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Young Socialist League and Young Socialist Club of Wayne County collection

 Collection
Identifier: HLL-2019-032

Content Description

The Young Socialist League and Young Socialist Club of Wayne County collection, 1954-1961, undated, contains one copy of the Young Socialist Review, the Information and Discussion Bulletin of the Young Socialist League, as well as the Left Wing Bulletin and one collection of writings published by the Young Socialist League. Also included is one file of press clippings as well as one program, constitution, and pamphlet regarding the Young Socialist Club of Wayne County. One file of flyers concerning the Youth Committee Against War and Anti-Fascism is present as well.

Dates

  • 1954-1961, undated

Language of Materials

Collection material is in English.

Conditions Governing Access

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Conditions Governing Use

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Young Socialist League (YSL) Historical Note

The Young Socialist League (YSL) was established in February 1954 when the Socialist Youth League (SYL) merged with a faction of the Young People's Socialist League (YPSL) in an effort to regroup socialist youth in the United States. The Socialist Youth League was the youth chapter of the Workers Party, which was led by Max Shachtman and changed its name to the Independent Socialist League (ISL) in 1950. The Young People's Socialist League was founded in 1907 and was the youth chapter of the Socialist Party of America, until the Socialist Party forbade the YPSL from working with the SYL. In 1957, the National Executive Committee of the YSL proposed joining the Socialist Party, which had merged with the Social Democratic Federation to become the Socialist Party-Social Democratic Federation (SP-SDF). This led to the development of a left-wing caucus within the YSL that was opposed to the merger, due to the SP-SDF's support of labor bureaucracy and the Democratic Party. The left-wing caucus was then forced out of the YSL due to their dissenting opinion. In 1958, the SP-SDF recreated the YPSL, and the YSL merged with the YPSL in August 1958.

Young Socialist Club of Wayne County Historical Note

The Young Socialist Club of Wayne County was established in August 1957. It was the only socialist youth group in the Detroit, Michigan area at the time, and was formed in an attempt to group all left-leaning youth tendencies around the Young Socialist magazine, the magazine of the Young Socialist Alliance, the youth arm of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP). The Club held public forms and business meetings in a SWP hall and sold the Young Socialist magazine at Wayne State University, which defined the Club as Trotskyist. The Club attracted members from Detroit who had become interested in socialism after the city experienced a period of unemployment.

Extent

1 box

.42 Linear Feet

Abstract

The collection contains bulletins, newsletters, pamphlets, programs, constitutions, press clippings, and flyers published by or relating to the Young Socialist League and the Young Socialist Club of Wayne County.

Arrangement

The collection is alphabetically arranged in one series.

Custodial History

The Young Socialist League and Young Socialist Club of Wayne County collection was donated to the Holt Labor Library in San Francisco, California between 1992 and 2019, and were acquired by the Gerth Archives and Special Collections at California State University, Dominguez Hills, in 2019.

Processing Information

The collection was processed by Allison Ransom in December 2020.

Title
Young Socialist League and Young Socialist Club of Wayne County collection, 1954-1961, undated
Status
Completed
Author
Allison Ransom
Date
December 2020
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Description is in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Holt Labor Library at CSU Dominguez Hills Repository

Contact:
University Library South - 5039 (Fifth Floor)
1000
Carson California 90747
310-243-3895