Workers World Party (WWP)
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The Workers World Party (WWP) was founded by Sam Marcy in 1959 when he left the Socialist Workers Party. Over time, Marcy's political ideology changed from Trotskyist to a form of Stalinism. The WWP claimed that it supported the rights of workers, but supported the overthrow of workers by the Soviet Union in places like Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Poland. The WWP has been an apologist for repression, such as the Chinese government's attack on pro-democracy student protesters at Tiananmen Square.
The Workers World Party nominated its first candidate for office in 1980. Though the WWP is small, its membership is highly dedicated and can accomplish much. In 1996, the WWP succeeded in capturing a ballot spot in California which led to WWP Presidential candidate Monica Moorehead getting over 29,000 votes (mainly from California) in 1996. Moorehead once again ran for President in 2000 under the WWP ballot, but this time received less than 5,000 votes. The WWP has created a number of front organizations, including the International Action Center (which has been involved in the anti-globalization demonstrations) and the newly-formed ANSWER (an anti-war group). On May 10, FBI Director Louis J. Freeh named the WWP as a "domestic terrorist group" without providing any evidence, paving the way for future attacks on civil liberties on groups for merely having different opinions than the mainstream. This has brought sympathy from many leftists toward the WWP. However, the WWP continues to do things which will turn leftists away from them, including backing the Kimist dictators of North Korea and supporting the efforts of the anti-Semitic, chauvinistic Russian Communist Workers Party (RKRP). Overall, Workers World is one of the most authoritarian groups on the Left today. See the number of votes the WWP received in Presidential elections.
What are the WWP's front groups?
A front group is any group or organization which is created by a parent group, which subsequently hides its involvement with the front group. The reasons for creating front groups vary. Right-wing political groups frequently create fake environmental organizations. In the case of the Workers World Party, they create front groups because they understand that their politics alienates many working people. It's easy to get involved with a benign group called "International Action Center," which people don't associate with the Stalinist politics of the WWP. However, the IAC's ties to the WWP have become widely exposed, which perhaps explains why the WWP/IAC people created the "A.N.S.W.E.R. anti-war coalition".
The Worker's World Party is responsible for the following front groups: the International Action Center, "A.N.S.W.E.R. anti-war coalition", Mumia 2000, Iraq Sanctions Challenge, National Peoples Campaign and the People's Video Network.
Contact details
55 W. 17 Street
New York, NY 10011
Phone: 212-627-2994
Fax: 212-675-7869
Email: wwp AT workers.org
Web: http://www.workers.org
