Theodore Draper's incredibly detailed book about the many groups, factions and individuals that would form what became the Communist Party USA. Mostly focusing on the years 1917-1921, Draper traces the roots from the 'Left-Wing' of the Socialist Party of America and the IWW, to the Third International-linked CPUSA.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Theodore Draper The Roots of American Communism 2003.pdf | 37.45 MB |
Education workers with the University and College Union (UCU) are preparing for another battle around pensions, casualization, pay, and discrimination....
An account of the overthrowing of the Kingdom of Hawaii and its annexation orchestrated by an American diplomat, written by Stephen Kinzer.
In this article, which was written close to the end of the cold war, Noam Chomsky argues against the association of socialism with Bolshevism.
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Comments
It's been years since I read this & Draper's sequel (the title of which escapes me right now). It's an important book, well-written, fully documented and objective. Draper himself was a member of CPUSA in the 'thirties, leaving the Party after the announcement of the Hitler-Stalin Pact. While remaining a social progressive, he maintained an anti-Stalinist position. His brother, Hal Draper, was among the Trots & wrote Karl Marx's Theory of Revolution, an important work that, while critical of Anarchism, does present the libertarian roots of Marxism.
Draper's tale of the ins & outs of the Bolshevik-inspired movement in the US Left plainly & without polemic, shows the demise & moral corruption of the Left in this country, which still suffers the effects of Leninism. One of the key histories of the US Left.