The Revolt of the Stammites

The Oehlerites, mentioned in my previous postings, gave rise to a split known as the Stammites. I comment them in this post, originally published at the website of a well-known vendor. The political differences between the two factions seem to have been minor.

Through this product page, you can buy two different issues of “Revolt”. They are sold separately, but by the same third party seller.

“Revolt” was the publication of an almost unknown group on the U.S. far left, the Revolutionary Workers League (Revolt), led by Tom Stamm. The RWL(R) was formed in 1938, following a split in the original Revolutionary Workers League, headed by Hugo Oehler. To the outside world, the two identically named groups are known as Oehlerites and Stammites, respectively. According to a hostile account by then-Trotskyist Max Schachtman, “Footnotes for Historians” from 1938, the only difference between Oehler and Stamm was that the former believed that Trotsky had degenerated politically in 1934, while the latter said it happened already in 1928! (As a side point, I note that Max has confused the conflict over “homo´ousios” with the later conflict concerning “filioque”, but whatever.)

Other rumors has it that Oehler represented the “proletarian” wing of the RWL, based in the Midwest, while Stamm was the “petty bourgeois” wing centered on that notorious den of the petty bourgeoisie, New York City. It´s therefore of some interest to note that the contact address given by “Revolt” is in the Midwest, and that Stamm´s magazine accused Oehler´s group of recruiting petty bourgeois and lumpen elements… (Cannon said the same thing in “The History of American Trotskyism”. Remember the guy with the funny coat?)

That being said, my impression from the two issues of “Revolt” on sale here, is that the politics of the RWL 2.0 were overall very similar to those of RWL 1.0. The Stammites also represented what is really a highly sectarian version of Trotskyism, a kind of “more Trotskyist than Trotsky” politics. Thus, the RWL(Revolt) opposed both Nazi Germany and the Western Allies, while defending the Soviet Union (despite Stalinism). They opposed all “class collaborationist” factions within the unions, while other left-wing groups lined up behind one or the other. They also opposed the formation of a Labor Party in the United States (a demand supported by many other left-wing groups at the time), arguing that it would automatically become “reformist”. Ironically, Oehler and Stamm saw eye to eye on Spain, the Stammites even defending an Oehlerite, Blackwell a.k.a. Negrete, who had been imprisoned by the Republican authorities during a visit to Valencia.

Not sure how to rate “Revolt”, but since it´s hard to diss a Stammite for being, well, Stammite, I suppose I have to give this unusual magazine three stars.