Independent Radical & Socialist-Sponsored Groups: Young People's Socialist League (1907 - 1946)

ORGANIZATIONAL HISTORYThe Young People's Socialist League was the name of the youth section of the Socialist Party of America. The group emerged in New York City, the product of a group of Socialist activists who sought to counter the "false teachings" instilled in young people by the school system and to build social relationships of young socialists with one another and to instill them with discipline and training so as to help make them valuable and productive members of the adult socialist movement. Individual groups formed a "Young People's Socialist Federation" (YPSF) in 1907. The next year the publishing association responsible for producing the New Yorker Volkszeitung began to issue The Little Socialist Magazine for Boys and Girls -- a publication which was renamed The Young Socialists' Magazine in June 1911.

While the work of the YPSF was begun "with energy and enthusiasm," according to early organizer Louis Weitz, the situation quickly deteriorated, with falling levels of participation, financial difficulties, and a seeming inability or unwillingness of the national Socialist Party to take the task of youth organizing seriously.
A continent away from New York City, there was an active Young People's Socialist League circle formed in the Bay Area of California towards the end of the first decade. In February of 1909 the YPSL sponsored the formation of a Socialist Sunday School for younger children in the same area.
A conclave of young socialist groups was held in June 1911 which approved a new constitution for the organization and elected new offiicers.
There was still no national organization binding the numerous largely autonomous local organizations together until 1913, at which time the SP's National Committee was pushed into action by the efforts of California State Secretary T.W. Williams, a close supporter of the largest American youth Socialist organization, the Young People's Socialist League, with approximately 1200 members. While there was support among some for the formation of a semi-autonomous organization which elected its own National Secretary and 3 of 5 members of its Executive Committee, in the end the National Committee of the SPA decided to form a "Young People's Department," directly attached and fully subordinate to the National Office

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National Committeeman James M. Reilly of New Jersey stated in an article written upon the conclusion of this meeting that "it is not the intention of the Party to interfere with any of the young people's Socialist organizations now in existence. The aim is rather to lend assistance and cooperation." The Youth Department would be "a sort of clearing house for Socialist literature especially suitable for the young," Reilly indicated, adding that the department would be put in charge of "a comrade who has had experience in such work and understands the young mind." The Youth Deparment was slated to begin its work on October 1, 1913.

[fn. James M. Reilly, "To Work With Young People," in Young Socialists' Magazine, June 1913, pg. 2.]
The first "Director of the Young People's Department" of the Socialist Party -- the appointed National Secretary of YPSL -- was J.A. Rogers, Jr., who reported that when work commenced on Oct. 13, 1913, some 48 actually functioning leagues were incorporated in the national YPSL organization. To this some 64 new leagues were organized by the end of December 1913, bringing the total for the organization to 112. "A membership conservatively estimated at 4,800" was claimed.

[fn. J.A. Rogers, Jr., "Report of Young People's Department for October, November, and December 1913" in Young Socialists' Magazine, Feb. 1914, pg. 13.]

The first election of YPSL's National Secretary (Rogers having been appointed) took place by referendum vote in 1915. William F, "Bill" Kruse was elected to the position. Kruse served at the post from July 1915 through July 1, 1919. Outgoing National Secretary Bill Kruse recalled in December 1918 that when he began his first of two terms as the head of the YPSL in July 1915, the organization consisted of about 1,000 paid members, spread out in about 100 "nominal" leagues -- "most of which existed only in our address file."
In 1919 Oliver Carlson of Detroit was elected the new National Secretary of the YPSL, garnering a plurarily of votes to defeat two opponents.


1. "First National Convention of YPSL" --- Chicago, IL --- May 1-4, 1919.
According to an announcement in The Young Socialists' Magazine of March 1919, this convention was "not commanded by the constitution," but rather

"had no official standing. For that very reason, however, it would be easier to stick to a working program rather than one of high sounding resolutions and hair-splitting constitutional changes. All actions of this convention will be sent out to referendum, and all reports as to better means and methods of work, the real purpose of our gathering, will be made avaialble to the leagues."

