reforms.[47] PSL argues that "militant political defense of the Chinese government" is necessary to stave off "counterrevolution, imperialist intervention and dismemberment".[48][45] PSL defends China's human rights records,[8] and strongly denies that the People's Liberation Army massacred student protestors in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.[45][49][47] PSL denies that China has suppressed democracy in Hong Kong.[50][51]

PSL supports Kim Jong-un.[45][47] PSL describes North Korea as "one of the few top-to-bottom, actually-existing, alternatives to the global capitalist system".[52] PSL supports North Korea's nuclear weapons program.[8][52][53] PSL rejects criticism of North Korea's human rights record,[54] which it calls "thinly veiled justification for U.S. aggression toward North Korea",[55] and argues that "conditions in North Korea are vastly better than those in other developing countries".[55]

PSL supported the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea.[56][57] PSL did not support the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but did place blame for the invasion on NATO and the United States.[50] In its statement, PSL highlighted the "plight of ethnic Russians [...] in the Donbas", Russia's "legitimate security concerns", and NATO's "provocative behavior".[58]

PSL opposes US intervention in the Syrian Civil War, and has generally been supportive of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Russian military efforts in Syria.[56][59][60][61][47] PSL denies that the Syrian government used chemical weapons.[62][59]

Election results

[edit]

PSL has fielded electoral candidates for local, state, and federal offices. No PSL candidate has yet won an election for those offices.[43] PSL candidates sometimes run as independent candidates or as third party candidates, such as with the Peace and Freedom Party or the Green Party.

Presidential elections

[edit]
Year Presidential candidate Vice presidential candidate Popular votes % Electoral votes Result Ballot access Notes Ref
2024 Claudia De la Cruz Karina Garcia 118,108 (#6)
0.07%
 0 Lost
220 / 538
 The Peace and Freedom Party also nominated de la Cruz.[a] [63][64]
2020 Gloria La Riva Sunil Freeman[b] 86,239 (#6)
0.05%
 0 Lost
195 / 538
 The Peace and Freedom Party also nominated La Riva.[c] [68][69][70][71]
2016 Gloria La Riva Eugene Puryear 74,027 (#8)
0.05%
 0 Lost
112 / 538
 The Peace and Freedom Party also nominated La Riva, with Dennis Banks as her running mate.[d] [72]
2012 Peta Lindsay Yari Osorio 7,791 (#7)
0.01%
 0 Lost
146 / 538
 [73]
2008 Gloria La Riva Eugene Puryear 6,818
0.01%
 0 Lost
137 / 538
 [74]

In 2024, the Democratic Parties of Georgia and Pennsylvania successfully sued to remove PSL from the ballot. In Georgia, some early ballots still contained De la Cruz's name.[75] In 2024, Claudia de la Cruz claimed that 6,000 volunteers helped PSL win ballot access in the 2024 United States presidential election.[46]

Congressional elections

[edit]
Year Candidate Chamber State District Votes % Result Notes Ref
2022 José Cortés House California CA-51 3,327
2.2%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate; did not advance to top-two general [76][77]
2020 José Cortés House California CA-50 1,821
0.9%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate; did not advance to top-two general [78][79]
2018 Jordan Mills House California CA-49 233
0.1%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate; did not advance to top-two general [80][81]
2014 Frank Lara House California CA-12 2,107
1.9%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate; did not advance to top-two general [82][83]
2010 Gloria La Riva House California CA-8 5,161
2.5%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [84]
2008 Nathalie Hrizi House California CA-12 5,793
2.2%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate; did not advance to top-two general [85][86]
2008 Michael Prysner House Florida FL-22 6
0.0%
 Lost ran as write-in candidate [87][88][74]

