Solidarity (US). Tell me more.

[Prometeo liberado]

I have run into a few members over the last 20 or so years and have found them to be not so vocal or engaging about their organisation. I have heard that they are not so much a Trot party as they are a group of like minded activist who organize lossely aroound the name Solidarity. Below I have a breif strategy definition from Wikipedia:

Strategy
Solidarity members work in various unions for shop-floor militancy and rank-and-file democracy, and some have played key roles in maintaining Labor Notes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Notes) magazine and Teamsters for a Democratic Union (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teamsters_for_a_Democratic_Union). Solidarity members have worked in many other mass movements in the US, including the anti-Apartheid, reproductive rights, LGBTQ, Central American solidarity, Free Mumia, anti-war, and Global Justice movements, as well as the Green Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Party_(United_States)) and the Labor Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Party_(United_States)). Since the inception of Occupy Wall Street and Occupy in other cities in the Fall of 2011, Solidarity members have been deeply involved. Solidarity prides itself on a "non-sectarian" approach to building these movements, and traditionally has prioritized this over building itself: "Too often socialist groups have seen the development of a movement not for what it is and can become, but only what it might offer in the way of recruits. We reject this conception and affirm the need for an effective class movement in and for itself, which requires new forms of action, thinking and dialogue rather than repeating the known formulas." -- Regroupment & Refoundation of a U.S. Left, [4] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidarity_(US)#cite_note-3) Solidarity publishes a bi-monthly left journal, Against the Current,[5] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidarity_(US)#cite_note-4) which is produced by an editorial board including Solidarity members and independent socialists.
In 2000, Solidarity endorsed both the Green Party's Ralph Nader (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Nader) and Socialist Party USA's David McReynolds (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_McReynolds) for President (Solidarity permits joint membership in the Socialist Party USA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialist_Party_USA)). In August 2004 Solidarity again endorsed the candidacy of Ralph Nader. In 2008 Solidarity endorsed Cynthia McKinney (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynthia_McKinney) of the Green Party.[6] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidarity_(US)#cite_note-5) In the 2010 midterm elections (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_midterm_elections), Dan La Botz (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_La_Botz), a member of Solidarity, ran for a seat in the United States Senate (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate) under the banner of the Ohio Socialist Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_Socialist_Party)


What more can you tell me?

[Lucretia]

I have run into a few members over the last 20 or so years and have found them to be not so vocal or engaging about their organisation. I have heard that they are not so much a Trot party as they are a group of like minded activist who organize lossely aroound the name Solidarity. Below I have a breif strategy definition from Wikipedia:

Strategy
Solidarity members work in various unions for shop-floor militancy and rank-and-file democracy, and some have played key roles in maintaining Labor Notes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Notes) magazine and Teamsters for a Democratic Union (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teamsters_for_a_Democratic_Union). Solidarity members have worked in many other mass movements in the US, including the anti-Apartheid, reproductive rights, LGBTQ, Central American solidarity, Free Mumia, anti-war, and Global Justice movements, as well as the Green Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Party_%28United_States%29) and the Labor Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Party_%28United_States%29). Since the inception of Occupy Wall Street and Occupy in other cities in the Fall of 2011, Solidarity members have been deeply involved. Solidarity prides itself on a "non-sectarian" approach to building these movements, and traditionally has prioritized this over building itself: "Too often socialist groups have seen the development of a movement not for what it is and can become, but only what it might offer in the way of recruits. We reject this conception and affirm the need for an effective class movement in and for itself, which requires new forms of action, thinking and dialogue rather than repeating the known formulas." -- Regroupment & Refoundation of a U.S. Left, [4] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidarity_%28US%29#cite_note-3) Solidarity publishes a bi-monthly left journal, Against the Current,[5] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidarity_%28US%29#cite_note-4) which is produced by an editorial board including Solidarity members and independent socialists.
In 2000, Solidarity endorsed both the Green Party's Ralph Nader (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Nader) and Socialist Party USA's David McReynolds (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_McReynolds) for President (Solidarity permits joint membership in the Socialist Party USA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialist_Party_USA)). In August 2004 Solidarity again endorsed the candidacy of Ralph Nader. In 2008 Solidarity endorsed Cynthia McKinney (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynthia_McKinney) of the Green Party.[6] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidarity_%28US%29#cite_note-5) In the 2010 midterm elections (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_midterm_elections), Dan La Botz (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_La_Botz), a member of Solidarity, ran for a seat in the United States Senate (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate) under the banner of the Ohio Socialist Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_Socialist_Party)


What more can you tell me?

If I could summarize from my own understanding, Solidarity consists mostly of people who were expelled from the SWP when that party went haywire. THe experience led them basically to disavow Leninist organizational principles, with the result being a kind of rainbow-coalition broadly "progressive" approach to politics that differs not one iota from that of rad-liberals. It's not surprising the organization has failed to grow, and in fact has lost a good number of members over the years.

[Prometeo liberado]

From what I can gather they try to carry a "Trot torch" so to speak but in action are simply a mess. They did endorse both Nadar and the SP-USA's Stewart Alexander in the last Presidential elections. Also, one may have cross membership in the SP-USA. They are forming a working alliance with FRSO in some cities from what I've heard.

