What's the Spartacist League up to these days?

[Idris2002]

Ken Macleod, the author, was in the Sparts. He got kicked out of the IMG but I think there was always a question as to whether he was recruited to the Sparts whilst in the IMG or whether he was already a Spart and went into the IMG to recruit their members.
Here the Sparts take on the explusion of the 'Communist Tendency' https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/spartacist-uk/033_1981_06_Bristish-spart.pdf

They were right about Khomeini, to give them their due. Not bad for a group that were like something out of the 1930s, and not in a good way.

 

[rekil]

I can't find their Hands Off Michael Jackson stuff. I thought I saw it on here spartacist | Search Results | Irish Election Literature

This is how half the twitterleft talk now isn't it.

 

[belboid]

I can't find their Hands Off Michael Jackson stuff. I thought I saw it on here spartacist | Search Results | Irish Election Literature

That was the World's Shittest WebSite lot, wasn't it?

 

[The39thStep]

 

[rekil]

That was the World's Shittest WebSite lot, wasn't it?

I don;t know. Where else would you find copies of Young Fine Gael's bafflingly titled newsletter "The Informer"

 

[The39thStep]

I can't find their Hands Off Michael Jackson stuff. I thought I saw it on here spartacist | Search Results | Irish Election Literature

Its in this edition (dont know how to just show the page perhaps someone can assist ) .Theres also a quite bizarre defence of a teacher who had sex with a pupli of !5 .
https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/workershammer-uk/208_2009_autumn_workers-hammer.pdf

 

[belboid]

Its in this edition (dont know how to just show the page perhaps someone can assist ) .Theres also a quite bizarre defence of a teacher who had sex with a pupli of !5 .
https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/workershammer-uk/208_2009_autumn_workers-hammer.pdf

"the reactionary state-enforced stigma against intergenerational sex" who could argue with that?

"There's Nothing Wrong With A Little Bump and Grind: Defend R Kelly!" must be their classic

 

[chilango]

Oh my

 

[The39thStep]

Socialist Fight ( who take some beating on the loony tunes front) had a similar position on the Goddard case. In fact after a speed read of Socilaist Fight they are worth a closer look, Barking.

 

[mx wcfc]

Many many moons ago when I was at North London Poly in the Harrington Out Campaign the Sparts used to send about four or five members ( there were two Americans and a couple of well meaning but clearly barmy new recruits ) to any meeting we had. As they had some people working on the Tubes their slogan was something like 'Only the organised power of the London Underground Workers can stop fascism by a General Strike' . Which a) wasnt true and b) very unlikley to happen. After a while people occupying began to get fed up with them and put a motion up for them to leave. I put a counter motion up for them to stay and join the occupation but that they had to join in a play a full and equal part not just come to meetings. They said they would agree to this no doubt dreaming that they would play a leading role .They did .We put them on toilet cleaning duty. 'Cleanliness is next to Trotskyism ' I told the meeting. They loved it.

Blimey. That takes me back. I wasn't at NLP, but came along a couple of times with my uni crowd. It got quite lively one day when the bailiffs came in iirc.

That same day, I was called over by some comrades to check out a bunch of likely looking guys lurking nearby - people couldn't decide whether they were NF or Red Action, and I was the only one there who knew the Red Action guys. It was Red Action. They left us students to it when it became clear that the NF were a no show.

 

[JuanTwoThree]

Never mind the Sparts, anyone remember Big Flame?

I remember them in Leeds in the mid 70s. In the left's alphabet soup of the time they stood out by having a name that wasn't initials.

 

[Grump]

When I was member of the SWP (shudder) I went to a community centre to book it for a meeting. I got chatting to the lovely, white haired old lady who was the caretaker, looking like the sort of person who plays the sweet old granny in an ad. She then announced she was a member of the New Communist Party and told me quite fiercely that Stalin was misunderstood and following his principles had guided her life. Despite being about 80 I think she was one of the NCPs youngest members which is why they folded shortly afterwards.

 

[belboid]

When I was member of the SWP (shudder) I went to a community centre to book it for a meeting. I got chatting to the lovely, white haired old lady who was the caretaker, looking like the sort of person who plays the sweet old granny in an ad. She then announced she was a member of the New Communist Party and told me quite fiercely that Stalin was misunderstood and following his principles had guided her life. Despite being about 80 I think she was one of the NCPs youngest members which is why they folded shortly afterwards.

I went in holiday with them. They ran cheap coach tours to Eastern Europe and Italy. Fine times were had, until the tour leader announced the discussion night on why the invasion of Afghanistan was a revolutionary act.

 

[Grump]

I went in holiday with them. They ran cheap coach tours to Eastern Europe and Italy. Fine times were had, until the tour leader announced the discussion night on why the invasion of Afghanistan was a revolutionary act.

Was that 'Yorkshire Tours'? I went with them on a coach/ train trip to Moscow. It was run by a couple from Huddersfield who used their links to East European states to book cheap travel.

 

[Idris2002]

I went in holiday with them. They ran cheap coach tours to Eastern Europe and Italy. Fine times were had, until the tour leader announced the discussion night on why the invasion of Afghanistan was a revolutionary act.

I used to listen to Radio Moscow on shortwave, and I remember their broadcast the night the Red Army left Afghanistan - they focussed on the women's militias that were (apparently) forming up in Kabul.