Statewide elections

[edit]
Year Candidate Office State District Votes % Result Notes Ref
2022 Nathalie Hrizi Insurance Commissioner California At-Large 189,289
2.8%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [89]
2022 Meghann Adams State Treasurer California At-Large 242,234
3.6%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [90]
2018 Gloria La Riva Governor California At-Large 19,075
0.3%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [91]
2018 Nathalie Hrizi Insurance Commissioner California At-Large 309,399
5.0%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [92]
2014 Nathalie Hrizi Insurance Commissioner California At-Large 212,991
5.4%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [93]
2010 Carlos Alvarez Governor California At-Large 92,856
0.9%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [94][95]
2010 Marylou Cabral Secretary of State California At-Large 164,450
0.9%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [95]

State legislature elections

[edit]
Year Candidate Office State District Votes % Result Notes Ref
2024 Kevin Martinez State Assembly California 6 1,861
1.8%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [96]
2022 Noah Leininger State House Indiana 90 259
1.9%
 Lost ran as write-in candidate [97]
2021 Ernesto Huerta State Senate California 30 1,565
2.2%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [98]
2017 John Prysner State Assembly California 51 232
1.0%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [99][100]
2010 Corey Ansel State House Ohio 22 716
1.4%
 Lost ran as Green Party candidate [101]
2008 Heather Benno State House Illinois 40 2,276
10.1%
 Lost ran as Green Party candidate [102]
2008 John Beacham State House Illinois 14 4,745
14.5%
 Lost ran as Green Party candidate [102]
2008 Lucilla Esguerra State Assembly California 48 11,173
12.9%
 Lost ran as Peace and Freedom Party candidate [103]

Local elections

[edit]
Year Candidate Office City District Votes % Result Notes Ref
2024 Eduardo "Lalo" Vargas City Council Los Angeles 14 1,638
4.66%
 Lost non-partisan election [104]
2023 Ana Santoyo City Council Chicago 45 895
5.59%
 Lost non-partisan election [105][106]
2021 Colin Dodson City Council Urbana 2 57
40.1%
 Lost ran as Party for Socialism and Liberation candidate [107][108]
2021 Cathy Rojas Mayor New York At-Large 27,982
2.5%
 Lost ran as Party for Socialism and Liberation candidate [109][110]
2014 Eugene Puryear City Council Washington D.C. At-Large 12,525
3.5%
 Lost ran as D.C. Statehood Green Party candidate [111]
2014 John Beacham City Council Chicago 49 0
0%
 Lost withdrawn from ballot due to insufficient nominating petition signatures[112] [113][114]
2010 Stevie Merino Mayor Long Beach At-Large 5,057
16%
 Lost non-partisan election [115]
2009 Carlos Alvarez Mayor Los Angeles At-Large 3,047
1.1%
 Lost non-partisan election [116]
2009 Francisca Villar Mayor New York At-Large 3,517
0.3%
 Lost ran as Party for Socialism and Liberation candidate [117]
2008 Stephen Hinze Board of Supervisors Los Angeles 5 29,875
20.7%
 Lost non-partisan election [118]
2008 Marylou Cabral[e] Board of Supervisors Los Angeles 4 23,703
17.5%
 Lost non-partisan election [119]
2008 Amanda Todd City Council Sioux Falls
11.1%
 Lost [120]
2008 Sergio Farias City Council San Juan Capistrano 1,133
5.0%
 Lost [121][122]
2008 Crystal Kim Council Washington, D.C. At-Large 0
0%
 Lost write-in, votes not tabulated [123][124]

National conventions

[edit]

PSL does not publish its party constitution. The 2022 Constitution was leaked.

