The (SPUSA) is one of the heirs to the
Socialist Party Of America of
Eugene V. Debs and
Norman Thomas . It is a
Democratic Socialist , multi-tendency party, advocating a broad-based,
Democratic social
Revolution from below instead of an undemocratic and violent seizure of power by a single political party. Their youth affiliate is the
Young People's Socialist League .
The party was formed in 1973 after the
Socialist Party Of America was taken over by right-wing
Shachtmanites and renamed the
Social Democrats USA . A separate group, the
Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee (later to become the
Democratic Socialists Of America ), also split off in 1973 and is also active in political causes. All three organizations claim to be the heir apparent to
Eugene V. Debs and
Norman Thomas . The DSA and SDUSA are affiliated to the social-democratic
Socialist International .
In 1980, the SPUSA became the first American party to nominate an openly
Gay man for
President –
Anti-war activist
David McReynolds . He would run for a second time in 2000. In the past few years, the SP has grown from 600 members to nearly 1,500. Socialists have surprised many in a number of recent elections, most notably in
Milwaukee in 2000, where Socialist
Wendell Harris received almost 20% of the vote for mayor.
The Socialist Party USA describes itself as the only explicitly democratic socialist party in the
United States . It is as equally against
Soviet -style
Communism as it is
Anti-capitalist .
The party rejects the practice of
Democratic Centralism , meaning that its individual members are free to disagree publicly with party policy even after decisions have been arrived at. Membership is based on the payment of dues, which are paid by applicants who state that they agree with the statement of principles. The party considers itself democratic socialist, although there are varying views within the membership on the means of achieving socialism based on its Statement of Principles and Program.
Some SPUSA members advocate an evolutionary approach to socialism, favoring a
Social Democratic transition period; they cite the social democratic systems of nations like Sweden as examples of "socialism in action". The
Fist And Rose Tendency , which desires observer status in the
Socialist International , is the most prominent example of this approach.
Others consider Swedish-style social democracy to be essentially capitalist in nature, and instead favor a more radical or revolutionary transformation of society from capitalist to socialist. The
Debs Tendency ,
Direct Action Tendency , and Grass Roots Tendency are examples of those tendencies (see Caucus list below).
The party considers itself strongly
Socialist Feminist , and arranges a number of
Pro Choice activities as well as requiring gender parity among its officers. Its platform considers
Abortion a part of women's healthcare rights. There is an active Women's Commission which publishes a quarterly newsletter, ''Socialist Women''.
The Socialist Party USA focuses on both national and
Grassroots Politics . Their "Socialist Summer" campaigns in 2004 and 2005 focused on issues such as fighting to end the
Military-industrial Complex and detention of
Immigrant s following the
September 11, 2001 Attacks , and promoting
Civil Liberties and
Civil Rights .
The most recent Socialist Party national convention took place
October 21 -
October 23 ,
2005 in
Newark, NJ .