The so-called "First National Convention" was attended by 41 delegates, from 14 different states -- including one all the way from Seattle, Washington. Three fraternal delegates were also seated.
The Convention marked a big step towards organizational independence, as it adopted the first YPSL constitution -- a document which provided for organizational independence for the YPSL -- the only affiliation mentioned in the document is internationally with "with the Young People's Socialist Leagues of the world." No mechanism for control of the organization by the Socialist Party is specified in the organizational framework approved. The organization was to issue its own dues stamps and collect its own funds, handle its own finances, elect its own officers, issue (or revoke) its own charters, and conduct its own propaganda. The organization was to be open to young Socialists between the ages of 15 and 30 without regard to gender, race, or creed. Governance was to be by a relatively powerful National Secretary, elected to a 2 year term. The National Secretary was subject to the control of a National Committee which was to consist of 1 member for each state organization or unorganized state with at least 100 average paid members, plus an additional delegate for every 500 average paid members. Supreme authority was to be vested in a bi-annual convention; elections to be held by referendum. Dues were established at 5 cents a month per member to the National Office (plus whatever state or local dues might be collected); 2 cents a month per member for Junior YPSL, open to children ages 12-16.


With a split of the Socialist Party clearly in the offing, in the summer of 1919 YPSL National Secretary Oliver Carlson polled the state and local YPSL organizations as to their intentions should the Socialist Party split. A clear majority indicated to him that the YPSL should attempt to steer a middle course through organizational independence. By the time this split became a reality at the end of August 1919, Carlson had unilaterally removed himself from the National Office, instead having the Post Office transfer mail service to his home, from which he attempted to establish de facto YPSL headquarters. This arrangement proved highly unsatisfactory to the Socialist Party which was paying his weekly salary -- mail stacked up and went unanswered, the Young Socialists' Magazine began to become irregular, and Carlson's long unexplained absences caused the SP's NEC to first suspend his paychecks and then terminate his employment by the party altogether.
In September 1919 Carlson attended the founding convention of the Communist Party of America as a fraternal delegate of the YPSL; Chicago YPSL activist Samuel Hankin attended the founding convention of the Communist Labor Party and was accorded full delegate status. There was no formal representation of the YPSL at the Socialist Party's Emergency National Convention that same week, although Bill Kruse attended in his capacity as an elected delegate of the Socialist Party of Illinois. Kruse later wrote an account of the SPA convention for the benefit of the Yipsel membership.
It is clear that the Socialist Party was initially willing to accept an independent YPSL, the case having successfully been made by Bill Kruse and others that only in this way did the organization have a chance to circumnavigate the shoals of factionalism that had grounded the adult Socialist movement. The 1919 Emergency National Convention in Chicago unanimously approved revision of the SPA's constitution in this regard, deleting the section dealing with the YPSL and instead incorporating provisions formally establishing a "Young People's Department" operating at the pleasure of the National Executive Committee. At the SPA NEC's September meeting, Bill Kruse was prevailed upon and convinced assume the role of head of the "Young People's Department." The party also asserted its ownership of The Young Socialists' Magazine, of which Kruse resumed editorship effective with its "August-September 1919" issue, issued late in September -- although Kruse was careful to explain in an open letter to Yipsel members that he made no claims to be the National Secretary of the organization.

On Oct. 13, 1919, the 7th Convention of the YPSL of New York, in session in New York City, voted to sever connections with the Socialist Party. The resolution making the organization independent declared:

The Socialist movement in America today being torn by factions, affilaition with any one of them at the present time will both hinder and interfere with the YPSL in its work. ONly as an idependent body can we organize and work effectively. Therefore, be it resolved, that we, the members of the YPSL of New York, sever our connections with the Socialist Party and declare ourselves not bound by any organization whatever.

[fn. "Yipsels Sever Relations with Socialist Party," NY Call, Oct. 14, 1919, pg. 1.]

3. Special Conference --- Rochester, NY --- Dec. XX-XX, 1919.
The 1919 special Rochester Conference, coming in the wake of the split of the Socialist Party, formally severed the relationship of the YPSL organization with the national SP. Instead, the organization was declared independent of all existing parties.