Name Date Location Report Program Constitution
Fifth Party Congress July 2022 no public report Program Constitution, 5th ed
Fourth Party Congress August 2019 no public report Program Constitution, 4th ed
Third Party Congress April 1–3, 2016 San Francisco, CA Convention report Program Constitution, 3rd ed
Second Party Congress February 2013 no public report Program Constitution, 2nd ed
First Party Congress February 13–15, 2010 Los Angeles, CA Convention report Program Constitution, 1st ed
Third National Convention June 2007 no public report no public program
Second National Convention February 18–20, 2006 San Francisco, CA Convention report no public program
First National Convention 2005 no public report Program
Founding Convention June 18–20, 2004 San Francisco, CA Convention report Founding statement

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ 2024: "Ballot access" above includes all states where Claudia de la Cruz was not a write-in; ie, where they were a listed PSL, PFP, or LUP candidate. Claudia de la Cruz has write-in status in 22 states, with 243 possible electoral votes from write-ins.
  2. ^ Replacing Leonard Peltier, who withdrew for health reasons[65][66][67] but remained on the ballot in Minnesota and Illinois.
  3. ^ 2020: "Ballot access" above includes all states where La Riva was not a write-in; ie, where they were a listed PSL, PFP, or LUP candidate.
  4. ^ 2016: "Ballot access" above includes all states where La Riva was not a write-in; ie, where they were a listed PSL, PFP, or LUP candidate.
  5. ^ Marylou Cabral also given as Marilu Cabral Romero.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "15 years of building the Party, growing and learning". Liberation News. June 21, 2019. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Ford, Derek P. (June 1, 2017). "Making Marxist Pedagogy Magical: From Critique to Imagination, or, How Bookkeepers Set Us Free". Critical Education. 8 (9): 10. I want to turn our attention to the magical thinking of the Party for Socialism and Liberation. As a Marxist-Leninist Party in the United States, the PSL was founded in 2004.
  3. ^ a b c d e Kroitzsh, Aleka A. (August 2, 2019). "Local socialists see the "fog of anti-communism" lifting". Mission Local. The PSL espouses a Marxist-Leninist ideology, one intent on "fighting the war program in the U.S., fighting imperialism, and fighting for Socialism," said Gloria La Riva, a socialist presidential candidate since 1993 and a PSL founder.
  4. ^ a b Khan, K.; Trottier, Tom (November 11, 2021). "USA: The end of the Biden honeymoon". Socialist Appeal. Socialist Revolution USA. The Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), a small 'Marxist-Leninist' organisation with limited resources, ran a candidate under its own banner for mayor of New York City.
  5. ^ a b Harman, Mike (March 19, 2018). "Introduction". Where's the Winter Palace? On the Marxist-Leninist Trend in the United States. The Left Wind. Retrieved January 3, 2024. In the United States today, there exists a political trend which describes itself as Marxist-Leninist. This trend is organized as a loose constellation, orbiting around organizations such as the Workers World Party (WWP) and the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL)....
  6. ^ "Who We Are: International Process". International Peoples' Assembly. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023.
  7. ^ a b "About the Party for Socialism and Liberation". Party for Socialism and Liberation. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. The Party for Socialism and Liberation believes that the only solution to the deepening crisis of capitalism is the socialist transformation of society. [....] The idea that the capitalists' grip on society and their increasingly repressive state can be abolished through any means other than a revolutionary overturn is an illusion. Equally unrealistic are reformist hopes for a "kinder, gentler" capitalism, or solutions based on economic decentralization or small group autonomy. [....] There are really only two choices for humanity today—an increasingly destructive capitalism, or socialism.
  8. ^ a b c d e Corn, David (September 28, 2023). "As a presidential candidate, Cornel West aligns himself with far-left radicals". Mother Jones (magazine). Archived from the original on August 1, 2024. Retrieved August 27, 2024. The PSL split from the Marxist-Leninist Workers World Party in 2004, and one of its founders has declared, "We are communists." The party calls for the "revolutionary" overthrow of capitalism and denounces "reformist hopes" for a "kinder, gentler" capitalism. The PSL has supported the North Korean regime and its pursuit of nuclear weapons and also hailed the Chinese Communist Party, defending it against various charges of human rights violations. Brian Becker, a co-founder of the PSL, used to co-host a show on Radio Sputnik, a Moscow-created propaganda network.
