Liam redux

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Two resolutions

These two resolutions were passed at a conference over the weekend. Resolution on the formation of the new organisation We hereby form a new organisation, which will continue to be called Socialist Resistance, which will comprise all current members of the International Socialist Group (ISG) and SR, unless they indicate otherwise, and all those who…

Liam
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SR LogoThese two resolutions were passed at a conference over the weekend.

Resolution on the formation of the new organisation

We hereby form a new organisation, which will continue to be called Socialist Resistance, which will comprise all current members of the International Socialist Group (ISG) and SR, unless they indicate otherwise, and all those who are not members of those organisations who decide to join at the end of the conference or have indicated beforehand and have sent their apologies. The new organisation will affiliate to the Fourth International.

Resolution on dissolution of the ISG

(for ISG members only)

The International Socialist Group members present at this meeting today (all members are entitled to attend) declare that the ISG as an organisation is hereby dissolved into the new organisation which is being created today under the name Socialist Resistance. This includes its property and assets of the ISG including its bank accounts. ISG CC members are charged with taking whatever steps are necessary to facilitate this changeover.

23 responses to “Two resolutions”

  1. Jon Avatar
    Jon

    Is this just saying that you’re changing your name?

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  2. RobM Avatar
    RobM

    Its more, much more, than that. We have a new logo.

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  3. Jim Monaghan Avatar
    Jim Monaghan

    I wish you success. I hope that this means unity of the 2 FI support sections across the water. I hope you keep up the democratic norms of the IMG. It might have seemed funny all the different tendencies but when you look at the one leader, one voice alternatives it is much better. The situation is complex and the idea that there is only one totally correct strategic response owes more to religion that any scientific method.
    I hope that the independent leftists such as those who were dumped bt the SWP can find a democratic and tolerant home with you.
    Best wishes in this endeavour.

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  4. Joseph Kisolo Avatar
    Joseph Kisolo

    Sh#t I ment to go to this, but forgot ll bout it …. I was at Marxism all weekend.

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  5. ks Avatar
    ks

    are there any other usfi supporting orgs in britain nowadays? for example, socialist action or fisc??? i heard awl applied to join the usfi not that long ago as well…

    anyway best of luck to you all,

    ks

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  6. Duncan Chapel Avatar
    Duncan Chapel

    Hi KS,

    Socialist Action ended its participation in the FI in the 1990s. FISC has not existed since around 1997. Your information about the AWL is mistaken. It has never supported the FI, although it would be interested in making propaganda inside it.

    Duncan.

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  7. Foraging in the depths Avatar
    Foraging in the depths

    I think the AWL would be more likely to join Histadrut than the FI.

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  8. James N Avatar
    James N

    Hmmm, I asked AWLer Daniel Randall about this at Scottish Socialist Youth’s 2007 summer camp. His information was that Workers’ Liberty apply annually to join the Fourth International, but the request is always torpedoed/vetoed by ISG/SR

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  9. martin ohr Avatar
    martin ohr

    I also heard that our comrades were banned from attending the fourth international youth summer camp for the last couple of years at the request of the ISG/SR

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  10. Liam Avatar
    Liam

    Martin – participation in the camp suggests that a level of successful common work has been taking place or at the very least a comradely discussion is happening. Without either of these things why on earth would you want to go in the first place? One can only speculate.

    My hunch is that yesterday’s piece on Orangefest would be seen as nothing but rampant bias against the Ulster Scots nation, for example and let’s not get onto Palestine.

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  11. skidmarx Avatar
    skidmarx

    Without either of these things why on earth would you want to go in the first place?
    Isn’t it what’s known in left parlance as “making an intervention”? If they are disruptive I can see why you’d want to keep them out, but if you can’t take the disagreement…

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  12. martin ohr Avatar
    martin ohr

    Liam, because our comrades had attended every other year previously going back many years, until recently they were banned by some embittered ex-Socialist Organiser members who treat the FI affilition as simply a UK franchise.
    If they AWL were allowed to join we’d at least argue for our politics.

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  13. Geoff Collier Avatar
    Geoff Collier

    Going back to the original comment, is this really much more than a change of name? Were there many non-ISG supporters in SR, particularly those original sponsors? What about the layer of ex-SWP comrades who were lost during the split from Respect?

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  14. Duncan Chapel Avatar
    Duncan Chapel

    James, the AWL doesn’t apply to join the Fourth International every year. Daniel is mistaken. The FI is composed of national sections, and the AWL could join the FI only through agreeing with is programme. The AWL has a different programme.

