Marceau Pivert (2 October 1895, Montmachoux,

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a department in the Île-de-France region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square kilometres (2,284 square miles); it roughly covers its ...

– 3 June 1958,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

) was a French schoolteacher,

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ...

ist,

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

militant, and journalist. He was an alumnus of the École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud.

SFIO

Active in the ''Syndicat National des Instituteurs'' (SNI), a staunch supporter of ''

laïcité (; 'secularism') is the constitutional principle of secularism in France. Article 1 of the French Constitution is commonly interpreted as discouraging religious involvement in government affairs, especially religious influence in the determin ...

'' and a

pacifist Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campai ...

after service in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Pivert joined the faction of the

French Section of the Workers' International The French Section of the Workers' International (french: Section française de l'Internationale ouvrière, SFIO) was a political party in France that was founded in 1905 and succeeded in 1969 by the modern-day Socialist Party. The SFIO was foun ...

(SFIO) led by

Léon Blum André Léon Blum (; 9 April 1872 – 30 March 1950) was a French socialist politician and three-time Prime Minister. As a Jew, he was heavily influenced by the Dreyfus affair of the late 19th century. He was a disciple of French Socialist le ...

, which opposed affiliation to the

Comintern The Communist International (Comintern), also known as the Third International, was a Soviet-controlled international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism. The Comintern resolved at its Second Congress to "struggle by ...

in 1920, as opposed to the new

French Communist Party The French Communist Party (french: Parti communiste français, ''PCF'' ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European ...

(PCF). In the early 1930s, Pivert organised the most

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

members of the SFIO in his ''Gauche Révolutionnaire'' ("Revolutionary Left") tendency of which Daniel Guérin was a member. The tendency opened itself to

Trotskyism Trotskyism is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Ukrainian-Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky and some other members of the Left Opposition and Fourth International. Trotsky self-identified as an orthodox Marxist, a ...

, initiating ''

entryism Entryism (also called entrism, enterism, or infiltration) is a political strategy in which an organisation or state encourages its members or supporters to join another, usually larger, organization in an attempt to expand influence and expand the ...

'' as a tactic for the latter. In 1936, when Blum formed the

Popular Front A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault". More generally, it is "a coalition ...

government, he was pressured by Pivert to reject

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...

. With spontaneous strikes occurring around the country, Blum refused to allow for revolutionary conditions to arise. Pivert then wrote his best-known article, published on 27 May, headlined ''Tout est possible!'' ("Everything Is Possible"), alluding to a

social revolution Social revolutions are sudden changes in the structure and nature of society. These revolutions are usually recognized as having transformed society, economy, culture, philosophy, and technology along with but more than just the political sys ...

(but never to a socialist one). However, he was opposed by the communist press organ ''

L'Humanité ''L'Humanité'' (; ), is a French daily newspaper. It was previously an organ of the French Communist Party, and maintains links to the party. Its slogan is "In an ideal world, ''L'Humanité'' would not exist." History and profile Pre-World Wa ...

'' (the PCF was a backer of the Blum government). The communist editorial read: ''Non! Tout n'est pas possible!'' ("No! Everything Is Not Possible!"). In consequence, Pivert cut his links with the government, writing to Blum, "I will not accept capitulation in front of Capitalism and the banks".

Workers and Peasants' Socialist Party

The ''Gauche révolutionnaire'' left the SFIO to establish the

Workers and Peasants' Socialist Party The Workers and Peasants' Socialist Party (''Parti socialiste ouvrier et paysan'', ''PSOP'') was an ephemeral socialist organisation in France, formed on June 8, 1938 by Marceau Pivert. Its youth wing was the ''Workers and Peasants' Socialist Yo ...

(''Parti Socialiste Ouvrier et Paysan'' or PSOP), awkwardly between socialists and

Stalinism Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the the ...

. In fact, its ideology fluctuated from

Marxist Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...

orthodoxy to a radical version of

reformism Reformism is a political doctrine advocating the reform of an existing system or institution instead of its abolition and replacement. Within the socialist movement, reformism is the view that gradual changes through existing institutions can ...

. The PSOP was part of the

International Revolutionary Marxist Centre The International Revolutionary Marxist Centre was an international association of left-socialist parties. The member-parties rejected both mainstream social democracy and the Third International. Organizational history The International was fo ...

. In 1940, it was outlawed after the

fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, on orders of

Vichy French Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...

leader

Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), commonly known as Philippe Pétain (, ) or Marshal Pétain (french: Maréchal Pétain), was a French general who attained the position of Marshal of France at the end of Worl ...

. Pivert exiled himself to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

and supported the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

. Back in France after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he saw the PSOP divided between some, who joined the PCF, and others, like him, who joined the SFIO.

Return to SFIO

He became more moderate inside the SFIO, and his audience was curtailed. Pivert was regularly elected to the party leadership but was for

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

's independence and against the

European Defence Community The Treaty establishing the European Defence Community, also known as the Treaty of Paris, is an unratified treaty signed on 27 May 1952 by the six 'inner' countries of European integration: the Benelux countries, France, Italy, and West German ...

, both against the line taken by the majority of the party. He rebelled against the party further after taking part in a delegation that visited the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

and so was voted out of his position in the party leadership. According to some, Pivert would have joined the new

Parti Socialiste Autonome Parti may refer to: *Parti (surname), a Hungarian surname, and a list of people with the name * ''Parti'' (architecture), the organizing concepts behind an architect's design * *, a lake in Russia See also *Partie (disambiguation) *Party (disambi ...

(PSA) created by

Édouard Depreux Édouard Gustave Depreux (31 October 1898 – 16 October 1981) was a French socialist journalist, essayist, and politician of the French Fourth Republic; he was born in Viesly (''département'' of Nord) and died in Paris. Early career Born ...

and

Alain Savary Alain Savary (25 April 191817 February 1988) was a French Socialist politician, deputy to the National Assembly of France during the Fourth and Fifth Republic, chairman of the Socialist Party (PS) and a government minister in the 1950s and ...

, but he died before the new party split from the SFIO. However, most of his followers in the SFIO entered the PSA later in 1958.

References

External links

* (en)''
Marceau Pivert Archive
on the Marxists Internet Archive * (fr)''
Pivert on La Bataille Socialiste
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pivert, Marceau 1895 births 1958 deaths People from Seine-et-Marne French Section of the Workers' International politicians French Socialist Party (1919) politicians Workers and Peasants' Socialist Party politicians French trade unionists ENS Fontenay-Saint-Cloud-Lyon alumni French military personnel of World War I Members of the Executive of the Labour and Socialist International French male writers Anti-Stalinist left 20th-century French journalists