  9. ^ Lipsitz, Raina (Fall 2022). "Where We Are and Where We're Going". Socialist Forum. Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. PSL does not release membership numbers; Socialist Alternative claims around 1,000 members nationwide.
  10. ^ a b Kaplan, Noah (November 10, 2020). "The Election May Be Over, but Their Fight Has Just Begun". Denver Westword. Archived from the original on November 10, 2020. The Denver branch of the PSL continues to participate in direct action and encourage support for House, Northam, Lucero and Ruch, as well as Roberts and Howard; although it doesn't reveal membership numbers, it's grown exponentially, Northam says. While local DSA officials lead the charge for radical socialist reforms and fresh blood in office, that group reports a 30 percent increase in membership over the past several months; on November 7, the DSA's national membership grew by 1,000 people in a single day; it added 10,000 in October and now numbers around 80,000 members.
  11. ^ "We need your help to build the movement for socialism". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. August 15, 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2024. We have an organized presence in over 100 cities and towns, and have expanded our presence substantially throughout the South in recent years.
  12. ^ a b "Social Media and Democratic Centralism: Opportunities and Challenges". Liberation News. November 7, 2018. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. The following is an edited version of an internal document initially written in late 2015 and formed part of the basis for party-wide discussions in the Party for Socialism and Liberation in early 2016. The document examines the new possibilities and difficulties posed by the proliferation of social media from the perspective of the Leninist party.
  13. ^ "PSL Statements: Building democratic centralism: stages of Party growth and internal development". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. July 31, 2014. Archived from the original on April 25, 2015. Since its inception 10 years ago, the PSL leadership and membership have focused considerable thought, effort and time on creating a revolutionary organization based on the organizational principles known as Democratic Centralism.
  14. ^ Griffiths, Tom G. (2018). "Review: History and education: engaging the global class war, by Curry Stephenson Malott". Journal of the History of Education Society. 48 (3): 428–430. doi:10.1080/0046760X.2018.1480804. This approach leaves little or no room for those outside the prescribed lines, including for example those committed to alternative forms of organising against capitalism other than the democratic, centralist, vanguard, Party form.
  15. ^ a b c d e "Party For Socialism And Liberation PSL Constitution 2022". Party for Socialism and Liberation. November 29, 2023 – via Internet Archive. 4. Decision-making procedures 4.1 After a thorough discussion in any branch or Party body, at the Party Congress, or at a national internal conference, decisions are arrived at by majority vote of all full members present, except when otherwise noted herein. All members, including those who disagree, are duty bound to publicly defend and carry out these decisions. [....] The Party Congress may also have voting delegates nominated directly by the Central Committee, the maximum number of which shall not exceed 40 percent of the total elected delegates. Such delegates shall be elected by a vote of two-thirds of the members of the Central Committee (for two-thirds votes, round up when the outcome is a fraction). [....] During this discussion, all Party members have the right to express their views and propose changes, including amendments to the Constitution, to propose resolutions on all questions of policy and tactics, and on the work of leading bodies for consideration by the Congress. All existing policies and decisions remain in full force during the pre-Congress discussion, which is a completely internal discussion.
  16. ^ Albert, Michael; Stephen Shalom (October 24, 2002). "Ten Q&A On Antiwar Organizing". Z. Archived from the original on November 14, 2002. One extremely energetic antiwar group is the International Action Center (IAC). It is the leading force in the coalition ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism) which is calling the October 26 demonstrations in Washington, DC and elsewhere. (IAC and ANSWER share a New York City phone number and the latter's website features many materials from IAC.) IAC is officially led by Ramsey Clark and is largely the creation of the Workers World Party; many key IAC figures are prominent writers for WWP.
  17. ^ Hull, Dana (January 16, 2003). "As big anti-war protests loom, some political rifts surface". San Jose Mercury News. Archived from the original on February 23, 2004. Many of ANSWER's lead organizers have close ties to the International Action Center, formed by former U.S. attorney general Ramsey Clark, and to the Workers World Party, a socialist sect whose politics often are criticized as too left, too doctrinaire, even for Bay Area liberals. Some of the WWP's more controversial positions are its support for the governments of Iraq and North Korea; its backing of former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic; its claims that reports of Serb atrocities against Muslims and Croats were overblown; its defense as recently as 2000 of the Chinese government's deadly crackdown against pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
  18. ^ "American socialists' ANSWER to Trump". International Communist Press. January 23, 2017. Archived from the original on October 20, 2017. On Jan 20, thousands gathered at the Navy Memorial Plaza for a rally called by the ANSWER Coalition, of which the Party of Socialism and Liberation (PSL) is one of the founding members, to inaugurate the resistance to Trump's ultra-right wing, pro-Wall Street agenda.
  19. ^ "Brian Becker". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. Archived from the original on October 2, 2023. Brian Becker is the National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition. He is a founder of and a central organizer for the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
  20. ^ Becker, Brian (October 1, 2018). "No separate destiny for US workers apart from the workers of the world". International Communist Press. Archived from the original on August 7, 2023. We are a communist party. We have existed for 14 years with the idea of building a communist party in the United States once again. This is a complicated and long-term project. It is perhaps the most of the difficult of all projects. But it's the imperative need because you cannot have revolutionary change without a revolutionary communist party leading that change. Absent a communist party, victory is impossible.
  21. ^ a b Casey, Leo (August 8, 2024). "The American Left's Problem With Antisemitism". The New Republic. Through its front group, Act Now to Stop War and End Racism, or ANSWER, the PSL has been deeply involved in the organizing of pro-Palestinian demonstrations around the United States. It was PSL member Eugene Puryear who, speaking at an October 8 Times Square demonstration, gleefully announced before the hundreds of dead from the Re'im music festival massacre had even been buried that "there was some sort of rave or desert party where they were having a great time, until the resistance came in electrified hang gliders and took out at least several dozen hipsters."
  22. ^ "Contagious Disruption: How CCP Influence and Radical Ideologies Threaten Critical Infrastructure and Campuses Across the United States" (PDF). Network Contagion Research Institute. May 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 15, 2024. In contrast to the People's Forum, the ANSWER Coalition operates under the fiscal sponsorship of the Progress Unity Fund (PUF) rather than being an IRS-registered entity itself. 31 As recently as 2019, ANSWER Coalition and PUF shared an address in San Francisco, which also served as a frequent venue for Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) activities, indicating a significant overlap between the three.32
  23. ^ a b c d e f Starr, Michael (May 15, 2024). "China-linked network funding key anti-Israel protest groups in US". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on May 15, 2024. The Singham network amplified anti-Israel activism not just through the NGOs' social media accounts, but through pro-CCP media outlets like BreakThrough News. [....] The Answer Coalition and PUF site often serves as a venue for the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) which has also been a notable actor in the anti-Israel protests. Becker is also a leader in PSL, as is Answer co-founder Claudia De la Cruz, who is the PSL's 2024 presidential candidate. [....] BT News editor-in-chief Ben Becker was previously an ANSWER organizer, and host and producer Eugene Puryear is alleged by the Daily Beast to be a PSL founder. ANSWER director Brian Becker is a contributor to the outlet. BT News operated out of the same address as the People's Forum, which provided grants to the outlet in 2021 and 2022 according to NCRI.
  24. ^ a b c d e f g h Bredderman, William (May 29, 2023). "U.S Tech Mogul Bankrolls Pro-Russia, Pro-China News Network". The Daily Beast. Sitting on the People's Forum's board is Claudia De La Cruz, who pulls triple duty as BreakThrough's secretary and as a "co-coordinator/educator" for the Justice and Education Fund. An auditor's report filed in New York shows that more of Singham's money trickled down to BreakThrough from the Forum in the form of $80,575 in donated rent in 2021, the most recent year for which filings are available. But when The Daily Beast visited the People's Forum address, it found a bookstore hawking tomes by Prashad and titles from his Leftword imprint, as well as a coffee shop and an event space—but no evidence of a studio. What's more, none of BreakThrough's hosts appear among the staff listed in the outlet's filings. Rather, the underlying nonprofit's leadership consists of figures like De La Cruz who donate an hour a week to the organization, and who like De La Cruz are affiliated with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a small far-left sect that does not appear to receive substantial donations from Singham or from anybody else. The PSL does, however, appear as an allied group to the International People's Media Network on its webpage. Puryear and Becker, two of the BreakThrough anchors, are co-founders of the party.
  25. ^ Hvistendahl, Mara; Fahrenthold, David A.; Chutel, Lynsey; Jhaveri, Ishaan (August 5, 2023). "A Global Web of Chinese Propaganda Leads to a U.S. Tech Mogul". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 5, 2023.
  26. ^ "Protesters, demonstration leaders arrested in connection to rallies in Aurora". The Denver Post. September 17, 2020.
  27. ^ Beeferman, Jason (October 8, 2023). "NYC pro-Palestine rally splits Democrats over Israel". Politico. Eugene Puryear, who helped organize the event in behalf of the A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition, said the absence of the NY-DSA politicians at the event was telling.
  28. ^ ""Apartheid Resistance Is Not Terrorism": Protesters Stand in Solidarity with Palestinians". Democracy Now!. Eugene Puryear: "The whole reason I'm yelling is because the powers that be in New York City and New York state don't want this rally to happen."
  29. ^ Free Palestine Rally after Hamas Attacked Israel / Times Square NYC 10.8.23. YouTube. Loudlabs News. October 8, 2023.
  30. ^ Gutenschwager, Brendan (October 8, 2023). "Speeches held at the 'All Out For Palestine' protest outside the Israeli Consulate in New York". Twitter.
  31. ^ Stephens, Bret (October 10, 2023). "Opinion | The Anti-Israel Left Needs to Take a Hard Look at Itself". The New York Times. "As you might have seen, there was some sort of rave or desert party where they were having a great time, until the resistance came in electrified hang gliders and took at least several dozen hipsters," a speaker said. "But I'm sure they're doing very fine despite what The New York Post says." He was met with cheers.
  32. ^ Nazaryan, Alexander (October 9, 2023). "Socialist rally in Times Square praising Hamas terror attack draws widespread condemnation". Yahoo News. "And as you might have seen, there was some sort of rave or desert party where they were having a great time, until the resistance came in electrified hang gliders and took at least several dozen hipsters," one speaker joked about the Hamas assault on a desert rave, where horrific scenes of murder and rape took place.
  33. ^ Weigel, David (October 13, 2023). "A rift over Israel threatens the left's fragile gains". Semafor. Activists whose response to the Hamas attacks have divided the left aren't walking it back. At the Times Square rally, Eugene Puryear, a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation — not DSA — became infamous for joking about a Hamas attack on a music festival that killed at least 260 people. "The resistance came in electrified hang gliders and took at least several dozen hipsters," he said. Asked if he'd say the same thing again today, Puryear said he would.
  34. ^ Durr, Lillian (November 8, 2023). "Party for Socialism and Liberation holds demonstrations for Free Palestine movement". Missouri State University Standard. Archived from the original on November 9, 2023. Alongside the action in Washington D.C., the Party for Socialism and Liberation – a member of the ANSWER Coalition – has been holding demonstrations in support of the Free Palestine movement in Springfield.
  35. ^ Walden, Jack (July 18, 2024). "PSL President Candidate Claudia De la Cruz Responds to Infamous Steven Powers Case". Gainesville Public Information Services.
  36. ^ a b c d e f Webmaster, P. S. L. "Program of the Party for Socialism and Liberation". PSL. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  37. ^ "Revolution Manifesto". Liberation School. August 28, 2016. Archived from the original on September 5, 2016. Moreover, the course is designed to facilitate new ways of understanding how the Marxist-Leninist theory of the state relates to the struggles of our contemporary moment.
