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From the Free Speech Movement to the Factory Floor: A Collective History of the International Socialists
458 pages, Paperback
Published March 31, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 17, 2026
Important and impressive contribution. So pleased the editor let the authors disagree with each other about how to assess shared experiences.
May 8, 2026
An excellent addition to the growing number of accounts of the post-'68 revolutionary Left in the US and elsewhere. The editors' introduction places the IS in historical context both in its deeper roots in the US left going back to the '30s, and in relation to '60s signposts that would be familiar to a broad audience like SDS and the Panthers. The twenty-six contributions by former IS members cover two decades of political activity from the late 1950s to the early '80s.
IS members were in the thick of the Berkeley Free Speech Movement that kickstarted the campus revolt, built the Peace and Freedom Party in alliance with the Panthers, and then in the 1970s made the most concerted 'turn to the working class' of any US left group of its time. They also connected with a younger cohort of activists in the mid-'70s to build a youth organization that played a leading role in antiracist struggles. The contributors give a strong sense of how all of this worked, usually without offering any pat 'lessons.' They also deal with the more subjective dimension: the intellectual excitement of discovering Marxism, the pleasures of comradeship and the optimism of a revolutionary era, the tensions of trying to live up to a stringent ideal of the 'professional revolutionary,' the depressing splits, etc. At times reminiscent of 'The Romance of American Communism, with less pathos.
IS members were in the thick of the Berkeley Free Speech Movement that kickstarted the campus revolt, built the Peace and Freedom Party in alliance with the Panthers, and then in the 1970s made the most concerted 'turn to the working class' of any US left group of its time. They also connected with a younger cohort of activists in the mid-'70s to build a youth organization that played a leading role in antiracist struggles. The contributors give a strong sense of how all of this worked, usually without offering any pat 'lessons.' They also deal with the more subjective dimension: the intellectual excitement of discovering Marxism, the pleasures of comradeship and the optimism of a revolutionary era, the tensions of trying to live up to a stringent ideal of the 'professional revolutionary,' the depressing splits, etc. At times reminiscent of 'The Romance of American Communism, with less pathos.
August 13, 2026
From the Free Speech Movement to the Factory Floor by Andrew Stone Higgins is a compelling collective history that brings an overlooked chapter of American political and labor activism into sharper focus.
The book traces the development of the Independent Socialist Club at UC Berkeley and its evolution into the International Socialists, following members from the student activism of the 1960s into the workplaces and labor struggles of the 1970s. What makes the book particularly valuable is its emphasis on the experiences and reflections of the people who participated directly in these movements.
The collection of twenty-six original reflections provides a multifaceted portrait of an organization whose members became involved in civil rights, anti-racist organizing, feminism, industrial labor, and rank-and-file union activism. The connections to organizations and initiatives such as Labor Notes and Teamsters for a Democratic Union further demonstrate the lasting influence of these efforts.
For readers interested in American history, the New Left, labor movements, civil rights, socialism, political organizing, and firsthand accounts of twentieth-century activism, From the Free Speech Movement to the Factory Floor offers an illuminating and historically significant collection.
The book traces the development of the Independent Socialist Club at UC Berkeley and its evolution into the International Socialists, following members from the student activism of the 1960s into the workplaces and labor struggles of the 1970s. What makes the book particularly valuable is its emphasis on the experiences and reflections of the people who participated directly in these movements.
The collection of twenty-six original reflections provides a multifaceted portrait of an organization whose members became involved in civil rights, anti-racist organizing, feminism, industrial labor, and rank-and-file union activism. The connections to organizations and initiatives such as Labor Notes and Teamsters for a Democratic Union further demonstrate the lasting influence of these efforts.
For readers interested in American history, the New Left, labor movements, civil rights, socialism, political organizing, and firsthand accounts of twentieth-century activism, From the Free Speech Movement to the Factory Floor offers an illuminating and historically significant collection.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
The accounts of the better-known veterans (Nelson Lichtenstein, Kim Moody, Weinstein) are interesting, and the Draperites are historically under-documented (they remain so, even in this book). However, I am struck by how many contributors simply call the IS "democratic" and then proceed to tell stories about inner cliques, cultishness, strategic cul-de-sacs, splits and purges of enemies that really make you question what they think democracy is or should be.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews