Militant faction
Encyclopedia
The Militant faction was an organized grouping of Marxists
in the Socialist Party of America
(SPA) who sought to steer that organization from its orientation towards electoral politics and towards direct action
and revolutionary socialism
. The faction emerged during 1930 and 1931 and achieved practical control of the organization in 1934. The existence of the "Militants" and the threat they represented to the political line
of the SPA caused traditional electorally oriented members to form an organized grouping of their own, known as the "Old Guard faction
." In 1935 the personal and political friction between these two basic tendencies lead to an organizational split, with the Old Guard faction leaving to establish the Social Democratic Federation (SDF). The Militant faction itself shattered in the aftermath of the 1935 party split with only a small core loyal to perennial Presidential
candidate Norman Thomas
remaining in the organization by the coming of World War II
.
of the Socialist Party of America
saw the departure of the proto-communist Left Wing Section, leaving control of the party's name, emblems, and assets in the hand of the Regular faction headed by Adolph Germer
, James Oneal
, and Morris Hillquit
. The victory proved to be Pyrrhic
, with tens of thousands of members suspended or expelled by the National Executive Committee. An entire generation of the organization's most energetic young activists departed to join the ranks of the fledgling Communist Party of America and Communist Labor Party of America. Socialist Party membership plummeted from a peak of over 104,000 paid members in April 1919 to fewer than 9,000 in the first quarter of 1928.
Moreover, the party was nearly insolvent: its coffers empty, printing bill unpaid, and the organization nearly two years in arrears in the payment of its dues to the Labor and Socialist International in Switzerland
.
Historian of the Socialist Party David A. Shannon noted that the "radical doctrinaire Marxists" of the Militant faction differed in orientation and emphasis from their factional opponents:
There was also a large generational component to the division of the Marxists of the Socialist Party into "Old Guard" and "Militant" camps. Historian Irving Howe
, himself a young radical in the Socialist Party in the 1930s, later recalled this aspect:
In an early issue of the SPA's theoretical magazine, The American Socialist Quarterly, editors Haim Kantorovitch
, Anna Bercowitz, and David P. Berenberg
allowed Militant faction adherent Theodore Shapiro space to declaim the Militants' political position. In this article, entitled "The 'Militant' Point of View," Shapiro portrayed the Militant faction as part of an international left wing opposition movement:
In reply to this article, the editors were critical the "anti-democratic propaganda" of "Comrade Shapiro and the militants," noting that "Capitalism wants to suspend democracy" and therefore "it is in their interest to discredit the idea of democracy." However, "instead of defending, the militants help discredit and disparage democracy; the wish to be super-revolutionary is likely to make them unconscious and unwilling helpers of the capitalist class in the latter's fight against democracy." The editors of The American Socialist Quarterly were outspoken in their criticism:
, and Executive Secretary Clarence Senior
. The Progressives, although more numerous than the Militants, were actually rather amorphous rather than a tightly disciplined faction, as historian David Shannon notes:
SPA National Chairman Leo Krzycki sent the new publication his warm greetings at the time of its launch, although beseeching it to "steer clear of party controversy." The participation of Norman Thomas was even more direct, as he launched a regular weekly column in the pages of The Socialist Call, a piece called "At the Front." Other frequent contributors to the publication during its first year included Haim Kantorovitch, Samuel DeWitt, Herbert Zam, and McAlister Coleman.
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
in the Socialist Party of America
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
(SPA) who sought to steer that organization from its orientation towards electoral politics and towards direct action
Direct action
Direct action is activity undertaken by individuals, groups, or governments to achieve political, economic, or social goals outside of normal social/political channels. This can include nonviolent and violent activities which target persons, groups, or property deemed offensive to the direct action...
and revolutionary socialism
Revolutionary socialism
The term revolutionary socialism refers to Socialist tendencies that advocate the need for fundamental social change through revolution by mass movements of the working class, as a strategy to achieve a socialist society...
. The faction emerged during 1930 and 1931 and achieved practical control of the organization in 1934. The existence of the "Militants" and the threat they represented to the political line
Political line
A political line is the general view a political party, organization, faction, or ideology takes on a given question. The existence of a political line gives its advocates guidance on what to say, which makes their work easier. It also gives opponents an understanding of who is linked together by...
of the SPA caused traditional electorally oriented members to form an organized grouping of their own, known as the "Old Guard faction
Old Guard faction
The Old Guard faction was an organized grouping of Marxists in the Socialist Party of America who sought to retain the organization's traditional orientation towards electoral politics by fighting generally younger party members who factionally organized to promote greater efforts at direct action...