Death of the Independent YPSL.
The Red Raids of 1920 spelled the death of the Independent YPSL. As Secretary Oliver Carlson later recounted:

Thousands were arrested; other thousands were being searched for. Large numbers of those who had declared themselves Communists decided that the game was too perilous. They dropped out of the movement - and the Communist parties themselves were organizing as best they could underground. That all of this should also reflect itself in the youth movement is obvious. Section after section gave up its ghost and died. Others carried on as mere social centers, doing no revolutionary work. A few -- and very few, indeed -- sought to go ahead as best they could with their youth work. Nationally, neither YPSL or IYPSL could be considered as functioning. The remaining few who hitherto had sought to work amongst the youth, now threw their full weight into the work of building up and strengthening the underground parties.

[fn. Carlson, "Looking Backward," The Young Worker, June 1, 1924, pg. 4.]

 

Socialist Party Reestablishes its own YPSL.
The May 1920 convention of the SPA called for the reestablishment of a YPSL subject to the direction of the NEC of the Socialist Party. On Sept. 5-6, 1920, New York YPSL circles loyal to the SPA gathered in a reorganizational conference and pledged their allegiance to the national party and to work for the Debs-Stedman ticket in the campaign that fall. They issued a Manifesto to Socialist Youth declaring these intentions. A reorganized national YPSL grew around this organization.


In 1932, the YPSL had 3,355 members in 153 circles. Of these, 1,968 were male and 935 were unemployed.

[fn. Socialist Party of America papers, Duke University, microfilm reel 81.]

 

 

 

YPSL splits, with majority following Trotskyist Left Wing.
In 1937, the YPSL at its national convention elected to endorse the 4th International, effectively casting its lot with the party's Trotskyist Left Wing, which was in the process of being expelled from the organization.

Meeting of the NEC --- Philadelphia, PA --- Sept. 2-3, 1937

9A. 9th National Convention ("Left Wing," regular) --- Philadelphia, PA --- Sept. 3-5, 1937.
The 1937 Philadelphia Convention of the YPSL was a controversial gathering, with adherents of the Socialist Party's majority "Clarity" faction jockeying against loyalists of the "Appeal Tendency," the party's Trotskyist Left Wing. On September 2, the National Executive Committee of the YPSL, dominated by Clarity, held a session to pass judgment on the credentials for the upcoming convention. Recognizing that the Left Wing was almost certain to win majority control of the convention, and thus the organization, an effort was made to delay the scheduled start of the gathering, with the NEC session held over through the morning of September 3 -- the date at which the convention was scheduled to begin. The 5-2 Clarity majority of the NEC sought to give voice and vote in advance to the challenged Clarity delegation from New York -- over 50 delegates, for an organization of just 357 paid members, of whom 41% had voted in the last city elections for candidates of the Appeal faction.<ref>Crushing Left Wing Majority at YPSL Convention Make Impossible Alibi Attempt of Socialist Call," Socialist Appeal, v. 1, no. 6 (Sept. 18, 1937), pg. 5.</ref>
The Left Wing "Appeal" faction also met as a formally organized caucus for two days in advance of the opening of the convention.<ref>Crushing Left Wing Majority at YPSL Convention Make Impossible Alibi Attempt of Socialist Call," Socialist Appeal, v. 1, no. 6 (Sept. 18, 1937), pg. 7.</ref>
Left Winger and National Chairman of the YPSL Ernest Erber called the gathering to order on September 3, despite the NEC's refusal to submit a final credentials report. The combined body joined in singing "The Internationale" and raising clenched fists; this was followed by a walkout of the Clarity group, headed by Al Hamilton, which proceeded to the local YWCA to hold a convention of its own.
Some 148 people remained in the hall after the departure of the Clarity faction, including 104 regular delegates.<ref>Crushing Left Wing Majority at YPSL Convention Make Impossible Alibi Attempt of Socialist Call," Socialist Appeal, v. 1, no. 6 (Sept. 18, 1937), pg. 5.</ref>


9B. 9th National Convention ("Clarity," insurgent) --- Philadelphia, PA --- Sept. 3-5, 1937.
At the YPSL convention held at the Philadelphia YWCA following the walkout of the Clarity faction some 92 delegates were seated, the overwhelming bulk of whom were from New York City (53) or Philadelphia (12). An additional 5 of the voting delegates were members of the outgoing NEC of the YPSL. Only 1 delegate came from states west of the Mississippi River.<ref>"Crushing Left Wing Majority at YPSL Convention Make Impossible Alibi Attempt of Socialist Call," Socialist Appeal, v. 1, no. 6 (Sept. 18, 1937), pg. 5.</ref>