Workers Party of the United States
Encyclopedia
The Workers Party of the United States (WPUS) was established in December 1934 by a merger of the American Workers Party
(AWP) led by A.J. Muste and the Trotskyist Communist League of America
(CLA) led by James P. Cannon
. The party was dissolved in 1936 when its members entered the Socialist Party of America
en masse.
and the American Workers Party helped lead the 1934 Toledo Auto-Lite strike
to victory.
These strikes, along with the 1934 West Coast Longshore Strike
(led by the Communist Party USA
), were important victories after years of union defeats led by class collaborationist union bureaucrats. As such they served as catalysts for the rise of industrial unionism in the 1930s, much of which was organized through the Congress of Industrial Organizations
.
Speaking of the role of vanguard parties leading the 1934 strike wave James P. Cannon said, “It has been the lack of precisely this element, which only a Marxist party can supply, that condemned the insurgent labor movement of the past to futility and defeat. Lacking a class theory of its own, which can come into the labor movement in no other way than through the Marxist party, the American workers, with all their militancy and capacity for sacrifice, fell victim to all kinds of quackery and treason and landed in a blind alley every time.”http://www.marxists.org/archive/cannon/works/1934/dfusion.htm
It was also these strikes that led to the fusion of the two organizations.
In 1933 the American Workers Party had initially formed as a separate organization from the Trotskyist Communist League of America (CLA) partly out of the concern that the CLA did not have a strong base in American politics. The origins of the CLA was a split from the Communist Party USA over the deep theoretical differences between Leon Trotsky
and Joseph Stalin
and how those differences related to building the world communist movement.
Yet after both the CLA and AWP had successfully led important strikes in 1934 James P. Cannon declared, “We, on our part, venture to say that the work of the League in the Minneapolis strikes helped convince the members of the AWP that we also are able to “speak American"; that our internationalism is not an abstraction but a guide to action on the national field. Joint work of the two organizations in practical work, limited though it has been, has demonstrated in practice an ability to work out a common policy and to cooperate loyally in advancing it.”http://www.marxists.org/archive/cannon/works/1934/dfusion.htm
in 1936 to propagate their views inside that party. The Socialist Party had developed a leftwing and the party had declared itself open to other tendencies. As members of the Socialist Party the Trotskyists continued to exist as an independent tendency and continued publishing their own newspaper, Socialist Appeal. However, soon differences developed between the rest of the party and the "Socialist Appeal tendency", as the Trotskyists were known, and they split to form their own group, the Socialist Workers Party
, soon thereafter.
American Workers Party
The American Workers Party was a socialist organization established in December 1933 by activists in the Conference for Progressive Labor Action, a group headed by A.J. Muste.-Formation:...
(AWP) led by A.J. Muste and the Trotskyist Communist League of America
Communist League of America
The Communist League of America was founded by James P. Cannon, Max Shachtman and Martin Abern late in 1928 after their expulsion from the Communist Party USA for Trotskyism. The CLA was the United States section of Leon Trotsky's International Left Opposition and initially positioned itself as...
(CLA) led by James P. Cannon
James P. Cannon
James Patrick "Jim" Cannon was an American Trotskyist and a leader of the Socialist Workers Party.Born on February 11, 1890 in Rosedale, Kansas, he joined the Socialist Party of America in 1908 and the Industrial Workers of the World in 1911...
. The party was dissolved in 1936 when its members entered 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...
en masse.
Fusion
The formation of the U.S. Workers Party was the fusion of two revolutionary socialist organizations that had both successfully led two militant strikes to victory. The Communist League of America had led the Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934
The Minneapolis General Strike of 1934 grew out of a strike by Teamsters against most of the trucking companies operating in Minneapolis, a major distribution center for the Upper Midwest. The strike began on May 16, 1934 in the Market District and ensuing violence lasted periodically throughout...
and the American Workers Party helped lead the 1934 Toledo Auto-Lite strike
Auto-Lite strike
The Toledo Auto-Lite strike was a strike by a federal labor union of the American Federation of Labor against the Electric Auto-Lite company of Toledo, Ohio, from April 12 to June 3, 1934....
to victory.
These strikes, along with the 1934 West Coast Longshore Strike
1934 West Coast Longshore Strike
The 1934 West Coast Waterfront Strike lasted eighty-three days, triggered by sailors and a four-day general strike in San Francisco, and led to the unionization of all of the West Coast ports of the United States...
