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Socialist Alternative (United States)

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Socialist Alternative
ChairpersonNational Committee
(no single chairperson)
FoundedApril 1986; 38 years ago (1986-04)
(as Labor Militant)
HeadquartersNew York City, New York
NewspaperSocialist Alternative
Student wingSocialist Students
Membership≈1,000 (2020)[1]
IdeologyMarxism[2]
Revolutionary socialism[1]
Trotskyism
Political positionFar-left
International affiliationInternational Socialist Alternative[3]
Colors  Red
Slogan"Struggle, Solidarity, Socialism"
Members in elected offices0
Website
socialistalternative.org
This article is part of a series on
Socialism
in the United States
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Socialist Alternative's Kshama Sawant, Seattle City Councilmember

Socialist Alternative (SAlt or SA) is a far-left Trotskyist political party in the United States. SAlt formed as Labor Militant in 1986, when members of the Committee for a Workers' International created a US branch.

SAlt describes itself as a revolutionary socialist party fighting for a democratic socialist economy, because it argues that capitalism is fundamentally incapable of serving the interests of the majority of people.

SAlt's highest-profile public representative was former Seattle City Councillor Kshama Sawant, who left the party and created their own, Revolutionary Workers, in 2024.

Membership

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In 2012, SAlt claimed to be active in over 50 cities in the United States.[4] In April 2014, SAlt stated it had gained 200 new members after Sawant's victory.[5] In February 2017, SAlt stated its membership had grown 30% since the election of Donald Trump.[6] In February 2020, SAlt stated it had "just under 1,000" members.[1]

Publications

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In September 2013, SAlt began publishing a national monthly newspaper, Socialist Alternative.[7] SAlt also publishes Boston Organizer, a local bi-monthly newsletter in Boston, Massachusetts, and New York Socialist, a local bi-monthly newsletter in New York, New York.

History

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Origins

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SAlt was officially formed as Labor Militant in 1986 by members of the Committee for a Workers' International who had moved to the United States and formed the Labor and Trade Union Group in the early 1980s. Labor Militant was a small group with its membership made mostly of trade union members.[citation needed]

By the mid-1990s, Labor Militant became part of a campaign to form the Labor Party where it was in the leadership of the New York Metro Chapter. The New York Metro Chapter, the largest in the country, saw Labor Militant and its allies run again for the leadership of the chapter under the United Action slate only to be defeated in an Executive Committee election. Labor Militant members and the United Action slate had argued that the Labor Party should vigorously run candidates against the Democrats, whereas the national leadership of the Labor Party refused to take such an approach. After the election, the New York Labor Party State Executive upheld the election results while suspending the New York Metro Chapter and several of its officers, eventually shutting down the chapter.[8]

1990s and 2000s

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In the late 1990s, Labor Militant changed its name to Socialist Alternative to reflect what was classified as a change in the political period.[9] From 1998 to 2002, SAlt party was active in the anti-globalization movement. It was present at many of the major protests during this time, including the N30 Protests in Seattle. At these protests, it argued that the movement should take up the key demands of "abolish the IMF, World Bank and the WTO", "cancel the international debt", "papers for all undocumented immigrants" and "take the banks and financial institutions into public ownership".[10]

In 2004, SAlt members initiated Youth Against War and Racism (YAWR) as a sustained campaign against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. YAWR worked mainly in high schools primarily in counter-recruitment activism in several cities. In 2005, several hundred Seattle's high school students walked out of class in order to march in protest of the war in Iraq causing conflict with parents and school officials who contended that the students should focus on school during the day.[11] Following protests by members of YAWR and SAlt against military recruitment in schools, the Seattle School Board enacted some restrictions on military recruiters at Seattle high schools. The changes included limiting military recruiters to visiting twice a year to each school despite the demands by the YAWR protesters for a total ban on military recruitment at schools.[12]

Sawant's Seattle City Council election

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In 2013, Seattle Central Community College and Seattle University part-time economics professor Kshama Sawant was elected to the Seattle City Council from Position 2 as a candidate for Socialist Alternative.[13] She had previously won 35% of the vote in the August primary election and advanced into the general election against incumbent Richard Conlin.[14] On November 15, 2013, Conlin conceded to Sawant after late returns showed him down by 1,640 votes or approximately 1% of the vote.[15][16] This made Sawant the first socialist to win a citywide election in Seattle since the communist supporter Anna Louise Strong was elected to the School Board in 1916.[17]

