break from the sectarian con ception of an "us and them" world of Without a continuous struggle for sectarianism. the Marxist programme, defended
SORE HIRE 35E internal democracy and right for minority views, any "Marxist" can become a "revisionist". Yet even "revisionist"
comprise militants who - like WRP militants before Healy was exposed and expelled -see themselves and their organisations as Trotskyists and fight for what they believe to be revolu-
Marxism. Their experiences in that fight are therefore not entirely useless or negative. though the demands they raise and the results of the fight fall short of what is needed. The fight for the reconstruction of the Fourth International is the fight to distil the strengths and positive political lessons from the history of the
while learning the lessons of its many failures.
In this sense the line argued by WRP spokesperson Cliff Slaughter for an open exchange between the WRP and other political currents on they way forward - is a real step
The fact is that the burning issue before the WRP is how to break from
Healyism has always been more
than the personal vices or corruption of the individual and his inner cirice; more than the particular political errors or cynical adaptations at any given point of history. The essence of Healyism over many years has been its sectarianism towards the mass organisations of the labour movement and the patient fight for leadership and for respect amongst the most militant sections of the rank and file.
Breaking with Healyism must mean therefore rejecting the methods of sterile propagandism, sell proclamation and swaggering denunciation of opponents, serious orientation towards the actual situation in today's workers' ment, fighting for positions of real leadership and influence.
Central to this must be an appraisal of the immense crisis of leadership which faces today's workers' movement and the development of a programme which equips WRP members and supporters to offer a serius alternative in the struggles and paigns that emerge.
Trotsky's writings - and bitter experience from decades of largely fruitless propagandist work — confirm that to defeat and break up social democracy it is not adequate simply to denounce the reformist politicians and union bureaucrats. necessary to formulate ticipate in demands, slogans, campaigns, strikes and struggles through which the rank and file workers' movement can learn in practice of the treacherous role played by their leaders, and at the same time recognise a way forward in the fight.
Marxists must struggle not simply to convince themselves and small circles of sympathisers of the evils of reformism, but find the means to convince tens of thousands of workers if socialist revolution is to be rather than just a phase.
In the current situation of the British labour movement this begin with building maximum, support for every struggle that takes' place against the employers' offensive, the Tory government and the forces of the state.
Concretely it means that the WRP should break from its aloof "go it alone" attitude, and get involved in the local Miners' Support Groups, in building broad solidarity with the Printworkers, and in work around Silentnight and other struggles. WRP members will find that in many of these campaigns they can readers for their press, an arena to put forward policies and demands to advance the struggle, and a closer involvement with the mass labour movment in their own areas from which years of Healyite activism has often kept them isolated. If coupled with increased participation in their own unions, it can result in a substantially strengthened local base. Respect can ony be won where constructive work is done.
sectarian to adopt a move- - cam- It is and par- of the or sterile propagandism. a fact the end but only the must replace the politics of the past. embracing. The amongst top (including one-time "lefts" find ference policies disagree. The but also in the Labour Party.
Task is building mass Marxist organisation, not simply one-by-one recruitment Of course such support work is not first step in developing a rounded perspective to blinkered organisational sectarian The crisis of leadership in the any labour movement is daunting and all- wholesale rush towards he politics of "new realism" whole. bureaucrats union such as NUPE's leadership) is the outcome of seven years' ruthless Tory offensive. But the same union leaders have become the key driving force which installed the "Dream Ticket" Labour think leadership and now back its every move to junk and dilute those con- with which they growing likelihood of a possible re-elected Labour govern- ment. or a Labour/Alliance coali- tion, moving imediately onto the attack against working class living standards means that the prepara- tions for a political tightback must trade unions. begin now not only in the unions Socialist Viewpoint No. 11 March 1986 p32
The WRP must also draw a serious balance sheet of its experiences in seeking to establish their party as an
alternative to the Labour Party, while abstaining from
serious involvement in the political debates, struggles and innner life of the labour movement as a
Is it the case on past experiences that a mass revolutionary party will simply be constructed through one-by-one recruitment on the basis of propaganda work from outside the mainstream labour movement? We
Othe 20 years SLL/WRP experiences over and above the actual process of splits which produced the mass Communist Parties of the Comintern indicates that this is not possibie, and that far more serious attention needs to be focussed on how to develop a serious dialogue, joint work, campaigns and other activities which will draw the WRP closer to the rank and file of the Labour Party and
Central to such debates must be the development of a programme for
action, not simply for current strug gles, but also with a view to the improved opportunities to build and intervene in mass struggles, which are likely to arise if the Tories lose the next election.
Once again a programme of worked-through transitional demands in defence of jobs, living standards and workers' control mere mention of which was more or less sufficient to get some of us expelled from the WRP in 1974| _ can be seen as vital for the political fight against the right wing Labour leaders.
In similar fashion the WRP, which has now made the belated and welcome step of opening disucssion on women's liberation and gay liberation, must assess how its campaigns and demands on these questions must relate to the existing mass-based and labour movement campaigns and organisations. It is not enough simply to "go it alone" and launch more or less token WRP campaigns (though this would be a major stride forward): it is vital to find ways to reach out to the best forces already fighting, and through genuine mass campaigns to reach the unorganised forces.
YOU
International solidarity, anti-racist and anti-fascist work - all must be carefully assessed from a new, sober grasp of the actual forces at the disposal of the WRP and the ways in which the most impact can be made on the labour movement.
It is real discussion on these issues, the fight for a serious orientation to the chal problem and trailes f
working class, unemployed, the oppressed, that can pave the way for a real break from sectarianism, rather than a lurch from one bankrupt line to another.
It is inded encouraging to see that Workers Press has reprinted OUT Open Letter and replied at length to the article in the last issue of Socialist Viewpoint. We would hope that our frank expression of the problems and our willingness to discuss how best to resolve them can lay the basis of further exchanges.
Ton the WRP are available (E3 including post and 3956. London WCIN 3XX. Socialist Viewpoint No. 11 March 1996 p33
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