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FAMOUS MEMBERS Jay Cassano , Mary Loritz , Peter Moody HISTORY YPSL began in 1907 as a youth circle in Chicago, Illinois . In 1913 it was established as the Socialist Party's national youth affiliate. As World War I was beginning, YPSL had over 100 branches and almost 10,000 members. In 1919 , the Socialist Party's Communist faction broke off and formed what would eventually become the Communist Party USA , YPSL decided to follow it out of the Socialist Party. By 1932 , during the hard times of the Great Depression , YPSL had grown to 2,500 members. A fight between factions happened in the Socialist Party in 1936 between left-wing "Militants" and the right-wing "Old Guard". YPSL sided with the Militants. The Old Guard lost the faction fight and left the Socialist Party, forming the Social Democratic Federation . In March 1936 , the Trotskyist wing of the Workers Party Of The United States entered the Socialist Party as part of the French Turn . It remained a faction in the Socialist Party until late in 1937, taking YPSL with it into the Socialist Workers Party . By 1952 , the Socialist Party's YPSL had 134 members, 62 of which had been recruited that year. The Independent Socialist League (ISL) affiliated Socialist Youth League (SYL) had been making overtures to YPSL. SYL members had an anti-war quarterly publication called ''Anvil'' which was theoretically independent, although SYL dominated it, some YPSL members became editors of the quarterly. The Socialist Party told YPSL it couldn't have contact with the "totalitarian" SYL or ISL, although YPSL ignored this, and the relationship between YPSL and the Socialist Party worsened. In 1953, the Socialist Party cut off money to YPSL, and then suspended YPSL's New York branch, which was the one with the most contact with SYL (and the ISL). In August, YPSL, including the "suspended" members, voted to disaffiliate with the Socialist Party. In February 1954 , the Young People's Socialist League merged with the Socialist Youth League to form the Young Socialist League . YPSL was reconstituted and helped organize a nuclear test ban march in Washington DC in 1962. YPSL subsequently split into two factions, a left-wing one which wanted to create a mass labor party, and a right-wing one which wanted realignment with the Democratic Party. In 1964 , the left-wing faction took over YPSL, after which the left-wing faction itself broke into factions. YPSL was dissolved shortly afterward. Two years later it was reconstituted, but remained small throughout the 1960s compared to groups like SDS . In 1973, the Socialist Party Of America had three factions, and each split into a new group. One of them was Socialist Party USA . YPSL became the youth affiliate of the Socialist Party USA in 1989. THREE ARROWS YPSL's traditional symbol is the 'Three Arrows', which can mean many things. The arrows are meant to symbolize the three ways in which humanity works for a better society. They are:
MEMBERSHIP Membership in YPSL (pronounced "Yipsel") is open to any comrade under the age of 30 who agrees with the principles of the Young People's Socialist League. Members are workers and students at all levels. As a D.I.Y. league, YPSL will help with any local campaign their members decide to carry out. The organization is democratically run and open and accessible to all members. BIBLIOGRAPHY
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