MUG’s YDSA Caucus Guide
What are caucuses in YDSA?
Caucuses within the Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) emerge from internal debates encompassing central questions about organizational structure, internationalism, labor strategy, and political priorities.
These organized groups or factions provide a platform for YDSA members who share common interests or perspectives to engage in discussions, collaborate on resolutions, and contribute to shaping the direction of the organization.
The formation of caucuses reflects the diversity of thought within YDSA and allows members to actively participate in internal discussions about socialist principles and strategies.
Caucuses are also a product of the DSA's history. The initial focus on grassroots activism at the local and national levels inadvertently led to the absence of formal mid-level, state, and regional structures within the organization. Functioning within the framework of the Democratic Party, the DSA's internal mechanisms are decentralized and dependent. DSA continues to grow and detach from the Democratic Party, caucuses have been filling the void left by the lack of these intermediate organizational structures, once again revealing the challenges of socialist organizing absent an independent party.
Marxist Unity Group views caucuses as essential to YDSA’s internal democracy, drawing a positive distinction from the sect model that organizes around a rigid political line. Aspiring to be neither a fragmented collection of isolated fiefdoms nor a sectarian combat organization, DSA caucuses should actively resist the tendency to silo off into different projects or committees. Instead, they should strive for full integration across DSA, rejecting the idea of exclusive domains within specific areas of activism. By fostering collaboration and collective decision-making, DSA caucuses can contribute to the organization's political platform, steering away from factional retreats and towards programmatic unity.
Glossary:
Sect model: A derogatory term for organizational structures that enforce unity on theoretical principles, restrict internal disagreement, and tend to concentrate power in the hands of entrenched leadership.
Sectarianism: A disorganizing style of politics that isolates groups or individuals from those who do not share their rigid ideological positions.
Marxist Unity Group (MUG)
The Marxist Unity Group advocates for a political project rooted in a historical understanding of the entire Marxist tradition and a commitment to transforming DSA into an independent socialist party through programmatic unity. Unlike unity based on adherence to specific theoretical doctrines or ideological dogmas, programmatic unity focuses on a common understanding of the demands and tactics necessary to advance the interests of the working class.
MUG advocates for political independence as a strategic principle, urging DSA to liberate itself from the Democratic Party and all capitalist influences. Proposing a shift towards a distinct socialist identity through unity around a revolutionary minimum-maximum program, MUG wants DSA to build a mass movement through independent campaigns and grassroots organizing, emphasizing the deliberate cultivation of a popular mandate for revolution. Our caucus’ seven points of unity encompass programmatic unity, electoral discipline, nationwide struggle, resistance against the imperial police state, opposition to the US Constitution, and the demand for a new democratic socialist republic in North America.
MUG's political vision of democratic socialist republicanism is what guides the faction’s active engagement in electoral work, labor organizing, and coalition-building within DSA. MUG collaborates with other caucuses that promote internal democracy, programmatic politics and political education, without losing sight of the need to fight for a socialist republic.
MUG draws from various theoretical traditions within Marxist thought, adopting an approach to historical analysis that rejects divisive sectarian interpretations. Our cadre curriculum includes readings from different socialist authors and perspectives, incorporating classical Marxist texts of the First and Second Internationals, perspectives on Leninism, and critical engagements with historical developments within the socialist tradition.
Glossary
Minimum-maximum program: A political program divided into two parts. The first part, the maximum, states the party’s principles, aims, and important tasks. The second part, the minimum, states the minimum conditions for a socialist government in the form of demands. The second part is often divided into two sections: the first is the political section, which puts forward demands that democratize the political system; the second is the economic section, which puts forward reforms that allow the working class to get more consistently involved in politics as well as immediate socialization measures.
Revolution: A societal rupture leading to the overthrow of the existing political order, opening the door for the creation of a new economic and social order.
Democratic socialist republicanism: A political orientation that emphasizes the conquest of political power for the working class through a democratic republic and the extension of radical democracy into the economic and social spheres of society.
Read MUG’s Points of Unity here:
MUG’s Cadre School Curriculum can be found here:
https://www.marxistunity.com/cadre-curriculum
Bread and Roses Caucus (B&R)
Bread and Roses is the oldest caucus in YDSA, wielding considerable influence since its establishment in 2019. Emerging from organizations such as ISO, Solidarity, and Labor Notes, B&R defies simplistic ideological labels by incorporating insights from a multitude of sources, including but not limited to Kautsky, Trotsky, MacNair, Kim Moody, Hal Draper, and others.
Bread and Roses advocates for “the democratic road to socialism,” which amounts to a very similar theory of change to MUG’s, also emphasizing a patient building of forces. The key difference is that while we would agree that the road to socialism is necessarily democratic, Bread and Roses would not assert that there needs to be a revolutionary rupture with our undemocratic political system prior to this democratic road to socialism. Bread and Roses also embrace a version of Moody's rank and file strategy, aimed at recruiting socialists into strategic industries and fighting for democratic and militant orientation within labor unions While the rank and file strategy has been widely accepted as the basic labor strategy of our organization, including by MUG, we have disagreements on its implementation.