[Prometeo liberado]

I know that Solidarity had a group here. No more? Also, I may have posted it here already but they will hold a crisis school on the west coast sometime this spring or summer. No members here?

[Prometeo liberado]

Yup, if there was a Solidarity group on Revleft they are no more. What is going on with these people. I ask because I met their rep out here recently and have been asked to go their meetings.

[Prometeo liberado]

Still waiting....

[Anarcho-Brocialist]

You seem lonely on this thread, jbeard.

[A Marxist Historian]

Still waiting....

Basically, they are an old age home for former trots who no longer actually want to do anything. Their main activity is to publish a magazine that you can still find in better bookstores. Like a workers state should after the triumph of the revolution, they are gradually withering away.

They are also the original embodiment of the "left unity" notion so popular here on Revleft. A horrible graphic example of how that would work out in practice.

-M.H.-

[Martin Blank]

Solidarity is one of those groups that is less than the sum of its parts. It's a hodge-podge of self-described Trotskyists from different traditions (Shachtmanite, Cannonite, Cliffite, etc.) that thrives on lowest-common-denominator politics. Often times, that lowest common denominator is found on the other side of the class line.

For example, while Solidarity holds up their participation in forming Teamsters for a Democratic Union as one of their great successes, they conveniently forget to tell workers that they supported the TDU signing off on the consent decree that led to the U.S. government taking control of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters ... because they saw control by the ruling classes as offering a better chance of achieving internal "democracy" in the union. Looking the other way when the feds try to take over a union has since become something of a standard operating procedure for Solidarity (as has suing unions).

To call Solidarity lackeys of the "left-wing" business union officials is an understatement; through their magazine, Labor Notes, they are their official cheerleading section. They even take sides in bureaucratic turf wars, which led to the SEIU officials disrupting the "Labor Notes Conference" a few years ago.

They've also had some real issues with which side of the class line they were on when the ruling classes have staged "humanitarian" interventions. The ones I remember fairly well were in the Balkans, where they took a pro-imperialist intervention stance twice (Bosnia and Kosovo), and East Timor. I think they also took a similar position in regards to Afghanistan in 2001, but I'm not 100-percent sure.

As for their "non-sectarianism", that's a crock of shit. They are actually one of the most sectarian groups out there ... unless you're social democrats, then they will sidle up to you like the spider did Little Miss Muffet.

In the end, they are the archetype of all failed Trotskyoid "regroupment" projects: the New Socialist Group, the Scottish Socialist Party, the Socialist Alliance, RESPECT, the NPA of France, the VSP of Germany, and so on and so on. That they are still alive is only due to the fact that they still have some stroke in TDU and other bureaucratic projects. Beyond that, they aren't even worth your time.

[blake 3:17]

I was in the sister organization of Solidarity and have gone to their schools.

They were trying to break from the sectarianism far Left, in a limited means. As I see it, the problem isn't just breaking bad habits, but finding new good ones.

I'm a strong proponent of a very general regroupment strategy, that allows for a socialist organization to have members and currents with theoretical differences and open debate, and sees itself as a building block to pluralist mass socialist organization and struggle.

I wish I knew the answer to building a socialist organization while being deeply engaged in movement struggles. Things were opening up in the wake of the mass global justice demonstrations, and 9/11 killed it. The big openings since have been largely defensive.

Against The Currrent usually has some good stuff in it, but more and more of it seems routed in the past, though not as far back as some of the sectarian groups go.

[Prometeo liberado]

Thanks all for the feedback. The reason why I asked was that I had been invited to one of their meetings. I was skeptical after having read some of their work, also I am ML not a trot. What I found was a room full of college professors working on progressive tax reform and mortgage lending reform. All those brains and experience and this is what they got. All that they wanted to ask me was whether I was a vanguardist. Pretty sure y'all were right.

[blake 3:17]

@jbeard -- It sounds like it's not for you. If I were in the US I'm not sure what group or party I'd join.

There are a number of very thoughtful intellectuals, academic and organic, in Solidarity, so I'd advise not writing their ideas off.

Tax reform -- going in our direction -- is urgent and tax policy is often overlooked by the Left. Moderate redistributions of wealth won't bring socialism, but is an important step for achieving other immediate reforms and for working class people to survive in dignity.

[Prometeo liberado]

@jbeard -- It sounds like it's not for you. If I were in the US I'm not sure what group or party I'd join.

There are a number of very thoughtful intellectuals, academic and organic, in Solidarity, so I'd advise not writing their ideas off.

Tax reform -- going in our direction -- is urgent and tax policy is often overlooked by the Left. Moderate redistributions of wealth won't bring socialism, but is an important step for achieving other immediate reforms and for working class people to survive in dignity.

You definitely got it right with your post. At first it reeked of liberal reformism. I can see it as a transitional demand(that scares me even more) framed in the fight for socialism. And I brought this up to some of them, at what point will this program of winnable battles entail a coalition with the Dems? Because at some point it has to happen when you step into that arena. I agreed to keep going to the meetings so long as myself and another comrade have equal say.