  38. ^ Powell, Nicholas (April 19, 2010). "Why I joined the PSL". Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. This Marxism Class is held in seminar-style, and it is great opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the Marxist-Leninist view of socialism.
  39. ^ "Community celebrates 14th annual Enero Zapatista event". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. February 4, 2018. The Party for Socialism and Liberation has been involved in the planning of Enero Zapatista for the past several years and looks forward to continued involvement. As a Marxist-Leninist party we strive to uphold the tradition of the right to self-determination for oppressed nations.
  40. ^ Becker, Brian (November 17, 2016). "The Leninist party in history and present". Liberation News. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. The Party for Socialism and Liberation was formed in 2004 by a small group of cadres who adhered to the organizational principles of the Bolsheviks that were codified in the original documents of the Third International. We explicitly recognized that the construction of a Leninist-type party was taking shape on a political and social landscape that could not have been more unlike that which existed in Russia but also in the other countries during the 1917-1923 period during which the Third International took shape.
  41. ^ Party for Socialism and Liberation [@pslnational] (November 7, 2021). "Behind a facade of "democracy" the United States today is a dictatorship of the capitalist class. This reality will not change without a socialist revolution" (Tweet). Archived from the original on November 10, 2024 – via Twitter.
  42. ^ a b c "Our Program". Claudia & Karina 2024. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  43. ^ a b Chen, Allyson (October 27, 2024). "Socialist presidential candidate Claudia De La Cruz visits Rhode Island". The Brown Daily Herald. PSL has nominated candidates for president, congress and various state- and local-level offices since 2008. No PSL candidate has won an election. De la Cruz's platform includes seizing large corporations, ending all U.S. aid to Israel and reducing the military budget. She also advocates for policies that prioritizes the needs of Black Americans, women, LGBTQ+ people and undocumented immigrants. De la Cruz also advocates for fighting climate change through socialist economic planning.
  44. ^ a b Wagner, Kate (February 2023). "Socialism, Simply". The Avery Review (60).
  45. ^ a b c d e Wolf, Sherry (2017). Sexuality and Socialism: History, Politics, and Theory of LGBT Liberation. Haymarket Books. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-60846-076-2. The Workers World Party (WWP)-one curren group is the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) been quite active and vocal in LGBT struggles from the seventies to the current day. Award-winning novelist and trans- gender activist Leslie Feinberg is one of WWP's most prominent members. But WWP/PSL's uncompromising defense of virtually every country claiming to be socialist-from Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Kim il-Sung's North Korea to modern China (including a hearty defense of the Tiananmen Square massacre) and Castro's Cuba-leads to a bafflingly simplistic gauge of these societies' sexual policies and attitudes. To raise criticisms in any way of these bureaucratic and often tyrannical regimes, in WWP/PSL's philosophically dualistic view, is to place oneself at the service of empire. This has left them in the curious position of promoting countries as workers' states that would imprison or torment some of the very members organizing within the United States to defend them!
  46. ^ a b Chatelain, Ryan (November 1, 2024). "Third-party presidential candidates have eye on long game". NY1. De la Cruz argues that the U.S. can invest trillions of dollars into health care, housing, infrastructure, free education, student debt relief, climate change action and other causes by cutting the military budget by 90% and eliminating funding to support foreign wars. She appears on the ballot in 19 states and is a write-in option in 24 others. A team of more than 6,000 volunteers nationwide helped her gain ballot access by collecting petition signatures.
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  48. ^ Becker, Brian (May 31, 2007). "What do socialists defend in China today?". Liberation School.
  49. ^ Becker, Brian (June 13, 2014). "Tiananmen: The Massacre that Wasn't". Liberation School. What happened in China, what took the lives of government opponents and of soldiers on June 4, was not a massacre of peaceful students but a battle between PLA soldiers and armed detachments from the so-called pro-democracy movement.