While Bread and Roses is on the partyist wing of DSA, it distinguishes itself by its emphasis on advocating for a labor party rather than a socialist party. The caucus is known for its reluctance to openly organize as socialists within the labor movement, opting instead to solely support reform caucuses within trade unions. MUG is critical of B&R’s economism, and believes that political-socialist agitation should be a crucial part of our labor work.
B&R has historically been the dominant force in YDSA, having a majority on the NCC for most of YDSA’s existence. In DSA’s National Political Committee (NPC) deliberations on the national budget, MUG has found common ground with B&R in protecting YDSA and the future of the socialist movement.
Glossary:
Pro-party/Partyism: The principle that DSA’s most important task is to establish a separate party independent of existing capitalist political structures.
Economism: A narrow focus on the economic aspects of the class struggle, rooted in the idea that labor or tenant organizing must precede political action, or that these economic struggles will organically develop into socialist political activity.
You can read B&R’s Where we stand here:
https://breadandrosesdsa.org/where-we-stand/
B&R draws on various theoretical traditions within the broader socialist and Marxist framework. You can find B&R’s Socialist Politics: A Reading List here:
https://breadandrosesdsa.org/reading-list/
Constellation
Constellation emerged from the Collective Power Network, a major caucus in DSA until its collapse in 2021. CPN believed in creating a centralized national organization for DSA, strong international solidarity with “Actual Existing Socialist” (AES) countries, and an emphasis on a DSA identity above the identities of any individual tendency. Their youth wing, a YDSA caucus called Towards Power, survived for another year.
In 2022 Towards Power in a weakened state joined forces in a coalition with Marxist Leninist elements of the organization into an opposition slate to Bread and Roses known as T.R.A.I.N. T.R.A.I.N. consisted of national committee leaders who were aligned to international politics of the International Committee of DSA. TRAIN was defeated in the NCC elections of the 2022 YDSA convention. After this defeat, the slate reconsolidated into a caucus known as Constellation. Constellation is the only major caucus on this list that does not have a DSA wing and is strictly a YDSA caucus.
Constellation’s politics are much like CPN’s, with an emphasis on international politics supportive of AES and organizational centralization. They are part of the partyist wing of DSA, supporting the distancing from the Democratic Party and stronger integration between DSA and YDSA.
Constellation currently has two NCC members, an at-large member, and a co-chair who represents the caucus on the NPC. Their website does not include any public reading list or theoretical references.
Glossary:
AES: Actually Existing Socialism, referring to countries considered by certain socialists to be implementing socialist or communist principles in the present, including Cuba, Venezuela, China, Vietnam, etc.
You can read Constellation’s points of unity here:
https://www.ydsaconstellation.org/points-of-unity
Reform and Revolution
The Reform & Revolution (R&R) caucus within DSA’s partyist left wing aligns itself with the revolutionary socialist tradition, aiming to embrace the growing momentum of socialist ideas to transform DSA into a mass socialist party rooted in working-class and oppressed struggles.
Advocating for a Trotskyist perspective with a focus on the transitional method, the caucus seeks to bridge the gap between the immediate demands of the working class and the ultimate goal of socialist revolution. They have proposed strategies within YDSA focused on mobilizing campaigns and days of action. The caucus believes that by championing these immediate demands, DSA can function more like a political party, actively breaking away from the Democratic Party, holding elected representatives accountable, and pursuing a rank-and-file strategy within the labor movement.
R&R draws from various theoretical traditions downstream of Trotskyism to emphasize their conception of historical materialism, class struggle, and the significance of the working class in revolutionary change. The core of their approach lies in the application of the transitional method and the united front strategy, dedicated to forging alliances with various left-wing factions. MUG sees the transitional method as a departure from the classical Marxist minimum-maximum program, pushing back on R&R’s semi-economistic orientation that places undue agitational emphasis on immediate concerns and spontaneous mobilizations without systematic links to conquering state power and its transformation.
Despite strategic differences, R&R and MUG occupy a similar space within internal DSA politics. At times, the two caucuses have collaborated, such as in the case of the five joint MUG-R&R resolutions for the 2023 DSA National Convention.
Read R&R’s What We Stand For here:
https://reformandrevolution.org/2019/07/30/what-we-stand-for/#ForASocialist
You can find R&R’s Readings here:
https://reformandrevolution.org/readings/
Glossary:
Trotskyism: Heterogeneous political tradition associated with Leon Trotsky, a prominent leader of the Left Opposition within the Bolshevik Party and later within the Communist International. Emphasizing the importance of the working class in socialist revolutions and advocating for a transitional method to bridge immediate demands and long-term goals.
