Party for Socialism and Liberation facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Party for Socialism and Liberation
Leader	Central Committee
Founded	June 18, 2004; 20 years ago (2004-06-18)
Split from	Workers World Party
Headquarters	San Francisco, California Washington, D.C.
Newspaper	Liberation News
Ideology	Communism Marxism–Leninism Revolutionary socialism
Political position	Far-left
International affiliation	International Peoples' Assembly
Colors	Red
Politics of United States Political parties

The Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) is a communist party in the United States. PSL was established in 2004, when its members split from the Workers World Party. The group believes that a socialist revolution is necessary to overthrow capitalism and establish socialism. The organization works toward this end by organizing and participating in local protests, running candidates in elections, and political education favoring a revolutionary socialist vanguard party.

Notable members include Gloria La Riva, Michael Prysner, Eugene Puryear, and Claudia de la Cruz. In 2022, PSL said it had members in "over 100 cities". PSL does not release membership numbers.

History

PSL protesters at the 2016 Democratic National Convention

PSL was formed in June 2004 when the San Francisco branch of the Marcyite Workers World Party left the organization. The San Francisco branch, alongside other members, announced that "the Workers World Party leadership is no longer capable of fulfilling [the] mission" of building socialism. PSL co-founders included Richard Becker, Brian Becker, Gloria La Riva, and Eugene Puryear.

At least five PSL members were arrested in 2020 during protests against the Aurora police department.

Associated groups

PSL is a founding member of the ANSWER Coalition, which has close ties to PSL leadership. ANSWER's National Coordinator is Brian Becker, a PSL co-founder who said "we do a great deal of work through" ANSWER.

PSL leadership are closely involved with The People's Forum and BreakThrough News. Anchors on BreakThrough News include Becker and PSL 2016 vice-presidential candidate Puryear. Becker also co-hosted a show with John Kiriakou on Radio Sputnik of the RT state media network.

PSL is closely tied to the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research and its founder, Vijay Prashad, who has often appeared on BreakThrough News.

PSL was closely tied to Women Organized to Resist and Defend (WORD or W.O.R.D.), a feminist organization led by PSL core members Peta Lindsay and Gloria La Riva. WORD was founded in 2012 and ceased operation in 2016.

Publications

PSL's main publication is the website and monthly paper Liberation News, which replaced PSL's quarterly magazine, Socialism and Liberation. PSL's secondary publication, Liberation School, includes longer articles, Party documents, study guides, and other educational materials. PSL also publishes a quarterly magazine targeting women titled Breaking the Chains: A Socialist Perspective on Women's Liberation, and a monthly Reds In Ed newsletter aimed at schoolteachers.

Ideology

A PSL supporter protesting against the 2021 killing of Ma'Khia Bryant

PSL identifies as a Leninist party or Marxist-Leninist party. Independent sources have labelled the PSL as Marxist-Leninist, Marcyite, and campist.

PSL describes its primary goal as the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism and the institution of state socialism as a transitionary stage toward a communist society, stating that "humanity today has only two choices: an increasingly destructive capitalism, or socialism".

PSL is a democratic centralist party, which means that "all members, including those who disagree, are duty bound to publicly defend and carry out" all PSL decisions. PSL's highest body is its Party Congress, held every 2 to 3 years, which selects its Central Committee leadership. The PSL Central Committee can appoint up to 40% of Congress delegates. PSL allows a one-month "discussion period" before each Congress. However, "the pre-Congress discussion" is "a completely internal discussion".

Russian invasion of Ukraine

PSL supported the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea. While PSL did not support the 2022 Russian invasion, it blamed the war on US-led NATO expansion and the "plight of ethnic Russians" in the Donbas.

Syrian civil war

PSL opposes US intervention in the Syrian Civil War, and has generally been supportive of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Russian military efforts in Syria. PSL denies the conclusion of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and other international organizations that the Syrian government used chemical weapons, which are banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Soviet Union

PSL describes the Soviet Union positively. However, PSL argued that the New Economic Policy of Vladimir Lenin "led to a re-polarization of social classes, especially in the countryside". PSL blames the reforms initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev for the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

China

PSL views the Chinese Communist Revolution favorably, argues that the Chinese Communist Party has made important contributions to socialism and anti-imperialism, and argues that, despite its flaws, a "militant political defense of the Chinese government" is necessary to stave off "counterrevolution, imperialist intervention and dismemberment". PSL has sometimes criticized the Chinese government, particularly for failing communist ideals like the abolition of private property.

PSL has generally defended China's human rights records, denying, for instance, that the Chinese military massacred student protestors in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. PSL supports China's policies towards Tibet and opposed the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests, calling them "chauvinist", "separatist", and "anti-China".

North Korea

PSL argues that North Korea is unfairly targeted and advocates the lifting of sanctions, withdrawal of US troops from South Korea, and signing of a peace treaty. PSL supports North Korea's nuclear weapons program. For example, Stephan Gowans argued in 2013 in PSL's official newspaper that a North Korean nuclear arsenal is "to be welcomed by anyone who opposes imperialist military interventions; supports the right of a people to organize its affairs free from foreign domination; and has an interest in the survival of one of the few top-to-bottom, actually-existing, alternatives to the global capitalist system of oppression, exploitation and foreign domination". PSL has also expressed skepticism towards Western claims of North Korea's human rights record, arguing that "conditions in North Korea are vastly better than those in other developing countries" and stating that condemnations of North Korea's human rights records are "thinly veiled justification[s] for U.S. aggression toward North Korea".

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

PSL supports a free Palestine, ending US aid to Israel, and freeing of all Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. On October 8, one day after the Re'im music festival massacre, PSL Central Committee member Eugene Puryear helped organize a rally in support of Palestine in Times Square, in which he stated: "[T]here was some sort of rave or desert party where they were having a great time, until the resistance came in electrified hang gliders and took at least several dozen hipsters, and I'm sure they're doing very fine despite what the New York Post says".

Election results

PSL has fielded electoral candidates for local, state, and federal offices. PSL candidates usually run as independent candidates or as third party candidates, such as with the Peace and Freedom Party or the Green Party.

No PSL candidate has yet won an election.

Presidential elections

PSL ran La Riva and Sunil Freeman in the 2020 United States presidential election. Originally Leonard Peltier was the vice-presidential nominee, but he withdrew for health reasons.

Congressional elections

State elections

Local elections

National conventions

Notable members

• Eugene Puryear, reporter and candidate for vice president in 2008 and 2016
• Gloria La Riva, political activist and perennial candidate
• Jodi Dean, academic
• Michael Prysner, anti-war activist
• Kristin Richardson Jordan (formerly), poet, activist and member of the New York City Council (9th district)
• Peta Lindsay, presidential candidate
• Jon Siebels, guitarist for the band Eve 6
• Kimberly Barzola, artist and organizer

See also

In Spanish: Partido Socialismo y Liberación para niños

• American Left
• History of the socialist movement in the United States
• Workers World Party
• Democratic Socialists of America
• Communist Party USA
• Socialist Alternative (United States)