The praxis was simple, but the theory was wrong

After college I supported the Socialist Workers Party. Their praxis, in a nutshell, was straightforward: Go into the unions and organize for an independent Labor Party.

Easy enough.

The full vision consisted of this logical and plausible sequence of steps:

. members should get jobs in unionized industries
. join the union
. within the union form a socialist caucus
. hold caucus meetings for the sake of education, strategy deliberation, and coordination of activities that would (a) advance socialist ideology within the union, and (b) get caucus members elected to union leadership positions
. under the influence of socialist leadership, persuade the unions to break with the Democratic Party and, instead, form an independent Labor Party … based on the support of the unions but also including socialist students, professionals, etc.
. the Labor Party should advance an anti-capitalist program of socializing society’s productive assets
. eventual majority support for the party and its program could lead to system change and the extension of democracy into the economic sphere

* * * *

Capitalists are those who have wealth and power based on ownership of huge agglomerations of corporate stock such that they have a controlling interest. Ownership, control, wealth, and power. Those individuals, families, and investment cliques constitute about one percent of the population (“the 1%”). Professionals and managers who have enough direct involvement (and stock-option incentives) as to identify with Capital might constitute another ten percent. Socialists figure that the interest of all the rest of the people (almost 90%) run counter to the interests of Capital. If Labor makes more in the way of pay and benefits, Capital makes less in the way of profits.

The 90% rest-of-us just work for society’s business and governmental institutions. We don’t own or control them. But we have the force of numbers.

Capital generally rules because of the influence of wealth and corporate dominance. But the capitalist wealth-power elite is a very distinct minority, numerically. If (simplifying the sociological reality) Labor is 90% of us, and we get conscious of our countervailing interests, we ought to be able to vote out the corporate-dominated parties in favor of a party representing the interests of the majority. The goal of that party should be to socialize the commanding heights of the economy. After that got done the capitalist class (not referring to small shopkeepers, farmers, professionals, but to Big Capital) would gradually just disappear.

Socialist unions, socialist parties, majoritarian support, socialization of the economy, and then system change leading to a classless society. When I got out of college the praxis and the vision seemed straightforward.

But something was wrong with the theory behind it all.