United front strategy: A strategy to fight the far-right by bringing all independent working-class forces into alignment, based on the premise that capitalist interests make it harder, not easier, to fight the right in coalition with liberal parties and institutions.
Red Star
Red Star (RS) has existed for several years, primarily operating at a local level in San Francisco. However, it recently transitioned into a national caucus, adopting a new identity and pivoting towards an emphasis on the principle of good governance. With this shift, RS aims to establish a presence within YDSA and broaden its influence on a national scale.
The Red Star caucus criticizes what they perceive as reformist and sectarian tendencies within socialist groups. They argue against the formation of isolated splinter groups with rigid ideologies that may prioritize internal ideological purity over building a broader base within the working class. At the same time, they express concerns about movements or organizations that might compromise their goals by casting too broad a net of ideological inclusivity. Citing the failures of past movements, such as Occupy Wall Street, Red Star justifies its emphasis on a centralized organizational focus.
This organizational focus also aligns with the pro-party wing of DSA and the question of political independence. The RS is critical of attempts to reform or push existing political parties, particularly the Democratic Party, further to the left. They argue that such efforts can lead to compromises that dilute socialist principles and ultimately serve the interests of the ruling class. Like Constellation, Red Star has a strong emphasis on solidarity with AES.
Red Star is new within YDSA. MUG has worked productively with Red Star on the NPC and national DSA, although one point of disagreement has been their support for cuts to YDSA’s funding to address the budget crisis.
You can read Red Star’s Points of Unity here:
https://redstarcaucus.org/points-of-unity/
Groundwork (GW)
Similar to Red Star, Groundwork has only recently established a presence within YDSA. Initially a slate of DSA National Political Committee (NPC) candidates, Groundwork has formalized into a caucus focused on electoral and legislative organizing. Groundwork emerged out of the milieu around the Green New Deal (GND) slate of candidates for the NPC in 2021, and local formations like the NYC-based Uniting to Win Caucus. Groundwork currently has four members serving on the NPC.
Although Groundwork consistently opposes the political priorities of the partyist wing of DSA, it differs from Socialist Majority Caucus (which does not have any significant presence in YDSA) in that it explicitly sees a socialist party as one of DSA’s horizons. The caucus believes DSA is currently in a phase of building “party infrastructure” for a “proto-party,” which causes it to regard proposals like MUG and R&R’s Towards a Party-Like Electoral Strategy infeasible. For Groundwork, staff are the most important form of party infrastructure, which has set it and MUG at odds in the ongoing budget debate. MUG considers Groundwork to be a reformist and popular-frontist caucus.
Glossary:
Reformism: A focus on incremental changes and reforms within the existing political and economic system rather than revolutionary transformation. Reformists may be opposed to revolution on principle or out of pessimism.
Popular front strategy: A strategy to fight the far-right by forming the broadest possible alliance of anti-fascist or “progressive” forces, including liberal ones, based on the premise that decisively defeating the far right is a necessary precondition for independent working-class politics, often entailing self-censorship of revolutionary forces and an adoption of a nationalist and reformist road to socialism.
You can find Groundwork’s website here:
https://www.groundworkdsa.com/
Libertarian Socialist Caucus (LSC)
The Libertarian Socialist Caucus was once known as the largest caucus in DSA with a list of 900 members. In 2019, they were associated with proposals to decentralize DSA, such as the Pass the Hat proposal. While less prominent as of late, some members created an outside organization called Horizon to work both inside and outside of DSA. Between 2020-2022, LSC had a presence in YDSA through their eco-libertarian socialist proxy caucus Green Bloc, which collapsed during the anarchist exodus of ‘22. LSC returned to DSA in 2023 and has revamped their caucus to be more in line with the partyist perspective. LSC’s presence in YDSA is small but growing and we welcome their participation with open arms.
The Libertarian Socialist Caucus advocates for a form of socialism that emphasizes decentralization, direct democracy, and common ownership of resources. They reject traditional hierarchical forms of governance and aim to create a society where individuals and communities have direct control over their lives and workplaces. The LSC promotes worker-owned firms, radical trade unions, and other grassroots institutions as the primary vehicles for advancing socialism.
Despite being a caucus within the organization, LSC sees DSA mostly as a space for discussing and organizing for libertarian socialist values, maintaining their independence from the broader organization.
You can read about Libertarian Socialist Caucus’ points of unity here:
University of Central Florida
While not formally a YDSA caucus, UCF is the largest chapter in the country and wields as much voting power at national conventions as a major caucus. Due to the material difficulties of sending a delegation of its size to in-person conventions, UCF uses an interpretation of democratic centralism that binds its delegates to vote as a chapter. This has historically made UCF a “swing bloc” whose politics are somewhat difficult to predict.
UCF elected two members to the NCC in 2023, including one co-chair.
