EDIT: The original article I posted kinda sucked. I'll keep it here for posterity if people want to read it, but I'll replace it with a link @RedWizard posted with original resignation letter and the PSL internal response. If you want to read just the resignation letter with the PSL criticisms without any preamble, it is here.
EDIT 2: Here is the leaked PSL internal response.
Comment by @chana in the general thread: (Sorry to copy your comment here but it's the only comment I've seen so far on this and it's a good way to start off the discussion, along with summer discussion questions I'll add below)
Comment text
Notable resignation and letter from PSL Central Committee member and related fomenting split in Brooklyn over PSL being run as a bureaucratic clique (which many will already be aware of from speaking with various PSL members trying to do more than participate in protests). PSL is good at specific local levels despite the national level dysfunction, and the vast majority of its membership good comrades. But the criticisms certainly ring true to me and are reasonable to cite as existential flaws. There is a bit of clown nonsense from the top on a regular basis (like the call for a general strike, cited in the resignation letter, lmao that is baby liberal idealism stuff).
If you're currently unorganized don't let this stop you from joining, it is more important to be active and learn locally from any non-abusive left space than to do nothing organized.
Discussion Questions:
- There's a lot of PSL fans or members here so what do you think? Like overall on this news?
- Do the complaints have merit, or not? Do some do, and some don't? Which ones? -- If so, what does this mean for the left in the US? What are the solutions and what is the path from here? -- If not, why don't you think so? And what does it mean for the left in terms of factionalism and splitting?
- Do you still recommend the PSL as an organization to join? What about the DSA? Join the Democratic Party? FRSO?
AI secret police? Seriously?
That's something invented by the article author, it isn't in the resignation letter. The resignation letter criticizes the use of LLMs but not in that way.
it's an misleading characterization of this section:
It's always interesting to hear the differences between how orgs internally organize and run themselves supposedly. I always find myself surprised how in some scenarios things that seem obvious for a party internal structure to have can be missing in others.
I do sympathize with having to deal with a mountain of reports. Doesn't justify getting a bot to do it for you, just means the bureaucratic structure is rather underdeveloped.
The only real disappointment, should it be true, is how lackjng the national level educational section is.
The criticisms of the lack of national education are overblown imo. On top of being a stretch (its fair that a lot less has come through the pipeline in the past year, but there has also been a lot of calls to action that sideline stuff like that) it contradicts the other criticism of base building. A lot of the membership have participated in and utilized the TPF classes and education programs- but this also means that a lot of national education for cadre is accessible to people outside of the party. This contributes to base building and building socialist consciousness for party-adjacent spaces. It also brings perspectives from the movement outside the party- like hosting Gerald Horne. Some classes even have had outside groups independently (or in coordination with party branches) host watch parties and discussion groups around those materials. On top of TPF educational stuff, they literally completely revamped the cadre only internal education programs (like 18 classes) only a few years ago-
Outside of that, I know from experience that branch formations can and do build their own education committees with their own materials. It is just that that can also be a lot of work for smaller branches that ends up getting sidelined by practical work and local organizing… but too much emphasis on education work can make your branch into a book club… It makes a to. of sense to rely on a level of centralization, like that is a strength of a communist party… A lot of the national educational material, directly through the party or put together by TPF, is a godsend to struggling branches that want to have more collective education on a consistent basis. The criticism Walter is giving is simply because the faction he was a part of was giving a secret set of classes that went against the party’s actual politics and are based on the work of Jane McAlvaney… because they have become jaded and inflicted with radical liberal politics that reject lenin and participation in the workers movement
weird and confusing. thanks for clarifying
A real thing that definitely exists, join dsa now
Deleted the comment bc was reading before coffee.