Sawant had previously run for election as the Socialist Alternative candidate in the 43rd district of the Washington House of Representatives against incumbent Democrat Frank Chopp in 2012.[18][19] Sawant advanced past the primaries for Position 2 while also advancing in Position 1 where she was on the ballot challenging Jamie Pedersen. The Sawant campaign won a subsequent court battle against the Secretary of State for the right to list her party preference on the ballot in the elections. Sawant was endorsed by the Local 587 of the Amalgamated Transit Union[20] and the alternative newspaper The Stranger.[21] She received over 20,000 votes, or 29%.[22]

Sawant's platform included a minimum wage increase to $15 an hour, rent control and taxes on higher-income individuals.[14]

In 2015 and 2019, Sawant was reelected with 56% and 51.8% of the vote respectively. In 2021, Sawant defeated a recall with 50.4% of the vote. In January 2023, Sawant announced that she would not seek re-election, and would instead promote the Socialist Alternative campaign Workers Strike Back to unionize workers.[23]

2010s and 2020s

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In fall 2011, SAlt was active in the Occupy movement in cities across the country.[24] SAlt argued that the movement should develop concrete demands along working class lines.[25] The party assisted in outreach, planning and organizing public meetings to help grow the campaign.[26]

In 2014, SAlt member and Washington House candidate Jess Spear was arrested during several protests against oil and coal trains moving through Seattle.[27][28]

In 2020, Socialist Alternative members began joining the Democratic Socialists of America, in order to encourage it to support a socialist independent party.[29]

2024 split

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In 2024 the party suffered a split, with former leading member Kshama Sawant leaving, taking with her Workers Strike Back, and starting a new party under the name Revolutionary Workers.[30][31]

Ideology

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Socialist Alternative members marching for LGBT rights in Seattle, Washington

Socialist Alternative is a Trotskyist, revolutionary socialist party[1] that advocates democratic socialism as an alternative to bureaucratic socialism of the former Soviet Union and the capitalist democratic model, which it describes as designed to benefit only the "ruling class and disenfranchise working people".[32]

The party holds that the former Soviet Union was not socialist, but instead a "tragic degeneration" of the Russian Revolution and the socialist tradition.[33] While it views the Russian Revolution positively as a mass democratic revolution of the working class in Russia, it opposes Joseph Stalin's reign of terror following the death of Vladimir Lenin.[33] Like other Leninist and Trotskyist parties, it upholds the principles of democratic centralism in order to ensure "bottom-up democracy" among party members.[34]

Socialist Alternative expressed solidarity with 2019-2020 Hong Kong protests and opposes the Chinese Communist Party's suppression of opposition.[35]

In contrast to most US socialist groups, Socialist Alternative supports a socialist two-state solution in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.[36]

Election results

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SAlt has fielded electoral candidates for local and state offices.

One SAlt member has won election to public office: Kshama Sawant.[37]

Presidential elections

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In 1996, 2000, 2004,[38] and 2008,[39] SAlt endorsed Ralph Nader.

In 2012[40] and 2016,[41] SAlt supported Green candidate Jill Stein. In 2020, SAlt endorsed Green and Socialist Party USA nominee Howie Hawkins.[42]

In 2024, SAlt labelled both Cornel West and Jill Stein as "the strongest left, anti-war" candidate.[43]

State legislature elections

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Year Candidate Office Area District Votes % Result Notes Ref
2014 Jessica Spear State Representative Washington 43-2 8,606
17.7%
 Lost ran as Socialist Alternative candidate [44][45][46]
2012 Kshama Sawant State Representative Washington 43-2 20,425
29.4%
 Lost ran as Socialist Alternative candidate [47]

Local elections

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Year Candidate Office Area District Votes % Result Notes Ref
2021 Kshama Sawant City Council Seattle 3 20,656
50.4%
 Won non-partisan recall election, joined Democratic Socialists of America in February[48] [49]
2019 Kshama Sawant City Council Seattle 3 22,263
52.1%
 Won non-partisan election [50]
2017 Ginger Jentzen City Council Minneapolis 3 3,844
44.2%
 Lost ran as Socialist Alternative candidate, ranked choice election [51][52]
2015 Kshama Sawant City Council Seattle 3 17,170
56.1%
 Won non-partisan election [53]
2013 Kshama Sawant City Council Seattle 2 93,682
50.9%
 Won non-partisan election [54]
2013 Seamus Whelan City Council Boston At-Large 3,118
2.6%
 Lost non-partisan, plurality at-large election [55][56]
2013 Ty Moore City Council Minneapolis 9 1,758
46.9%
 Lost ran as Green Party candidate, ranked choice election [57][58][59]
2007 Matt Geary City Council Boston At-Large 3,025
6.5%
 Lost non-partisan, plurality at-large election [60][61]

