Background

In the 1950s, most Trotskyists in the United States were members of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP), which was part of the Fourth International's (FI) tendency International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI).^[3]

In 1958, SWP adopted a policy of "regroupment": Pursuit of former members of Stalinist communist parties, who had been disillusioned by the Secret Speech.^{[3]: 844–845}

In 1961, Tim Wohlforth, James Robertson, and other SWP members who opposed regroupment created a tendency within the SWP, the Revolutionary Tendency (RT). RT saw the SWP as shifting toward the FI's other tendency, the International Secretariat of the Fourth International (ISFI), led by Michel Pablo. RT opposed "Pabloite" politics^{[3]: 864–865} and Pablo's "entryism sui generis" plan, in which Trotskyists would maintain separate parties but personally enter into communist and social democratic parties. RT developed links with the Socialist Labour League in Britain, led by Gerry Healy.^[3]: 917 Lyndon LaRouche was briefly an RT member.^[3]: 945

In 1962, the RT split: Robertson's majority kept the name. Wohlforth's minority renamed itself the Reorganized Minority Tendency (RMT).^[3]: 866

In 1963, in preparation for merging the ICFI with the ISFI, Wohlforth was removed from the SWP's Political Committee.^[3]: 924

Formation

In November 1963, the SWP expelled Robertson and the RT, who created the Spartacist League. Robertson's appeal was denied in April 1964.^{[3]: 917–918}

In September 1964, the SWP expelled Wohlforth and the RMT, who created the American Committee for the Fourth International (ACFI) and launched the biweekly Bulletin of International Socialism.^{[3]: 866, 917–918, 924  [4]} ACFI maintained connections with Gerry Healy and the (non-merged portions of the) ICFI, which they considered the legitimate Trotskyist movement. ACFI became the American section of the ICFI.^{[citation needed]}

Wohlforth argued that the split was due to their demand for discussion of the decision by the Sri Lankan Trotskyist Lanka Sama Samaja Party to participate in the national government.^[3]: 924

Subsequent history

In 1966, ACFI renamed itself to the Workers League (WL).^[3]: 866

In 1973, WL entered serious organizational crisis. About 150 members and most of its founding leaders left. At Healey's insistence, Wohlforth was forced out of leadership.^[3]: 927

In 1985, ICFI split in two. The Workers Revolutionary Party (WRP) in Britain argued that ICFI should support nationalist leaders like Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gadhafi.^[3]: 928 In 1985, the WRP expelled Gerry Healy, and WL sided with the ICFI majority over Healy's minority.^[3]: 929

In 1995, parties affiliated with ICFI each renamed themselves as Socialist Equality Party. In 1998, the ICFI launched the World Socialist Web Site.^[5] ICFI runs the publishing house Mehring Books, formerly named Labor Publications.^[6]

In 2006, the Socialist Equality Party relaunched its student movement (the Students for Social Equality) as the International Students for Social Equality (ISSE). In 2012, the SEP renamed the ISSE as the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE).^[7]

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