    Martin, the youth camp organised by delegations (made of revolutionary youth organisations and cells) that have a comradely relationship with the FI. The camp aims to improve collaboration between them. It is not a platform for propaganda against the FI. Delegations are not invited from hostile organisations; the AWL has never been invited. Individuals in other Marxist currents (IST, ICU, AWL) who accept the basis of the camp may be invited by national delegations. There’s no ban on the AWL – after all there were AWL (and SWP and ICU) comrades invited to the camp last year on the basis that they work with the delegations that invited them and not make propaganda against the FI.

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  15. Duncan Chapel Avatar
    Duncan Chapel

    Geoff, you’re quite right. This is a pretty modest step, and mainly a reorganisation of our forces. Around half of the SR supporters were not in the ISG, but almost all were supportive of the FI. However, you can imagine what it means to free up the effort that was taken to maintain the ISG’s committees, magazine, branches, website, administration and so on and reallocate that towards renewing the SR leadership, developing campaigns and better international collaboration. There’s an announcement at http://socialistresistance.org/?p=603

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  16. Dave Riley Avatar
    Dave Riley

    I find this a little confusing as well as this report. Why be determined to mark yourself off as a political brand when you are committed to left unity perspectives in the UK given that the main affiliate of the FI — the French LCR — is now out of the family? I mean what’s the point of the formality of affiliation given that it is patently obvious that the Fourth International does not contain all, let along most, revolutionary Marxist currents in the world?

    My experience suggests that you can have a broader more open discussion without that franchisee incumbrance. While the FI isn’t nearly as bad, the IST and the CWI are toy international copyrights which turn international cooperation and partnering into a caricature –such that they are chronic obstacles to regrouping the left.

    The International and internationalism are not the same thing but I fear that comrades from the Trotskyist tradition get confused over that key point.

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  17. Duncan Chapel Avatar
    Duncan Chapel

    Our experience is that discussion is different and better in a framework of long-term international collaboration. By joining the FI, Resistance is able to better discussion and better collaboration than it had before. That is perhaps not the only way to discuss, but one has to add to that the fact Resistance also shares the FI’s distinctive positions within revolutionary Marxism: on multi-party democracy, on feminism and the striggles of the specially oppressed, on the autonomy of youth organisation, on permanent revolution and on the need to regroup the class struggle left. There’s no advantage for us to stay outside it, and we are more effective within in since we stand with it. Your organsation doesn’t share that stance, so it’s less valuable for you.

    In broader organisations, our experience is that membership in the FI is no obstacle inside the SSP, Respect or with the regroupment discussions we have had with others (activism, pluralism, feminism, ecosocialism, accountability – those are the issues).

    The NPA, of course, maintains all the responsibilities and roles of the LCR in the FI. The political and financial contributions are developing.

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  18. Richard Searle Avatar
    Richard Searle

    ”What about the layer of ex-SWP comrades who were lost during the split from Respect?’

    Lost ? ? ?

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  19. Geoff Collier Avatar
    Geoff Collier

    Well, I haven’t seen any of them. I’ve looked down the back of the sofa and everywhere.

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  20. skidmarx Avatar
    skidmarx

    What about the layer of ex-SWP comrades

    Wouldn’t “sprinkle” be more accurate?

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  21. Phil Avatar
    Phil

    Duncan:

    Geoff, you’re quite right. This is a pretty modest step, and mainly a reorganisation of our forces.

    God, you revolutionary Leftists are all the same! Next it’ll be that old line about how there aren’t that many urgent tasks in the current period, and the fighting nucleus of the revolutionary party is now ideally placed to see who else wants to have a go at them.

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  22. Duncan Chapel Avatar
    Duncan Chapel

    Phil, I don’t understand your reaction. There are very urgent tasks, and they are bigger than we can address. We don’t see ourselves as the nucleus of the revolutionary party: we are contributing towards building the broad movement, offering our experiences and effort and joining in the struggle to give working people a voice. But we don’t think it’s helpful to continue to run two organisations when we can run one and put that effort into more useful work.

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  23. Mick Woods Avatar
    Mick Woods

    Liam, although there seems to be a link under these two resolutions I can’t open it. Are they really as short as written or is it my computer? Anyway love and best wishes from an FI’er in Denmark to the new British organisation and hoping it outperforms it’s predecessor:-)). I’ll look on the SR site.

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