." In 1935 the personal and political friction between these two basic tendencies lead to an organizational split, with the Old Guard faction leaving to establish the Social Democratic Federation (SDF). The Militant faction itself shattered in the aftermath of the 1935 party split with only a small core loyal to perennial Presidential
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
candidate Norman Thomas
Norman Thomas
Norman Mattoon Thomas was a leading American socialist, pacifist, and six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America.-Early years:...
remaining in the organization by the coming of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
State of the Socialist Party in the late 1920s
The 1919 Emergency National Convention1919 Emergency National Convention
The 1919 Emergency National Convention of the Socialist Party of America was held in Chicago from August 30 to September 5, 1919. It was a seminal gathering in the history of American radicalism, marked by the bolting of the party's organized left wing to establish the Communist Labor Party of...
of the Socialist Party of America
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
saw the departure of the proto-communist Left Wing Section, leaving control of the party's name, emblems, and assets in the hand of the Regular faction headed by Adolph Germer
Adolph Germer
Adoph Germer was an American socialist political functionary and union organizer. He is best remembered as National Executive Secretary of the Socialist Party of America from 1916 to 1919. It was during this period that the Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party emerged as an organized faction...
, James Oneal
James Oneal
James "Jim" Oneal , a founding member of the Socialist Party of America , was a prominent socialist journalist, historian, and party activist who played a decisive role in the bitter party splits of 1919-21 and 1934-36.-Early years:...
, and Morris Hillquit
Morris Hillquit
Morris Hillquit was a founder and leader of the Socialist Party of America and prominent labor lawyer in New York City's Lower East Side during the early 20th century.-Early years:...
. The victory proved to be Pyrrhic
Pyrrhic victory
A Pyrrhic victory is a victory with such a devastating cost to the victor that it carries the implication that another such victory will ultimately cause defeat.-Origin:...
, with tens of thousands of members suspended or expelled by the National Executive Committee. An entire generation of the organization's most energetic young activists departed to join the ranks of the fledgling Communist Party of America and Communist Labor Party of America. Socialist Party membership plummeted from a peak of over 104,000 paid members in April 1919 to fewer than 9,000 in the first quarter of 1928.
Moreover, the party was nearly insolvent: its coffers empty, printing bill unpaid, and the organization nearly two years in arrears in the payment of its dues to the Labor and Socialist International in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
Formation of the Militant faction
Even though the Militant faction emerged as a coherent unit in the Socialist Party late in 1930 and congealed in 1931, as early as 1926 observers were noting evidence of a fissure. Communist Party member Bertram D. Wolfe wrote in a September 1926 article tellingly entitled "The Socialist Party Furnishes Its 'Insurgents'":
"For some time there has been growing discontent manifested within the ranks of New York Socialists, especially among the younger elements, against the methods used by the [Jewish Daily] Forward crowd in fighting the Communists, in opposing the united front proposals of the Workers (Communist) Party, in splitting unions and other labor organizations and expelling progressive and left wing elements, in using gangsterism — in short, in all the methods employed by the old socialist leadership to ruin the labor movement that they can no longer rule. * * *
"Even a small section of the leadership, such men as Norman Thomas, have been criticizing these policies...because they are causing a further loss of membership and a further disintegration of the Socialist Party.
"The New Leader is a strange paper. In one column, Norman Thomas, who apparently gets complete charge of that column in order to 'keep him quiet,' writes with fairness as fairness is understood by a Socialist tinged with liberalism and pacifism and prejudiced against the uncompromising forms of struggle which the Communists advocate, and in the rest of the paper every conceivable sort of lie and slander is written about these same Communists."
Historian of the Socialist Party David A. Shannon noted that the "radical doctrinaire Marxists" of the Militant faction differed in orientation and emphasis from their factional opponents:
"The Militants were numerically a small group, but they were an extremely vocal one. Philosophically the Militants were Marxists, as were their Old Guard opposition. But the Militants leaned much further toward Marxism as developed by Lenin than did the Old Guard, whose favorite theoreticians were Karl KautskyKarl KautskyKarl Johann Kautsky was a Czech-German philosopher, journalist, and Marxist theoretician. Kautsky was recognized as among the most authoritative promulgators of Orthodox Marxism after the death of Friedrich Engels in 1895 until the coming of World War I in 1914 and was called by some the "Pope of...
and Hillquit. Yet the Militants were not Communists. They were opposed to the rigid discipline of the Third International, and they were critical of the Soviet Union's denial of civil libertiesCivil libertiesCivil liberties are rights and freedoms that provide an individual specific rights such as the freedom from slavery and forced labour, freedom from torture and death, the right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, the right to defend one's self, the right to own and bear arms, the right...