 

[belboid]

Was that 'Yorkshire Tours'? I went with them on a coach/ train trip to Moscow. It was run by a couple from Huddersfield who used their links to East European states to book cheap travel.

I didn’t think it was called Yorkshire Tours, but could well have been. Huddersfield definitely sounds right.

(Progress Tours springs to mind)

 

[RD2003]

I didn’t think it was called Yorkshire Tours, but could well have been. Huddersfield definitely sounds right.

(Progress Tours springs to mind)

Seem to remember that it was Progressive Tours, but may have also gone under the name of Yorkshire Tours for some reason. Although I could be wrong.

I tried to get on one of their trips to the USSR around 1990-ish, as they were incredibly cheap, but they'd gone bust. I think that when the old couple either died or got too old some of their kids tried to keep it going for a short while.

 

[The39thStep]

I knew a bloke who went to Albania with them. The company's advice was no beards allowed and bring a table tennis ball as there were no sink plugs. I think visiting a carpet factory was one of the excursions.

 

[Idris2002]

I knew a bloke who went to Albania with them. The company's advice was no beards allowed and bring a table tennis ball as there were no sink plugs. I think visiting a carpet factory was one of the excursions.

One of my supervisors went on a tour of Albania - the highlight of her tour was a visit to a collective farm milking station where the cows were played Scarlatti, to increase milk yields.

 

[belboid]

Seem to remember that it was Progressive Tours, but may have also gone under the name of Yorkshire Tours for some reason. Although I could be wrong.

I tried to get on one of their trips to the USSR around 1990-ish, as they were incredibly cheap, but they'd gone bust. I think that when the old couple either died or got too old some of their kids tried to keep it going for a short while.

Progressive! That's the buggers

 

[Grump]

I knew a bloke who went to Albania with them. The company's advice was no beards allowed and bring a table tennis ball as there were no sink plugs. I think visiting a carpet factory was one of the excursions.

A friend did a very similar tour except he got an excursion to a cement factory.

 

[mx wcfc]

For those of us of a certain age.....



what were the Albanian's known as? We had one at LSE. Can't for the life of me remember.

 

[rekil]

I knew a bloke who went to Albania with them. The company's advice was no beards allowed and bring a table tennis ball as there were no sink plugs. I think visiting a carpet factory was one of the excursions.

In 2009, the Guardian recommended going to Syria to look at carpets.

 

[Nigel]

When I was member of the SWP (shudder) I went to a community centre to book it for a meeting. I got chatting to the lovely, white haired old lady who was the caretaker, looking like the sort of person who plays the sweet old granny in an ad. She then announced she was a member of the New Communist Party and told me quite fiercely that Stalin was misunderstood and following his principles had guided her life. Despite being about 80 I think she was one of the NCPs youngest members which is why they folded shortly afterwards.

New Communist Party is still going !
It does, as far as I am aware have 'younger' members; an old associate who now works for CWU is a supporter, he must be in his early 50yrs now !
www.newworker.org | The New Communist Party of Britain | 13th April 2016

 

[The39thStep]

In 2009, the Guardian recommended going to Syria to look at carpets.

View attachment 133743

They also did a fantastic article on how good the shopping malls were in Qatar

 

[Grump]

New Communist Party is still going !
It does, as far as I am aware have 'younger' members; an old associate who now works for CWU is a supporter, he must be in his early 50yrs now !
www.newworker.org | The New Communist Party of Britain | 13th April 2016

Well I never, I was convinced they had gone the way of Moskvich and Wartburg cars.

 

[charlie mowbray]

No such luck

 

[Idris2002]

Socialist Fight ( who take some beating on the loony tunes front) had a similar position on the Goddard case. In fact after a speed read of Socilaist Fight they are worth a closer look, Barking.

Isn't Socialist Fight just one aged loon, though?

 

[planetgeli]

Speaking of “one loon” parties...this thread has confused me so far (as far as I can be bothered to read it) because...when I was a student, circa 1984-1985, I had a lot of friends at PNL and in the anti-fascist campaign centred around Patrick Harrington. On all the demos down Holloway Road there was always, always, one nutty man with a HUGE Spartacist League banner. Does this ring bells with anyone? Anyone know who he was? I always assumed Spartacist League were this one nutty guy. IIRC he also might have connected himself, via another banner (or maybe the same one) with ASLEF.

Anyone an expert on Spartacist history?

 

[planetgeli]

Many many moons ago when I was at North London Poly in the Harrington Out Campaign the Sparts used to send about four or five members ( there were two Americans and a couple of well meaning but clearly barmy new recruits ) to any meeting we had. As they had some people working on the Tubes their slogan was something like 'Only the organised power of the London Underground Workers can stop fascism by a General Strike' . Which a) wasnt true and b) very unlikley to happen. After a while people occupying began to get fed up with them and put a motion up for them to leave. I put a counter motion up for them to stay and join the occupation but that they had to join in a play a full and equal part not just come to meetings. They said they would agree to this no doubt dreaming that they would play a leading role .They did .We put them on toilet cleaning duty. 'Cleanliness is next to Trotskyism ' I told the meeting. They loved it.

And, woo fuck, having now read the thread I’ve come across this. I swear there was only one not five but you’re right about the LT thing.

Out of interest, feel free to PM me, or not, with who you are. My long term partner now was either VP Kentish Town or Women’s Officer back then if you remember. My best mate was Fuse editor, then VP Ladbroke House.