The Socialist Party
of Great Britain
THE
SOCIALIST PARTY OF GREAT BRITAIN, which is the only party in this
country that stands for Socialism, was formed on 12 June 1904 by a
hundred or so members and former members of the Social Democratic
Federation who were dissatisfied with the policy and structure of that
party.
The SDF had been formed in 1884 as a professed Marxist
organisation, although Engels who was living in London at the time
would have nothing to do with it. At that time the writings of Marx,
Engels and other socialist pioneers were hardly known in the
English-speaking countries, except to the few who knew foreign
languages. The SDF, however, did have the merit of popularising in
Britain the ideas and works of Marx. This was later to bear fruit in
demands for an uncompromising, democratically organised socialist party
in place of the reformist and undemocratic SDF.
The SDF spent
much of its time campaigning for reforms that were supposed to improve
working class conditions. H. M. Hyndman, who played the major role in
setting up the party, seemed to regard it as his personal possession
and reacted to any criticism in a haughty and autocratic manner. The
party journal Justice was owned by a private group over which the
members had no control.
The opportunism and arrogance of Hyndman
had already led to a break-away in 1884 when a number of members,
including William Morris and Eleanor Marx, set up the Socialist League
which however soon unfortunately ceased to be of use when it was
dominated by the anarchists.
A second revolt led to the
formation in 1903 of the Socialist Labour Party, copying the American
organisation of that name. At first, along with a programme of
'immediate demands', the SLP declared its object to be the conquest of
political power but soon, under the influance of its American parent it
subordinated political to industrial action.
Another revolt
against the Hyndman group's dominance of the SDF was organised by men
and women who had a much firmer grasp of Marxist political and economic
theory. For their opposition to opportunism they were contemptuously
called 'impossibilists'. At first they tried to use the machinery of
the SDF to get the party to reform itself, but they came up against the
Hyndman clique who were ready to resort to all kinds of undemocratic
practices to maintain their control of the party. Conferences were
packed, branches dissolved and members expelled.
Matters came to
a head at the 1904 Conference held in Burnley at the beginning of
April. At the Conference more expulsions took place. When the delegates
of some of the London branches returned they held a special meeting to
discuss the situation and approved a statement which, among other
things, urged the following:
'The adoption of an uncompromising
attitude which admits of no arrangements with any section of the
capitalist party; nor permits any compromise with any individual or
party not recognising the class war as a basic principle, and not
prepared to work for the overthrow of the present, capitalist system.
Opposition to all who are not openly and avowedly working for the
realisation of Social Democracy. A remodelled organisation, wherein the
Executive shall be mainly an administrative body, the policy and
tactics to be determined and controlled by the entire organisation. The
Party Organ to be owned, controlled and run by the Party. The
individual member to have the right to claim protection at the whole
organisation against tyrannical decisions.'
On 12 June most of those who signed this leaflet together with a few
others founded the Socialist Party of Great Britain.
The
constitution of the Socialist Party was formed in such a manner that
what had happened in the SDF would be impossible. The Executive
Committee, elected by the
whole of the membership, was to run the
day-to-day affairs of the party in accordance with the policy laid down
at Conferences and was required to report to the membership twice a
year. All its meetings were to be open not only to members but also to
non-members. The party journal the Socialist Standard, which first
appeared in September 1904 and monthly ever since, is under party
control through the Executive Committee. An elaborate appeals procedure
— first to the Conference or Delegate Meeting and then to a poll of all
the members — was written into the rule-book to protect any member
charged with activities warranting expulsion.
The rule-book of
the Socialist Party lays down a thoroughly democratic procedure for the
conduct of party affairs. Control of policy is in the hands of the
members; there are no leaders and never have been. Democratic procedure
has been maintained throughout the party's existence and is a practical
refutation of those who argue that all organisations must degenerate
into bureaucratic rule. In fact a democratic structure without leaders
is the necessary form of any socialist party.
At its formation
the members of the Socialist Party of Great Britain adopted an Object
and Declaration of Principles which, without the need for any change,
has remained the basis of membership of the party. Within that
framework the party has worked consistently to make socialist
principles known and to expose the many erroneous and dangerous
theories that have attracted support among the workers.
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