PSL is a founding member of the ANSWER Coalition,[14][15] which has close ties to PSL leadership. ANSWER's National Coordinator is Brian Becker,[16] a PSL co-founder who said "we do a great deal of work through" ANSWER.[3]
PSL leadership are closely involved with The People's Forum and BreakThrough News. Anchors on BreakThrough News include Becker and PSL 2016 vice-presidential candidate Puryear.[11] Becker also co-hosted a show with John Kiriakou on Radio Sputnik[17][18] of the RT state media network.
PSL is also closely tied to the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research and its founder, Vijay Prashad, who has often appeared on BreakThrough News.[11]
Publications
PSL's main publication is the website and monthly paper Liberation News,[19] which replaced PSL's quarterly magazine, Socialism and Liberation.[20] PSL's secondary publication, Liberation School, includes longer articles, Party documents, study guides, and other educational materials.[21] PSL also publishes a quarterly magazine targeting women titled Breaking the Chains: A Socialist Perspective on Women's Liberation,[22] and a monthly Reds In Ed newsletter aimed at schoolteachers.[23]
PSL describes its primary goal as the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism and the institution of state socialism as a transitionary stage toward a communist society, stating that "humanity today has only two choices: an increasingly destructive capitalism, or socialism".[2][33]
PSL is a democratic centralist party, which means that "all members, including those who disagree, are duty bound to publicly defend and carry out" all PSL decisions.[34] PSL's highest body is its Party Congress, held every 2 to 3 years, which selects its Central Committee leadership.[34] The PSL Central Committee can appoint up to 40% of Congress delegates.[34] PSL allows a one-month "discussion period" before each Congress. However, "the pre-Congress discussion" is "a completely internal discussion".[34]
PSL views the Chinese Communist Revolution favorably,[47] argues that the Chinese Communist Party has made important contributions to socialism and anti-imperialism, and argues that, despite its flaws, a "militant political defense of the Chinese government" is necessary to stave off "counterrevolution, imperialist intervention and dismemberment".[48][49] PSL has sometimes criticized the Chinese government, particularly for failing communist ideals like the abolition of private property.[48]
PSL argues that North Korea is unfairly targeted and advocates the lifting of sanctions, withdrawal of US troops from South Korea, and signing of a peace treaty.[54][55][56] PSL supports North Korea's nuclear weapons program.[57][58] For example, Stephan Gowans argued in 2013 in PSL's official newspaper that a North Korean nuclear arsenal is "to be welcomed by anyone who opposes imperialist military interventions; supports the right of a people to organize its affairs free from foreign domination; and has an interest in the survival of one of the few top-to-bottom, actually-existing, alternatives to the global capitalist system of oppression, exploitation and foreign domination".[59] PSL has also expressed skepticism towards Western claims of North Korea's human rights record,[60][61] arguing that "conditions in North Korea are vastly better than those in other developing countries" and stating that condemnations of North Korea's human rights records are "thinly veiled justification[s] for U.S. aggression toward North Korea".[61]
^ abBecker, Brian (October 1, 2018). "'No separate destiny for US workers apart from the workers of the world'". International Communist Press. Archived from the original on August 7, 2023. We are a communist party. We have existed for 14 years with the idea of building a communist party in the United States once again. This is a complicated and long-term project. It is perhaps the most of the difficult of all projects. But it's the imperative need because you cannot have revolutionary change without a revolutionary communist party leading that change. Absent a communist party, victory is impossible.
^ abcdeKroitzsh, Aleka A. (August 2, 2019). "Local socialists see the "fog of anti-communism" lifting". Mission Local. The PSL espouses a Marxist-Leninist ideology, one intent on "fighting the war program in the U.S., fighting imperialism, and fighting for Socialism," said Gloria La Riva, a socialist presidential candidate since 1993 and a PSL founder.
^ abHarman, Mike (March 19, 2018). "Introduction". Where's the Winter Palace? On the Marxist-Leninist Trend in the United States. The Left Wind. Retrieved 3 January 2024. In the United States today, there exists a political trend which describes itself as Marxist-Leninist. This trend is organized as a loose constellation, orbiting around organizations such as the Workers World Party (WWP) and the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL)....
^ abKhan, K.; Trottier, Tom (November 11, 2021). "USA: The end of the Biden honeymoon". Socialist Appeal. Socialist Revolution USA. The Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), a small 'Marxist-Leninist' organisation with limited resources, ran a candidate under its own banner for mayor of New York City.
^"We need your help to build the movement for socialism". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. Aug 15, 2022. Retrieved 3 January 2024. We have an organized presence in over 100 cities and towns, and have expanded our presence substantially throughout the South in recent years.
