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Session 2: The Party

Session 2: The Party

📅 Wednesday, September 2RSVP

Per 2025 convention’s successful resolution R07: Principles of Party Building, DSA explicitly sets out to build a socialist party. As of now, DSA often uses the democratic ballot line. This contradiction brings up hot topics in DSA: the dirty break (we grow in power & make ourselves so unpalatable to the establishment that they ‘kick DSA out’), the clean break (we exit the party on our own volition). What are the reasons for using the ballot line? What are the real risks? What shape does the DSA’s party need to take in order to win and wield power effectively?

Marx didn’t clearly define a party structure. Members of the first International in Germany and France had singular figureheads like Ferdinand Lasalle who held more of a dictatorial power. The SPD that formed through the merger of Bebel & Liebknecht’s SDAP and Lasalle’s ADAV led to a ‘Party of a New Type’ in the SPD at the Gotha congress of 1875. The SPD became the model for all socialist parties up until the Russian revolution of 1917.

We include some current readings in order to make the connections between our current ‘party’ and the party of the 2nd international. These will be ideologically ‘biased’, since there’s no consensus of these topics yet within DSA, and some caucuses don’t engage with the party question as directly.

Teacher’s note:
Lenin rediscovered reading will require a strong effort from most attendees. If you feel you won’t make it in time, don’t be ashamed to skim.

Readings

Your notes

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