Resolve to make a difference: join the Freedom Socialists

by Guerry Hoddersen

What’s your new year’s resolution? Is it to be more creative and to think for yourself? To live by your principles? To make the world not just a better place, but a different place, where justice and opportunity are birthrights, where wealth is shared instead of scarcity?

Do you want to scream every time you read another lie from the Bush administration? Does Congress giving itself a raise while refusing to extend unemployment benefits or enact universal healthcare make you question the basic soundness of this system?

If so, check out the Freedom Socialist Party, an organization that gives you the chance to live up to your highest ideals while putting your sense of outrage to constructive use.

We say we have one foot in this world, messed up as it is, and the other in the socialist future. Our branches and international sections work collectively on a daily basis around socialist principles. We share the joy and the responsibility that go with participating in the everyday struggles of workers and the oppressed. Join the party and whatever your own abilities and knowledge, they will be put to use in an innovative and fulfilling way. Or you can acquire new skills, from publishing a newspaper to giving a public talk, writing a poem or leading a strike.

And the quality of the political education you receive as a member of the FSP can’t be duplicated: you will learn the revolutionary history of the working class and why revolt around the world — even in the U.S.! — is not only necessary but inevitable.

Belonging to the FSP is a serious commitment, so it’s wise for prospective members and party leaders to get to know each other first.

If you live in a city with a local branch, just call and make an appointment to talk to the organizer. He or she will recommend that you read some of the party’s basic position statements and The History of American Trotskyism by James P. Cannon. If you live elsewhere, write to one of our National Offices in Seattle or Melbourne or use the online contact form.

If you find you agree with what you read and are willing to abide by majority rule, make a monthly pledge, and promote the party’s ideas, then you’re a good candidate for membership.

If you do not live in a city where there is already a branch, you can correspond with the FSP National Office, which will tailor a membership plan to your circumstances.

So don’t delay! Take the plunge! You have nothing to lose except that feeling of isolation. A vibrant socialist feminist community and a future as an effective political organizer await you.