^ abcdBredderman, William (May 29, 2023). "U.S Tech Mogul Bankrolls Pro-Russia, Pro-China News Network". The Daily Beast. Sitting on the People's Forum's board is Claudia De La Cruz, who pulls triple duty as BreakThrough's secretary and as a "co-coordinator/educator" for the Justice and Education Fund. An auditor's report filed in New York shows that more of Singham's money trickled down to BreakThrough from the Forum in the form of $80,575 in donated rent in 2021, the most recent year for which filings are available. But when The Daily Beast visited the People's Forum address, it found a bookstore hawking tomes by Prashad and titles from his Leftword imprint, as well as a coffee shop and an event space—but no evidence of a studio. What's more, none of BreakThrough's hosts appear among the staff listed in the outlet's filings. Rather, the underlying nonprofit's leadership consists of figures like De La Cruz who donate an hour a week to the organization, and who like De La Cruz are affiliated with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a small far-left sect that does not appear to receive substantial donations from Singham or from anybody else. The PSL does, however, appear as an allied group to the International People's Media Network on its webpage. Puryear and Becker, two of the BreakThrough anchors, are co-founders of the party.
^Durr, Lillian (November 8, 2023). "Party for Socialism and Liberation holds demonstrations for Free Palestine movement". Missouri State University Standard. Alongside the action in Washington D.C., the Party for Socialism and Liberation — a member of the ANSWER Coalition — has been holding demonstrations in support of the Free Palestine movement in Springfield.
^"Brian Becker — Liberation News". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. Archived from the original on October 2, 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2020. Brian Becker is the National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition. He is a founder of and a central organizer for the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
^Corn, David (September 28, 2023). "As a Presidential Candidate, Cornel West Aligns Himself With Far-Left Radicals". Mother Jones. The PSL has supported the North Korean regime and its pursuit of nuclear weapons and also hailed the Chinese Communist Party, defending it against various charges of human rights violations. Brian Becker, a co-founder of the PSL, used to co-host a show on Radio Sputnik, a Moscow-created propaganda network.
^Becker, Brian (November 17, 2016). "The Leninist party in history and present". Liberation News. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. The Party for Socialism and Liberation was formed in 2004 by a small group of cadres who adhered to the organizational principles of the Bolsheviks that were codified in the original documents of the Third International. We explicitly recognized that the construction of a Leninist-type party was taking shape on a political and social landscape that could not have been more unlike that which existed in Russia but also in the other countries during the 1917-1923 period during which the Third International took shape.
^"Social Media and Democratic Centralism: Opportunities and Challenges". Liberation News. November 7, 2018. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. The following is an edited version of an internal document initially written in late 2015 and formed part of the basis for party-wide discussions in the Party for Socialism and Liberation in early 2016. The document examines the new possibilities and difficulties posed by the proliferation of social media from the perspective of the Leninist party.
^"Revolution Manifesto". Liberation School. August 28, 2016. Archived from the original on September 5, 2016. Moreover, the course is designed to facilitate new ways of understanding how the Marxist-Leninist theory of the state relates to the struggles of our contemporary moment.
^Powell, Nicholas (April 19, 2010). "Why I joined the PSL". Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. This Marxism Class is held in seminar-style, and it is great opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the Marxist-Leninist view of socialism.
^"Community celebrates 14th annual Enero Zapatista event". Liberation News. Party for Socialism and Liberation. February 4, 2018. The Party for Socialism and Liberation has been involved in the planning of Enero Zapatista for the past several years and looks forward to continued involvement. As a Marxist-Leninist party we strive to uphold the tradition of the right to self-determination for oppressed nations.
^ abcd"Party For Socialism And Liberation PSL Constitution 2022". Internet Archive. November 29, 2023. 4. Decision-making procedures 4.1 After a thorough discussion in any branch or Party body, at the Party Congress, or at a national internal conference, decisions are arrived at by majority vote of all full members present, except when otherwise noted herein. All members, including those who disagree, are duty bound to publicly defend and carry out these decisions. [....] The Party Congress may also have voting delegates nominated directly by the Central Committee, the maximum number of which shall not exceed 40 percent of the total elected delegates. Such delegates shall be elected by a vote of two-thirds of the members of the Central Committee (for two-thirds votes, round up when the outcome is a fraction). [....] During this discussion, all Party members have the right to express their views and propose changes, including amendments to the Constitution, to propose resolutions on all questions of policy and tactics, and on the work of leading bodies for consideration by the Congress. All existing policies and decisions remain in full force during the pre-Congress discussion, which is a completely internal discussion.
^Majidi, Mazda (6 September 2013). "12 myths and facts about Syria". Liberation News. Archived from the original on 14 July 2019. Myth: There is evidence that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons. Fact: Despite vague claims of having proof, not only does the U.S. government have no evidence, it has worked hard to suppress any real investigation into what actually happened in suburban Damascus on Aug. 21...The Syrian government had no incentive to use chemical weapons and every reason not to.
^Becker, Brian (13 June 2014). "Tiananmen: The Massacre that Wasn't". Liberation School. What happened in China, what took the lives of government opponents and of soldiers on June 4, was not a massacre of peaceful students but a battle between PLA soldiers and armed detachments from the so-called pro-democracy movement.
^Featherstone, Liza (May 17, 2020). "The Left in Lockdown". Jacobin. Retrieved January 11, 2024. Without being part of a political organization, she says — Dean is a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) — this difficult political moment might have overwhelmed her. As soon as the shutdown hit, however, the PSL assigned her to lead online study groups. "I would have been sucked into misery," she says. "But the party gave me a sense of duty and responsibility."
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