Labor unions

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Socialist Alternative has also fielded candidates for labor union leadership positions. In 2017, Socialist Alternative member Ryan Timlin was named President-elect of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1005 in Minneapolis after running unopposed.[62]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Axelbank, Elan (February 14, 2020). "What's the Difference Between Socialist Alternative and DSA?". Socialist Alternative. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020.
  2. ^ "Why You Should Join Socialist Alternative". socialistalternative.org. August 30, 2019. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  3. ^ "ISA Worldwide". International Socialist Alternative.
  4. ^ "Who We Are, What We Stand For". Socialist Alternative. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  5. ^ "Socialist Alternative Growing Rapidly". Socialist Alternative. April 20, 2014. Archived from the original on April 24, 2014.
  6. ^ "More Americans joining socialist groups under Trump". Al Jazeera. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  7. ^ "Publications". Socialist Alternative. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  8. ^ "From The Archives Of The Socialist Alternative Press-Articles on the US Labor Party (1997-2002)". July 28, 2019.
  9. ^ "Name Change Debate". marxist.net. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  10. ^ Locker, Philip. Global Capitalism and the Socialist Alternative. Seattle: Socialist Alternative.
  11. ^ "Group organizes walkout by students to protest war". Seattle Times. November 1, 2005. Retrieved October 14, 2014.
  12. ^ "School Board limits military recruiting in high schools". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. August 1, 2007. Retrieved October 14, 2014.
  13. ^ "Victory for $15 in Seattle! How Socialists Built a Winning Movement". Socialist Alternative. May 29, 2014. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  14. ^ a b Young, Bob (August 6, 2013). "For Seattle council: Conlin against Sawant, O'Brien against Shen". Seattle Times. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
  15. ^ Joel Connelly. "Socialist Sawant wins City Council seat". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  16. ^ Kang, Martha; Valdes, Manuel. "Conlin Concedes to Socialist Sawant in Seattle Council Race". KPLU.org. Archived from the original on July 25, 2017. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  17. ^ "Seattle elects first socialist City Council member". King5.com. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved November 15, 2013.
  18. ^ "From Capitol Hill's academic halls, a 'Socialist Alternative' to Pedersen in 43rd race". CHS Capitol Hill Seattle News. June 3, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
  19. ^ "Socialist Alternative Party Places a Nominee on Washington State Ballot for Legislature". Ballot Access News. June 3, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
  20. ^ "Seattle Transit Union Endorses Socialist Kshama Sawant for State House". Socialist Alternative. July 21, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  21. ^ "Endorsements for the August 7 Primary Election (Plus Cheat Sheet!)". The Stranger. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  22. ^ "Both Minor Party Candidates for the Washington State Legislature Poll Approximately 25% of the Vote in Two-Candidate Races". Ballot Access News. November 13, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  23. ^ Taylor, Sarah Grace; Beekman, Daniel (January 19, 2023). "Kshama Sawant will not seek reelection to Seattle City Council". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on January 20, 2023.
  24. ^ Denvir, Daniel (October 4, 2011). "Answers from Occupy Philly organizer Justin Harrison". Philadelphia Citypaper. Archived from the original on June 2, 2013. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  25. ^ "End the Dictatorship of Wall Street! – A Socialist Strategy to Build the Occupy Wall Street Movement". Philadelphia Citypaper. October 6, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2012.
  26. ^ Fletcher, Steve. "Occupy Homes Community Forum: Creating Foreclosure Free Neighborhoods". Retrieved June 15, 2012.
  27. ^ "Reviewing the Jess Spear Campaign". Socialist Alternative. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
  28. ^ "Legislative candidate Jess Spear arrested in oil-train protest". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on November 16, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2014.
  29. ^ "Why Socialist Alternative Members are Joining DSA". Socialist Alternative. December 15, 2020. Archived from the original on December 15, 2020.
  30. ^ "A familiar thorn threatens to pop WA Democrats' bubble". The Seattle Times. August 14, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  31. ^ Sawant, Kshama. "Why We're Launching Revolutionary Workers & Leaving Socialist Alternative".
  32. ^ Gray, Chris; Ty Moore (June–July 2011). "Budget Myths 101 – Understanding the Debate on Taxes, Deficits and Jobs". Justice (78).
