Socialism before Sanders

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-ix

   PDF

2. Introduction

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 1-6

3. Prologue: The Promise of Revival

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 7-18

4. Radical Incubators: New York City and Union Theological Seminary

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 19-51

5. The Revolutionary Policy Committee

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 53-80

6. Fruits of the Socialist Revival

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 81-119

7. Their Party, Their Power: Socialist Women in the 1930s

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 121-135

8. While the Men Played Revolution

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 137-166

9. The Great Transition: Channeling “A Mighty River”

   • Jake Altman

   Pages 167-194

10. Epilogue: Norman Thomas Nostalgia

    • Jake Altman

    Pages 195-207

11. Back Matter

    Pages 209-225

    PDF

The early years of the twentieth century are often thought of as socialism’s first heyday in the United States, when the Socialist Party won elections across the country and Eugene Debs ran for president from a prison cell, winning more than 900,000 votes. Less well-known is the socialist revival of the 1930s. Radicalized by the contradiction of crushing poverty and unimaginable wealth that existed side by side during the Great Depression, socialists built institutions, organized the unemployed, extended aid to the labor movement, developed local political movements, and built networks that would remain active in the struggle against injustice throughout the twentieth century. Jake Altman brings this overlooked moment in the history of the American left into focus, highlighting the leadership of women, the development of the Highlander Folk School and Soviet House, and the shift from revolutionary rhetoric to pragmatic reform by the close of the decade. As another socialist revival takes shape today, this book lays the groundwork for a more nuanced history of the movement in the United States.

• American Socialism
• socialist revival
• labor history
• Utopianism
• Radicalism
• Highlander Folk School
• social democracy
• democratic socialism
• Bernie Sanders
• Soviet House
• Union Theological Seminary
• Eugene Debs
• Norman Thomas
• Socialist Party
• Revolutionary Policy Committee
• US labor movement

• Saline, USA

  Jake Altman

Jake Altman is active in the trade union movement. He holds a PhD in history from the University of Iowa and currently works for a chapter of the American Association of University Professors.

Policies and ethics