International Socialist Group

Infobox_British_Political_Party
party_name = International Socialist Group
party_articletitle = International Socialist Group
party_
leader = Collective leadership (Central Committee)
foundation = 1988
ideology = Ecosocialism, Trotskyism
position = Far Left
international = The reunified Fourth International
european = "none"
europarl = "none"
colours = "red"
headquarters = London
website = [http://www.isg-fi.org.uk/ www.isg-fi.org.uk]

The International Socialist Group (ISG) is a Trotskyist organisation in Britain. It is the British section of the reunified Fourth International. The organisation is often known by the name of its publication, "Socialist Outlook".

Origin

The ISG is the result of the 1988 fusion of two organisations, the International Group and the Socialist Group.

Former members of the Socialist League established the International Group in 1985. Sharp differences had developed within the Socialist League majority during the UK miners' strike (1984–1985). Initially, the FI recognised the International Group as individual members of the FI and the Socialist League as its section. The International Group and subsequently the ISG attracted several waves of ex-SL members into its organisation, beginning with a group of long time International Marxist Group leaders in 1985. It continued to win over established and emerging Socialist League minority tendencies and disaffected branches for several years.

The Socialist Group represented the continuity of the Workers Socialist League which had broken from Gerry Healy's Socialist Labour League in 1973 and suffered a failed merger with the International-Communist League.

The two groups merged in order to re-establish a British Section of the Fourth International after a breakdown of the Socialist League. In 1991, the ISG was recognised as a sympathising section of the reunified Fourth International. Initially, the organisations were active in the Labour left, supporting the fortnightly "Labour Briefing", and in the broad left, supporting the Chesterfield Socialist Movement. Some small groups of activists came into the ISG: in 1989, the Socialist Labour Group (SLG); in 1990, a group of Socialist League members, 'Tendency Y'; and in 1992, several young members of the Alliance for Workers' Liberty. The 1995 World Congress promoted the ISG to being its British Section.

The merged organisation drew together over 300 activists initially, and led important rearguard battles against Labour council cuts in a number of areas, notably Haringey in North London.

However, the defeat and crisis of the Labour left in the decade after the miners' strike steadily eroded the ISG. A few of former SLG members left in 1991 to form the British Committee of the European Workers' Alliance. Several members of the International Trotskyist Opposition left the organisation after the 1995 World Congress, with a few joining the Workers' International League.

Organisation

The Group is controlled by a national delegate-based conference, which elects both a central committee and a control commission. Both committees elected by delegates voting for lists of candidates, known as 'slates'. and as a result, committee members share collective responsibility, rather than being held individually accountable. Between CC meetings the organisation is run by a Political Committee and a number of commissions, which are elected by the CC. A number of the ISG's central committee members have served on the international committee of the Fourth International including Alan Thornett, a former WSL leader.

Activity

The organisation regards itself as having learned important lessons from the women's movement, gay liberation struggles and environmental movements. The organisation is oriented towards united front campaigns and recomposition of the left. It has supported developments like Workers Aid for Bosnia, the Scottish Socialist Party, the Socialist Alliance, the International Socialist Movement, the World Social Forum, the Respect coalition, Hands Off Venezuela and the Campaign against Climate Change.

Alongside its own journal the ISG sponsors "Socialist Resistance", a magazine produced jointly with the smaller Socialist Solidarity Network and some individuals. The group's membership can be assumed to be somewhere around 69, the number signed up to its members-only email discussion group [http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/Socialist_Outlook/] .

Reflecting the support of the reunified Fourth International for the European Anticapitalist Left, the ISG has joined Respect coalition in England and Wales. Alan Thornett sits on Respect's National Council, and is an organiser of the Respect Renewal movement. The ISG also strongly supports the Scottish Socialist Party, and opposed the split from that party which created the Solidarity movement in Scotland. The Group called for a first preference vote for the Green Party candidate, the ecosocialist Siân Berry, in the 2008 London mayoral election. [cite web
url=http://www.isg-fi.org.uk/spip.php?article632
title=Ecosocialists say vote Berry 1, Livingstone 2
publisher=International Socialist Group
accessdate=2008-04-24
last=
first=]

References

External links

* [http://www.isg-fi.org.uk/ International Socialist Group]
* [http://www.socialistresistance.net/ Socialist Resistance]