, just as were Old Guard Socialists. In many respects the ideological differences between the Old Guard and the Militants were differences of emphasis. * * *
"One important difference between the Militants and their Old Guard opponents was their viewpoints on democracy. The Old Guard was composed of convinced democrats who held that socialism would advance democracy and come to America only by democratic means. The Militants' view toward democracy was in some respects similar to that of the Communists. Democracy was to them a bourgeois quality, a device adopted by the bourgeoisieBourgeoisieIn sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
to defeat the aristocracyAristocracyAristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
that was now being abandoned by capitalists as their conflict with the proletariatProletariatThe proletariat is a term used to identify a lower social class, usually the working class; a member of such a class is proletarian...
became more intense."
There was also a large generational component to the division of the Marxists of the Socialist Party into "Old Guard" and "Militant" camps. Historian Irving Howe
Irving Howe
Irving Howe was an American literary and social critic and a prominent figure of the Democratic Socialists of America.-Life and career:...
, himself a young radical in the Socialist Party in the 1930s, later recalled this aspect:
"I ams suspicious of 'generational' interpretations of politics, but I must confess that with regard to the Socialist Party in the thirties it is impossible to avoid at least some generational stress. The clash in style was striking. Not only did the Old Guard treat the ideas of the Militants as a repulsive sort of quasi-Bolshevism; it also found intolerable the enthusiasm of these naive young comrades, their expectation that Norman Thomas booming out the credo of 'socialism in our time' was something to be taken seriously. The youth had entered the movement in the hope of creating a new world, a new life, and now the old-timers came along, grumbling about defeats, mistakes, betrayals. Each generation spoke for its own portion of experience, and only if there had been in this country a line of socialist continuity, so that each generation would not have to start as if from the beginning might this collision have been avoided."
Haim Kantorovitch
Haim Kantorovitch was an American socialist teacher, writer, and Marxist theoretician. Kantorovitch is best remembered as one of the intellectual leaders of the Militant faction of the Socialist Party of America in the early 1930s and as a founder and editor of The American Socialist Quarterly,...
, Anna Bercowitz, and David P. Berenberg
David P. Berenberg
David Paul Berenberg was an American socialist teacher, editor, and writer. He is best remembered as a founder and editor of The American Socialist Quarterly, the theoretical magazine of the Socialist Party of America during the 1930s....
allowed Militant faction adherent Theodore Shapiro space to declaim the Militants' political position. In this article, entitled "The 'Militant' Point of View," Shapiro portrayed the Militant faction as part of an international left wing opposition movement:
"The rise of the militant group within the American Socialist Party accompanies the growth of similar left wing groups throughout the western world. These movements are in effect an active protest against the inactive policies and tactics of the Labor and Socialist International with which our party is affiliated and are, as well, protests against the astounding inertia of so-called "Socialist leaders" the world over. International militancy is a protest against "reformismReformismReformism is the belief that gradual democratic changes in a society can ultimately change a society's fundamental economic relations and political structures...
" and the deviation from the revolutionary Socialism as expounded by MarxKarl MarxKarl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
.
"The struggle between left wing groups and those who dominate the councils of the International is a struggle that has been inherent in the movemnet from its very inception. The differences between these groups are fundamental both as to the concept of SocialismSocialismSocialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
and the goal itself...
"In their support of reactionaryReactionaryThe term reactionary refers to viewpoints that seek to return to a previous state in a society. The term is meant to describe one end of a political spectrum whose opposite pole is "radical". While it has not been generally considered a term of praise it has been adopted as a self-description by...
governments, in compromising alliances with non-revolutionary parties, in their attitude on the question of war, in their naive reliance on bourgeois 'democratic' institutions, in their hostility to the Soviet RepublicSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Social Democratic parties manifest their reformism and block the way to the Socialist goal."