  50. ^ a b Brown, George Martin Fell (April 4, 2022). "Socialists and the War in Ukraine: A Response to the Party for Socialism and Liberation". Socialist Alternative. Retrieved August 26, 2024. Their current attitude towards the war in Ukraine represents a continuation of this wrong approach. They present the conflict in Ukraine as solely the responsibility of the U.S. and NATO. What criticisms they have of Putin are presented as mistakes of an ally, rather than the actions of a reactionary imperialist.
  51. ^ Puryear, Eugene (June 12, 2019). "What is happening in Hong Kong". Liberation News. The proposed amendment dealing with extradition is being presented across Western media as part of a tightening "totalitarian noose" around the "free and democratic" people of Hong Kong. The new bill, a fairly limited legal change, is facing almost universal condemnation by the most powerful Western nations in an effort to justify subjecting China to a new Cold War-style atmosphere.
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  53. ^ Liberation Staff (October 11, 2006). "Flyer: 'North Korea has the right to possess nuclear weapons'". Liberation News. Archived from the original on July 14, 2019.
  54. ^ Beacham, John (February 2, 2015). "West's favorite North Korean defector lied to UN". Liberation News. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020.
  55. ^ a b Wang, Mike (March 26, 2014). "UN hypocrisy and human rights in North Korea". Liberation News. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020.
  56. ^ a b Martin, George (April 4, 2022). "Socialists and the War in Ukraine: A Response to the Party for Socialism and Liberation". Socialist Alternative.
  57. ^ Becker, Brian (March 17, 2014). "Crimea Referendum: the hidden truth behind the U.S.-Russia rivalry". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation.
  58. ^ "PSL Statement on Russia's military intervention in Ukraine". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. February 24, 2022.
  59. ^ a b "Confronting the impending war danger against Syria [PSL Statement]". Liberation News. April 10, 2018.
  60. ^ Syrian Communist Party (December 14, 2016). "Syrian Communist Party (Unified): Syria facing "barbarous imperialist aggression"". Liberation News.
  61. ^ Majidi, Mazda (March 28, 2016). "Will the U.S. abandon 'Assad must go'?". Liberation News.
  62. ^ Majidi, Mazda (September 6, 2013). "12 myths and facts about Syria". Liberation News. Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. Myth: There is evidence that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons. Fact: Despite vague claims of having proof, not only does the U.S. government have no evidence, it has worked hard to suppress any real investigation into what actually happened in suburban Damascus on Aug. 21...The Syrian government had no incentive to use chemical weapons and every reason not to.
  63. ^ Gabbatt, Adam (January 7, 2024). "'We are working-class women of color': the long-shot socialist run for the White House". The Guardian. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  64. ^ Masciotra, David (December 29, 2023). "Cornel West Is the Charlatan of the Year". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved August 24, 2024. West has praised and appeared at events with the likes of Claudia De La Cruz, the presidential candidate for the Party for Socialism and Liberation. As David Corn reported for Mother Jones, the PSL supports Kim Jong Un's pursuit of nuclear weapons and defends the Chinese government against accusations of human rights abuses. Among West's other allies are former Radio Sputnik hosts who revere Putin and compliment the Chinese Communist Party as an 'inspiration.'
  65. ^ Schoenburg, Bernard (July 20, 2020). "Kanye West files for president in Illinois". The State Journal-Register. Retrieved March 26, 2024.
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  76. ^ Stone, Ken (July 27, 2021). "A Socialist for Congress? Comrade Cortés Aims to Oust Rep. Issa in GOP Heartland". Times of San Diego. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
  77. ^ "Socialist candidate running for Darrell Issa's Congress seat". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. January 10, 2018.
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  105. ^ Nadig, Brian. "Union worker Ana Santoyo becomes fourth challenger to Alderman James Gardiner; Santoyo plans to bring a 'fighting, socialist campaign to Chicago's 45th Ward'". nadignewspapers.com. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
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  120. ^ "PSL's Amanda Todd wins 11 percent in Sioux Falls city council vote". Liberation News. April 12, 2008.
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