Socialist Party of America

The Socialist Party of America was a socialist political party in the United States. It was formed in 1901 by a merger between the Social Democratic Party of Eugene V. Debs, formed three years earlier by veterans of the Pullman Strike of the American Railway Union, and a wing of the older Socialist Labor Party of America.

Expulsion of supporters of Bolshevism

In January 1919, Vladimir Lenin invited the left wing of the Socialist Party to join in the founding of the Communist Third International, the Comintern. During the spring of 1919, the left wing of the Party prepared to take control. A referendum to join the Comintern passed with 90% support. Elections for the party's National Executive Committee resulted in twelve leftists being elected out of a total of fifteen. Calls were made to expel moderates from the party.

Related Topics:
Vladimir Lenin - Left wing - Comintern

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The moderate incumbents struck back by expelling several state organizations, half a dozen language federations, and many locals, in all two thirds of the membership. They then called an emergency convention to be held in Chicago on August 30, 1919.

Related Topics:
Chicago - August 30

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The left wing held a conference in June, 1919 to plan to regain control of the party by bringing delegations from the sections of the party that had been expelled to demand that they be seated. However, the language federations, eventually joined by Charles Ruthenberg and Louis Fraina broke away from that effort and formed their own party, the Communist Party of America, at a separate convention in Chicago on September 2, 1919.

Related Topics:
Charles Ruthenberg - Louis Fraina - Communist Party of America - September 2

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Meanwhile plans led by John Reed and Benjamin Gitlow to crash the Socialist Party convention went ahead. Tipped off, the incumbents called the police, who obligingly expelled the leftists from the hall. The remaining leftist delegates walked out and, meeting with the expelled delegates, formed the Communist Labor Party on September 1, 1919. The two parties eventually merged in 1921 to form the predecessor of the Communist Party USA.

Related Topics:
John Reed - Benjamin Gitlow - Communist Labor Party - September 1 - 1921 - Communist Party USA

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