In reply to this article, the editors were critical the "anti-democratic propaganda" of "Comrade Shapiro and the militants," noting that "Capitalism wants to suspend democracy" and therefore "it is in their interest to discredit the idea of democracy." However, "instead of defending, the militants help discredit and disparage democracy; the wish to be super-revolutionary is likely to make them unconscious and unwilling helpers of the capitalist class in the latter's fight against democracy." The editors of The American Socialist Quarterly were outspoken in their criticism:
"These comrades have learned their Socialism not from Marx and Engels, but from Soviet Russia; not even from Lenin but from Russian practice. That Russia is building Socialism they have no doubt; but there is no freedom in Russia, no democracy, no equality. Instead there is a dictatorship, a reign of brute terror, of suppression of free thought, free criticism, free living."
The Militants and their allies
The Militant faction made common cause in their battle with the Old Guard with another significant factional group in the Socialist Party — the so-called "Progressives" led by Norman Thomas and including such important SPA leaders as Devere Allen, Albert Sprague Coolidge, Darlington HoopesDarlington Hoopes
Darlington Hoopes was the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States in the 1952 and 1956 presidential elections.-Early years:...
, and Executive Secretary Clarence Senior
Clarence Senior
Clarence Ollson Senior was, as a young man, an American socialist political activist best remembered as the National Executive Secretary of the Socialist Party of America during the 1930s. Originally a protégé of Presidential candidate Norman Thomas, during the inner-party fight of the 1930s,...
. The Progressives, although more numerous than the Militants, were actually rather amorphous rather than a tightly disciplined faction, as historian David Shannon notes:
"The Progressives were no caucusCaucusA caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...
within the party such as the Old Guard and the Militants. They were a vague group of recent members, representing many shades of opinion, who were greatly dissatisfied with the slowness, the lack of activity, of the Old Guard. they were not doctrinaire Marxists; indeed, many were not Marxian at all. Their goal was a realignment of American politics whereby there would be a party to represent labor and dirt farmers, based upon principles rather than upon thirst for office and political opportunismOpportunism-General definition:Opportunism is the conscious policy and practice of taking selfish advantage of circumstances, with little regard for principles. Opportunist actions are expedient actions guided primarily by self-interested motives. The term can be applied to individuals, groups,...
. This party once in office would extend democracy and civil liberties, socialize basic industries, and move rapidly in the direction of what is nowadays called the welfare stateWelfare stateA welfare state is a "concept of government in which the state plays a key role in the protection and promotion of the economic and social well-being of its citizens. It is based on the principles of equality of opportunity, equitable distribution of wealth, and public responsibility for those...
. If the American electorate should support the Socialist Party and make it such an organization, well and good; if such a party should have to be a new organization, a national farmer-labor party, then the Socialists should go into the new organization."
Split of the Old Guard
In March 1935 the combined Progressives and Militants of the Socialist Party launched a new weekly newspaper in New York City to supplant the Old Guard-dominated The New Leader — The Socialist Call. The Managing Editor of the new 12-page publication was Bruno Fischer, with Miliitant stalwart Jack Altman acting as Business Manager. The paper took direct aim at the Old Guard from the outset in declaring itself to be "the organ of revolutionary socialism":
"Revolutionary socialism aims at nothing less than the transfer of power to the working class. This, and this alone, can save the workers from tyranny and starvation, from wage-slavery and war....
"As capitalism decays it is preparing to rivet upon the workers its open dictatorship. It is preparing to destroy even those feeble democratic institutions that it has so far allowed to exist....
"Journals calling themselves 'Socialist' have failed in that they have confused socialism with reform. They have in recent years lived in eternal fear of offending labor leaders, and have therefore kept silent in the face of reaction and racketeering within the unions. In doing so they have damaged the reputation of the Socialist movement, and have lent aid and comfort to the enemies of labor. They have failed to distinguish between the 'liberalismLiberalismLiberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
' of RooseveltFranklin D. RooseveltFranklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
and revolutionary socialism. There is need of a Socialist organ that can differentiate between reforms for the preservation of capitalism, and socialism."
SPA National Chairman Leo Krzycki sent the new publication his warm greetings at the time of its launch, although beseeching it to "steer clear of party controversy." The participation of Norman Thomas was even more direct, as he launched a regular weekly column in the pages of The Socialist Call, a piece called "At the Front." Other frequent contributors to the publication during its first year included Haim Kantorovitch, Samuel DeWitt, Herbert Zam, and McAlister Coleman.
See also
- 1934 Declaration of Principles1934 Declaration of PrinciplesThe 1934 Declaration of Principles was a political platform of the Socialist Party of America passed at the May 1934 National Convention held in Detroit, Michigan...
- Socialist Appeal (Chicago), 1935-1937
- Socialist Appeal (New York), 1937-1941