  33. ^ a b Madsen, Brandon (January–February 2012). "Answering Common Questions – Socialism FAQs". Justice (81). Retrieved June 13, 2012.
  34. ^ "Review: Lenin's revolutionary legacy". Socialist Alternative. January 20, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  35. ^ Alternative, International Socialist. "Solidarity Against Repression In China & HK". International Socialist Alternative. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  36. ^ Flakin, Nathaniel (December 16, 2023). "The Farce of the "Two-State Solution" and the Socialist Perspective for Palestine". Left Voice. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  37. ^ A Rare Elected Voice for Socialism New York Times, December 28, 2013
  38. ^ Socialist Alternative Executive Committee (February 25, 2004). "Support Nader's Campaign for President — It's Time to Break From the Two-Party System!". Socialist Alternative. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014.
  39. ^ DiMaggio, Dan (September–October 2008). "Beyond the Rhetoric – Would Obama Really Bring Change?". Justice (61). Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  40. ^ Lessinger, Jesse (August 29, 2012). "Break from the Two Parties of Wall Street!". Socialist Alternative.
  41. ^ Ayers, Patrick; Locker, Philip (September 19, 2016). "Yes to Political Revolution, Vote Jill Stein". Socialist Alternative.
  42. ^ Mullen, Keely (October 1, 2020). "Break from the Democrats: Protest Vote for Howie Hawkins". Socialist Alternative.
  43. ^ Socialist Alternative Executive Committee (July 3, 2024). "No More 'Evils': Build An Anti-War Working-Class Party". Socialist Alternative.
  44. ^ "Reviewing the Jess Spear Campaign". Socialist Alternative. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
  45. ^ "Legislative candidate Jess Spear arrested in oil-train protest". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on November 16, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2014.
  46. ^ November 4, 2014 General Election Results: Legislative - All Results (Report). Washington Secretary of State. Archived from the original on November 4, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  47. ^ November 06, 2012 General Election Results: Legislative - All Results (Report). Archived from the original on November 25, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  48. ^ Mullen, Keely (February 26, 2021). "Why I'm Joining Democratic Socialists of America". Socialist Alternative. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  49. ^ "2021 election results" (PDF). King County Elections. December 9, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 15, 2021.
  50. ^ "2019 primary results" (PDF). King County, Washington. November 5, 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 4, 2020.
  51. ^ "Ginger Jentzen announces run for Minneapolis Council seat under Socialist Alternative banner". Minneapolis Post. January 26, 2017. Archived from the original on January 29, 2017. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  52. ^ "2017 Minneapolis Election Results: City Council Ward 3". vote.minneapolismn.gov. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  53. ^ King County (November 24, 2015). "Election Results" (PDF). p. 45. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 16, 2015. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  54. ^ King County (November 26, 2013). "Election Results" (PDF). p. 46. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 16, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  55. ^ "Seamus Whelan on the Ballot!". Socialist Alternative. June 3, 2013. Archived from the original on June 19, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  56. ^ "City of Boston Preliminary Municipal Election - September 24, 2013 City Councillor At Large" (PDF). City of Boston. September 24, 2013. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  57. ^ "Ty Moore for Minneapolis City Council, Ward 9". Socialist Alternative. April 18, 2013. Archived from the original on June 20, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  58. ^ "In Minneapolis, Socialist Comes Within 230 Votes of Victory". Socialist Alternative. November 25, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
  59. ^ "2013 Minneapolis Municipal Election Results: City Council Ward 9". City of Minneapolis. November 8, 2013. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  60. ^ "Vote for Matt Geary: A Voice for Boston Workers and Youth". Socialist Alternative. September 7, 2007. Archived from the original on March 18, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  61. ^ "City of Boston Municipal Election - November 6, 2007 City Councillor At Large" (PDF). cityofboston.gov. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  62. ^ "Interview: Ryan Timlin for President of ATU Local 1005 – Minneapolis, MN". Socialist Alternative. October 15, 2017. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
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