The Communist League in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

was founded as the " Revolutionary Workers League/Ligue Ouvrière Révolutionnaire" (RWL) in 1977 as the result of a merger of the

League for Socialist Action The League for Socialist Action (LSA) was the principal Trotskyist organization in Canada for much of the 20th century. Throughout its history the LSA went through many different names and iterations. In chronological order it was known as: the ...

(LSA), the Revolutionary Marxist Group (RMG) and the Groupe Marxiste Revolutionaire. Originally a

Trotskyist Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...

party, the RWL was the Canadian section of the

Fourth International The Fourth International (FI) was a political international established in France in 1938 by Leon Trotsky and his supporters, having been expelled from the Soviet Union and the Communist International (also known as Comintern or the Third Inte ...

(FI). The group followed the US Socialist Workers Party's (SWP) trajectory away from Trotskyism in favour of a view of

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President of Cuba, president ...

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

as the vanguard of

world revolution World revolution is the Marxist concept of overthrowing capitalism in all countries through the conscious revolutionary action of the organized working class. For theorists, these revolutions will not necessarily occur simultaneously, but whe ...

. The RWL purged members who did not support the new orientation, many of whom went on to form Socialist Challenge and

Gauche Socialiste Gauche Socialiste () is an officially recognised faction within the political party Québec solidaire and an affiliate of the reunified Fourth International. Origins It was formed in 1983 by Trotskyists who left or were expelled from the Re ...

. In 1990, the RWL left the FI to become part of the new Pathfinder tendency spearheaded by the SWP and changed its name to the Communist League. The new group ceased publication of the English ''Socialist Voice'' in favour of selling '' The Militant'', published in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

by the SWP. Michel Prairie is the group's

general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

and primary spokesperson, succeeding Steve Penner in the early 1990s. In early 2004, John Riddell, the RWL's former national secretary, his partner Suzanne Weiss, and Roger Annis left the CL over a dispute regarding protests against the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and started '' Socialist Voice'', taking the name of the RWL's old newspaper. The CL operates a Pathfinder Bookstore in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the RWL and then the CL had branches in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Branches and bookstores in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

were closed by 2008, with CL members from those locations relocated to Montreal to consolidate the organization there.

Candidates for public office

The Communist League has run candidates in some federal, provincial and municipal elections in Canada, most notably in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

and

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

.Official Results, Elections Alberta (Calgary-Cross: Provincial General Election, May 5, 2015)
As the Communist League has not registered as a political party with

Elections Canada Elections Canada () is the non-partisan agency responsible for administering elections in Canada, Canadian federal elections and Referendums in Canada, referendums. History Elections Canada is an agency of the Parliament of Canada, and reports ...

, their candidates are listed as "non-affiliated" on the ballot.

References

{{reflist Political parties established in 1977 Communist parties in Canada 1977 establishments in Canada