De Leonism, occasionally known as Marxism–De Leonism, is a form of syndicalist Marxism developed by Daniel De Leon. De Leon combined the rising theories of 
syndicalism in his time with 
orthodox Marxism. According to De Leonist theory, militant industrial unions (specialized trade unions) are the vehicle of class struggle. Industrial Unions serving the interests of the proletariat (working class) will bring about the change needed to establish a socialist system.
However, in difference from other lib-left ideologies, De Leonism also believes in a political party that should, if possible, get to power by democratic elections and when in power, the unions and workers will take control of society peacefully through the passive revolution - a revolution that will be bloodless, because there isnt a state opposing this revolution. When this happens, the state will pretty quickly be unnecessary and will desintegrate itself.
History
De Leon settled in New York City, studying at Columbia University. He was a 
Georgist socialist during the 1886 Mayoral campaign of Henry George and in 1890 joined the Socialist Labor Party, becoming the editor of its newspaper, The People.
De Leon became a Marxist in the late 1880s, and argued for the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism, trying to divert the SLP away from its Lassallian outlook.
De Leon was highly critical of the trade union movement in America and described the craft-oriented American Federation of Labor as the "American Separation of Labor". At this early stage in De Leon's development, there was still a considerable remnant of the general unionist Knights of Labor in existence, and the SLP worked within it until being driven out. This resulted in the formation of the Socialist Trade and Labor Alliance (ST&LA) in 1895, which was dominated by the SLP.
By the early 20th Century, the SLP was declining in numbers, with first the Social Democratic Party and then the Socialist Party of America becoming the leading leftist political force in America (as these splinter groups embraced capitalist reforms). De Leon was an important figure in the US labor movement, and in 1904 he attended the International Socialist Congress, held in Amsterdam. Under the influence of the American Labor Union (ALU), he changed his politics around this time to put more focus on industrial unionism, and the ballot as a purely destructive weapon, in contrast to his earlier view of political organization as 'sword' and industrial union as 'shield'. He worked with the ALU in the founding of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) in 1905. His participation in this organization was short-lived and acrimonious.
How to Draw
- Draw a circle.
- Fill it with red (#C9261F).
- Draw a yellow (#D8C306) circle inside.
- Draw a silhouette of a muscular arm holding a hammer in yellow (#D8C306) inside the circle and fill the silhouette in.
Done! Now you can make comics about an archaic ideology from like 150 years ago that has little to no support in the present day! Template:Flag-color
Relations
Friends
Marxism - I owe everything to you, dad!
Syndicalism - Thanks for being the praxis to my end goals Mother!
Anarcho-Syndicalism - MAKE CATALONIA GREAT AGAIN!
Council Communism - Were we separated at birth?
Frenemies
National Syndicalism - You say you're Syndicalism but you're too close to Corporatism.
Enemies
Capitalism - STOP EXPLOITING THE WORKERS!
Fascism - You have NOTHING to do with syndicalism you statist!
Marxism–Leninism - Too much STATE control you're just state capitalism!
Stalinism - AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Further Information
Literature
- Reform or Revolution? (1896) by Daniel De Leon
- What Means This Strike? (1898) by Daniel De Leon
- Socialism vs Anarchism (1901) by Daniel De Leon
