Description
Records of the American Trotskyist political organization include minutes, internal bulletins, pamphlets, position papers,
press releases, flyers, and leaflets relating to Trotskyist political activities in the United States. Includes issuances
of youth groups and international affiliates of the Spartacist League.
Background
The Spartacist League of the U.S. is a self-proclaimed revolutionary communist organization in the Marxist-Leninist-Trotskyist
tradition. Its antecedents date to the early 1960s and stem from the Revolutionary Tendency within the Socialist Workers Party,
American sympathizing section of the Fourth International (International Committee) at that time. The Revolutionary Tendency
espoused a number of criticisms of the majority leadership of the Socialist Workers Party, notably its decision to participate
in the reunified Fourth International (United Secretariat) and its uncritically favorable assessment of the Fidel Castro regime
in Cuba. These differences eventuated in expulsion of leaders of the Revolutionary Tendency at the end of 1963 and their formation
of a group around the publication Spartacist early in 1964. Following failure to achieve agreement with remaining elements of the Fourth International (International
Committee), the group formally founded the Spartacist League of the U.S. in 1966.
Extent
24 manuscript boxes
(10.0 Linear Feet)
Restrictions
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Availability
The collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual
or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.