(led by the Communist Party USA
Communist Party USA
The Communist Party USA is a Marxist political party in the United States, established in 1919. It has a long, complex history that is closely related to the histories of similar communist parties worldwide and the U.S. labor movement....
), were important victories after years of union defeats led by class collaborationist union bureaucrats. As such they served as catalysts for the rise of industrial unionism in the 1930s, much of which was organized through the Congress of Industrial Organizations
Congress of Industrial Organizations
The Congress of Industrial Organizations, or CIO, proposed by John L. Lewis in 1932, was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 required union leaders to swear that they were not...
.
Speaking of the role of vanguard parties leading the 1934 strike wave James P. Cannon said, “It has been the lack of precisely this element, which only a Marxist party can supply, that condemned the insurgent labor movement of the past to futility and defeat. Lacking a class theory of its own, which can come into the labor movement in no other way than through the Marxist party, the American workers, with all their militancy and capacity for sacrifice, fell victim to all kinds of quackery and treason and landed in a blind alley every time.”http://www.marxists.org/archive/cannon/works/1934/dfusion.htm
It was also these strikes that led to the fusion of the two organizations.
In 1933 the American Workers Party had initially formed as a separate organization from the Trotskyist Communist League of America (CLA) partly out of the concern that the CLA did not have a strong base in American politics. The origins of the CLA was a split from the Communist Party USA over the deep theoretical differences between Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky , born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein, was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army....
and Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
and how those differences related to building the world communist movement.
Yet after both the CLA and AWP had successfully led important strikes in 1934 James P. Cannon declared, “We, on our part, venture to say that the work of the League in the Minneapolis strikes helped convince the members of the AWP that we also are able to “speak American"; that our internationalism is not an abstraction but a guide to action on the national field. Joint work of the two organizations in practical work, limited though it has been, has demonstrated in practice an ability to work out a common policy and to cooperate loyally in advancing it.”http://www.marxists.org/archive/cannon/works/1934/dfusion.htm
Entry Into The Socialist Party
Many members of the Workers Party of the United States, in turn, decided to join the Socialist Party of AmericaSocialist 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...
in 1936 to propagate their views inside that party. The Socialist Party had developed a leftwing and the party had declared itself open to other tendencies. As members of the Socialist Party the Trotskyists continued to exist as an independent tendency and continued publishing their own newspaper, Socialist Appeal. However, soon differences developed between the rest of the party and the "Socialist Appeal tendency", as the Trotskyists were known, and they split to form their own group, the Socialist Workers Party
Socialist Workers Party (United States)
The Socialist Workers Party is a far-left political organization in the United States. The group places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba...
, soon thereafter.
Footnotes
Newspaper
- New Militant: Weekly Organ of the Workers Party of the U.S.. James P. Cannon, editor. New York.
Pamphlets
- http://digitool.fcla.edu:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?application=DIGITOOL-3&owner=resourcediscovery&custom_att_2=simple_viewer&forebear_coll=&user=GUEST&pds_handle=&pid=229279&con_lng=ENG&search_terms=WCT%20=(Workers%20Party%20of%20the%20United%20States)&adjacency=N&rd_session=http://digitool.fcla.edu:80/R/4QADPAXR97B4A6VYB6IFFS8BVTH7YC9JLADBNJKU1VYLH9AA1I-02751Declaration of Principles and Constitution of the Workers Party of the US.] New York: Workers Party of the US/Pioneer Publishers, 1935.
- Which Party for the American worker? by A. J. Muste New York : Published for the Workers Party of the U.S. by Pioneer Publishers, 1935
- John West (pseudonym for James BurnhamJames BurnhamJames Burnham was an American popular political theorist, best known for his influential work The Managerial Revolution, published in 1941. Burnham was a radical activist in the 1930s and an important factional leader of the American Trotskyist movement. In later years he left Marxism and produced...
), War and the Workers. New York: Workers Party of US, 1935. - May Day Manifesto of the Workers Party of the United States. New York: Workers Party of the US, 1935.
Further reading
- James P. Cannon, For Fusion With The AWP! Marxists Internet Archive.
- James P. Cannon. History of American Trotskyism. 1944. Pathfinder Press. NY, NY.
- History Of The American Trotskyist Movement
- Constance Ashton Myers. The Prophet's Army: Trotskyists in America. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1977.
- Alan Wald. The New York Intellectuals. Durham: University of North Carolina Press, 1987.